Need some case modification help please!

phill9700

Member
Apr 10, 2003
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hi all,

i have bought myself a chenbro gaming case along with the below hardware..

nf7-s rev 2
barton xp2500 @ 1.75Vcore
corsair xms 3200 memory
geforce 3 ti 200
pioneer DVD-RW + DVD rom drive
maxtor 120gig ata133 hard drive
falcon rock 2 cpu cooler

now, i know that the cpu cooler isnt all that brillaint, but my main concern at this moment in time is the case and the lack of air flow.

it has housing for a 120mm fan at the back and a 92mm or 80mm fan at the front. i was thinking of adding these two fans in at the bare minimum as my cpu and case temps (for me) are too high. i was going to go for a 120x120x38mm fan as it pushes 20CFM more air and is 5db less noiser. These are the fans i was looking at using.

im aiming for <50C cpu temps for when im overclocking it more (im at 2.2ghz at the moment, id like to see perhaps 2.4ghz or even 2.5ghz) and for the system temps, as low as possible. i think its nearing 30C at the moment.

i have added some very TEMP fans in the case at the moment. ive taken the fan from the cpu and put that on the back of the case and i have taken a fan from my girl friends xaser 2 case and put that at the front. the temps before that where 54C and i think nearly 35C for the cpu and system respectively. the psu does have a 120mm fan inside it, but its not very loud so imagine its not pushing a lot of air.

would it be worth while to have a fan amounted on the side of the case? i again was thinking of either 2 92mm fans or just one 120mm fan (probably the same one that was mentioned to go at the back of the case.)

please please please, can someone help me with regards to this silly problem. im just looking for some advice as to whether or not this is a good idea or i can do it better.
thank you for the help and time... sorry about the post being so long. i hope its a little easier to read, as i know my previous posts havent been all that good.
thanks again! im looking forward to some replies :)
 

Slogun

Platinum Member
Jul 4, 2001
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You don't want your comp to sound like an airplane.....

Check out the quiet fans at this low-noise specialty site

20dB or less is virtually silent. ;)
 

phill9700

Member
Apr 10, 2003
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well, im not sooooo worried if its a little loud, but i do want to cool it down rather than it being able to cook my breakfast on it :)

whats a sensible limit then for the fan noise? i figured 35db was ok.... am i right or miles away from the truth?
 

Slogun

Platinum Member
Jul 4, 2001
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How many dB one can tolerate is up to each user.
My limit, and which I strive to stay under, is 25 dB.

But why not, at this point while building, go for cool AND quiet?
My system, for example is very quiet, yet idles at <40, while the CPU and GPU are both overclocked.
 

Gravity

Diamond Member
Mar 21, 2003
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Originally posted by: phill9700
well, im not sooooo worried if its a little loud, but i do want to cool it down rather than it being able to cook my breakfast on it :)

whats a sensible limit then for the fan noise? i figured 35db was ok.... am i right or miles away from the truth?

I have to have less than 25db. 35 will keep me awake at night. The pitch of the noise makes a difference also. Higher rpm fans will have a different sound and are more annoying.

Gravity
 

phill9700

Member
Apr 10, 2003
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i have been looking into this a little more and i have found some heatsinks that i was considering to upgrade to (when i have the money and the spare time to use my pc!!).. i was just wondering on what one people would recommend:

Thermalright SLK800A £33 inc vat
Thermalright SLK900U £39 inc vat
Thermalright SLK900A £38 inc vat
Thermalright SLK947U £42 inc vat

now i know it seems a lot of money but i believe if im going to be doing a job right, then i might as well do it really well... dont you think? now as for the fan to go on top i have two in mind, a YS Tech 92MM fan (50CFM, 32db) or the monstor of a Vantec Tornado 92mm fan (119CFM, 57db, i would obvously get a fan controller for this one!!) but which one would anyone go for?

im looking for very good cooling, at the moment my side of the case is slightly off and the cpu and system temps are hoovering around.. 50C and 26C and i would like to see them coming down... (under a full load using UD Agent.. cancer research program, perhaps somewhere in the region of 40 to 44C for the cpu, 20 to 24C for the system temp??)

anyone have any ideas? recommendations?
 

phill9700

Member
Apr 10, 2003
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Originally posted by: Gravity
Originally posted by: phill9700
well, im not sooooo worried if its a little loud, but i do want to cool it down rather than it being able to cook my breakfast on it :)

whats a sensible limit then for the fan noise? i figured 35db was ok.... am i right or miles away from the truth?

I have to have less than 25db. 35 will keep me awake at night. The pitch of the noise makes a difference also. Higher rpm fans will have a different sound and are more annoying.

Gravity

well, could you put it into perspective for me? whats 25db like and whats 35db like? i dont know really what the difference is.. apart from 35db is louder than 25!!! comparisons?
 

phill9700

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Apr 10, 2003
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i have decided on getting the following three fans for the time being, as i cant afford these really, but i figured i really did need them anyway.. specs are included

Vantec SF12025L Stealth 120mm fan: for the back of the case
- Dimensions: 120x120x25mm
- Airflow: 53 CFM
- Power consumption: 0.96 W
- Noise Level: 28 dBA
- Speed: 1500 RPM

YS-TECH FD8125 80mm Fan - 3 Pin: for the replacement on the cpu heatsink
- Speed - 3000RPM
- Output - 45.2CFM
- Decibels - 34.2dBA
- Dimensions - 80x80x25

YS-Tech FD9325 92mm Fan - 3 pin: for the front of the case
- Speed - 2400RPM
- Output - 50.0CFM
- Decibels - 31.9dBA
- Dimensions - 92x92x25

if these fans arent any good, please let me know before wednesday as i will be ordering them for the weekend! (i work nights at the moment and i sleep during the day!!) thanks for the help guys!
i have also decided i want the vantec 92mm tornado with the better heatsink that i buy, but im unsure as to which one would be best. one other thing, what fan controller would suite the tornado fan best? i need to tame it down!!
thanks again for the help guys !! :)
 

mrzed

Senior member
Jan 29, 2001
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Vantec stealth fans have a rep for being loud among the silent pc crowd. In 120mm sizes, the best bets if you care about noise are:

Enermax adjustable
Papst
Panaflo L1A
NMB B10
Evercool with aluminium frame

Of these, the evercool and enermax are likely to be cheapest. The papst most expensive. All will move plenty of air.

Edit: Just reread the post. Don't worry about temps, once you get a 120mm fan in the back, combined with the 120 in the PSU, you will have plenty of airflow. If you care at all about noise, getting a Vantec tornado and turning it down seems like one step forward, two steps back. Why not start with a quieter fan in the first place?

Your temps aren't even that out of line as is. Improving airflow will help, but if you are serious about overclocking, your limitation is definitely going to be the CPU HS, not the case temps. (I also use the Falcon Rock II, but I'm happy with a modest overclock).
 

Slogun

Platinum Member
Jul 4, 2001
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Originally posted by: mrzed
Vantec stealth fans have a rep for being loud among the silent pc crowd. In 120mm sizes, the best bets if you care about noise are:

Enermax adjustable
Papst
Panaflo L1A
NMB B10
Evercool with aluminium frame

Of these, the evercool and enermax are likely to be cheapest. The papst most expensive. All will move plenty of air.

Edit: Just reread the post. Don't worry about temps, once you get a 120mm fan in the back, combined with the 120 in the PSU, you will have plenty of airflow. If you care at all about noise, getting a Vantec tornado and turning it down seems like one step forward, two steps back. Why not start with a quieter fan in the first place?

Your temps aren't even that out of line as is. Improving airflow will help, but if you are serious about overclocking, your limitation is definitely going to be the CPU HS, not the case temps. (I also use the Falcon Rock II, but I'm happy with a modest overclock).

Well said

:D
 

phill9700

Member
Apr 10, 2003
137
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Edit: Just reread the post. Don't worry about temps, once you get a 120mm fan in the back, combined with the 120 in the PSU, you will have plenty of airflow. If you care at all about noise, getting a Vantec tornado and turning it down seems like one step forward, two steps back. Why not start with a quieter fan in the first place?

Your temps aren't even that out of line as is. Improving airflow will help, but if you are serious about overclocking, your limitation is definitely going to be the CPU HS, not the case temps. (I also use the Falcon Rock II, but I'm happy with a modest overclock).


im not soooo worried about the temps, but me being me, i like things to be a certain way. im not so bothered about noise, i mean, its nice to know its working! (although without the 2 fans i added, the noisest thing was the hard drive and dvd rom drives! everything else i couldnt hear!

the falcon rock is a good cooler for near standard clock speeds, but i would like something just that little bit more from it, so im prepaired to get something a little better, even if it does cost a little more.

the reason for the tornado is simple really, should i need to blast it with cold air, i can just turn up the power, should i not need to, i can just keep it to a nice set level. besides, i figured a fan that could move 119CFM of air was a thing to buy it anyways!
i am going to try the 3 fans im going to buy near to the weekend (so i can use them at the weekend!!) and see what difference they do. the stealth fan for the back, the 92mm model for the front and then the faster 80mm fan for the cpu heatsink. im hoping to notice some difference!
 

phill9700

Member
Apr 10, 2003
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well, i have just let my pc idle with the side of the case on and the temps where:

cpu 63C
system 37C

i figured thats a little high and well i have just taken the side of the case off and im just seeing what the differences are with that...
after 14 minutes, they are:

cpu 58C
system 28C

i know these are still far to high, i think i need to start ordering a heatsink asap.. what do you guys think? im getting some fans ordered tonight so i will be ordering 1x120mm, 1x92mm and a 80mm fan for the heatsink, i figured it might help it enough.. i can wish! i will see what happens with the temps now and then see what else needs to be done. i think i might try and put a 120mm fan on the side of the case.. i think i need a little more cooling!
 

phill9700

Member
Apr 10, 2003
137
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i have just ordered my fans, i have bought:

YS-TECH FD8125 80mm Fan - 3 Pin (FG-001-YS) 1 of
YS-Tech FD9325 92mm Fan - 3 pin (FG-009-YS) 1 of
YS-TECH FD1238 120mm Fan - 4 Pin (FG-004-YS) 2 of

i was going to buy the 120mm vantec fans, but they wherent in stock! i havent ordered my new heatsink yet, but depending on the out come of this, i might not worry about it for a little while.
if the fans are too loud, then i will have to get a fan controller, but i think i will be getting one anyway, should i order the vantec tornado.. i odnt think i could cope with that going off in my ears for very long!
i will give you the results when i have managed to sort out the case mods and got the fans installed. thanks for the help guys, i really appreaite it :)