Noisy dual MP system

[Minotaar]

I've got a dual 1800+ MP system in an antec server chassis (the one with the door). The CPUs are cooled with two Vantec CCK-6035s, and i have four case fans, and a dual fan PSU (Antec 400SL - 92mm on the bottom, 80mm out).

Its too noisy.

First of all the CCK-6035s come with these rediculous fans on them - they whine with a high annoying pitch. Took those out, replaced them with 60->80mm fan adaptors, and put panaflo L1As on them.

Im a little uncomfy with the temperature readout, as I used to be at 35 and 40, and now Im at 50 and 60C. Dont know if this is tolerable, given the (presumed) inaccuracy in the motherboard temp readings. For this reason Im scared about reducing the # of fans to get noise down further. From an empirical perspective, its obvious that fan noise is still the #1 culprit (silencing the HDs and such is not a factor imo right now).

Questions:
1) how can I get an accurate temp reading?

2) Can I afford to further increase case temp by reducing the # of fans (currently 4 + PSU fans)? If I replace them with all L1As will that be bad? Currently they're noname 80 mm fans

3) Should I put the L1As on case duty, and put a more scalable fan on the CPUs?

4) When a fan is "thermistor controlled" what exactly does that mean? Does that mean the motherboard controlls its speed when its plugged into the 3-pin plugs for CPU fans?

My case has two case fans in back, two in front, and the PSU fan. the front is intake, back is exhaust. can I switch this up to improve temps to CPUs? (how do I reverse the PSU?)

5) I've also noticed that the two exhaust fans behind the CPUS are not blowing out hot air, while the PSU is. Sure, heat rises and stuff, but there is an obvious temp difference between the two airstreams. Does this suggest that I can reduce the # of fans?

6) Finally, can I duct from the rear case fans onto the CPUs directly to eliminate the two CPU fans and simultaneously get better cooling? Can these work in "suck" mode, given my current temp settings?

 

[EeyoreX]

All in all, if your system is stable, you are not running to hot, at least not hot enough to damage anything. If you start to lower fan duty or remove/replace fans and you start freezing/crashing and getting unstable, then worry about fixing your cooling.

1) Your BIOS reading should be the most accurate. Use some software, like MBM5, or any other and compare to your BIOS temp. Whichever is closest the BIOS temp, is probably the best temp to go by.

2) Depends on your case and airflow. You should be okay though. The other option is to get a fan controller/rheobus, like the Sunbeam, to quiet your fans down, or even turn them off when they are not needed. Though, the only way to be sure here is to try the Panaflos and compare temps.

3) Again, it's often best to experiement.

4) AFAIK, yes.

And don't reverse your fans. As you pointed out, heat rises so seting your lower front as exhaust probably won't help much. Though, there are people who claim this has helped, so, again, experiemnt...

5) Perhaps. You can probably run one exhaust back there. My case also has two, but I actually keep these off (via my Sunbeam) until I want to game or use my PC heavily. My system stays stable with my 2 exhaust fans off and my 2 front intakes at about 1500-2000 quiet rpms.

6) I think if you want to duct your CPU fans you should have the fans bring in outside cooler air to blow over your HS rather than have the fans pull the warmer air out. I am not sure about this however.

\Dan

 

[Politik]

Try figuring out a way to get rid of any restrictive grills by the fans. I've read that a "hand nibbler" or tin snips are good tools for this. Cyberguys has the cheapest nibbler I've seen yet, Directron also sells them...

Edit: Sorry, I forgot you have the Antec server case (this is like the Dragon cases, right?), their grills (the exhausts anyways) are quite good already.

Instead of using the fan adapters on the heatsinks, just get heatsinks that take 80mm fans. Putting a low-flow fan like the L1A with a fan adapter will really kill airflow, because low-flow fans have a very difficult time pulling/pushing air when there is "back-pressure". I've got an NMB low-rpm fan with an SVC GC68 on my tbird 800 right now, and its quiet, even with the stock fan. Its supposed to be good up to 1800+... if you're really worried about cpu temps, maybe a thermalright SK-7 would be better.

If you remove fans, I'd remove the intakes first, as those fans usually have the most restrictive grills anyways (especially if you consider the front case bezel).

Also, your PSU is probably quite loud. Replace it with a Fortron 400W PSU, and then see what happens to your case temps... your PSU shouldnt be a significant air-exhaust route for your computer, no matter what... its too obstructed, and you can get more exhaust with less noise by using the case exhaust fans.