Airflow Issues causing high temps - where to positon

[AmbitionAnt]

Hi All,

I currently have an issue getting my temps down when gaming on my PC. Idles around 38-40 degrees for CPU and when gaming will hit 85-90 degrees. GPU will sit around 65 (which i believe is fine).

I have reseated the cpu cooler and re-done thermal paste a few times and hasn't improved the temps - I believe it is now the airflow in my case affecting it.

Spec:

Case: Fractal Design R5
CPU: i7 4790K
CPU Cooler: Coolermaster EVO 212 - FAN IS FACING THE EXHAUST FAN AT THE BACK of the case
GPU: Zotac GTX 980 Amp Extreme
Fan Setup:

1X Fractal Dynamic GP14 - back of the case at the top (standard position - exhaust)
1X Fractal Dynamic GP14 - front of the case - intake
1X Corsair SP120 - Bottom of the case(as in facing the floor- next to PSU) - Exhaust I Believe
1x Corsair SP120 - Side Window - Exhaust

I currently have another Fractal Dynamic GP14 being delivered soon.

Could someone tell me where I should position the fans to achieve best airflow? I am thinking maybe i need to put an exhaust in one of the slots at the top of the case. and maybe change one of the fans to intake?

Case is sat on the floor (on carpet) on the standard feet the case has. My thinking may be the bottom corsair fan is useless right now.

Any help would be great.

Thanks

 

[WildCard999]

I would set that side window as intake to help cool the GPU & CPU but I think you may need a better CPU cooler as the 4790K runs really warm.

 

[AmbitionAnt]

I’ll try that - and maybe move the Corsair from the bottom to the top until I get the fractal fan delivered. Common sense is hot air rises so easier to let it escape up top.

Reckon it’s best to get something like a Corsair h115i?

 

[maestro0428]

That case doesn't have much airflow by design (so it can be quiet). I agree that putting the side fan as an intake is a good idea. Get some fresher air to that cpu. You could always switch to an AIO h20 kit too.

 

[WildCard999]

A AIO would help or even a high end air unit such as the Be Quiet Dark Rock 3 would be better then that 212.

 

[AmbitionAnt]

I’ll take that as something I’ll do in future with extra money

Thanks for the suggestions.

I’ll try changing the side fan to an intake.

Thinking the bottom fan isn’t achieving anything and will move this to the top - meaning taking a top panel out. Rather have it cool than be quiet right now.

 

[WildCard999]

What is your room temp? While the 212 is a budget cooler I would think it should still keep the 4790K under 80C as long as it isn't overclocked. And if it is overclocked I would bring it back to stock until you can get the temp down.

 

[AmbitionAnt]

Room sitting around 20-22 degrees id say. The comp is obv heating it up tho.

It’s not overclocked. Made sure it was turned down as the ASUS ROG Motherboard just hates the 4790k

 

[Karadjgne]

Start with keeping your fans in pairs on splitters. Mixing fans for intakes isn't doing you any favors as they'll spin at different rpm and put out different cfm. So move both fractal or add a fractal to the front and splitter both to a single header.
The bottom fan can be left, as intake not exhaust.
If you have a spare 120mm, stick it on the backside of that hyper212, blowing toward a corsair at rear exhaust.
Pop 2x of the top covers towards the back and stick a couple of Corsair's there as exhaust.
Trim you fan curves. I have an R5 Window with only a 280mm aio as intake and the stock fractals as exhaust at top and no fan sees more than 900rpm at anytime and the pc is still extremely quiet, almost silent.
The door venting on the R5 can be restrictive, but that's only when high cfm fans are run at max speeds where the fan draw is higher than the vents allow air to pass. If the fans are turned down, the vents pass plenty of air, so that's really a non issue.

 

[AmbitionAnt]

Thanks for suggesting fan splitters - just brought one as realised I’m at my limit with fan slots left on my motherboard.

 

[AmbitionAnt]

As it stands I would do the following:

2x fractal in front - splitter - both intake
1x Corsair sp120 - bottom case - intake
1x Corsair sp120 - side - intake
1x fractal - back case - exhaust

This would mean 4 intake 1 exhaust ? Is this too much ?

Also, I think I need to move my fan in the cooler evo 212 into the side over the RAM? Is this correct ?

 

[Karadjgne]

Yes. But I'd not bother with the side fan immediately, and personally I almost always use side fans as exhaust, if I need to use one at all, the draw will remove plenty of heat from the gpu exhausts. You can test it out to see which way works better, but most side exhaust ports are not filtered. That would use the side for most of the gpu, and the rear for the rest, which is fine. With 2 exhausts and 3 intakes, you'll have roughly a positive flow, which will further keep dust out of the case.

The hyper212 fan should be on the ram side, blowing through the heatsink towards the rear exhaust. You can also put a 120mm on the rear, try to match the fans and use a splitter to the cpu fan header.

 

[AmbitionAnt]

Ok - I’m guessing the Corsair sp120 that’s currently in the side window can’t go on the other side of the evo212 though?

 

[WildCard999]

Go with the quiet versions, I made the mistake of going with the high performance versions and there really loud.

 

[AmbitionAnt]

I already have the SP120s

When I receive the other fractal fan. Would it be best to put both Corsair at the front and move fractal to side window and bottom ? I’m thinking it would be more beneficial having the fractal on the side window atleast

 

[Karadjgne]

Test. That's all part of case mods, upgrades etc. You might decide the Corsair's are good at intake, you might decide the fractals are better. It's kinda up to you. The fractal are quieter, but the Corsair have potentially more cfm, so it's a balance of looks vrs performance vs volume.