Question Corsair Carbide Spec-06 and airflow...

[Clueless1200]

Hey guys, full disclosure before I start, I'm a total noob when it comes to PC building, so bear with me.

Gonna be building my first rig fairly soon, but I'm finicky as hell and so far the only case I've found that I actually really like the look of and doesn't cost a bomb is the Corsair Spec-06 (white/RGB), but I keep seeing people say the airflow is nothing special. Was wondering if case fans would make a significant difference? I'd probably get "2x be quiet! Silent Wings 3 (120mm) PWM Case Fans" to be precise. Would that be enough to make it good/decent? I'm not trying to get the absolute best airflow in the world or anything, but you know, I'd rather my first proper rig not explode or melt in front of my eyes or whatever.

I am interested in overclocking my GPU (probably a 2070 Super), if that makes a difference.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Karadjgne]

Airflow is important. That's a given. The inside of the case runs @ 6-12°C higher than the outside, at idle. Airflow is what's going to keep that value, or close to it, when the cpu and gpu are under loads, and dumping heat into the case. You only get 2x fans with the case, that's enough for minimal airflow, adding 2x more case fans will optimize airflow. You don't need gale force windage, you just need the air to move.

There isn't much benefit to OC on a gpu like the 2070 super. Those things (assuming a decent AIB OC card) are already pushing limits and don't have all that much overhead. It's get a possible 5-20fps output, but that's also assuming you have a cpu that'll exceed that fps, and a monitor that can use that fps.

Fps limits are set by the cpu, not gpu. If the cpu only puts out 150fps, all the gpu OC possible will not raise that, so if the gpu is capable of 151fps at stock values, you'll still only get 150. It'll just be extra wear on the gpu, extra heat output, for 0 gains. If you are running 4k resolution, and only getting 50fps out of the gpu, the extra 5 or so fps might help there, the cpu is still at 150fps. So whether gpu OC shows any real benefit will depend on the game, and the rest of your equipment.

 

[Clueless1200]

Airflow is important. That's a given. The inside of the case runs @ 6-12°C higher than the outside, at idle. Airflow is what's going to keep that value, or close to it, when the cpu and gpu are under loads, and dumping heat into the case. You only get 2x fans with the case, that's enough for minimal airflow, adding 2x more case fans will optimize airflow. You don't need gale force windage, you just need the air to move.

There isn't much benefit to OC on a gpu like the 2070 super. Those things (assuming a decent AIB OC card) are already pushing limits and don't have all that much overhead. It's get a possible 5-20fps output, but that's also assuming you have a cpu that'll exceed that fps, and a monitor that can use that fps.

Fps limits are set by the cpu, not gpu. If the cpu only puts out 150fps, all the gpu OC possible will not raise that, so if the gpu is capable of 151fps at stock values, you'll still only get 150. It'll just be extra wear on the gpu, extra heat output, for 0 gains. If you are running 4k resolution, and only getting 50fps out of the gpu, the extra 5 or so fps might help there, the cpu is still at 150fps. So whether gpu OC shows any real benefit will depend on the game, and the rest of your equipment.

Oh yeah, I should probably specify I'll likely be using an MSI 2070 Super Gaming X Trio, but it's apparently a "pre-overclocked edition", hence why I was considering it. I'll be playing on an already-purchased Gigabyte 1440p monitor, mostly gaming and browsing but occasionally doing development stuff with Unity. Will probably have a 3700x CPU as well (no interest in overclocking that).

I'll switch to a different case if there's real risk (someone else told me the fans won't make a difference but I'm trying to get a rage of opinions), but damn, it is hard finding another one I actually like the look of.

 

[Karadjgne]

Lol, no joke. Cases, keyboards and mice are the most personal items of a pc. You absolutely need to like them, or any experience with the pc sucks. Nobody wants to look at an ugly case for hours, or use a keyboard that they hate or mess with a mouse that doesn't fit comfortably.

As far as fans and count, yes, it's important. 2 intakes and 2 exhaust especially with 120mm fans is close to optimal, 140mm would be better for intakes. What doesn't matter so much is brand. That's a personal choice based on needed or presumed performance vrs noise. Looks count too, many ppl want the performance of Noctua NF-A12x25 but don't want the tan/brown on their black/red pc. The silent wings are a decent alternative.

That msi has a boost of 1800MHz, reference I believe is 1770, and the highest I could find is 1935, so you have a little room, base clock of 1605, highest is 1635, so really negligible difference there. OC if you feel like you have to, but I doubt you'll get much out of it. My gtx970 is pushing a 124% OC from stock clocks, which were already OC from reference, so that's a decent gain, but on your card that's only 7% gain, even going a little higher, to a 10% gain would only be @ 5-7fps on the top end, so may or may not be of any use.

 

[Clueless1200]

Lol, no joke. Cases, keyboards and mice are the most personal items of a pc. You absolutely need to like them, or any experience with the pc sucks. Nobody wants to look at an ugly case for hours, or use a keyboard that they hate or mess with a mouse that doesn't fit comfortably.

As far as fans and count, yes, it's important. 2 intakes and 2 exhaust especially with 120mm fans is close to optimal, 140mm would be better for intakes. What doesn't matter so much is brand. That's a personal choice based on needed or presumed performance vrs noise. Looks count too, many ppl want the performance of Noctua NF-A12x25 but don't want the tan/brown on their black/red pc. The silent wings are a decent alternative.

That msi has a boost of 1800MHz, reference I believe is 1770, and the highest I could find is 1935, so you have a little room, base clock of 1605, highest is 1635, so really negligible difference there. OC if you feel like you have to, but I doubt you'll get much out of it. My gtx970 is pushing a 124% OC from stock clocks, which were already OC from reference, so that's a decent gain, but on your card that's only 7% gain, even going a little higher, to a 10% gain would only be @ 5-7fps on the top end, so may or may not be of any use.

Ah OK, in that case I might not bother with the OC then. But I've been looking at cases pretty much all day and haven't found a single alternative that has good airflow, a design I like, and is actually affordable for me, so I think I'm probably just gonna go with the Corsair instead of tearing my hair out some more. As long as I can get some air going through it at a decent enough level so I don't have any real problems, that's all I want.

The guys I'm buying from only have these fans to choose from, any in particular you'd recommend? I'm fine with the looks of any of them except the Noctua, although I think the £100+ ones are probably out of the question for me.

 

[Karadjgne]

The Arctic F12 PWM are a good value. Quiet and move a decent amount of air.

Case Fan: ARCTIC F12 PWM PST 53 CFM 120 mm Fan (£6.64 @ Amazon UK)