question about Case fans.

[tomeryaul]

the case: Phanteks Enthoo Elite
the fan specs: Case PDF Manual pages 20 to 24.
I got my hands on this lovely piece of Chassis and i plan to use it.

the GPUs would have the normal cooling they come with Aorus extreme 1080 Ti 2 way SLI
the CPU would have the EKWB extreme 360 cooling kit on it (have the kit so shame not to use).

i had a huge wish list few months ago and apperently my family took it to heart(and no you can't have them they are MINE... OK fine, the family too, not just the parts).

the radiator will be at the top which still leaves room for 1 more fan next to it.
the case comes with 5 fans already. 1 top, 1 back and 3 front.
plan on removing the drive bays and whatnots that i won't use which leaves an empty wide space of a case.

all the above i already have so no point saying would've/could've/should've and focus on what i am asking please and also thank you for any help one might give.

should i add more fans? or would the fans that come with it be enough?
also how should i set the fans? considering the way my pc will be set as mentioned.
just trying to see the most efficient way to cool a case.
also should i keep the bottom part separate or open it up to the whole case?

one more detail. no limit on budget. so best efficiency regardless of price would be best. if it comes out cheaper that's great but not a factor in any way shape or form.

 

[faalin]

If you can swing it I would mount the radiator in the front of the case so I pull in cool air across it. Mounting it in the top would pull the hot air out of the case through the radiator

 

[Paperdoc]

There are a couple of items missing from your info that we need to give complete advice on the fan systems. For background, here are things I note that will need more info.

The case manual says it comes with TWO of Phantek's PWM Hubs for use with fans. Is that correct? These are good units that give you a lot of flexibility. However, they require a PWM signal to work, and that piece of info comes from the mobo specs. Your case comes with five fans and the EKWB water cooling system comes with none. I assume you plan to add two fans for the radiator of the EKWB, but maybe you don't. Let us know your plans there. IF you are getting two extra fans for that purpose, tell us exactly which ones. If there's a choice, 4-pin fan types are better for this use.

So, post back here:
1. Exactly what maker and model number of mobo are you using?
2. What fans are you using for the radiator? Exact maker and model number.

 

[tomeryaul]

So, post back here:
1. Exactly what maker and model number of mobo are you using?
2. What fans are you using for the radiator? Exact maker and model number.

1. you are right forgat to add that part Auros Gaming 9
2. for a moment you got me worried had to double check. the kit does come with fans. the cooling kit does indeed come with 3 of this exact Vardar fan.

 

[Paperdoc]

That info gives us what we need. The mobo has a LOT of fan headers, and all of them apparently are "Hybrid", meaning that within BIOS Setup you can specify for each header separately whether it uses PWM or Voltage Control Mode. Further, for each header you also can choose which of several temperature sensors it should use for its automatic control functions. The manual does not list all your possible sensor choices, although there is an indication (on p. 55) of what sensor readings can be displayed for you. As a general rule, any device that is cooling the CPU chip should be using the CPU temperature sensor (it is built into the chip itself by its maker), and fans cooling the case should be guided by a System sensor built into the mobo. (Your mobo has two System sensors, several more in specific areas of the mobo, and two I don't even recognize.)

For case ventilation you have 5 fans supplied, and I'm pretty sure they are of the 3-pin type. You have three possible choices for powering and controlling them.

One is to use one of those PWM Hubs included with the case, connect it to a single SYS_FAN header, and set that header to use PWM Mode and the System1 temperature sensor. Then all five of those fans will operate in exactly the same way.

The second option is to split those five into two groups, each connected to one of the two Hubs. Connect the Hubs to two SYS_FAN headers, set both headers to use PWM Mode, and select the temperature sensor you want for each.

The third option is not to use those Hubs, and use all four mobo SYS_FAN headers - one for each of three fans individually, and the fourth with a two-from-one fan Splitter. That gets you five fans, in four "groups". For this option, you must set the control Mode for each header to Voltage, then configure for each header what temperature sensor to use. You certainly can use the same sensor to guide more than one fan header.

Now on to the CPU cooling system, the EKWB Extreme 360, which apparently comes with three 4-pin fans. I believe the EKWB system comes with a 3-output fan splitter. Using this you can connect all three to the CPU_OPT header and set it to use PWM Mode and the CPU temperature sensor, and they all will run identically. Of course, only one of those three will have its speed displayed for you (the other two will be ignored), but they all should be the same speeds anyway. (IF you don't have a Splitter, here is another:

https://www.newegg.com/global/au/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812423162&cm_re=coboc_fan_splitter-_-12-423-162-_-Product

Next is how to power and control the pump of the EKWB system. It draws its main power directly from the PSU via a 4-pin Molex output. But it also has a cable that must plug into the mobo CPU_FAN header. I expect that one's main function is to feed the pump speed signal back to that header for monitoring and display, but MAYBE it also uses it for control. So be sure to configure this header also to use PWM Mode and the CPU temperature sensor.

 

[tomeryaul]

that was actually helpful information that would help me a lot. way more then i asked and i think i will use this guide as one of my references when i do put things together this weekend.
actually it answered only my second question
if i understand right this means you think i have enough fans for a case like this. remember that there is a separate space at the bottom and its a very large case.

 

[Paperdoc]

If I get your posts right, you have a total of eight fans. Five were included with the case, and an additional three were included with the EKWB cooler system. Although those last three are primarily for CPU cooling, they certainly will contribute to flow of air through the case, no matter whether you set them up as front intakes or top exhausts. In my opinion that is quite enough fans.

That isolated space at the bottom provides interesting options. I don't know what you plan to mount there. If it is just your PSU, that unit usually will take care of its own cooling needs. But if you plan on mounting other things in there - say, the EKWB pump and liquid reservoir, or some of your HDD units - you might consider mounting in the front of that space one of the case's 5 fans as an intake, with a dust filter in front of it..

One consideration in placing fans is balance of air flow. Ideally, the total intake airflow would equal the total exhaust air flow. Well, actually, it MUST - what goes in MUST come out! But I'm talking about airflow as anticipated from fan ratings. Further, in my opinion, one wants a SLIGHT bias towards more intake capacity that exhaust. This results in a very small positive pressure inside the case. That means that, wherever leaks occur, air will be flowing outwards and not pulling in room dust. BUT it also means that every intake fan MUST have a dust filter in front of it, and that you check those filters regularly and clean them.

"Calculating" anticipated air balance from fan ratings is not very accurate. Two items immediately throw errors into those ratings. Start from realizing that the ratings are done for unrestricted air flow through a fan at full speed. But the moment you place dust filters in front of an intake fan, that reduces its air flow a bit. Consider the three fans on your EKWB radiator that probably will be mounted to blow air out of the case through the radiator. That radiator is a significant air flow restriction, so the actual rate of exhausting from these three fans is less than their unrestricted ratings. Add to that the fact that automatic control of all your fans to keep the temperatures at the correct values will change ALL of the fan air flows.

So, the best you can do from a planning perspective is to ignore temporarily the fan speed issue. I suggest you place three included fans in the case front with dust filters in front of them, mounted as intakes. Mount one of the included fans in the back as an exhaust, and it won't have any significant restrictions. Then the three radiator fans will act as exhaust fans, but with more restrictions than the others. The net result is three slightly-restricted intakes at front, one unrestricted exhaust at back, and three more-restricted exhausts at top. That's a decent starting point. (This ignores the bottom chamber which is isolated.)

IF you are interested in the final balance of air flow and pressure, there's a relatively simple tests you can do when your whole system is set up and working. Get a small source of smoke, like a cigarette or an incense stick. More it close to external leak points like the optical drive tray, or cracks at corners, etc., and just watch which way the smoke flows - into the case, or away from the case.

 

[tomeryaul]

I am not as savvy as you :/ i never thought so far as to try to calculate things or anticipate things. i like keeping things simple.
I am inclined toward a "set it and forget it" type of style. so the only monitoring be when i set things up and after that let it run and only come back to it when in need of maintenance or fixes.
as far as as the isolated space i really have nothing to put there. the PSU sure, but after that? i got 1 M.2 Drive and 1 normal drive thats it. since the case is big i thought it would be too much of a hassle to put a cooling part down there like the pump or reservoir, and any other drive i might add will mount on the back for aesthetic purposes.

again thank you for everything this will really help i think i will even have my laptop open on this page as i do things lol.

 

[Paperdoc]

I agree with you - keep it simple until you see a real need for something more. Using the bottom isolated chamber for only the PSU makes sense. In that case you may not need the fifth fan supplied with the case at all. Only one thought I can suggest as a possible for this. If I understand the case details properly, there actually are removable panels at the top of that space, so that you can remove some or all of them to make it not isolated. If that is so, one way to use the fifth fan might be to remove some of those panels and mount the fifth fan in the front opening of the lower chamber. This would let the air it draws in move up through the case, slightly increasing air intake overall. It's not that I think you need that - just a possibility if you want to consider.

Thanks for Best Solution, and have fun!