What is the coldest case I can get for my GPUs?

[xxxlun4icexxx]

Running 3 way SLI, cards run hot due to the proximity. Have tried everything, someone mentioned a full-sized case may help (I was a bit spectacle as I have also heard the 500R is really top of the line as far as temps go).

Currently using the Corsair 500R.

So my question is, (and, i guess let's keep it under $350.00 if possible, but give me all of your suggestions), what would be the coldest case I could get to better give me a chance to cool my GPUs?

 

[WildCard999]

Super Flower makes a case that is massive and has two 200mm intake fans on the side of the case that would provide excellent air flow to help cool the gpus. The only issue though is that there doesn't seem to be a site that sells it so you would probably need to contact Super Flower directly and see what the cost(s) would be to get it. Another option would be liquid cooling.

http://www.super-flower.com.tw/products_detail.php?class=1&sn=1&ID=22&lang=

 

[VincentP]

How effective the case is at cooling your cards will depend on your room temperature. The case isn't actually cooling the air, just moving hot air away from the graphics cards and replacing it with room temperature air.

I'm not sure if another case will help, but here are two suggestions with very good cooling:
Silverstone Raven RV02-E
Silverstone Fortress FT02

These are essentially the same, but the Raven case is more of a gamer case with a black finish in plastic and steel while the FT02 comes in silver or black and has a lot of aluminium and sound proofing with a higher price tag.

 

[geofelt]

For such cooling, the real answer is to have sufficient intake air.
One option would be to replace the two 120mm intake fans with higher capacity units(at an increase in noise)
Those that are 38mm wide will have the highest output.
They may run up to 5000 rpm. I doubt you want those.

I might suggest a LIAN LI PC-A75 aluminum case.
Here is one with 3 140mm intake fans that should do the job.
Outstanding quality too:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112387

 

[xxxlun4icexxx]

what temps are you getting? No matter what three GTX980 sitting one next to the other will run hot unless you get an AC unit blowing cold air directly into the case or just water cool them.

It's only the top card that I am having an issue with. At a constant 100% load it just creeps its way up gradually to 85C (which is my temp target, 100% fan speed comes on at 70C) and throttles down a little bit (about 100 mhz) and stays there.

If i set a frame limit in EVGA precision and the GPU stays at around 70-90% the temp stays around 70-76C (Fan also at 100%)

My last ditch effort is replacing the stock 200mm side-panel fan with 2 140mm corsair quiet edition fans. I'm hoping they can supply a bit more air right onto the GPUs.

 

[xxxlun4icexxx]

doubtful replacing your 200m will make a significant difference. 85c is rather cool for a GPU in tri sli. Is the noise bothering you on the fans at 100%?

I don't mind the fans at all, I just don't want to damage the GPU. Should I just be raising the temp target even more?

 

[geofelt]

side fans tend to disrupt the natural front to back airflow.
If you want to experiment, buy a couple of 2000 rpm 120mm intake fans and see how you do.

 

[VincentP]

doubtful replacing your 200m will make a significant difference. 85c is rather cool for a GPU in tri sli. Is the noise bothering you on the fans at 100%?

I don't mind the fans at all, I just don't want to damage the GPU. Should I just be raising the temp target even more?

Raising the temperature target will mean the GPU will get hotter before it throttles. This is certainly not the solution if you are worried about temperatures.

side fans tend to disrupt the natural front to back airflow.
If you want to experiment, buy a couple of 2000 rpm 120mm intake fans and see how you do.

This is absolutely true. Some cases with fan placements everywhere have rubbish cooling.
You don't want to just blow air directly on hot components, this is what your CPU and GPU fans are for.
The case cooling needs to move air through the case so that hot air is replaced by room temperature air.

You can try the idea above. The Skythe Ultra Kaze fans are very effective for this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185054
Be warned, a 3000 RPM fan is not quiet.

The two cases I suggested above have a rotated motherboard layout. Air moves from bottom to top rather than from front to back.
In your case, rising heat from the bottom two cards may be contributing to the top card being hotter. The RV02-E and FT02 allow heat from each card to rise out the top of the case.
Cooling is essentially the same for the two cases. Here is a review:
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article1250-page7.html

 

[xxxlun4icexxx]

doubtful replacing your 200m will make a significant difference. 85c is rather cool for a GPU in tri sli. Is the noise bothering you on the fans at 100%?

I don't mind the fans at all, I just don't want to damage the GPU. Should I just be raising the temp target even more?

Raising the temperature target will mean the GPU will get hotter before it throttles. This is certainly not the solution if you are worried about temperatures.

side fans tend to disrupt the natural front to back airflow.
If you want to experiment, buy a couple of 2000 rpm 120mm intake fans and see how you do.

This is absolutely true. Some cases with fan placements everywhere have rubbish cooling.
You don't want to just blow air directly on hot components, this is what your CPU and GPU fans are for.
The case cooling needs to move air through the case so that hot air is replaced by room temperature air.

You can try the idea above. The Skythe Ultra Kaze fans are very effective for this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185054
Be warned, a 3000 RPM fan is not quiet.

The two cases I suggested above have a rotated motherboard layout. Air moves from bottom to top rather than from front to back.
In your case, rising heat from the bottom two cards may be contributing to the top card being hotter. The RV02-E and FT02 allow heat from each card to rise out the top of the case.
Cooling is essentially the same for the two cases. Here is a review:
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article1250-page7.html

Well, the 2 140mm fans seem to be helping a lot actually. They may just be blowing in a crucial spot or something along the GPU, but my CPU temps actually lowered quite a bit. It used to idle at 36-38 and now it's pretty solid at 33. I also cleared out anything in the path of the weaker 120mm stock intake fan which blows through the space between gpu1 and gpu2.

All of these changes seemed to lower temps during gaming. I can't 100% say for sure because I am using a 1440p monitor today until my replacement 4k one comes. I played crysis 3 with GPU usage at 100% the whole time (albeit vram usage was much lower than 4k, not sure if that makes a temp difference) and I didn't see temps above 72C the whole time. So my current fan setup now is:

2 corsair AF140 fans for the side panel on intake, 2 120s on top exhausting (the h100i), 2 weaker stock 120mm intake fans for the drive cages, and 1 exhaust 120mm fan in the back.

So, the question is where do I go from here. Do you think it'd be worth a shot getting a good 120mm fan to put right on the right side of the GPU? Marked beautifully on the image below? If so, what fan would be a happy medium between a performance fan and a very loud 3000rpm fan?

Thank you,

 

[xxxlun4icexxx]

Super Flower makes a case that is massive and has two 200mm intake fans on the side of the case that would provide excellent air flow to help cool the gpus. The only issue though is that there doesn't seem to be a site that sells it so you would probably need to contact Super Flower directly and see what the cost(s) would be to get it. Another option would be liquid cooling.

http://www.super-flower.com.tw/products_detail.php?class=1&sn=1&ID=22&lang=

Hey just wanted to let you know i looked into this and found that the product is available as the Azza Hurricane (In case you wanted to buy it). The case is pretty similar to mine, only difference being it's a little bit bigger.

http://

 

[xxxlun4icexxx]

i actually have the exact same case, the Corsair 400R (it just lacks the 200mm fan of the 500R). I would stick with 140mm fans on the side panel as they move more air then 120mm fans. You can look around newegg for 1800rpm+ 140mm fans if you like but it looks like you have great airflow and temps with the set up as is. You can upgrade the rear fan to a 140mm if you like and I believe there is room for a 120mm (if not 140mm) on the bottom of the case. Playing around with optimal cooling can be part of the fun with DIY builds just don't let it drive you nuts by chasing 1 or 2c. The point of the PC is to enjoy it not have it cause you stress.

Well yesterday what I did was I replaced the stock 200mm fan on the side panel with 2 140mm corsair AF140 fans. Big difference. Temps were down about 5C. So now I am doing one last thing.

If you look at the pic, the yellow fan I drew in, I got a noctua static 120mm fan that I will put in there, and then I also got one of their airflow fans to replace the stock fan behind it.

 

[xxxlun4icexxx]

grab a cover for the fan to keep wires from getting caught in the blades, not that if will do damage but you don't want to playing a game months from now and all the sudden hear a buzzing sound from your PC and freak out.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA2C516T9977&cm_re=120mm_fan_cover-_-2AM-0007-00002-_-Product

Thanks!