Will mounting my psu fan up cause reduced lifespan?, please help.

xeph_ · Sep 5, 2015

My seasonic m12ii 620w psu is mounted up because it looked as if the manufacture designed it to go that way because the logo is presented on that side. but many people on the internet say that mounting it down is better and mounting it up will caused reduced lifespan, is this true? please help

bignastyid · Sep 5, 2015

How its mounted depends on the case not the logo. What case is it being installed in. You want to mount it so that the fan is not obstructed. If the fan is obstructed then you run the risk of overheating the PSU.

xeph_ · Sep 5, 2015

bignastyid :

fractal design define s, and no nothing is in the way of the fan its just mounted up

mcnumpty23 · Sep 5, 2015

its sort of standard practice nowadays to have it with the fan on the bottom as most cases mount the psu at the bottom--idea is cool air gets drawn in

but not every single case has the vent necessary to do it

and once upon a time psus at the top of the case not the bottom was normal with the fan downwards and it didnt seem to do them any harm

so dont think it matters as long as no obstructions

bignastyid · Sep 5, 2015

In that case it can be mounted either way. If you mount i with the fan facing down it will pull cooler air from outside the case, if mounted up it will use the warmer air inside the case. Aslong as the air inside the case doesn't get to hot this will be fine. If you were using a PSU withcheap caps that can't take heat mounting it up may cause problems but the Seasonic uses high quality caps.

xeph_ · Sep 5, 2015

mcnumpty23 :

i have the stock intake in the front and exhaust in the back, gpu temps never above 65c, cpu temps never above 70c (i run haswell) do you think this is ok case airflow? thank you for your help

mcnumpty23 · Sep 5, 2015

xeph_ :

sounds ok

up or down psu is one of those questions where people have different opinions

but quite honestly never seen any data from a properly controlled test to prove either way is better

i still have an 8 year old pc here where the psu is mounted at the top of the case not the bottom

so the fan faces down into the case--mirror image of yours as your psu is at the bottom

8 years later the psu still works fine

xeph_ · Sep 5, 2015

mcnumpty23 :

xeph_ :

sounds ok

up or down psu is one of those questions where people have different opinions

but quite honestly never seen any data from a properly controlled test to prove either way is better

i still have an 8 year old pc here where the psu is mounted at the top of the case not the bottom

so the fan faces down into the case--mirror image of yours as your psu is at the bottom

8 years later the psu still works fine

thanks buddy, youve both been very helpful, i think ill switch it down maybe, i dont know who to give the solution xD

mcnumpty23 · Sep 5, 2015

to me its a question with no conclusive answer but if you feel happier with it down do it that way

providing its not sitting on carpet with a thick pile of course

xeph_ · Sep 5, 2015

mcnumpty23 :

high buddy, im going to switch the unit round, i know this is a stupid question but will i have to take all the cables and connectors out of the psu when i switch it? thanks

mcnumpty23 · Sep 5, 2015

dont have to but they might get a bit twisted/tangled up depending on how you did any cable management

xeph_ · Sep 5, 2015

mcnumpty23 :

will they be damaged if twisted? thanks

bignastyid · Sep 5, 2015

Where the psu is fully modular i would just disconnect them from the psu, flip it around and hook the cables back up.

mcnumpty23 · Sep 6, 2015

xeph_ :

shouldn't really get damaged--unless your cables are all tangled and it takes force to flip the psu

as said if its modular the easiest and tidiest way would be unplug them from the psu

xeph_ · Sep 6, 2015

mcnumpty23 :

yep, its flipped, easy peasy

, although i didnt plug in 24 pin properly and was quite fiddly to re plug to get it to power on

ko888 · Sep 6, 2015

mcnumpty23 :

It matters in a multiple GPU setup where the bottom GPU is right next to the PSU. If the PSU's intake fan is facing up then the PSU and GPU will be fighting each other for cooling air. The device with the stronger fan (i.e. most likely the PSU) will get more cooling air and the losing device will run warmer than otherwise. Some SLI/CF users have found out that the graphics card closest to the PSU will run cooler with the PSU's fan facing down towards the case's vent than when facing up and fighting the GPU for cooling air.

xeph_ · Sep 7, 2015

mcnumpty23 :

it appears that when i turned it round, i can hear the fan motor, litterally every fan in my build i can hear the motor, is this normal or dangerous for my psu? theres also a very very light ticking noise that i can only hear now, i assume its the motor aswell, it functions properly though

mcnumpty23 · Sep 7, 2015

havent came across that before

cant see it being dangerous but might get annoying if its loud

xeph_ · Sep 7, 2015

mcnumpty23 :

no i have sensitive hearing it is very quiet tho, but im sure that the motors are audible, ive heard this in every fan i own, apart from my ax 860 which barely ever spins... kind of coil whine possible aswell

mcnumpty23 · Sep 7, 2015

as long as its not too annoying cant see it being a problem its not like a psu is full of moving parts

i have even used cases where the psu went vertically before no problem

and as you get older you dont hear those high frequency noises anymore lol

Will mounting my psu fan up cause reduced lifespan?, please help.

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