Side panel fans?? GPU

gabrieltkd95 · Jul 6, 2016

I have a r9 390x and i don't know if i should be using side panel fan or is it better on the front as an intake?

monsta · Jul 6, 2016

If you can get another fan so you can run both on the front and side panel, for now use it on the side panel till you can get another fan for the front.

envy14tpe · Jul 6, 2016

I have a single side intake fan and I doubt it really helps. However, it cost $5 and it is quiet. U could get one...but I might use it as exhaust, not intake.

Darkbreeze · Jul 6, 2016

It does help. Direct cool air intake into the GPU airpath as well as almost directly onto the CPU cooler and motherboard VRMs is always helpful, so long as there is sufficient exhaust as well. It may NOT be necessary in every case, but if you are having thermal issues or even getting close to thermal boundaries, it certainly can't hurt and may help significantly.

I don't think it's wise to do only one or the other though. You absolutely still want at least one front intake fan to carry heat away from hard drives and help to create the "draft" path through the case and out the rear and top exhaust locations that provide the basis of the cool air supply for the GPU card and CPU cooler to work with.

gabrieltkd95 · Jul 6, 2016

Should i have 2 top exhaust fans or 1 on the side (intake) and other one on the top?

Darkbreeze · Jul 6, 2016

What is your case model? What are the rest of your hardware specs including all fan locations and fan sizes. CPU cooler model would be good to know as well.

JUICEhunter · Jul 6, 2016

I just added a 140mm fan on my side panel as an intake shooting straight into the GPU, really lowered temps and overall noise of GPU.

Also, 2 top exhausts is a great way to get all the hot air out of the case, assuming you have proper clearance.

gabrieltkd95 · Jul 6, 2016

Its a thermatake v3 black edition, and i only have 1 exhaust fan on rear top of the case. My cpu cooler is a Titan Hati

Darkbreeze · Jul 6, 2016

That's actually not a terrible cooler, but it is uncommon. If you're not overclocking it's fine. If you're overclocking, you might want to consider a better cooler at some point. That was a decent cooler about five years ago, these days, not so much.

What is your CPU, motherboard and RAM model numbers? With only one fan, and a 390x, you definitely either need a different case with better included cooling or some additional fans. That's a hot card with a very high power requirement. Let's get your PSU model number as well.

gabrieltkd95 · Jul 6, 2016

i7 6700k
Titan Hati
Asus z170 Pro Gaming
16gb RAM DDR4
R9 390x 8gb DDR5
XFX 750w

Also my gpu temps are quite good. While playing Witcher 3 on ultra settings is under 60°c

Darkbreeze · Jul 6, 2016

PSU? Are you overclocking the CPU, or will you only ever be running it at stock speeds?

gabrieltkd95 · Jul 6, 2016

No, i'm not doing OC and i don't really plan to do it for a while.

Darkbreeze · Jul 6, 2016

What is your power supply model number?

gabrieltkd95 · Jul 6, 2016

http://xfxforce.com/en-us/products/xtr-series-gold-full-modular/xtr-series-750w-psu-p1-750b-befx

Darkbreeze · Jul 6, 2016

The XTR series units by XFX are the only XFX units NOT made by Seasonic. They are made by Shenzhen Ruishengyuan BASED off of Seasonic platform designs and are not outstanding. For the serious level of demand your system is capable of requiring, I'd seriously consider a better unit at some point down the road.

Your case does not have a side fan location. That is a vent. You could certainly modify it to accomodate a fan, but it's not intended for mounting one and there's always the possibility of interference from the GPU card or CPU cooler so you'd want to make sure there was clearance first.

It does however have two additional top exhaust locations and a front intake, and I'd highly recommend you populate at least one top exhaust, preferably the one furthest back, and the front intake, considering your GPU card model and case design.

These might be a good choice and are fairly inexpensive compared to other fans with similar specs. Not THE best fans out there, but definitely better than a lot of others. If budget isn't a sticking point, there are clearly much better fans to be had, but I doubt you'll find any fans as good as these that are PWM at this price point.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Case Fan: Noctua NF-S12B redux-1200 PWM 59.1 CFM 120mm Fan ($9.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Noctua NF-S12B redux-1200 PWM 59.1 CFM 120mm Fan ($9.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $19.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-07-06 04:17 EDT-0400

envy14tpe · Jul 6, 2016

I'd add a front and bottom fan as intakes. Then maybe a rear top as exhaust. But at minimum I'd want two intake fans. Only one exhaust makes for a really hot case.

Darkbreeze · Jul 6, 2016

I agree. If there is any way you can modify the vent on the side panel and make it into an intake, which of course CAN be done, I just don't know if YOU have the means to do it is what I mean, or add another intake on the bottom if there is room, I'd say it's a good idea.

Side panel fans?? GPU

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