Need ways to improve my airflow setup for my Storm Trooper

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zionxninjafrost

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Aug 24, 2017
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I have a CoolerMaster Storm Trooper and I've upgraded all the default case fans to Corsair HD120's. Besides the top fan (you know the huge 200mm fan?) due to it being broken and unresponsive after 4 years of use, the thing died on me. So I'm thinking of replacing the 200mm spot with 2 HD140's. Would this be good?

Oh and also here's the setup:

Side fans: 2x HD120 intaking air and exhausting it onto my HDD

AIO Cooler: intaking and exhausting into rad

Top fan: Dead fan need suggestion right here and suggestions in general
 
Solution
Darkbreeze
Airflow configuration should be the same for 90% of modern systems that have bottom mounted power supplies.

Based on the fan locations that unit offers, I'd suggest that two high static pressure 120mm intake fans should be used in front (In your case, through the radiator. Using high static pressure fans, most of which are not actually HIGH static pressure even if the marketing shpeel for a given model says they are), a single high CFM 140mm exhaust fan should be used in the rear location and at least one, but potentially two, high CFM 140mm exhaust fans should be used in the top locations unless you prefer to use a single 200mm exhaust fan there. Both are acceptable.

On modern systems there are very few cases where the configuration...
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zionxninjafrost

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Aug 24, 2017
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Ok thanks but I'm also looking for suggestions on how to setup my airflow
 
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Darkbreeze

Darkbreeze

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Airflow configuration should be the same for 90% of modern systems that have bottom mounted power supplies.

Based on the fan locations that unit offers, I'd suggest that two high static pressure 120mm intake fans should be used in front (In your case, through the radiator. Using high static pressure fans, most of which are not actually HIGH static pressure even if the marketing shpeel for a given model says they are), a single high CFM 140mm exhaust fan should be used in the rear location and at least one, but potentially two, high CFM 140mm exhaust fans should be used in the top locations unless you prefer to use a single 200mm exhaust fan there. Both are acceptable.

On modern systems there are very few cases where the configuration should not be as follows. Front, bottom or side panel fans should nearly always be intake. Top and rear should nearly always be exhaust, except in cases where top mounted radiators are used in an intake configuration, which I don't think is the best configuration but is in fact used that way by some. It is self defeating to the natural tendency of cool air to draft down and force warmer air up, and tends to result in a lot of trapped heat unless you have an otherwise extremely negative pressure arrangement configured, in which case it CAN work, but is still not terribly efficient.
 
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Solution
24seven

24seven

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Do you have any measurements for case temps before the 200mm fan died? With the setup you have, I'd be tempted to try it with the 200mm top fan simply removed and left with nothing in it's place. If the temps don't skyrocket, you could happily leave it that way and enjoy a quieter case with one less fan. If they only go up a little bit (5-10*C) then a single 140mm top fan would be plenty. Any more than that then the Noctua 200mm is a good shout.
 
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Darkbreeze

Darkbreeze

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I can't agree with not replacing that top unit with AT LEAST one 140mm fan. Negative pressure is proven to be the most effective as far as sheer cooling performance is concerned, PLUS it takes a lot of strain off the front fans. If they don't have to push as hard, they can do their job easier and will have longer bearing life.

A single rear exhaust fan is not ever enough, unless you have a system that has a low enough TDP that the cooling isn't really a factor in the first place. Considering the needs of the radiator to see as much movement though the finstack as possible, negative pressure on the internal side of the case would very much benefit the performance of the cooler, not to mention other components in the case such as the GPU card, memory and drives.
 
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24seven

24seven

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I absolutely 100% do not agree that negative pressure is the best option for cooling. Not unless you want your PC to look like the inside of your vacuum cleaner after 3 months, or you're apply a filtration material to every single gap & join in your PC case, which will act as a thermal insulator and negate any theoretical benefits in the first place. You mostly want fans giving positive pressure into the case, with a lesser number of fans exhausting out of the case just to guide the airflow through - between 60:40 to 80:20 ratio in favour of positive.

My last PC was heavily overclocked (CPU, GPU and RAM), never overheated, and ran in this configuration for 6+ years in a dusty new-build house. When I decommissioned it a few weeks ago, it was virtually spotless inside.
 
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Darkbreeze

Darkbreeze

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Positive pressure is definitely better for dust suppression. But's that's it.

If cooling performance is the primary consideration, there can be no argument that negative pressure is far more efficient. It is also far less stressful on components. Plus, unless you plan to eliminate exhaust fans altogether, it's rather hard to have a positive pressure system when your intakes are blowing through a radiator.

Additionally, they are blowing HOT air into the case. Nobody with an ounce of common sense would take away the ability to get that hot air from the radiator OUT of the case, by eliminating part of the exhaust configuration. It's a simply fact that a single rear exhaust fan is not sufficient to evacuate all the heat from a 240/280mm radiator at a rate that will be equal or greater than the rate at which it is entering.

Personally, I'd much rather blow the case out every three months if necessary, or use some kind of filtration. But whatever. You run your case the way you like. I'll make suggestions based on best performance unless asked for a configuration that suppresses dust. Also, I've run literally hundreds of systems in both negative and positive pressure configurations. With and without filtration. I maintain many of those systems either periodically or on a regular basis and I find it hard to believe that even a system running in an extremely positive pressure configuration, WITH filtration, would be "virtually spotless" after six years. But it's irrelevant to this discussion anyway so I guess it really doesn't matter.
 
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