need ideas for better case ventillation

[badge]

I have a Kingwin KT-424-WM black aluminum case and I need better ventillation inside the case.

PIC:

http://www.xoxide.com/kiktb.html

Currently have two 80mm intake fans in front of the HDDs, and one 80mm exhaust fan. Have a 40mm x 2 HD cooler on main drive and the 680 power supply has three fans. Also have an Artic Cooler pushing hot CPU radiator air to the back of the case. [My problem is I have no side fan on the glass case or no roof fan to produce air flow where the heat accumilates in the center and rises to the top. Dead hot air. I have this dead hot air around the center of my case and it causes CPU idle temps in mid to high 40s and system temps as high or higher than the CPU, high 40's. Like 46/47C. My CPU is one degree cooler than my case. The CPU reacts to the high case temps otherwise the CPU would run cool at idle..

Chapter 2

My problem started when I added a second 7600 GT. The temps on the primary card jumped from mid 40s C to high 50s C creating case heat. I added two of these Zalman GPU coolers:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835118117

Then I upgraded my RAM to 4 x 512 Crucial ballistic PC4000 500 ghz. modules. Those have heat spreaders and run hot to the touch. I run the voltage at only 1.6 yet Crucial rates their RAM at 2.8v. The 4 dimms of RAM produce a lot of heat near the center of the case where I have no air flow.


I installed a120mm Zalman sleeve fan like this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835118204

It ran off the screws from my PCI slots near the two video cards and produced vibration so I too it out for now. This 120mm definately helped and I may try and cram it back in there.

I am exploring the possibility of cutting the roof of the case out and putting a fan in. Any suggestions?

The End.

 

[nobly]

Just a thought, if you have 2 front intake fans and you have 2 HDD fans, the HDD fans might be disrupting the airflow.
I'd try to remove the HDD fans and see if things improve.

You may want to get higher rpm fans if you still have issues. Or perhaps get a 120mm to 80mm fan adapter for the exhaust in the back?

Its hard to imagine this setup, perhaps you could post a few pictures or something?

 

[badge]

Just a thought, if you have 2 front intake fans and you have 2 HDD fans, the HDD fans might be disrupting the airflow.
I'd try to remove the HDD fans and see if things improve.

You may want to get higher rpm fans if you still have issues. Or perhaps get a 120mm to 80mm fan adapter for the exhaust in the back?

Its hard to imagine this setup, perhaps you could post a few pictures or something?

Hey, great idea about getting that adapter and changing the rear exhaust to 120mm! I'm going to try that.

Here, you can see how cramped my setup is. Putting the Artic Freezer on helped getting the heat out of the center of the case and pushing it to the back right into the rear exhaust fan (need that 120mm!)

Hey thanks!

http://img198.imageshack.us/img198/7318/pic1hot23puter3vz.jpg

 

[nobly]

Dang... haha that IS cramped.

Whew... ummm... it looks like the wiring may be obstructing the front air flow to the video cards.

The only other ideas I have would be (if that 120 to 80 doesnt work):
1) Get higher rpm fans
2) Get a PSU that has a intake fan pointed towards the CPU and an outtake to the back (not sure if yours has that or not).
3) New case

I'd hate to punch holes in your case but I guess that might work too... Or just take off the side and stick a big fan there..

This might be an idea http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835137001

Or just one of these and somehow mount it under your HDDs and point it towards the vid cards!
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835888602

 

[parlee]

like some1 else said take out the hd fans, then try to manage the cables in the bottom better, thats stopping cool air from getting to the videocards/back part of pc... also as some1 else said a 120mm fan would be nice in the back. 1.6v rated at 2.8? is it stable??? what r the rpm/cfm on ur fans? the exhaust should be the highest rated one, if theres not enough air comming into the case usually air will be sucked in passivly, through small cracks, which is why u normally see dust buildup all over the cracks in ur case...

 

[badge]

Dang... haha that IS cramped.

Whew... ummm... it looks like the wiring may be obstructing the front air flow to the video cards.

The only other ideas I have would be (if that 120 to 80 doesnt work):
1) Get higher rpm fans
2) Get a PSU that has a intake fan pointed towards the CPU and an outtake to the back (not sure if yours has that or not).
3) New case

I'd hate to punch holes in your case but I guess that might work too... Or just take off the side and stick a big fan there..

This might be an idea http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835137001

Or just one of these and somehow mount it under your HDDs and point it towards the vid cards!
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835888602

I know the wiring's not the best job, but the wires do not imped the center of the case and the air flow there. The blue 80mm in the exhast spot is an Antec (just bought it as upgrade) with three speed controller. It's weak on high. I'm putting a Zalman 120 with adapter as soon as I can get to Fry's Electronics. They have a terrible selection of fans there. May have to drive to Micro Center to find one. I just replaced my 'overheating' Antec 550w SLi ready PSU with THE BEAST. It has three fans and yes one from underneath pointing directly downward. Putting that PSU in help a LOT. No overheating with the 680w Aspire 22/24 to run my dual core and dual vid cards. Here:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817148019

I have had good luck with Aspire to this point. Some say they are cheap, but this one runs much cooler for me than the Antec 550w 2.0 sli PSU. I have 6 or 7 Aspire PSU up and running in other computers. Cheap maybe, but effective so far.

I think an Zalman 120mm with that adapter you mentioned in the exhaust will help bunches. I was sitting here trying to figure out how to get that 120mm Zalman fan I have (2 of them laying around) into the case. LOL!

 

[badge]

like some1 else said take out the hd fans, then try to manage the cables in the bottom better, thats stopping cool air from getting to the videocards/back part of pc... also as some1 else said a 120mm fan would be nice in the back. 1.6v rated at 2.8? is it stable??? what r the rpm/cfm on ur fans? the exhaust should be the highest rated one, if theres not enough air comming into the case usually air will be sucked in passivly, through small cracks, which is why u normally see dust buildup all over the cracks in ur case...

Yeah, the wiring in the BOTTOM of the case is somewhat cluttered. I have one of these right now in the bottom PCI slot under my Pinnacle Studio 9 PCI card. It moves a lot of air from there.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835129025

I have pushed the DRAM volts up some, nowhere near 2.8v. I have the option on my MB BIOS to set the RAM speed to 250 ghz or 500 ghz cumlitive. Right now I have my RAM voltage set at default (runs currently near 1.6v I think) and with a slight bump in the FSB my RAM is running at 246 ghz at 2.5-4-4-8. The RAM is responsive at these settings, but if I raise the FSB much higher and drive the RAM past 500mhz the system will become unstable. May need a shot of increase volts all the way around, but I have the heat problem. I'd pobably end up with another burnt MB, LOL! I was thinking of reducing the RAM speed to 200 and try running the FSB up from there. That would eliminate the RAM from surpassing it's 500mhz rating. The RAM is hot to the touch at 1.6. I don't know, makes for a lot of heat. The DIMMS have ground effect lighting and LEDs showing activity. I don't know why they are hot to the touch? Hope they don't melt my MB. Then I could get that ASUS K8N32-SLI in here. It has 8 way power switching design. I'm interested in that board.

 

[parlee]

it could be because ur using all 4 dimms, i hear theres a lot of problems when using 4 dimms... maybe its making excess heat because 4 sticks are right next to eachother with little airflow causing them to get very hot, but if its stable even with the heat on them then it should be good... ur comp should shut itself down before any damage occurs (especially melting parts )

i just cleaned out my comp and rewired it all (used to have a clutter spot like that in my case) and now it runs about 2C cooler with all the stuff moved outof the way... wire molex connectors under the mobo for clean look/minimal clutter....

 

[badge]

it could be because ur using all 4 dimms, i hear theres a lot of problems when using 4 dimms... maybe its making excess heat because 4 sticks are right next to eachother with little airflow causing them to get very hot, but if its stable even with the heat on them then it should be good... ur comp should shut itself down before any damage occurs (especially melting parts )

i just cleaned out my comp and rewired it all (used to have a clutter spot like that in my case) and now it runs about 2C cooler with all the stuff moved outof the way... wire molex connectors under the mobo for clean look/minimal clutter....

Haha! Funny, I was just reading and expert review on my MSI N4 Platium/SLI and their engineers (Ha!) couldn't get the system to boot with any combination of 4 dimms! here you go again! Yeah, I'm going to get a 80 to 120m adapter now.

 

[nobly]

I know the wiring's not the best job, but the wires do not imped the center of the case and the air flow there. The blue 80mm in the exhast spot is an Antec (just bought it as upgrade) with three speed controller. It's weak on high. I'm putting a Zalman 120 with adapter as soon as I can get to Fry's Electronics. They have a terrible selection of fans there. May have to drive to Micro Center to find one.

The thing is that the wires might be obstructing the front fans from hitting the vid cards. The vid cards are probably producing heat that is rising to the center of your case - where the problem is.

As parlee said, your exhaust fan needs to push lots more air than the front ones, so hopefully the 120mm will help with that. I think ideally you'd want the exhaust to push (the 2 front fans' CFM + a little more - the PSU CFM). This way you'll be able to have the amount of air coming in equal the amount of air coming out.
The plus a little more bit would be to overcome any resistance the CPU fan gives. Hopefully that'll let you build a small wind tunnel to kill heat.

Oh gosh yeah Frys does suck. I avoid going there like the plaque - I hate having to return things 3x over to get something that works.
Sounds like you're in s. cal. Its been too hot here the past week.. ugh.

 

[badge]

>>Oh gosh yeah Frys does suck. I avoid going there like the plaque - I hate having to return things 3x over to get something that works.
Sounds like you're in s. cal. Its been too hot here the past week.. ugh.<<

Got an adapter and replaced the 80mm exhaust fan with a 120mm Antec 3 speed LED set on 2000 rpm. I've been running it for more than two hours and my CPU temps have dropped from 47c to 42c! Wow, I'm not kidding! 5c drop with a single 80m to 120m upgrade. My system temps have dropped from 46c to 43c.

I knew the problem was no air was circulating in the middle of the case. The video cards would produce heat and it would just saturate the case with stagnant hot air. In my haste I hooked up the exhaust fan blowing into the center of the case. It's really pushing some air around right in the middle where the air was not moving before. I'll leave it that way for now. The engineer who said my board wouldn't boot with any combination of 4 dimms couldn't have done better..

It's been hot in Animalheim. Thanks for the tip!!!

 

[phreejak]

I think that a fan blowhole on the top of the case (say, a 120 blowing the hot air out) would make quite a bit of difference - especially if you get the whole wiring clutter taken care of.

 

[badge]

I think that a fan blowhole on the top of the case (say, a 120 blowing the hot air out) would make quite a bit of difference - especially if you get the whole wiring clutter taken care of.

The wiring is not as bad as the picture looks. Only in the bottom of the case. Te middle of the case is clutter free. Any suggestions for cutting the roof out? What tool would you use? I wanted to use the 'lock drill' I have. Drills a perfect circle in a door to insert a deadbolt. Probably jsut ef it up with my method.

 

[GenCipher]

Personally I would look at getting a new case. With any drilling you need to strip the PC down, then do your cutting, then rebuild it again. It's must easier to just trasfer everything to a better case. I would recommend this one:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=352344

This case is ideal for your situation, it will cool your graphics cards, motherboard and memory.

 

[badge]

Personally I would look at getting a new case. With any drilling you need to strip the PC down, then do your cutting, then rebuild it again. It's must easier to just trasfer everything to a better case. I would recommend this one:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=352344

This case is ideal for you situation, it will cool your graphics cards, motherboard and memory.

That's probably the best idea yet! LOL! I just started building another computer with a new case tonight. It looks like in the near future I will tear down this computer, 4800X2 pictured, and put that ASUS k8N32-SLI in. I like the 16 x 16 PCI Express capability and the 8 way voltage switching. I think I may put everything in here:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811129154

 

[nobly]

I"ve heard many good things about the P180. I think it would definitely fix your issue. Plus it'd be quieter too. I am seriously thinking about using that case for my next build as well.

I've seen it go for $100 at newegg when they have a sale/rebate thing. You might be able to find it at a local store as well.

 

[badge]

I"ve heard many good things about the P180. I think it would definitely fix your issue. Plus it'd be quieter too. I am seriously thinking about using that case for my next build as well.

I've seen it go for $100 at newegg when they have a sale/rebate thing. You might be able to find it at a local store as well.

I've heard good things too. I think that case would look great in our office. Might put my AMD 3400 socket A in there someday. I'm building an AMD socket 754 SLI rig right now. Started preparing the case last night. Need two video cards!

My heat problem is solved for now. I just order a new Zalman heatsink/fan. Probably put that in the new 754 SLI, but it could go in here. I have an Artic Freezer in here now. This computer has been running for hours this morning and according to Speedfan my CPU is 45c and my system is 44c. Before I put in that 120mm with adapter you suggested my temps were CPU 48c and system 48/49c. Just getting the dead air rolling inside the case did the trick!

I have a dozen or mso, with notebooks probably 14 or 15 computers, up and running. I be busy bee.

 

[clue69less]

Personally I would look at getting a new case. With any drilling you need to strip the PC down, then do your cutting, then rebuild it again. It's must easier to just trasfer everything to a better case. I would recommend this one:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=352344

This case is ideal for your situation, it will cool your graphics cards, motherboard and memory.

The new case idea does make sense. If you can afford the price, this Lian Li has what you need for that rig. It has a blowhole fan, a 12cm fan right above the GPUs, a 12cm front fan and an exhaust fan right by the CPU. After Rich commented on his Lian Li, I bought the one linked above and love it. It's the first removable mobo case I've had and also has rear panel access to install or pull the PS. It's a beauty!

Anyway, if you want to put a blowhole in your case, I agree you should completely strip the case. A hole saw will work and I'd recommend a drill press and also to clamp a piece of wood under the spot where you plan to drill to keep it flat and to give something for the hole saw to push against. You can make a blowhole this way in around 2 or 3 hours depending on what all you have in your case, etc.

 

[badge]

>> If you can afford the price, this Lian Li has what you need for that rig.<<

I have that case. Right now I have my son's gaming rig in there. Great case, but I had to install my optical drives in the two lower 5.25 bays. Not enough room to work up top. If you noticed the case I use for the rig I had so much trouble cooling is similar except slightly smaller than the Lian Li. Lian Li is right down the streret from me. I've been to their offices before.

Lian Li and my Kingwin are similar design:

http://www.xoxide.com/kiktb.html