CM 690 II Advanced - Cooling Options

[src1425]

A slightly different take on an earlier question, regarding optimal cooling for the CM 690 II Advanced. As you can see, it has numerous fan options, and since I'm going to replace my cooler, I may as well add a fan or two while I'm at it.

Stock fans are 140mm intake in the front, a 140mm exhaust at the top, and a 120mm exhaust at the rear.

Option 1: add another 140mm exhaust fan on the top and a 120mm intake fan on the bottom

Option 2: remove the front 140mm fan, add another 140mm exhaust fan on the top and two 120mm intake fans on the bottom (the bottom half of the HDD cage can be removed).

Option 3: add another 140mm exhaust fan at the top and a 120mm intake fan on the top HDD cage


Or, Option 4, something else?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

 

[charon711]

lol i looked at this case for a while myself but decided to go with the NZXT TEMPEST EVO because its for the same price and comes with all fans stock. but if i had to go with a option i would go with:

140 front, 2 140 top, 120 rear, 120 bottom, 80 on other side of mobo cut out. and dont forget that you can also add 2 120's on the side which would push cool air directly on the mobo and gpu

 

[creohan]

Bottom fans are not as good , in my humble opinion (mainly because it matters a lot what kind of surface u place the case on), as are side panel ones . I'd go for 140mm exhaust top and add 1/2 x 140mm LEFT side panel as intake. This will get you the best combo of air flow , for now. Hope it helps , cheers

 

[src1425]

Bottom fans are not as good , in my humble opinion (mainly because it matters a lot what kind of surface u place the case on), as are side panel ones . I'd go for 140mm exhaust top and add 1/2 x 140mm LEFT side panel as intake. This will get you the best combo of air flow , for now. Hope it helps , cheers

Not sure if the new heatsink will allow enough space for a side fan, but I can check. I had heard that side fans might disrupt the airflow from front/bottom to top/rear, although I guess the closer proximity of a side fan to the CPU could offset that. Also, in case it makes a difference, my case is suspended on a stand attached to the side of my desk, so it has several inches of open space underneath to draw in cool air from near the floor. But, I'm only hypothesizing.

 

[creohan]

Well ... check to see if ur new heatsink will fit. As for side panel fans ... I've got one on my haf 922 , a 200mm one and it works great for airflow. Even if the bottom ones have several inches of open space ... I believe u can't compete with all the open space a normal placed case can get from side fans

Not sure if the new heatsink will allow enough space for a side fan, but I can check. I had heard that side fans might disrupt the airflow from front/bottom to top/rear, although I guess the closer proximity of a side fan to the CPU could offset that. Also, in case it makes a difference, my case is suspended on a stand attached to the side of my desk, so it has several inches of open space underneath to draw in cool air from near the floor. But, I'm only hypothesizing.

 

[Snipergod87]

Its better to have positive air flow in the PC (ie: more air coming in than going out). I would add another intake fan in the front and leace the exhuast fans alone, remember when the GPU spins up it blows out alot of air out the back through its cooling system, If the case has negative pressure it becomes harder for it to cool itself. I learned that the hard way when I accidently reversed my 2x 80MM side fans in my old case the, and the graphics card (X800 XT) was hitting 160-170 load, swapped them to intake and it dropped to 120-130.

 

[davcon]

Option 3 is what i voted for.
I have my 902 basically set up like that.I couldn't add a side fan because of cpu cooler.
I added the extra fan on the back of the hdd cage and it dropped gpu temp by 2-3C.
I have a CM690II Basic and i'm moving the 120mm top exhaust (i added) to hdd location and adding a 140mm in it's old location.

 

[src1425]

Looks like I only have 18.5mm of clearance with the cooler installed (Hyper 212 Plus is 158.5mm tall and the case has 177mm of clearance for a cooler, so I may be out of luck for a side fan. I could take the Hyper 212 Plus back, but most of the good coolers now seem to built on the tower model.

Edit: only fans I found that would fit are the Scythe Kaze-Jyuni Slim Slip Stream:

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/9122/fan-568/Scythe_Kaze-Jyuni_Slim_Slip_Stream_120mm_x_12mm_Fan_-_1200_RPM_SY1212SL12L.html?tl=g36c15s972&id=4w7srRbp&mv_pc=2880

Would 24CFM be sufficient for a side fan? Doesn't seem like a lot, but I guess it will be blowing directly on the cooler. Not willing to get the 1600RPM or 2000RPM versions as they're louder than I'm willing to go.

 

[creohan]

That's a 120mm fan... I'd go for 140mm ..and 2 of 'em. The bigger they are the less noise and rpm they have and better CFM (or so is my understanding)

Looks like I only have 18.5mm of clearance with the cooler installed (Hyper 212 Plus is 158.5mm tall and the case has 177mm of clearance for a cooler, so I may be out of luck for a side fan. I could take the Hyper 212 Plus back, but most of the good coolers now seem to built on the tower model.

Edit: only fans I found that would fit are the Scythe Kaze-Jyuni Slim Slip Stream:

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/9122/fan-568/Scythe_Kaze-Jyuni_Slim_Slip_Stream_120mm_x_12mm_Fan_-_1200_RPM_SY1212SL12L.html?tl=g36c15s972&id=4w7srRbp&mv_pc=2880

Would 24CFM be sufficient for a side fan? Doesn't seem like a lot, but I guess it will be blowing directly on the cooler. Not willing to get the 1600RPM or 2000RPM versions as they're louder than I'm willing to go.

 

[src1425]

That's a 120mm fan... I'd go for 140mm ..and 2 of 'em. The bigger they are the less noise and rpm they have and better CFM (or so is my understanding)

Only problem is I can't find a slim version of a 140mm fan, and I don't want to mount a side fan externally.

 

[creohan]

Are you 100% sure a normal 140 mm fan would not fit with ur cpu cooler ? (in either of the 2 locations on the side panel)

EDIT: if u really are that sure , I have to ask (besides mounting the additional 140mm exahaust on top) ... where exactly does this "hdd" fan place is ?

Only problem is I can't find a slim version of a 140mm fan, and I don't want to mount a side fan externally.

 

[src1425]

Are you 100% sure a normal 140 mm fan would not fit with ur cpu cooler ? (in either of the 2 locations on the side panel)

EDIT: if u really are that sure , I have to ask (besides mounting the additional 140mm exahaust on top) ... where exactly does this "hdd" fan place is ?

As sure as I can be without trying to actually install it! According to the spec sheet, the interior case width has 177mm of clearance. The Hyper 212 Plus is listed at 158.5mm, leaving only 18.5mm. A regular width case fan is 25mm, so I just don't think it will fit.

The front HDD fan mounts to the top of the HDD cage (circled in the picture below):

I guess the idea is to maximize the airflow from front to top/rear, while cooling the hard drives at the same time.

 

[davcon]

You'll have no problems installing a side fan on the lower mount of the side panel.
I have the 690II with a CM 212+ and an Antec TriCool on the side in the lower location.Not even close.
Plus the fan you're thinking of installing on the back of the hdd drive cage will come no where near your cpu cooler.
The only thing it could possibly interfere with is like a 12" gpu.
Also replacing the 212+ with a Corsair A70 which is slightly larger.
I'm not worried one bit about things fitting.
The 690II is way roomier then my 902.And the 902 is crammed with stuff.
The reason why i couldn't install a side fan on the 902 is because the designers at Antec weren't too swift with the side fan placement.
That is not a problem on the CM690II it's a wonderfully designed case and alot of thought went into it.

 

[src1425]

Ah ha - had never occurred to me that one of the side panel fan mounts would be clear of the heatsink. Thanks!