Need help with case airflow setup

[thenemisis2]

Hello there, I am currently building myself a new pc and before putting it to test, I need some help regarding my NZXT Noctis 450 airflow config. As of right now, I have 3x Corsair AF120 (52.2 CFM each) at the front as intake, 1x Noctua NF-A14 (140mm with 68 CFM) at the back as exhaust and 1x Noctua NF-A14 (140mm with 68 CFM) at the top-back as exhaust too. I also have a Noctua NH-D15 as CPU cooler in as pull/pull (dual NF-A15 with 68CFM each). I was wondering if I have too much exhaust and if the GPU (I have my old 6950 2GB while waiting for my GTX 1080 to arrive, but the issue will be the same) will conflict with my airflow setup (is it sucking air in or pushing it out?)

 

[Barty1884]

If anything, you have (slight) positive airflow with 3x 120mm intake, and 2x 140mm exhaust.

Positive vs Negative (more exhaust than intake) is a debate that'll split opinion like no other.

IMO, you're fine. I think one on your front intakes is a little unnecessary, but not doing you any harm at all.

As for your GPU, how it cools exactly depends on the design. In a simple sense, most cards will be both 'sucking air in' and 'pushing it out'. Some will exhaust in front, some will exhaust at the rear of the card/case. Which 1070 are you looking at?

 

[weberdarren97]

Your airflow is great! You have plenty of intake, plenty of exhaust, and should be generating positive pressure.

No problem here.

Whether you get a closed shroud like on the Founders cards, or an open air cooler like a Twin Frozr, you will have no problems with ventilation and cooling.

 

[thenemisis2]

Your airflow is great! You have plenty of intake, plenty of exhaust, and should be generating positive pressure.

No problem here.

Whether you get a closed shroud like on the Founders cards, or an open air cooler like a Twin Frozr, you will have no problems with ventilation and cooling.

I just started the PC for the first time, but the fans of the NH-D15 aren't working even though they're connected to the white header of the fan hub and the rest of the fans are working fine? Also my PC doesn't detect any boot device on first launch so I'm kinda stuck here

 

[Barty1884]

You'd be better off having the NH-D15 fans attached to the motherboard directly (CPU_Fan, and you should have something like "OPT_Fan" or OPT_CPU_Fan, connect both fans to those).

As for no boot device, if this is a new build, you should be installing your OS, no? You won't have a 'boot' device yet (USB, or CD, when entered will be your 'boot device'), until you install your OS onto a drive (SSD, HDD etc).

 

[thenemisis2]

You'd be better off having the NH-D15 fans attached to the motherboard directly (CPU_Fan, and you should have something like "OPT_Fan" or OPT_CPU_Fan, connect both fans to those).

As for no boot device, if this is a new build, you should be installing your OS, no? You won't have a 'boot' device yet (USB, or CD, when entered will be your 'boot device'), until you install your OS onto a drive (SSD, HDD etc).

The NH-D15 fans are connected with a ''Y'' connector provided by Noctua and are connected to the white header of the fan hub (which is meant to be the CPU fan as of the case manual) the other fans are connected to that fan hub too which is then connected to the CPU_FAN connection of the motherboard which means everything is connected to the CPU_FAN but the NH-D15 fans are the only ones not working? Is it because the CPU is not hot enough?

As for the booting device, I can now access the bios and I can see the Samsung 950 pro in the devices but when I set it as main boot device and save/exit, I still get the select proper boot device screen. Does this mean I have to remove the motherboard CD and put the windows CD now?

 

[Barty1884]

The 'Y' connector included is a "low noise", "low power" adapter. They won't 'ramp up' until needed if you're connected with that (I have the NH-D15, and I don't use the connector for that reason; I don't like the idea of the CPU_Fan not running at times).

Have you installed an OS? If you have not, no matter what device is set to boot priority #1, there's nothing on that device to actually boot from - hence the message.

Yes, remove the motherboard CD, insert the Windows installation media. You'll likely have a 'boot override' option (F8, maybe) to direct it to boot from either CD or USB). Follow the prompts, select what you want to be your boot drive, and install your OS - and activate.
I'd recommend you put the "motherboard CD" back in the box & don't bother with it. Once your OS is installed, navigate to the Motherboard manufacturer's website & download all drivers/utilities from there.

The CDs included with motherboards are made well in advance. It's highly unlikely it has even remotely close to the latest drivers (the website will). The CD should only be used in emergencies (say, you can't access wifi - if that's your preferred access).

 

[thenemisis2]

The 'Y' connector included is a "low noise", "low power" adapter. They won't 'ramp up' until needed if you're connected with that (I have the NH-D15, and I don't use the connector for that reason; I don't like the idea of the CPU_Fan not running at times).

Have you installed an OS? If you have not, no matter what device is set to boot priority #1, there's nothing on that device to actually boot from - hence the message.

Yes, remove the motherboard CD, insert the Windows installation media. You'll likely have a 'boot override' option (F8, maybe) to direct it to boot from either CD or USB). Follow the prompts, select what you want to be your boot drive, and install your OS - and activate.
I'd recommend you put the "motherboard CD" back in the box & don't bother with it. Once your OS is installed, navigate to the Motherboard manufacturer's website & download all drivers/utilities from there.

The CDs included with motherboards are made well in advance. It's highly unlikely it has even remotely close to the latest drivers (the website will). The CD should only be used in emergencies (say, you can't access wifi - if that's your preferred access).

I succesfully reached the windows installation but I'm stuck at the selection of the device to install on as windows 7 doesn't detect M2.SSDs apparently (I have a samsung 950 pro 512GB) even though the BIOS recognized it and I could put it as boot device. So I guess il have to try a few things with a USB stick.

As for the NH-D15 fans, if I remove the Y connector where do I connect them and what do I do with the White header?

 

[Barty1884]

You can always install Windows 10? https://www.microsoft.com/en-ca/software-download/windows10
You can install to an M.2 SSD (provided your BIOS will allow it as a boot drive, which it appears it will).
You can use your Windows 7 product key to activate Windows 10 (just ensure you create bootable media with the appropriate version of W10 ie Home, Pro etc).

If you remove the Y connector, connect the fans directly to the motherboard (CPU_Fan for one). If your motherboard has an "optional CPU fan" (check your manual), use that for the second fan. If not, any motherboard fan header will work fine.

I'm not sure what the white header is you're referring to?

 

[thenemisis2]

You can always install Windows 10? https://www.microsoft.com/en-ca/software-download/windows10
You can install to an M.2 SSD (provided your BIOS will allow it as a boot drive, which it appears it will).
You can use your Windows 7 product key to activate Windows 10 (just ensure you create bootable media with the appropriate version of W10 ie Home, Pro etc).

If you remove the Y connector, connect the fans directly to the motherboard (CPU_Fan for one). If your motherboard has an "optional CPU fan" (check your manual), use that for the second fan. If not, any motherboard fan header will work fine.

I'm not sure what the white header is you're referring to?

The white header is part of my case (noctis 450) fan hub and is meant to receive the cpu fan connector but since my cooler has 2 fans I used the Y connector to be able to connect to it and then the whole fan hub is connected to the CPU_FAN of the motherboard. If I remove the NH-D15 fans from the white header, I now have an unplugged white header, 2 cpu cooler fans, 2 free fan hub spots and the CPU_OPT on the motherboard. So where does everyone go?

As for the windows installation, I'm trying to install with a USB stick with a samsung driver, but its a pain in the ass because the installation CD doesnt even detect the USB stick even with the drivers on it

 

[Barty1884]

You can leave the 'white header' empty, that shouldn't cause a problem. You can either connect your fan hub to another fan header on the board (freeing up the CPU_Fan & CPU_OPT for the NH-D15).

Or, you could connect one of the NH-D15 fans to the white header, leave the hub attached at the CPU_Fan, and attach the second of the NH-D15 fans to CPU_OPT.

Of course, you could always negate the fan hub and attach to the motherboard for everything (probably require a couple of splitters), but it likely makes the most sense to use the hub.


So, Windows 7 states you're lacking a driver? I think we've all been there at some point or another.
Are you plugging in your USB to a USB2.0 port? If not, try that. 3.0 ports are tricky.

 

[thenemisis2]

You can leave the 'white header' empty, that shouldn't cause a problem. You can either connect your fan hub to another fan header on the board (freeing up the CPU_Fan & CPU_OPT for the NH-D15).

Or, you could connect one of the NH-D15 fans to the white header, leave the hub attached at the CPU_Fan, and attach the second of the NH-D15 fans to CPU_OPT.

Of course, you could always negate the fan hub and attach to the motherboard for everything (probably require a couple of splitters), but it likely makes the most sense to use the hub.


So, Windows 7 states you're lacking a driver? I think we've all been there at some point or another.
Are you plugging in your USB to a USB2.0 port? If not, try that. 3.0 ports are tricky.

No, windows when coming to the selection of the drive on which to install it, detects literally nothing. It gives me the option to search for a drive or USB and it detects nothing even though my motherboard detects everything.

 

[Barty1884]

When you get to the installation stage, hit Shift+F10 to open Command Prompt.
Then follow the instructions that were listed here:
http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2864842/diskpart-format-partition.html

 

[thenemisis2]

When you get to the installation stage, hit Shift+F10 to open Command Prompt.
Then follow the instructions that were listed here:
http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2864842/diskpart-format-partition.html

that doesn't work, says that the disk cannot be selected

 

[Barty1884]

You're using the command "select disk 0"? (or 1 etc, whichever it is)

The disk is showing in the list though?

 

[thenemisis2]

You're using the command "select disk 0"? (or 1 etc, whichever it is)

The disk is showing in the list though?

No the disk is not showing anywhere except in the bios on default settings

 

[Barty1884]

I believe this is a Windows 7 related issue, a quick Google search shows numerous similar results, all W7 based - I would recommend you try Windows 10 (as I linked above).

 

[thenemisis2]

I believe this is a Windows 7 related issue, a quick Google search shows numerous similar results, all W7 based - I would recommend you try Windows 10 (as I linked above).

I don't think this is a windows 7 issue as there are exact same threads for windows 10. I think this is a Samsung 950 pro issue as iv'e tried the tips on the forums but none of them actually work and I can't find any M2 section in the bios which doesnt help

 

[weberdarren97]

Your airflow is great! You have plenty of intake, plenty of exhaust, and should be generating positive pressure.

No problem here.

Whether you get a closed shroud like on the Founders cards, or an open air cooler like a Twin Frozr, you will have no problems with ventilation and cooling.

I just started the PC for the first time, but the fans of the NH-D15 aren't working even though they're connected to the white header of the fan hub and the rest of the fans are working fine? Also my PC doesn't detect any boot device on first launch so I'm kinda stuck here

There is likely a Molex connector coming off of the fan controller. Did you plug that into the power supply? Have you made sure that the fan controller is not in the OFF position?

Also, the fans on the cooler need to be plugged into CPU_FAN and CPU_FAN_OPT headers on the motherboard, not the fan controller.

Also, you're not looking for an M.2 setting in BIOS. You're looking for the place in BIOS where you set which devices to boot to (Boot Priority is what it's usually called). However, even if you installed the M.2 correctly and it is working, BIOS will not boot to it because it's blank. You need install media, like a disk or flash drive with Windows 10 on it.

Please note that simply downloading Windows 10 does not activate it. You still need to purchase a product key for it.

 

[Barty1884]

I doubt it's 950Pro related specifically - it's likely some combination of any of; BIOS, 950PRo, Windows itself.

At this point, I'll need you to post your specs (specifically the motherboard at the moment).

You're looking for "onboard device configuration" or similar - depending on BIOS, it's name will vary.
Essentially, you need to set your M.2 to PCIe mode. Under 'onboard device config', there will be something like "PCIe mode" etc.

 

[thenemisis2]

Your airflow is great! You have plenty of intake, plenty of exhaust, and should be generating positive pressure.

No problem here.

Whether you get a closed shroud like on the Founders cards, or an open air cooler like a Twin Frozr, you will have no problems with ventilation and cooling.

I just started the PC for the first time, but the fans of the NH-D15 aren't working even though they're connected to the white header of the fan hub and the rest of the fans are working fine? Also my PC doesn't detect any boot device on first launch so I'm kinda stuck here

There is likely a Molex connector coming off of the fan controller. Did you plug that into the power supply? Have you made sure that the fan controller is not in the OFF position?

Also, the fans on the cooler need to be plugged into CPU_FAN and CPU_FAN_OPT headers on the motherboard, not the fan controller.

Also, you're not looking for an M.2 setting in BIOS. You're looking for the place in BIOS where you set which devices to boot to (Boot Priority is what it's usually called). However, even if you installed the M.2 correctly and it is working, BIOS will not boot to it because it's blank. You need install media, like a disk or flash drive with Windows 10 on it.

Please note that simply downloading Windows 10 does not activate it. You still need to purchase a product key for it.

As I said before, everything is connected to the fan hub which then goes to the CPU_FAN connection of the motherboard. The problem might be the Y connection of the cooler fans but I haven't tried that out yet as Barty suggested. I'm still trying to find a way to install windows 7 on a blank m2 ssd which is the most unuser friendly thing ever released in a while.

 

[weberdarren97]

I doubt it's 950Pro related specifically - it's likely some combination of any of; BIOS, 950PRo, Windows itself.

At this point, I'll need you to post your specs (specifically the motherboard at the moment).

You're looking for "onboard device configuration" or similar - depending on BIOS, it's name will vary.
Essentially, you need to set your M.2 to PCIe mode. Under 'onboard device config', there will be something like "PCIe mode" etc.

I think that the reason it's saying that it can't find a boot device is because his M.2 drive is empty (new).

He needs to provide install media to boot to, no?

 

[weberdarren97]

Please plug the fan hub into the Chassis Fan header on the motherboard, not the CPU Fan header. Then put the cooler in the CPU Fan header.

 

[Deleted member 217926]

You have to install the UEFI driver for the 950 Pro ( and any NVMe drive I believe ) with Windows 7. NVMe is new technology and Windows 7 doesn't support it natively.

http://www.evga.com/support/faq/afmviewfaq.aspx?faqid=59620

No Direct X 12 with Windows 7 either. Shame to get a 1080 and cripple it.

 

[Barty1884]

I think that the reason it's saying that it can't find a boot device is because his M.2 drive is empty (new).

He needs to provide install media to boot to, no?

Absolutely, but we're a little past that point not. It's not detected when the OP attempts to install the OS, and it's not recognized inside command prompt either.

You have to install the UEFI driver for the 950 Pro ( and any NVMe drive I believe ) with Windows 7. NVMe is new technology and Windows 7 doesn't support it natively.

http://www.evga.com/support/faq/afmviewfaq.aspx?faqid=59620

No Direct X 12 with Windows 7 either. Shame to get a 1080 and cripple it.

I think anort is got it.