Proper placement of a 120mm side fan.

I am using Asus A7V233-C and a Athlon XP +1700 Palimino. The case I'm using has no cooling other than the power supply and the stock alumunium HSF with Antec Thermal Greese. Current temperatures are about:

Idle:
Ambient: 15C
Case: 27.0C
CPU: 53.0C

Load:
Ambient: 15C
Case: 32.0C
CPU: 65.0C

I'm planning on putting atleast two 120mm fans (Panflows) into it. Probably an exhaust on top and a side fan. The side fan placement is a bit of a issue. I'll have to put a window in the side panel in order to get what I think is the best placement of the fan. This "sweet spot" I'm assuming is directly over the CPU. However, down the road (way, way down the road ) I'd like to put a water cooling system into this computer. This will reduce the benfit of the 120mm side fan because it will be blowing air on the waterblock and not doing much for the rest of the system. Long story short:Should I place the fan directly over the CPU or comprimise and put it over the AGP, Northbridge and CPU area? I plan to keep my Geforce2 MX400 and Northbridge passivly cooled even if I do go to a water cooled setup. Anyways, since I don't really know exactly what I'm talking about please feel free to suggest any solution or correct my assumtions at any time. Thanks.

I would first find out which way your cpu fan flows. Either blowing of the cpu heatsink or removing air from the heatsink.
If it is blowing on the heatsink, I would suggest putting the side case fan about 1 - 1 1/2" below the center line of the heatsink. This way you can cool the northbridge and the cpu at the same time in conjunction with your existing cpu fan. The blow hole on the top is a VERY good idea.

I would first find out which way your cpu fan flows. Either blowing of the cpu heatsink or removing air from the heatsink.
If it is blowing on the heatsink, I would suggest putting the side case fan about 1 - 1 1/2" below the center line of the heatsink. This way you can cool the northbridge and the cpu at the same time in conjunction with your existing cpu fan. The blow hole on the top is a VERY good idea.

I would first find out which way your cpu fan flows. Either blowing of the cpu heatsink or removing air from the heatsink.
If it is blowing on the heatsink, I would suggest putting the side case fan about 1 - 1 1/2" below the center line of the heatsink. This way you can cool the northbridge and the cpu at the same time in conjunction with your existing cpu fan. The blow hole on the top is a VERY good idea.

I would first find out which way your cpu fan flows. Either blowing of the cpu heatsink or removing air from the heatsink.
If it is blowing on the heatsink, I would suggest putting the side case fan about 1 - 1 1/2" below the center line of the heatsink. This way you can cool the northbridge and the cpu at the same time in conjunction with your existing cpu fan. The blow hole on the top is a VERY good idea.

I would first find out which way your cpu fan flows. Either blowing of the cpu heatsink or removing air from the heatsink.
If it is blowing on the heatsink, I would suggest putting the side case fan about 1 - 1 1/2" below the center line of the heatsink. This way you can cool the northbridge and the cpu at the same time in conjunction with your existing cpu fan. The blow hole on the top is a VERY good idea.

squirtle632, could you post that again I didn't catch it.

Wow, five in a row squirtle

I think you should remember that the 120mm fan will have a dead spot in the center, so maybe you should place it centered a half inch or so lower than the CPU HSF, and if you want to cool the NB, maybe a half inch to the front of the case (which will also help to keep its airflow from being stolen by the rear exhaust fan(s) if you ever install them.

As for your watercooling way, way down the road, the 120mm over the CPU could still be beneficial. It's still an intake, which means more airflow over the rest of your system regardless of where it is. You could put a curved duct on it later to redirect it to the northbridge or any other heat-producing element that won't be water-cooled. You could also put a radiator in front of the fan to help out your CPU.

The fan blows inwards towards the CPU. This is quite nice cause it means I can use the 120mm fan to push colder outside air into the case and over the CPU.

I am assuming that all of these measurements are from the center of HSF? That would put the center of the soon to be 120mm fan about 1.5 inches towards the bottom of the case and offset .5 inches towards the front the case correct?

One other question which is not entirely on topic. Are those "designer" fan grills any good? I think some of the simpliar patterns look better than the standard wire grill but I've heard they restrict airflow, cause the fan to produce more noise cause of the restricted airflow and on top of that are useless finger guard (which is the reason of a fan grill's existance). Performance is first and looks secondary. Since this will be an intake fan will a dust filter be need? Will the dust filter reduce airflow too much or make the fan produce a whinning sound?

Thank you for all your suggestions and your patience with my inexperience.

Sorry guys ! Computer at work sorta threw up

I had no nothing on my screen and that must have happened while my IT ( Idiot Technologist ) was fixing it.

As far as an intake fan goes,,,, yes put a filter or sorts on it. It will slow that flow of the fan a bit but not too much

Again sorry for the multiple post

those temps are WAY too high...

1) Clean the cooler
2) Get a BETTER cooler
3) Get a new case with some intake and exaust fans AND a better cooler

Personally, i'd choose #3