- Joined
- Jun 18, 2009
- Location
- BC, Canada
Hello all.
I'm putting together a new build which I will begin working on within the next couple of weeks.. And there are a few kinks that I'm trying to work out in regards to maximizing cooling performance since I won't be running anything stock (I suppose that goes without say if i'm posting in these forums
). I'm going to be running 3-way SLI EVGA 3GB GTX 580s and I know from both experience with SLI builds and user comments about the 580 sli setup that those babies run hot hot hot. I'm trying to figure out what I can do to reduce that heat by not just relying on the stock coolers to do their job. I have a few ideas in mind, and I just wanted to run them by in here to see if any of you veterans can give me some guidance.
The case I'm planning on using is an Antec Twelve Hundred, and I'm going to install a full window in the side panel, so I won't have a side intake that I can stick a fan in. The case has 3 120mm front intakes, 2 rear 120mm and a top 200mm for those who aren't familiar with it.
To make things easier I made a quick paint diagram of the 3 ideas I had in mind:
The first idea was to install a 120mm fan at the front end of the cards, blowing air through the gaps in between the 3 cards.
The second was to install a 120mm fan on top of the cards blowing down through them.
The third idea was to combine the first 2, and have both a fan blowing through the cards from the front and through the cards from the top.
What I'm wondering is the following:
A) Will any of these 3 setups actually result in a noticeable decrease in card temps? Which of the 3 do you think would be most effective?
B) Will having increased airflow over the cards like that mess with the stock cooling fans? Not sure if the proximity of the much bigger fans will cause the stock fans to be burn out or anything like that.
C) For the third option, would it make more sense for the fan at the front of the cards to be pushing more air than the fan pushing down through the cards? Or does it not matter at all?
D) If I get powerful enough fans running full time in the setups I have above, (for reference I'm thinking of either Silverstone FM121s which run @ ~110CFM or getting some Deltas
and a High-Watt Fan Controller, or a combination of the two) would it be more effective to remove the stock cooling fan and side cover leaving only the bare heatsinks? I'm not sure if this is even possible, I'm just musing here.
E) Will having the fans blowing so close to the cards be an issue for the fans themselves? Will it be better for the fans to be set back a little bit and ducted to the cards instead?
Well, that's about all I can think of for now, any and all input is most appreciated.
Thanks in advance!
I'm putting together a new build which I will begin working on within the next couple of weeks.. And there are a few kinks that I'm trying to work out in regards to maximizing cooling performance since I won't be running anything stock (I suppose that goes without say if i'm posting in these forums
). I'm going to be running 3-way SLI EVGA 3GB GTX 580s and I know from both experience with SLI builds and user comments about the 580 sli setup that those babies run hot hot hot. I'm trying to figure out what I can do to reduce that heat by not just relying on the stock coolers to do their job. I have a few ideas in mind, and I just wanted to run them by in here to see if any of you veterans can give me some guidance.The case I'm planning on using is an Antec Twelve Hundred, and I'm going to install a full window in the side panel, so I won't have a side intake that I can stick a fan in. The case has 3 120mm front intakes, 2 rear 120mm and a top 200mm for those who aren't familiar with it.
To make things easier I made a quick paint diagram of the 3 ideas I had in mind:
The first idea was to install a 120mm fan at the front end of the cards, blowing air through the gaps in between the 3 cards.
The second was to install a 120mm fan on top of the cards blowing down through them.
The third idea was to combine the first 2, and have both a fan blowing through the cards from the front and through the cards from the top.
What I'm wondering is the following:
A) Will any of these 3 setups actually result in a noticeable decrease in card temps? Which of the 3 do you think would be most effective?
B) Will having increased airflow over the cards like that mess with the stock cooling fans? Not sure if the proximity of the much bigger fans will cause the stock fans to be burn out or anything like that.
C) For the third option, would it make more sense for the fan at the front of the cards to be pushing more air than the fan pushing down through the cards? Or does it not matter at all?
D) If I get powerful enough fans running full time in the setups I have above, (for reference I'm thinking of either Silverstone FM121s which run @ ~110CFM or getting some Deltas
and a High-Watt Fan Controller, or a combination of the two) would it be more effective to remove the stock cooling fan and side cover leaving only the bare heatsinks? I'm not sure if this is even possible, I'm just musing here.E) Will having the fans blowing so close to the cards be an issue for the fans themselves? Will it be better for the fans to be set back a little bit and ducted to the cards instead?
Well, that's about all I can think of for now, any and all input is most appreciated.
Thanks in advance!
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