Inductor (image)

[Ugmore Baggage]

My (tentative) answer to drilling blowholes in the side of my overpriced case: The inductor!

The idea is to have the whole front of the case act as a filter for a 120mm fan blowing directly onto the center of the mobo. The fan (not shown) would sit in the hole over the CPU.

In theory I could still drill holes into the side of my case. Dust is a problem where my PC is so I want some sort of large filter that allows plenty of air in. This design uses 3x 80mm fan holes being fed to a single 120mm fan. In theory I could add fans by the filter or additional vents in the case door. Also may include a smaller fan blowing at the PCI slots from the lower area.

 

[Lt. Max]

might be a good idea, but cleaning will be a pain in the @$$...
and u gotta make sure theres no holes in the edges for it to work. otherwise a great idea

 

[rivercom9]

So that would be on the inside of the case panel?

 

[Ugmore Baggage]

Right. That whole gizmo would fit in the case. It also would be self enclosed independent of the case door.

Sealing the edges is not a problem. I discovered Rubatex tape at Home Depot the other day.

Also cleaning shouldn't be too bad since hopefully the filters will catch most of it, and I'll make the side removable. As much as possible will be lucite, partly for smoothness and part for so I can see what's happening behind it.

I just hope it doesn't vibrate from the fan it's supporting. That would [email protected]

 

[nihili]

It looks like a good idea overall but there are a few things to watch for.

This is gonna mess up the airflow in your case in a big way. You'll probably need some fans to keep it circulating. Also, since you've effectively reduced the volume of air inside your case, I suspect you'll see your case temp rise significantly.

nihili

 

[Hoot]

Nihili is right. One of the biggest attributes to a 92 or 120mm fan on the side of the case, blowing in, is that the air not only benefits the CPU, but it deflects all around inside the case, helping to cool the other components like the memory on the motherboard, as well as the video card. I've got two of those designs implemented and they work great at keeping the entire case contents cool. By walling off the PCI area, you will deprive the cards of the benefits from the air flow.

Hoot

 

[Yodums]

I have the exact setup and nihili is also correct about the airflow being messed up. I have a mini table fan zip tied above the CPU and well, it blows all over the mainboard, problem is exhaust it is hard where all the air is bouncing back and fourth so your going to depend that lots of intake will cool it lots.

Yodums

 

[rivercom9]

So would negative pressure exist in the case? If so, why not duct air directly to the CPU HSF?

 

[Ugmore Baggage]

I built it in cardboard today. My temps seem to be 3 degrees C lower than without the inductor.

Keep in mind that this is a one-fan case. The 120mm --set to low speed -- fan above the heatsink is the only fan aside from the Power source. Even my gpu has only a heatsink, (Rivercom -- my heatsink uses this type of fan only -- it doesn't have a fan clamped to it).

With my XP1700 at default (1466mhz) it runs at 38 CPU/34 system unloaded and 41 deg CPU loaded (trueSpace rendering -- 100% usage) . Before the inductor is was about 41/37 unloaded.

I plan to add additional fans in several places, 3 exhaust at the rear of the case, and another intake aimed at the PCI area. All of these other fans will be controlled by a digitaldoc. My biggest fear is of losing the main fan without a digital doc installed which is how I justify its price (I have the fans already).

OTOH, I emailed Antec and a new door is about $25 shipped which is about the same price as all that acryllic -- so I may just mod my door instead. Or leave the cardboard LOL