Overclocking newbie needs some advice

[Gala]

I have been reading many articles and forums all day for help with my new computer, but I have come to the conclusion that I need to ask for some specific help.

I have just finished building a new computer with the following specs:
Case: Aspire X-Dreamer II
Mobo: DFI LanParty 875Pro
CPU: Pentium IV 2.8C
RAM: 512x2 Corsair sticks
Vid: Radeon 9600 non-pro 256 (soon being upgraded to 9800pro 128)
Pwr: Antec True-Blue 480W PSU
HD: Samsung 160Gb 7200RPM SATA
Optical: Samsung combo DVD-ROM/CD-RW drive

My problem lies in cooling and case fans. I am using the stock 80mm case fans that came with it (there are 2, one in the top of the case and one in the side window next to CPU) and I want to boost the airflow of this rig.

Now don't get me wrong, there is nothing WRONG with my current setup. I overclocked from 2.8 to 3.2 at the press of a button and it still runs around 45 C. To me this is a very acceptable level... but I want more. I put my hand over either casefan and feel almost NO air coming out, yet the board and chip still stay pretty cool.

I do not currently have the money for any options other than air-cooling (I'll cross that bridge when I come to it), so I am looking at fan options to increase the airflow to cool off this rig.

A couple things I have noticed:
-- The stock case fans don't FEEL like they're putting out much air, yet everything stays fairly cool.
-- There are two additional fan slots in the back panel of the case above the PCI slots (the normal spot for rear fans) that are as of yet unoccupied.
-- There is a grille on the bottom front of the case which I assume is the only air intake this case has. I do NOT want to mess with the case much to get good air intake, but I realize that it needs "something." Unfortunately this is my first time undertaking such a project and have no idea "what" that something is.
-- The two casefans both have MOLEX connectors, not the 3-pin standard fare I'm used to. Both are plugged into a distinctive line from the PSU that says "Fan Only."

My concerns:
-- I have a suspicion that the air intake from the front of my case can be greatly improved, I just don't know how much work and/or money it would take.
-- I have heard that fans with 3-pins that plug directly into the motherboard can get higher speeds than those using MOLEX's. Is this true?
-- I want to fill those two rear fan slots, and if necessary, upgrade the fans on the side and top of the case, to maximize airflow.

So far I have successfully overclocked the CPU up to 3.5 with even the stock fans, but it is a LITTLE bit unstable at that speed and occasionally crashes, and going any higher is instant crash.

I would appreciate any and all advice the experienced OC'ers here could provide, and thanks in advance!

Oh, and one side note: if you would like to recommend me some fans, I am kind of looking for something with a blue LED glow to accentuate the existing LED's on the PSU and Case.

Please if there are any details I have left out, let me know, I would be happy to correct them.

 

[archilochus]

WELCOME TO THE FORUMS The first step to better cooling is to remove the fan grids from the case. 2nd is to get those fans off of the fan only lines of the psu..Those are controlled by the psu's temp..You heard wrong about wiring fans to the mobo headers.Please read sticky"NO JOKE" in cooling..The best way IMHO to wire the fans is thru a control device..Make sure your wiring and cables are out of the air paths..These are no or low cost, things you can do to get better cooling..Keep your flow up & temps down

 

[fletch]

Try pulling the case fans out and see how much air they move then. If it's significantly more, odds are the grills (if there are any, I haven't looked at that case) are restrictive. You can remove those for better airflow and less noise.

-- I have a suspicion that the air intake from the front of my case can be greatly improved, I just don't know how much work and/or money it would take.

Can you include pics of your setup at the front?


-- I have heard that fans with 3-pins that plug directly into the motherboard can get higher speeds than those using MOLEX's. Is this true?

Not that I know of, but I may be wrong.


-- I want to fill those two rear fan slots, and if necessary, upgrade the fans on the side and top of the case, to maximize airflow.

I highly recommend filling every fan spot in the case.


I've had good experiences with my LED fans (no problems at all, good flow, low noise)

 

[Gala]

I can take pictures (of the fan grilles and the front grille and overall setup) when I go home for lunch on the digicam. Are there any fans you would specifically recommend? Also, what exactly is a control device? Sorry for all the questions, but I would like to familiarize myself with all this and I must start somewhere

Thanks!

 

[archilochus]

A control device is usually a fan controller..Some cases come with them..Here's a link to one as an example. I recommend Panaflo fans. Buy your fans once..Your fans are your cooling schemes life blood..The only other thing more important is your PSU.. With out the two your sunk..

FAN CONTROL

CASE FANS

NO JOKE STICKY LINK

 

[Gala]

OK here are the pictures I took:

Overall shot #1
Overall shot #2
Front grille - outside shot
Front grille - inside shot
Rear grille shot
Top fan shot
Window fan shot

 

[archilochus]

Those grids are worse than mine..Remove them and mount your new fans.. See all 3 pages of pics to see how my case evolved..

CLICK HERE

 

[Gala]

Thanks, but now I seem to have bigger problems... namely, last night after completely installing WinXP, the BIOS now fails to recognize the SATA HDD at all, no matter how many times I reset and/or change the settings. But if I get it working, I'll try your fan solution Thanks.

 

[MaxPowers_68]

Some better wire managment and some exhaust and intake fans and you should get a couples of º's lower.

 

[Mr.Radar]

I have a case that uses the exact same design (except the outside). I removed the fan grilles and WOW did the airflow increase! I highly reccomend removing them (and expanding the front intakes to real 80mm circles).

 

[Gala]

Thing is, these fans are CRAP. I'm probably gonna go look for some better ones today... even with the grilles off I can barely feel any air coming from them. Just as a tip... is there any way to know (maybe I just can't tell because these don't push much air) which "way" your fans are pushing air? Perhaps it's just that these are too weak and I can't feel it.

 

[Gala]

Well this is interesting -- I have a stinking suspicion that the way these fans were originally hooked up (the top and side fans) were INTAKE!!! Working on them now, more as I get it >_<

EDIT: I was partly right. The side one was setup for output as normal, but the top fan WAS set up as an intake fan. However, like I said, the case was staying fairly cool. Should I leave the top fan as intake?

 

[Gala]

Thanks for the advice on removing the fan grilles guys... I am going to buy some more fans today also. I have the side fan for intake and the top fan for exhaust atm, and it is overclocked from 2.8 to 3.2 at room temperature running a nice cool 29 C

 

[Mr.Radar]

If your heatsink's fan is pushing air through the heatsink then the side fan should be an intake. If the heatsink's fan is pulling air out of the heatsink then the side fan should be an exhaust.

 

[MaxPowers_68]

If your heatsink's fan is pushing air through the heatsink then the side fan should be an intake. If the heatsink's fan is pulling air out of the heatsink then the side fan should be an exhaust.

What he said ++

 

[JKeefe]

You never said if you moved your fans to a normal power line off of the PSU.

Antec "fan only" power lines are voltage controlled as a function of PSU temperature. As a result, your fans are probably spinning much slower than they are capable of, because they are only getting a fraction of their rated 12V.

Plug the fans into a normal power line - then they will spin as fast as they are designed to.

BTW, both motherboard headers and power lines from the PSU provide 12V to a fan, so a fan will run at the same speed whether it is plugged into a three-pin header or into a molex.

 

[archilochus]

side fan for intake and the top fan for exhaust atm, and it is overclocked from 2.8 to 3.2 at room temperature running a nice cool 29 C

Nice temp.. is that idle or load? Have you rewired the fans, yet as I indicated above and reminded about it...directly above..?

 

[Gala]

Thanks for the advice guys... I now have a side intake fan, two front intake fans below the HDD's, one top exhaust fan and two rear exhaust fans, all daisy-chained on the same NON-"fan only" wire from the PSU, and I picked up a system blower pretty cheap which is sitting 2 slots beneath the AGP slot. The computer is running noticeably cooler, and also I removed those ugly alien grilles and replaced them with wire grilles that do not nearly restrict the flow of air as much.

 

[archilochus]

Your sitting pretty now..Now maybe we can get some specs of your rig in your sig... Gets pretty hot there in summer doesn't it?
Dry though, I'd imagine!

 

[Gala]

Well with all the fans installed, last night MBM5 reported my temperatures as sitting pretty around 27-32C with fairly minimal load... ran Prime95 (thanks aronmartin) and while the processor was easily able to handle it without maxing out (thanks HT!), it reached 50C before I killed Prime95... not sure if this is a bad sign or not.