Case Fan Recommendations? (140mm, 2-Pack Prefferred)

• 

  Hybroid on 24/04/2022 - 02:33

  +4

  Why do you need intakes at the top of your case? That's quite uncommon and usually would be exhaust as hot air rises and you want to expel as much of it out of the case as quickly as possible.

  Most common setups you would have fresh air intake from the front, 240 or 280mm radiator exhausted from the top and 120 or 140mm exhaust on the rear.

  If that 120mm radiator fan on the rear is your only exhaust then that's very likely not optimal.

  Noctua fans are the best of the bunch by far.

  • 

    Javascripter1 on 24/04/2022 - 02:41

    You're probably very right but the only reason I have the top as my intake is that it's the only case fan area that has dust filters on it. My case is the Thermaltake S100, for reference.

    • 

      Hybroid on 24/04/2022 - 02:51

      That case follows the same standard format. Fresh air intake from front (especially important so it feeds cool air to GPU) with top being radiator exhaust and rear exhaust as well.

      You basically want this airflow arrangement: https://i.imgur.com/MC7mqXf.png

      So you have 2 suggested options here:-

      1) You can mount your single 120mm radiator on top rear as per above (but half size) and add another fan for the rear exhaust which will be optimal setup to expel hot air from the case via that corner. Plus add fresh air intake fans at the front as pictured.

      Example: https://c1.neweggimages.com/ProductImage/11-133-436-V07.jpg

      Another: https://media.pangoly.com/img/5/c/e/4/5ce4f984-17a7-40ff-b15…

      2) If you really prefer, you can leave radiator on the rear exhaust and add fresh air fans in the front as pictured. Top fans will be optional as hot air will rise out anyway but if you wanted to maximise, then add 2x low RPM exhaust fans to top.

      Example: https://i.ytimg.com/vi/06I0qQnnG3M/maxresdefault.jpg

      Dust isn't nearly as important as thermals and airflow. Grab a cheap compressed air can and give it a blast clean every 6 months.

      Still recommend Noctua fans for quality and effectiveness if you're not fussed about RGB. Mine have been running 24/7 since 2013 perfectly. Absolutely worth the extra cost.

      • 

        Javascripter1 on 24/04/2022 - 03:30

        Thanks so much for the advice. I think option 2 would work better, as a 120mm rad on top would look a bit awkward. I'll have a look around for some Noctua's to slap in there. Thanks again.

      • 

        TheBird on 24/04/2022 - 09:25

        +1 for Noctua. Well worth the higher initial investment. They're very quiet and last so much longer than competitors fans.

• 

  OMGJL on 24/04/2022 - 03:37

  I probably will sound sarcastic: "I don't like dust, I want to have dust filters all over my fans" —— as long as you draw in air, dust will go along with air,

  the more filter you have the less air hence lest dust, if you want case with no dust —- you might as well seal it off.

  "But the case has a dust filter on top" —- if you put fan on top blowing air out, where will the dust go? definitely not into the case.

• 

  OMGJL on 24/04/2022 - 03:42

  Your case is pretty much more than half sealed off on the front, so there's going to be minimum air intake, if you still want to use this case, you will want to have high static pressure fans on top of the case blowing air out.

  By doing this, it creates a negative pressure inside the case, forcing air to draw into the case from any air gap the case have. The best cheap static pressure 140mm fan I can think of on top of my head is Arctic P14, this fan has a daisy chain power adapter so even if you have a low end motherboard with little fan header will still fit.

• 

  OMGJL on 24/04/2022 - 03:53

  Your best option probably would be:

  Radiator on the (top) front of the case, with fans behind the radiator as an intake, a fan below the radiator and against the GPU, as a intake. (both mount inside the case metal fan mount bar, not against the plastic front case panel.

  and have 3 exhaust on top/rear of the case.

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