Antec Twelve hundred TOP positive pressure server

[Benjiro]

Hello all,

A few days ago i ended up buying a Antec Twelve hundred case second hand from somebody ( still awaiting delivery ), and i am planing on installing a 5.25" => 3.5" 5 Drive solution in each of the 12 5.25" slots ( that means 4 * 5 drives ).

One thing that got me wondering, is the cooling of this beast. Over the years i have gone from 80mm, 120mm, to now 140mm fans in my cases ( currently a older Fractal Design R4 if i remember correctly ). But most have been negative pressure cases. The results after months become clear... dust in the USB connectors, and other holes left and right.

So my idea this time has been ... take the 200mm of the Antec, and reverse its direction. Close up all the other 120mm back holes ( and side panel ). Forcing the air to go:

a) out from the GPU.
b) out from the front of the case.
c) out of any of the small not plugged holes.

I know that most people ad heart to the principle: "Heat rises". Up to now, i also did that.

But ... my systems have become more & more power efficient systems. And runs 95% of the time idle ( 24/4 ). Basically, the main parts are:

* i5 2500k ( not exactly a power hungry animal in idle ). Has a 750g CPU cooler on top of it ( forgot the name... its a beast ). Even with the slowest 120mm fan i an find, it still cold to the touch, even after gaming its not even "warm".
* Nvidia 660 ( with MSI dual fan, very quiet, very cool running )
* Mostly 5900rpm HD's ( in power down mode )

And even with full gaming, the GPU hits maybe 45°C ... 50°C is rare ( with my R4 => 2 * 120mm top, 1 * 120mm back, and 1 * 120mm on the CPU. All these are low powered & quiet fans ).

So, my new idea for this 1200 case is, to turn the 200mm around ( run on Medium speed ), add a dust filter, remove all other fans ( close the holes with some "Bitumenmatten" ), maybe even remove the fan from the CPU, and force the air out where i "want" it to go out ( GPU, PSU, Front ). Maybe also from the 1280ML 16 Port card's exit, that i just acquired.

In "theory" ... this will work good. The GPU is technically the biggest heat source, and that is already blowing the air out for 50 a 60%. The Raid card has holes into the battery slot area, the front of the case has plenty of holes. And the case will be place below my desk ( on wheels, need to do some modding for that ).

I am just fed up with dust, and prefer dead quiet systems.

Anybody tried this before? I know, it may sound crazy, but hey ... over the years i have done a lot of crazy things as experiments.