Now the question... Has anyone out there ever taken a dremel tool to the air inlet holes at the rear where the 120mm exhuast fan is ( cutting it so there is a BIG hole there )... and for that matter, taken the front inlet holes out, to allow more air? Just wondering if the extra metal being out of the way would make the fans even more efficient.P180 fan inlet question
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P180 fan inlet question
Just ordered my P180 from Fry's, so hopefully middle of next week i can start modding the case Now the question... Has anyone out there ever taken a dremel tool to the air inlet holes at the rear where the 120mm exhuast fan is ( cutting it so there is a BIG hole there )... and for that matter, taken the front inlet holes out, to allow more air? Just wondering if the extra metal being out of the way would make the fans even more efficient.
Now the question... Has anyone out there ever taken a dremel tool to the air inlet holes at the rear where the 120mm exhuast fan is ( cutting it so there is a BIG hole there )... and for that matter, taken the front inlet holes out, to allow more air? Just wondering if the extra metal being out of the way would make the fans even more efficient.-
where?wolf
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Re: P180 fan inlet question
[quote="JohnFL"]Just ordered my P180 from Fry's, so hopefully middle of next week i can start modding the case Now the question... Has anyone out there ever taken a dremel tool to the air inlet holes at the rear where the 120mm exhuast fan is ( cutting it so there is a BIG hole there )... and for that matter, taken the front inlet holes out, to allow more air? Just wondering if the extra metal being out of the way would make the fans even more efficient.[/quote]
Yes, definite the noise will be lower and the airflow will improve!
I took out all stamped grilles. Just left enough for holding the filters in the front. Then I glued some black, "U" shaped, rubber, door isolation strips around the edge of the exaust fan holes. Just make sure to stretch it enough. So it wont hinder the fan blades! Unfortunatly my 2 cats is in the risk zone here. So I had to mount a rounded wire finger guard on the rear exhaust and I kept the "spoiler" for the top fan.
But anyway. The rounded wire guard, is better than the stamped honeycombed one at least.
Also, get better case fans, than those pretty noisy Tricools when you can. I myself, use Noctua fans for my case.
P.s I just taped a strong, small plastic bag around the inside of the hole when I did cut those grilles out. It catched any metal dust and shards flying around. Just dont cut the bag by accident! lol. You also may wanna tape all vents, holes and screwholes close to the fan hole before you cut. Then leave those vents sealed. It will improve the airflow too.
Now the question... Has anyone out there ever taken a dremel tool to the air inlet holes at the rear where the 120mm exhuast fan is ( cutting it so there is a BIG hole there )... and for that matter, taken the front inlet holes out, to allow more air? Just wondering if the extra metal being out of the way would make the fans even more efficient.[/quote]Yes, definite the noise will be lower and the airflow will improve!
I took out all stamped grilles. Just left enough for holding the filters in the front. Then I glued some black, "U" shaped, rubber, door isolation strips around the edge of the exaust fan holes. Just make sure to stretch it enough. So it wont hinder the fan blades! Unfortunatly my 2 cats is in the risk zone here. So I had to mount a rounded wire finger guard on the rear exhaust and I kept the "spoiler" for the top fan.
But anyway. The rounded wire guard, is better than the stamped honeycombed one at least.
Also, get better case fans, than those pretty noisy Tricools when you can. I myself, use Noctua fans for my case.
P.s I just taped a strong, small plastic bag around the inside of the hole when I did cut those grilles out. It catched any metal dust and shards flying around. Just dont cut the bag by accident! lol. You also may wanna tape all vents, holes and screwholes close to the fan hole before you cut. Then leave those vents sealed. It will improve the airflow too.
Thanks for the reply where?wolf.....
I'm no engineer, bu logic would be that the honeycomb would cause air turbulance, and in return would cause the fan blades to not move the air as eficiently.
where?wolf... the only question i would ask you is if i should leave a horizontal and vertical row of steel in the open area, so that the fan does not suck the filter into the fan blades..... or am i being optimistic that the fan draws that much air
I'm no engineer, bu logic would be that the honeycomb would cause air turbulance, and in return would cause the fan blades to not move the air as eficiently.
where?wolf... the only question i would ask you is if i should leave a horizontal and vertical row of steel in the open area, so that the fan does not suck the filter into the fan blades..... or am i being optimistic that the fan draws that much air
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where?wolf
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[quote="JohnFL"]Thanks for the reply where?wolf.....
I'm no engineer, bu logic would be that the honeycomb would cause air turbulance, and in return would cause the fan blades to not move the air as eficiently.
where?wolf... the only question i would ask you is if i should leave a horizontal and vertical row of steel in the open area, so that the fan does not suck the filter into the fan blades..... or am i being optimistic that the fan draws that much air[/quote]
The horizontal ones. If you remove a filter. You will see that 4 of those holes have a slightly different shape. Keep those and the massive part of the grills frame around them ( othervice the steel may bend when you mount / remove the filters) . The openings I did cut reminds of a crude "+" sign about.
P.s take VERY good time to consider the ways, you will route the cables in that case! There are some places that is good for tucking away cables.
Near the mobo there are some space , where the mobo plate and the cases back plate meets.
Also under the upper hd cage you have an opening.
Along the lips of the side panel.
On top of the psu. Providing you dont have the psu with the bottom fan pointing upwards?
Also tape every hole in the upper hd cage, if you are planning to use the fan + clips on that cage? Or you may experiense a whistleing noise, when the intake air passes those holes.
I'm no engineer, bu logic would be that the honeycomb would cause air turbulance, and in return would cause the fan blades to not move the air as eficiently.
where?wolf... the only question i would ask you is if i should leave a horizontal and vertical row of steel in the open area, so that the fan does not suck the filter into the fan blades..... or am i being optimistic that the fan draws that much air
[/quote]The horizontal ones. If you remove a filter. You will see that 4 of those holes have a slightly different shape. Keep those and the massive part of the grills frame around them ( othervice the steel may bend when you mount / remove the filters) . The openings I did cut reminds of a crude "+" sign about.
P.s take VERY good time to consider the ways, you will route the cables in that case! There are some places that is good for tucking away cables.
Near the mobo there are some space , where the mobo plate and the cases back plate meets.
Also under the upper hd cage you have an opening.
Along the lips of the side panel.
On top of the psu. Providing you dont have the psu with the bottom fan pointing upwards?
Also tape every hole in the upper hd cage, if you are planning to use the fan + clips on that cage? Or you may experiense a whistleing noise, when the intake air passes those holes.
Last edited by where?wolf on Mon Dec 04, 2006 6:27 am, edited 1 time in total.
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where?wolf
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[quote="russsss"]Does it REALLY make that much difference to the noise? The intention with the P180 is to run low-speed/low-noise fans, so the effort of removing the grilles can't be worth the return of fractionally reduced noise, can it?[/quote]
I had the orginal 3X Tricools on "low" and a Nexus as intake on the upper hd with clips. When I decided to remove those grilles. Now, I'm a pretty old geezer and probably cant' hear over 17000Hz. But even dispite of that I did hear a difference. And the case lost 4C in temp.
Most pc cases will gain from removing those grilles.
Edit: Just think about how much air that will start to bounce around against those flat grilles. And the rear exhaust and top fan grilles will be too restrictive due to the small holes. Even the s.c "spoiler" makes some noise. But in a very small amount.
I had the orginal 3X Tricools on "low" and a Nexus as intake on the upper hd with clips. When I decided to remove those grilles. Now, I'm a pretty old geezer and probably cant' hear over 17000Hz. But even dispite of that I did hear a difference. And the case lost 4C in temp.
Most pc cases will gain from removing those grilles.
Edit: Just think about how much air that will start to bounce around against those flat grilles. And the rear exhaust and top fan grilles will be too restrictive due to the small holes. Even the s.c "spoiler" makes some noise. But in a very small amount.
where?wolf...
I forgot to tell you, that i will be taking the fan that is at the top out, and taping that hole shut ( read somewheres on SPCR that someone had run tests, and that with the top hole closed, the CPU temp actually dropped a few degrees celcius ), and moving that fan so that it will sit infront of the upper hd bay. Then i am going to put a Kama Bay in the lower three 5.25 inch bays ( without the fan in it ).
Your feelings on this???
I forgot to tell you, that i will be taking the fan that is at the top out, and taping that hole shut ( read somewheres on SPCR that someone had run tests, and that with the top hole closed, the CPU temp actually dropped a few degrees celcius ), and moving that fan so that it will sit infront of the upper hd bay. Then i am going to put a Kama Bay in the lower three 5.25 inch bays ( without the fan in it ).
Your feelings on this???
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where?wolf
- Posts: 198
- Joined: Mon Jul 31, 2006 5:10 am
- Location: Southern Sweden
[quote="JohnFL"]where?wolf...
I forgot to tell you, that i will be taking the fan that is at the top out, and taping that hole shut ( read somewheres on SPCR that someone had run tests, and that with the top hole closed, the CPU temp actually dropped a few degrees celcius ), and moving that fan so that it will sit infront of the upper hd bay. Then i am going to put a Kama Bay in the lower three 5.25 inch bays ( without the fan in it ).
Your feelings on this???[/quote]
Yepp, that's a good fan config. I have the same about. Just replaced the Scythe fan for a Noctua instead. Not very much of a difference noise vice. But The Noctua move more air and is a thad bit more silent. And as every decibel and cfm counts....well.
Just make sure the exhaust fan push more air than the intake fan on the HD cage and the Kama Bay together. IF you some day change your mind about haveing a fan in the Kama Bay.
Tape up the holes in the CD cage too when using the Kama B.
And you will have a small gap between the Kama, and the sides of the cage too, that needs sealing. I used some sprongue rubber (black) As I have a P180 B
I forgot to tell you, that i will be taking the fan that is at the top out, and taping that hole shut ( read somewheres on SPCR that someone had run tests, and that with the top hole closed, the CPU temp actually dropped a few degrees celcius ), and moving that fan so that it will sit infront of the upper hd bay. Then i am going to put a Kama Bay in the lower three 5.25 inch bays ( without the fan in it ).
Your feelings on this???[/quote]
Yepp, that's a good fan config. I have the same about. Just replaced the Scythe fan for a Noctua instead. Not very much of a difference noise vice. But The Noctua move more air and is a thad bit more silent. And as every decibel and cfm counts....well.
Just make sure the exhaust fan push more air than the intake fan on the HD cage and the Kama Bay together. IF you some day change your mind about haveing a fan in the Kama Bay.
Tape up the holes in the CD cage too when using the Kama B.
And you will have a small gap between the Kama, and the sides of the cage too, that needs sealing. I used some sprongue rubber (black) As I have a P180 B
where?wolf....
How about this configuration?
Leave the two exhaust fans where they are ( top and back ), and put another fan infront of the upper hd bay, and put the Kama Bay in the upper 5.25 bay area ( without the Kama Bay fan ). In that way, there will be one INPUT fan, and two EXHAUST fans. With the Kama Bay area supplying air that would be sucked into the case from the top and rear EXHUAST fans...... yes / no ?
How about this configuration?
Leave the two exhaust fans where they are ( top and back ), and put another fan infront of the upper hd bay, and put the Kama Bay in the upper 5.25 bay area ( without the Kama Bay fan ). In that way, there will be one INPUT fan, and two EXHAUST fans. With the Kama Bay area supplying air that would be sucked into the case from the top and rear EXHUAST fans...... yes / no ?
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where?wolf
- Posts: 198
- Joined: Mon Jul 31, 2006 5:10 am
- Location: Southern Sweden
[quote="JohnFL"]where?wolf....
How about this configuration?
Leave the two exhaust fans where they are ( top and back ), and put another fan infront of the upper hd bay, and put the Kama Bay in the upper 5.25 bay area ( without the Kama Bay fan ). In that way, there will be one INPUT fan, and two EXHAUST fans. With the Kama Bay area supplying air that would be sucked into the case from the top and rear EXHUAST fans...... yes / no ?[/quote]
Yeah, why not? It can definite be worth a try. The only real way to find out whats best when it comes to temperatures? Is to try both the fan configs you suggested. Then run "Prime 95, Torture test for 1 hour. While watching the temps via a temperature monitor software, like "Motherboard monitor 5" for ex.
Also watch how fast the temp drops, just after shutting down Prime 95. This, will give you an idea of how fast things cool down with the different fan configs.
Btw, forgot to tell you before, that you can make the case slighty more quiet , By mounting some thin pc sound damping mat on the inside of the front door too. Just make sure to use a mat that does'nt block or restricts those intakes on the sides of the door
You can also if you are convinced you dont wanna use a fan up in the cd cage? Consider getting a good, plain 120mm fan filter and stick it to the front of the cd cage instead. The Kama B. is quite expensive. A 120mm filter will be a lot cheaper and do the same job. And whatever you choose for a filter up there? Kama Bay or a plain filter? You will have to use some material to seal the gaps around it anyways.
How about this configuration?
Leave the two exhaust fans where they are ( top and back ), and put another fan infront of the upper hd bay, and put the Kama Bay in the upper 5.25 bay area ( without the Kama Bay fan ). In that way, there will be one INPUT fan, and two EXHAUST fans. With the Kama Bay area supplying air that would be sucked into the case from the top and rear EXHUAST fans...... yes / no ?[/quote]
Yeah, why not? It can definite be worth a try. The only real way to find out whats best when it comes to temperatures? Is to try both the fan configs you suggested. Then run "Prime 95, Torture test for 1 hour. While watching the temps via a temperature monitor software, like "Motherboard monitor 5" for ex.
Also watch how fast the temp drops, just after shutting down Prime 95. This, will give you an idea of how fast things cool down with the different fan configs.
Btw, forgot to tell you before, that you can make the case slighty more quiet , By mounting some thin pc sound damping mat on the inside of the front door too. Just make sure to use a mat that does'nt block or restricts those intakes on the sides of the door
You can also if you are convinced you dont wanna use a fan up in the cd cage? Consider getting a good, plain 120mm fan filter and stick it to the front of the cd cage instead. The Kama B. is quite expensive. A 120mm filter will be a lot cheaper and do the same job. And whatever you choose for a filter up there? Kama Bay or a plain filter? You will have to use some material to seal the gaps around it anyways.
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where?wolf
- Posts: 198
- Joined: Mon Jul 31, 2006 5:10 am
- Location: Southern Sweden
[quote="JohnFL"]where?wolf......
The only reason i was gonna buy the Kama Bay, was cause i could clip the Antec rails to it, so that it could be installed and taken out easily for cleaning. Is there a filter the size of a 120mm fan, that could be put up in the 5.25 inch bay area instead of the Kama Bay?[/quote]
Any 120mm filter, with a hard frame around it will do. Akasa seems to make good ones for ex.
And such a filter will be as easy to take out and clean as the Kama. If you stick some strips as a "mounting frame" for the filter in the front of the cd cage. Just make sure the strips is slightly thicker than the gap between the filter and the cages walls. And secure them with double sided tape. Then just press the lower edge of the filter down and carefully push the filter inwards, til it "clicks" in place. The pressure of the foam or sprongue rubber will secure the filter. You can of coarce add some tape around the edges if you wanna make really sure .
The only reason i was gonna buy the Kama Bay, was cause i could clip the Antec rails to it, so that it could be installed and taken out easily for cleaning. Is there a filter the size of a 120mm fan, that could be put up in the 5.25 inch bay area instead of the Kama Bay?[/quote]
Any 120mm filter, with a hard frame around it will do. Akasa seems to make good ones for ex.
And such a filter will be as easy to take out and clean as the Kama. If you stick some strips as a "mounting frame" for the filter in the front of the cd cage. Just make sure the strips is slightly thicker than the gap between the filter and the cages walls. And secure them with double sided tape. Then just press the lower edge of the filter down and carefully push the filter inwards, til it "clicks" in place. The pressure of the foam or sprongue rubber will secure the filter. You can of coarce add some tape around the edges if you wanna make really sure .
I am putting together a very similiar system right now. I have a 180 B and just ordered a kama bay and all my stuff today. I plan on sealing off the upper fan hole in the top, then ducting the cpu from the kama bay out the back fan, then ducting the vga/nb from the center inlet out the pci slots. Sort of like what SPCR Mike did. I actually had this plan a long time ago, then stumbled upon Mikes review and was quite happy my design was almost the same.
Ideally you want the same number of inlets as outlets, otherwise you will loose efficiency. If you have filters your inlets should be slightly larger than your outlets to account for them.
Ideally you want the same number of inlets as outlets, otherwise you will loose efficiency. If you have filters your inlets should be slightly larger than your outlets to account for them.
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where?wolf
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[quote="where?wolf"][quote="JohnFL"]where?wolf......
The only reason i was gonna buy the Kama Bay, was cause i could clip the Antec rails to it, so that it could be installed and taken out easily for cleaning. Is there a filter the size of a 120mm fan, that could be put up in the 5.25 inch bay area instead of the Kama Bay?[/quote]
Any 120mm filter, with a hard frame around it will do. Akasa seems to make good ones for ex.
And such a filter will be as easy to take out and clean as the Kama. If you stick some strips as a "mounting frame" for the filter in the front of the cd cage. Just make sure the strips is slightly thicker than the gap between the filter and the cages walls. And secure them with double sided tape. Then just press the lower edge of the filter down and carefully push the filter inwards, til it "clicks" in place. The pressure of the foam or sprongue rubber will secure the filter. You can of coarce add some tape around the edges if you wanna make really sure .[/quote]
I got curios about your idea, about the fanless Kama Bay, the 2 exhaust fans and the intake on the hd cage.
So I decided to try it out.
And It turned out pretty well I must say!
I lost one degree on the cpu. And the other temps remained the same as with the fan in the Kama B. This surprices me I must admit.
Also the noise got a bit lower.
probably because the case sits about 50cm away from me on the desk.
And that Kama Bay is in ear hight.
So by all means! Run that fan config you suggested.
And you made me ending up with one 120mm fan in reserve.
The only reason i was gonna buy the Kama Bay, was cause i could clip the Antec rails to it, so that it could be installed and taken out easily for cleaning. Is there a filter the size of a 120mm fan, that could be put up in the 5.25 inch bay area instead of the Kama Bay?[/quote]
Any 120mm filter, with a hard frame around it will do. Akasa seems to make good ones for ex.
And such a filter will be as easy to take out and clean as the Kama. If you stick some strips as a "mounting frame" for the filter in the front of the cd cage. Just make sure the strips is slightly thicker than the gap between the filter and the cages walls. And secure them with double sided tape. Then just press the lower edge of the filter down and carefully push the filter inwards, til it "clicks" in place. The pressure of the foam or sprongue rubber will secure the filter. You can of coarce add some tape around the edges if you wanna make really sure .[/quote]
I got curios about your idea, about the fanless Kama Bay, the 2 exhaust fans and the intake on the hd cage.
So I decided to try it out.
And It turned out pretty well I must say!
I lost one degree on the cpu. And the other temps remained the same as with the fan in the Kama B. This surprices me I must admit.
Also the noise got a bit lower.
probably because the case sits about 50cm away from me on the desk.
And that Kama Bay is in ear hight.
So by all means! Run that fan config you suggested.
And you made me ending up with one 120mm fan in reserve.