The Pringles Effect

Splinter · Post by **Splinter** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 11:20 am

I removed the stock HSF and replaced it with an empty, painted pringles tube connected to an 80mm side case fan at 7v. Idle temps are now 33C (case 35C), and load temps get up to 56C (still within tolerances)

It's probably not silent according to what most people here seem to consider silent, but compared to stock, it's inaudible. Plus all it cost me was a tube of pringles

streety · Post by **streety** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 11:31 am

You might be able to make it more silent by moving the fan from the outside of the case back onto the heatsink. That way the path for the noise will be longer and vibration should be less of a problem.

You may not want to do the work though if it's already quiet enough for your needs.

Splinter · Post by **Splinter** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 11:43 am

Unfortunally it's only a 60mm HS

Tibors · Post by **Tibors** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 12:56 pm

That only means you have to use some wire in stead of screws to attach the fan to the heatsink.

Splinter · Post by **Splinter** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 1:02 pm

Do you have a tutorial that shows how to do that??

alleycat · Post by **alleycat** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 5:12 pm

From your pics it looks like you're not using any rear case fans. If you've got a reasonably airtight case you can remove that side intake fan and put one on the back sucking out. That way the cool air would come in through the side vent and directly onto the heatsink before being evacuated from the case at the rear.

Splinter · Post by **Splinter** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 6:14 pm

Actually theres a 120mm fan back there, and my case isnt even close to airtight :/

Tibors · Post by **Tibors** » Sun Jul 18, 2004 5:05 pm

Splinter wrote:Do you have a tutorial that shows how to do that??

The hard way:
Take four pieces of metal wire.
Bend one end of each wire in a hook
Stick each hook through a screwhole in the heatsink shroud.
Twine the short end around the long end.
Stick the long ends through the screwholes on the fan corners.
Bend and twine till it it holds.
Use some electrical isolation tape to make sure it doesn't rattle.

The "expensive" way:
Use a plastic 60mm to 80mm fan adapter like this. It costs about the price of four beer, but it looks a lot better through the window.

Splinter · Post by **Splinter** » Sun Jul 18, 2004 9:17 pm

Those adapters are nice and cheap, until you factor in the fact I'd have to pay about $8 for shipping on top of the cost of the adapter itself.

Not worth it.

Tibors · Post by **Tibors** » Mon Jul 19, 2004 4:47 am

I never buy those small things alone. Just keep it on your wishlist. Then when you need more from the same source, include it with your order.

Splinter · Post by **Splinter** » Mon Jul 19, 2004 9:34 am

It's going to be quite a long time before I order any new parts unfortunally :/

I've expended my budget, and then some.

Splinter · Post by **Splinter** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 12:10 am

Tibors wrote:The hard way:
Take four pieces of metal wire.
Bend one end of each wire in a hook
Stick each hook through a screwhole in the heatsink shroud.
Twine the short end around the long end.
Stick the long ends through the screwholes on the fan corners.
Bend and twine till it it holds.
Use some electrical isolation tape to make sure it doesn't rattle.

You are my new hero.

It was even easier than you described it.

It's running a LOT hotter than before, as much as 5-6C, but I have to redo the ducting. Right now it's sucking hot case air.

It's definately quieter tho.

Update:
Alright, the new duct is in, although it's far from perfect. It only covers around 80% of the fan area. With Folding going full tilt, I'm hitting 58C core and 36C case. With CnQ at max, CPU temp bottoms out ~2C below case temp.

Ambient temp is around 28C. So all in all, this provided me with around a 3C drop in temps at full load and a slight reduction in noise.

Not bad for 10 minutes of work and a few scraps of wire