Time to update the motherboards layout!

[Waldorf]

given that most cases are limited on the exhaust side (1 maybe 2 fans in the back),
using the top as exist is best, no matter if with or without a rad.
given that some larger cases offer to mount a rad (more importantly the fans) on the inside of the sidepanel.
i would use that for rad (exhaust), top/rear exhaust, and front/bottom as intake,
usually the best in lowering temps, no matter how the gpu is cooled.

i hate i cant find the core series anymore (Tt) has they were using the MB laying flat,
and had large bottom/side mesh covering whole panel, and enough space to cover the whole panel with fans,
and in my ignorant "youth",i claim i would've gotten 9 140s there

i found with ultra low rpm i use for low loads, to be inaudible, having every opening populated, works better.

might go with Evo XL, but cant get it shipped to my location, and shops are a joke here.

 

[BoggledBeagle]

given that most cases are limited on the exhaust side (1 maybe 2 fans in the back), ...

Are you sure? I think most cases now have a lot of vents all over them. You can pass a lot of warm waste air through all that vents.

 

[Bill_Bright]

the top fans are intake from outside through a 240 radiator in top of the case.

There is a lot of confusion there. It is common when a radiator is mounted up top for those to be intakes. And that is typically the correct orientation.

using the top as exist is best, no matter if with or without a rad.

Ummm, not with most radiators. You typically want the coolest air blowing through the radiator. That will not be air from inside the heated case. Blowing heated internal air through the radiator essentially directs the CPU's heat back at the CPU. That is counterproductive.

My advice is to follow the direction from the radiator maker.

Are you sure? I think most cases now have a lot of vents all over them.

Most quality cases do have lots of vents. But Waldorf is correct. Most vents are not meant as "exhaust" vents. The most common air flow is front to back. But the rear of the typical case is occupied by a PSU vent, expansion card slots, and rear I/O connector area. That often leaves room for just one "exhaust" fan.

Front panels typically support 2 "intake" fans. Bottom vents (if any) typically support 1 "intake" for the PSU which then exhausts out the back and really does NOT contribute much to overall case flow (none if in an enclosed chamber). If the case supports "blowhole" or top mounted fans, those are typically exhaust, UNLESS there is a radiator there, then the typical configuration again is intake to blow cool air through the radiator. Side panel fans always (as far as I have seen) are intake.

 

[Waldorf]

@Bill_Bright
as i mentioned earlier, if the space is there, most sidepanels
now allow to mount rad+fans (exhaust), with cpu heat leaving right away,
while top (fans only) can exhaust case/gpu air.

only if your chasing 5*C difference in cpu temps, do you install a rad as intake,
while sacrificing temps for all other components incl gpu.
ignoring the part that i havent seen any case with so many fans on the rear, it can match the amount of air blowing in from front/top.

than i would rather install the rad on the front/bottom (most AIO wont allow that tho),
and can still use the top for exhaust.



has ZERO to do with the brand/manual, physics works the same for all, no matter what.
the difference is, what do i prefer to lower the temps on the most,
while "increasing" it a little bit for other parts.
(ignoring many AIO now come with fans pre-installed, allowing only for exhaust setup out of the box)

fact is, most are better off with lower gpu temps, as they tend to "throttle" boost clocks more,
than a cpu running at higher temps, so mounting rad (loop or AIO) to top/side as exhaust,
is usually the best idea for gaming setups not chasing cpu temps..

 

[Bill_Bright]

My preference with radiators is the old way - with the radiators outside the case completely and case air flow going front to back only. If bottom to top, then only bottom to top. Mixing front to back with bottom to top (or top exhaust, no bottom intake), in "some" cases, causes too much turbulence and hinders the desired (and rapid) flow of air through and out the case. Side panel fans are notorious for disrupting desire air flow (unless they blow the cool air into a tube and directly onto the CPU or GPU).

But of course, having hoses piped in and out of the case is cumbersome and less aesthetically pleasing for some.

In reality, the correct way to set up case cooling has absolutely nothing to do with opinion or personal preference - or even past experience (except with identical systems). The correct way is through trial and error with various configurations and actual measurements.

So to suggest this way or that way is the best way without actually running tests on the specific hardware and gathering empirical data is actually just guessing. All I can really say is, in my experience rolleyes in "most" cases I've dealt with over the years, having the air flow in one direction only (front to back or bottom to top) "usually" provides the lowest temps. But there have been exceptions.

I will also say as fact (not opinion) that good cable management is essential, as well as strategic placement of drives - if you have a choice.

 

[Waldorf]

yeah, now i regret selling my ext reserator (3ft tall), as with long tubing i had almost 2gal of fluid.
took 30 min just to saturated the loop
just didnt care about LC anymore, as i went from intel to amd and a flat mounted mb case
with a 200mm on the top/2x140 in the rear, zero probs with flow for gpu..

the only time the manual will "limit" the rad to top mounted, is 99 out of 100 because its a sealed AIO without res,
so the air stays in the rad (not block/pump), vs all those coming with one (Alphacool/EK etc),
will recommend to put the rad lower than the block/pump (front/side/bottom mounted),
so all air gets flushed out the rad and returns to the res, as air trapped in the rad makes a big diff in perf.

but short of minute variances, temps arent that much different for most cases (outside air trapped in rad on any setup),
and setting rad to exhaust, will also mean a big drop in temps for gpu/mb/drives and psu,
as ~100w worth of hot air arent blown inside the case, not just lower cpu temps alone (from LC).

 

[DaemonForce]

ext reserator

I can't believe I remember these being a thing in the Pentium 4 era. How well did they hold up? Imagine having 3ft of copper reserator with an inline pump. We could have cute 8" tall looooongboi Mini-ITX cases with big chonker GPUs on a vertical riser and it would stay quiet.

 

[overclockedamd]

As someone who worked in place that resold parts from prebuilt computers damaged in transit. (90% were ripped out gpus) I could see this change being a huge issue with ripping out cpus and ram as well with the GPU( which did happen as well at times) I cant tell you how many Broken and mangled brand new PC parts I saw during Covid. HUNDREDS of 3000 series gpus top of the line cpus and motherboards mangled.

 

[Waldorf]

@DaemonForce
in-/outlet bored to take G1/4, modded eheim pump outside the res, using 1/2in ID tubing, alphacool block for the cpu.
worked like a charm for 3770K.

 

[DaemonForce]

HUNDREDS of 3000 series gpus top of the line cpus and motherboards mangled.

I know who I'm looking at for that mess. Normies ruin everything.

in-/outlet bored to take G1/4, modded eheim pump outside the res, using 1/2in ID tubing, alphacool block for the cpu.

Still using G1/4 fittings for Koolance stuff. I don't actually know what belongs on my R5 3600 but the discount 2U Wraith cooler ain't it.
Wraith Spire that shipped with the FX still works great if I ever need it but until then the Pentium 4 block seems fine. I've been using this for 20 years.

 

[A Computer Guy]

I have a Silverstone Milo ML-09B that does exactly that.

Me too. Mine is enhanced to more specifically to direct airflow though the heatsink and it works great!

Fun times with the Silverstone ML-09B

Moving my captured my build experiences in ML-09B from other threads here so I can keep track of progressive changes and tests. This case is quite outdated but still proves to be quite useful. When installed with 4750G, Motherboard with 2 display outputs, and gigabyte 4060 (low profile) you...

www.techpowerup.com

I would like to see future PC designs put the GPU on top but it also needs to be combined in a way that allows air to be input from the sides without bypassing the heatsink or exhausted though the sides without being injected back into the case. One challenge of course is some cards output air along the length vs. cards along their width. Also you have 1 to 5 slot card depths so in order to get the fans to line up to the edge of the case you need to have a movable motherboard tray or ducting to make up the difference.