[Guide] Air Cooling Questions Answered Here! (Updated 11/16) - Overclock.net

Shadowclock · 08-26-09

PURPOSE:
We are all tired of answering repetitive questions. The following gives us answers to those most asked questions: What's the best cooler, what fans should I get, and many more questions answered here.

Welcome to:

Shadowclock’s

General Air Cooling Guide

Table of Contents
CPU Coolers

Fans

Fan Controllers

TIM a.k.a. Thermal Paste

Fan Mounting

Positive and Negative Pressure

Tricks to Better Air Flow, CFM and CPU Temps

Dust Filters

Favorite Vendors List

Glossary of Terms

Disclaimer

1. CPU Coolers:

I have taken most (but not all, hence no quote code) of this CPU cooler detailed information from Nemesi5 so credit goes to him for this portion:

Thermalright IFX-14 - Generally beats the Megahalem by a 1-3 degrees depending on the tester. The problem with the IFX-14 is that it needs lapping, is rather bulky and is difficult to mount.
.

Prolimatech Megahalem - This cooler, in my opinion, is currently the best heatsink on the market right now, it has an easy to install solid mount and there is no need to lap the cooler. Quote from Prolimatech site

Quote:

Prolimatech does not condone any type of lapping done to the CPU or to heatsink base. Every Prolimatech's heatsink base is designed on a pin-point scale of how the base is to be flat and/or curved where it's needed to be. We have programed our machines to machine the surface in a very calculated way. Any after-manufacture lapping or modding done to the base will alter the design, hence negating its performance factor as well as its warranty.

.

TRUE - Short for ThermalRight Ultra Extreme, is also a very good cooler, it follows right behind the Megahalem. However, the TRUE usually comes with a very non-flat base requiring you lap the cooler and other various mods like the washer pressure mod. Still recommended if you can't find the Megahalem.
.
Thor's Hammer - Features Heatpipe Direct Touch (HDT) technology, which should allow for better transfer of heat. A generally solid choice if the above 3 are not available in your area.
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Scythe Mugen 2 - This cooler is HUGE. However, its very cheap, at only 40$, who could go wrong with this beast? It cools as well as a TRUE (unlapped).
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Xigmatek Dark Knight - Great looking cooler for those with black painted interior. The only downside to this cooler is that for AM2 users, you have to mount it up&down, which is bad if you have a PSU on top or don't want to pull air from your GPU's into your CPU.
.
Xigmatek S1283 - The exact same cooler as the Dark Knight with two exceptions...its not plated with Black material to make it look cooler and the Dark Knight fan is significantly better.
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OCZ Vendetta 2 - The only downside to this heatsink is that it uses push/pin mounting, if you were going to pick this cooler up, I highly recommend you to purchase a backplate with it.
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CM Hyper 212+ - Great price for damn good HDT cooling. Possibly best bang for buck cooler.

Below is a spreadsheet I have created to show the stats for the above CPU coolers:

Google CPU Coolers Comparison Spreadsheet

Google Spreadsheet

HERE is a graphical temperature comparison for the CPU Coolers listed in the Spreadsheet above.

I utilized Madshrimps and their Benchmark CPU Cooler Comparisons for the temp comparison above due to the wide range of reviews they have. There are other reviews and comparisons out there so do not limit yourself to just them. However, they do provide a general ranking of how popular CPU coolers face up to each other.

CONTINUED ON NEXT POST...

Shadowclock · 08-26-09

2. Fans:

In this LINK you will find a review by Vapor at Xtremesystems where he tests out a ton of fans in many different situations. Decide for yourself which is best for what your looking for.

Performance Fans:
Performance fans are generally used to cool radiators and CPU coolers. Keep in mind that connecting these performance fans to your motherboard is generally a bad idea as they may pull too much power and fry your motherboard's fan header. (Check your motherboard user manual for exact specification ranges)

One 38mm fan in push configuration is usually more than enough to cool most CPU Coolers, if you decide to setup a push / pull with 38mm fans you will most likely only see a 1-2c drop in temperatures and the extra weight on your motherboard may not be worth it.

When using 25mm Performance fans on CPU coolers you may want to utilize a push pull configuration as the 25mm fans do not provide a lot of static pressure unlike the 38mm models (make and model your mileage may vary).

38mm:

San Ace(Sanyo Denki) 109R…H1011 – "The fan of the gods" Most sought after PC fans in the enthusiast market. The 109R’s are the older discontinued models. You can still find them on e-bay and the like but they have been replaced with the 9G model which for most purposes is a better fan. PROOF
San Ace(Sanyo Denki) 9G…H1011 - These new models can be found on a few selective sites.
Panaflo
Panaflo rebrand (Rexus)

25mm:

Delta High Speed
Gentle Typhoon - Hydro bearing, nice and quiet.
Scythe S-Flex G - Another nice and quiet Hydro bearing fan.
Yate Loon High Speed - These are still budget priced but perform in the performance range.

Budget Fans:

Budget fans are great for use as case fans as you do not need a lot of static pressure and they don’t require high CFM to be effective. These fans are generally cheaper due to them not lasting as long or don't provide as much static pressure even with more "rated" CFM.

As always when viewing CFM and dBA ratings they can be deceiving. Realize that some manufacturers can rate CFM at max RPM and the dBA at lowest RPM

Google Spreadsheet

Fan Bearings:

Source

Quote:

The type of bearing used in a fan can affect its performance, noise output and life expectancy.

Most computer fans use one of the following bearing types:

Sleeve Bearing fans use two surfaces lubricated with oil or grease as a friction contact. Sleeve bearings are less durable as the contact surfaces can become rough and/or the lubricant dry up, eventually leading to failure. Sleeve bearings may be more likely to fail at higher temperatures, and may perform poorly when mounted in any orientation other than vertical. The lifespan of a sleeve bearing fan may be around 40,000 hours at 50 °C. Fans that use sleeve bearings are generally cheaper than fans that use ball bearings, and are quieter at lower speeds early in their life, but can grow considerably noisier as they age.
...
Ball Bearing fans use ball bearings. Though generally more expensive, ball bearing fans do not suffer the same orientation limitations as sleeve bearing fans, are more durable especially at higher temperatures, and quieter than sleeve bearing fans at higher rotation speeds. The lifespan of a ball bearing fan may be around 63,000 hours at 50 °C.
.
Fluid Bearing fans have the advantages of near-silent operation and high life expectancy (comparable to ball bearing fans). However, these fans tend to be the most expensive. The enter bearing fan is a variation of the fluid bearing fan, developed by Everflow.

3. Fan Controllers:

Fan controllers are great if you don't want or need your fans running at full speed all the time. Want to bench and stress, turn those babies up! Want to sleep at night, throttle them back. Fan controllers are also great for trying to find that right Positive/Negative pressure for you case (see section 6 for details) Keep in mind that most fans only pull from 1-7 watts but check your fans specs before hooking them up to your particular fan controller.

Performance, high watt / channel:
Performance engineered fan controllers have high enough watt / channel that you can pretty much connect any PC based fan and not worry about frying the controller. If your going with Performance Fans then these controllers are the ones to get. In most cases you can even hookup 2 fans or more per channel.

Rheobus base model gives 20 watt / channel
Rheobus Extreme model gives 30 watts / channel.
Lamptron FC-2 – This controller gives an amazing 45 watts/ channel.

Pretty, but expensive:
If you want a pretty LCD display style design.

Lamptron FC-5 - 30 watt / channel

CONTINUED ON NEXT POST...

Shadowclock · 08-26-09

4. TIM a.k.a. Thermal Paste

I can’t say anything better then what BenchmarkReviews has already shown in the below link:

80-way Thermal Paste Shootout

How to apply TIM is also covered in the review above.

Choosing the right TIM for you? HERE is a guide by Nemesi5.

TIM Removal:
When removing TIM you want to make sure all leftover residue is completely gone. Below is another quote from Nemesi5.

Quote:

Materiel used to remove TIM

* ArctiClean - This materiel perfect for removing the TIM off your CPU & Heatsink, it works instantly dissolving the TIM leaving room for another TIM.

* Tuniq T1-R - Just like ArctiClean, very easy to apply. The TIM dissolves very quickly making TIM removal much easier.

* However, if you do not want to purchase the ArtiClean, you can simply use Isopropyl Alcohol commonly known as Rubbing Alcohol to remove the TIM

If you choose to go with (Isopropyl alcohol) Rubbing alcohol make sure it is 80% or higher and wipe it clean and dry with lint free material like a coffee filter.

5. Fan mounting

Fan Clips can be used to mount your fans to your CPU Cooler. EXAMPLE

Home-made remedies to mount your CPU cooler:

Make your own fan clips like killa_concept did in THIS post.
Twisty ties can also be used, are cheaper and found in any hardware store.

6. Positive and Negative Pressure

Positive

If you have more CFM coming IN, then OUT, you will have hot air cycling in your case waiting to go out, called positive air flow. However, most hot air will be pushed out through your available exhaust fans.

The benefit of having a positive pressure case is that all of your intake air is being cycled in strictly from your intake fans which should have dust filters installed. Therefore, a positive pressure case tends to have much less dust then a Negative pressure case.

Negative

If you have more CFM pushing air OUT than IN. This makes a negative airflow.

Basically you need more air OUT, then goes IN using the fans. The additional air needed will be sucked through the mesh and other holes in your case. The benefit, in theory, is that more cold air is being pulled in through the extra gaps and therefore keeping things cooler than a Positive pressure case.

Simple Pressure Test

Easiest way to check for what pressure you have is to apply a square of toilet paper to an empty hole on your case (use your watercooling holes if you have them, but any decent sized hole/mesh area where air flow can get through will work) and place the TP over the hole. If the TP is being blown outward then you have positive pressure; if it is being sucked in then you have negative pressure.

7. Tricks to Better Air Flow, CFM and CPU Temps

Common Air Flow

Try to remember that you generally want the Air Flow of your case to run front to back and bottom to top as seen by the picture below:

Clear Air Flow
Cut out the mesh on your case where your fans are mounted to and add in some fan guards or if your brave and don’t mind losing a finger go commando. Do this mod and watch your CFMs soar and your noise levels drop. I performed this on my own case mod which you can find pictures of HERE.

Cable Management
Your best friend when it comes to creating better air flow inside of your case. Shove those wires behind your motherboard tray and make sure your fans have a clear flow through your case. There is so much you can do in regards to managing your cables so I will point you to one of my most watched posts for tips and help. Rate My Cables

Improve CPU Temps
Angmaar has a great guide on improving temps via mods directly to your heatsink in his How to: Modify Your Heatsink Guide.
If you are looking for software to stress test and monitor your temperatures go HERE.

8. Dust Filters

Dust filters are used on your intake fans to prevent dust from being sucked into your case.EXAMPLE

There is also a cheaper and home made way to make your own dust filter. Panty hoes! That’s right, grab your wife’s, girlfriend’s, strange cousin, or grandma’s holey panty hoes and get to modding. This is especially useful for those fans that are oversized that you usually find on the side of some cases such as the HAF 932.

Jmcmtank has a great post with pictures on how to create your own panty hose dust filter HERE

And here is a video guide:

YouTube- Custom Dust Filters Using a Pantyhose

9. Favorite Vendor List:

ChilledPC.co.uk - Gentle Typhoon / Scythe S-Flex / Yate Loon / San Ace (Sanyo Denki)
FrozenCPU.com - IFX-14 / Megahalem / TRUE / Thor's Hammer / Mugen 2 / Dark Knight / OCZ Vendetta 2 / Panaflo / Scythe S-Flex / CM R4 / Yate Loon
Jab-Tech.com - IFX-14 / TRUE / Mugen 2 / Panaflo / Gentle Typhoon / Scythe S-Flex / Yate Loon
Microcenter.com - TRUE / Mugen 2 / Dark Knight / Xig S1283 / OCZ Vendetta 2 / CM Hyper 212+ / Scythe S-Flex / CM R4 / Yate Loon
Newark.com - Panaflo / San Ace(Sanyo Denki)
Newegg.com - Thor's Hammer / Mugen 2 / Dark Knight / Xig S1283 / Panaflo / Scythe S-Flex / CM R4
Performance-PCs.com - IFX-14 / Megahalem / TRUE / Thor's Hammer / Mugen 2 / Dark Knight / Xig S1283 / OCZ Vendetta 2 / CM Hyper 212+ / Panaflo / Gentle Typhoon / Scythe S-Flex / CM R4 / Yate Loon
PetrasTechShop.com - TRUE / Mugen 2 / Panaflo / Scythe S-Flex / Yate Loon
Scythe-usa.com - Mugen 2 / Scythe S-Flex /
SidewinderComputers.com - Megahalem / TRUE / Scythe S-Flex / Lamptron
Xoxide.com - IFX-14 / TRUE / Panaflo / Gentle Typhoon / Scythe S-Flex / CM R4 / Yate Loon
HeatsinkFactory.com - Items list pending
SVC.com - Items list pending
MNPCTech.com - Mod your case and make it look Badass!

10. Glossary of Terms

CFM – Cubic Feet per Minute. For our purposes CFM is defined as a unit of measurement of the flow of air that indicates how much volume in cubic feet pass by a stationary point in one minute.

Static Pressure - Static pressure is used to evaluate the amount of impact components (heatsink/radiators) have on the airflow path within a given system. The performance of a fan is defined as the amount of airflow in CFM at a given static pressure. Therefore in order for a fan to overpower the static pressure caused by restrictive heatsinks and radiators, a high static pressure fan is most efficient (see 38mm Performance Fans section). Pa=Pascal is the measurement unit used for Static Pressure. mmH20 is also often given and can be converted to Pa using THIS converter (Thanks Gyro).

dBA – Decibels (A-weighting). A measurement that expresses the magnitude of sound intensity. Some statistics for dBA used for fans can be inaccurate due to the distance of the measuring microphone from a sound source being "forgotten", when measurements are quoted, making the data pretty useless.

TIM (Thermal Interface Material) – Also known as thermal paste. This material is used to increase the thermal conductivity of a thermal interface by compensating for the irregular surfaces of the components.

11. Disclaimer

The lists I provide in this post are of the most popular and well respected brands and models. This is in no way a complete list. If you have a suggestion or addition to the information provided please post here and send a PM so that I will be notified to update this post.

I accept no responsibility whatsoever for anyone using this posts information in any way. All modifications by you are the full responsibility of you. Anything done to your property is done at your own risk. If you happen to find an error, PM me. If I did quote you or utilize your information inappropriately and you don’t like this PM me.

boebi · 08-26-09

Nice writeup.
+rep

UnAimed · 08-26-09

hmm looks okay. You should ad some pictures and how to install the tim. Also the thread would need to be constantly updated with the newest best air coolers if it is going to be a sticky.

nemesi5 · 08-26-09

Quote:

Originally Posted by UnAimed

hmm looks okay. You should ad some pictures and how to install the tim. Also the thread would need to be constantly updated with the newest best air coolers if it is going to be a sticky.

Agreed, thats why I never got mine stickied

Anyways, pretty nice guide, you explain the general areas of air cooling.

Shadowclock · 08-26-09

Quote:

Originally Posted by boebi

Nice writeup.
+rep

Thanks for the Rep

Quote:

Originally Posted by UnAimed

hmm looks okay. You should ad some pictures and how to install the tim. Also the thread would need to be constantly updated with the newest best air coolers if it is going to be a sticky.

Plan on updating and tweaking the guide as time goes by and as I get more requests for changes and updates. Installing TIM request is a good idea...will at least link to a general guide for that if not input my own knowledge. Thanks for the idea +rep EDIT: The link in the TIM section actually has instructions on applying TIM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nemesi5

Agreed, thats why I never got mine stickied

Anyways, pretty nice guide, you explain the general areas of air cooling.

Was very much intended for use as a general guide for sure. Thanks for the props.

Shadowclock · 08-26-09

Added a bit more info and cleaned up some of the layout. Best way to get this stickied?

Rep + for any additional information you guys might think useful for a General Air Cooling guide.

Gyro · 08-26-09

It would be nice to have some static pressures listed for any recommended cpu cooler fans.

As alot of specs only show cfm.rpm

Here are few I have found;

xigmatek s1283 stock fan is 1.57mmH2O
DK s1283v stock fan 4.1mmH2O
RS s1283 stock fan 1.516mmH2O

Cooler master R4's 3.09 mmH2O

Gyro

Anth0789 · 08-26-09

Really good info in this thread I think this should be stickied.

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