Are case fans a good idea?

[GreatArtist]

Do they really help much?
Where is the best place to put one and should it blow air out or pull
it in?

 

[JAD]

Do they really help much?

under circumstances where the PSU output fan is not enough, they help dramatically.

Where is the best place to put one and should it blow air out or pull
it in?

'Out' the rear back plane at Midway or where ever the grill work is located.

 

[Rod Speed]

Do they really help much?

Depends on the detail of how much heat you are generating internally.

Where is the best place to put one and should it blow air out or pull it in?

Depends on how many you are adding. The usual thing is one on
the back pumping out of the case initially tho we have lately seen
a single case fan moving outside air directly onto the cpu heatsink/fan
with the worst of the modern cpus like the Intel Prescotts.

If you have more than one case fan, its usually worth having one on
the front of the case moving air into the case over the hard drive stack
if you have a number of hard drives without any free slots between
them if the system isnt used in an air conditioned room in summer.

 

[John Doe]

Do they really help much?
Where is the best place to put one and should it blow air out or
pull it in?

In my opinion, a case intake fan blowing on the hard drives is a
good idea. Mine has a filter in front of it that catches some
dust and is easily cleaned.

Good luck.

 

[BigJim]

suck in the front and blow it out the back

 

[Phisherman]

Do they really help much?

Yes. Heat is the enemy.

Where is the best place to put one and should it blow air out or pull
it in?

Depends. Usually you want to pull air out near the top, pull air in
near the bottom. Blowing air onto a hot chip is better than sucking
air away from it.

 

[Jon Danniken]

In my opinion, a case intake fan blowing on the hard drives is a
good idea. Mine has a filter in front of it that catches some
dust and is easily cleaned.

Indeed; I rigged up an intake fan to blow across my HDDs, and they stay very
cool now (last a long time).

Jon