Recommendations on cool hard drive

[Eric Gisin]

|
| : > Unfortunately, it's not usually practical to buy from the US mail order
| : > outlets because of the added duty, customs /brokerage fees and taxes.
| :
| : You should be able to find some canadian ones the same way.
|
| Canadians don't have much selection and are still quite reserved when it
| comes to online buying. There are not many online stores that offer
| products. Tigerdirect is one of the largest, most popular in Canada.
|
There are plenty of Canadian stores, most in Vancouver. ncix.com and
icicomputer.net are two big ones. Cheaper than US. There are the retail stores
like staples.ca and future shock.

The only thing we don't have is any good surplus stores. I had to buy my UW
cable and SCA adapters from US dealers, but there is no duty on items under 20
bux.

 

[Rod Speed]

Rod Speed <[email protected]> wrote

: > : > The Samsung doesn't even appear on TIGERDIRECT.CA's website.
: > :
: > : You should be able to find plenty using the pricewatch sites.
:
: > Unfortunately, it's not usually practical to buy from the US mail order
: > outlets because of the added duty, customs /brokerage fees and taxes.
:
: You should be able to find some canadian ones the same way.

Canadians don't have much selection

Dunno, plenty turned up with
http://makeashorterlink.com/?N285348E5

and are still quite reserved when it comes to online buying.

Dunno, hard to explain all those hits. And thats just those
flogging Samsung hard drives which are well down the
volume, after WD, Seagate, Maxtor, Hitachi/IBM.

There are not many online stores that offer products.

There's heaps using that url alone.

Tigerdirect is one of the largest, most popular in Canada.

Sure, but thats a separate issue to who does
flog samsung hard drives online in Canada.

There's certainly plenty of the majors that dont stock
samsung hard drives in every first world country.

 

[Rod Speed]

CJT wrote

Air forced into the case anywhere will
increase the air pressure inside the case,

Mindlessly superficial, particularly with hard drive bay
cooling which has quite small fans and bugger all in the
way of space to blow that air into the case proper.

reducing the "suction" that draws air in at other points.

There is no 'suction', just the air pressure inside the case.

If low pressure (caused by an exhaust fan somewhere)
is not needed for this intake of air, there's no problem.
But if "suction" *is* required - which is normally the
situation - blowing air into the case reduces it and the
air that would normally be drawn in by suction is reduced.

In practice drive bay cooling has little effect on the air pressure
inside the main case because the fans used are small and there
is considerable restriction of the airflow thru hard drive bay its cooling.

In most cases that I've seen, this usually means
that the primary hard drive gets less air flow.

Bet you've never actually tested that with the only thing that
matters, the SMART temperature of that primary hard drive.

One solution is to make *all* air
intake done by blowing into the case.

Utterly mangled all over again.

Whatever is done, though, the goal is to make the air flow over all
the warm components, from one corner of the case to the other,
with the hottest components at the top and downwind near the exit.

No need to get that anal with most real world cases
that only have the usual sources of heat in them.

This depends on a pressure gradient (i.e. slope) to cause the flow
- highest pressure at the intake, lowest pressure at the exhaust.

Waffle as far as that claim you made
about hard drive bay coolers is concerned.

You can maintain this pressure gradient by blowing in at
the upwind point, but there has to be a good seal between
the fan and the case and there better not be other open
holes in the case that would relieve the over-pressure -

Utterly mangled all over again. You clearly aint gotta
clue about the basics of how cases are cooled.

or it would be like pushing on a string, with the air escaping
out the open holes and not flowing all the way to the proper exit.

Nope, nothing like that at all.

In the situation where air is blown into the case near the top,
the gradient is disrupted by raising the pressure at that point
(usually near the power supply intake) - reducing the "suction"
- and all flow is reduced upwind of that point, and the primary
hard drive is usually right at the head of that flow.

Utterly mangled all over again. You clearly aint gotta
clue about the basics of how cases are cooled.

The ideal situation would probably be blowing in at
the bottom front, and sucking out at the top back.

You dont need anything like 'ideal' with real world cases.
ALL you need is adequate airflow over the drives to
ensure that they are reasonably cool and its completely
trivial to check their temperature using the SMART temp.

But there again, sucking or blowing at any
intermediate point would disrupt the gradient,

There is no 'gradient' to be 'disrupted'

and more sucking or blowing at the extreme points (front
bottom/rear top) would have to be done to compensate for it.

Wrong. ALL you need is adequate airflow over
the hard drives and its quite easy to achieve that,
particularly if you dont care about the noise of the fans.

How much engineering do you want to do?

Dont need to bother with that crap. Just put the
hard drive bay cooling in, check that the main
hard drive in the 3.5" internal bay stack is still
getting adequate airflow using its SMART temp.

You'll find if you try it that the hard drive bay cooler
has no effect on the temperature of the main hard
drive in the internal 3.5" bay stack and you can then
let go of your dick before you end up completely blind.

 

[Eric Gisin]

|
| |
| > I have never seen Samsung drives
| > or cameras on Canadian web stores.
|
| Clearly needs new glasses.
|
| http://makeashorterlink.com/?N285348E5
|
I have far more experience with canadian web stores than you do Rodney.

There are three stores in that list with samsung drives, and none were online
stores.

 

[Sam]

: "
: There are plenty of Canadian stores, most in Vancouver. ncix.com and
: icicomputer.net are two big ones. Cheaper than US. There are the retail
stores
: like staples.ca and future shock.
:
I'm very close to Ncix and they only carry the *discontinued* model.

 

[Sam]

:
: Dunno, plenty turned up with
: http://makeashorterlink.com/?N285348E5
:
: > and are still quite reserved when it comes to online buying.
:
: Dunno, hard to explain all those hits. And thats just those
: flogging Samsung hard drives which are well down the
: volume, after WD, Seagate, Maxtor, Hitachi/IBM.
:
: > There are not many online stores that offer products.
:
: There's heaps using that url alone.

Unfortunately, any store can set up a webpage. As far as the stores
reputation, that's anothe matter. I choose to go with an online store that
is reputable. Tigerdirect.ca is just one of those. As is NCIX, but NCIX or
ICI is not a huge online store, therefore the prices generally will be
higher. ICI is one store in Richmond's Chinatown. My sister bought her
first PC from them about 5 years ago. Good guys. Again, they only carry
discontinued Samsung problems. There must be a reason??

 

[Sam]

:
: Dunno, plenty turned up with
: http://makeashorterlink.com/?N285348E5
:
: > and are still quite reserved when it comes to online buying.
:
: Dunno, hard to explain all those hits. And thats just those
: flogging Samsung hard drives which are well down the
: volume, after WD, Seagate, Maxtor, Hitachi/IBM.
:
: > There are not many online stores that offer products.
:
: There's heaps using that url alone.

Unfortunately, any store or person can set up a web page, As far as the
stores reputation, that's another matter. So a search on google clearly can
be misleading. I choose to go with an online store that is reputable.
Again, I standby my original statement that there are not many online chains
in Canada compared to the USA. Most people still will not purchase online
just like many won't do online banking. The large retail chain storesoften
have a duty to their customers to have some kind of online purchasing
available. However, selection is not necessarily good. Case in Point:
Future Shop.ca for computer component such as motherboards and hard drives.

 

[Rod Speed]

I have far more experience with canadian
web stores than you do Rodney.

Dont need 'experience', google will do fine, Gisin.

There are three stores in that list with samsung drives,

Plenty enough if Sam wants to buy one in Canada.

and none were online stores.

You really need those new glasses bad, Gisin.

Even someone as stupid as you should be able
to work out that even the first hit is just that.
http://www.accelerated.ca/acatalog/Home_Samsung_Hard_Drives_123.html

 

[Rod Speed]

Unfortunately, any store or person can set up a web page,
As far as the stores reputation, that's another matter.

Sure, but someone is likely to be using many of those hits.

Its unlikely that too many are putting
up online stores with no one using them.

So a search on google clearly can be misleading.

I doubt it on that original claim that

I choose to go with an online store that is reputable.

Sure, but I didnt comment on that,
I just commented on that other claim.

Again, I standby my original statement that there are
not many online chains in Canada compared to the USA.

That wasnt your original claim, there was no
comparison with the USA in your original claim.

I wouldnt have commented if you had
stated that 'compared to the USA' extra.

Of course the USA dominates with online stores.
It would be a hell of a lot more surprising if they didnt.

Most people still will not purchase online
just like many won't do online banking.

Again, a separate issue entirely to whether both are available to
those Canadians who choose to use them and who do use them.

There wouldnt be all those online stores if hardly anyone used them.

The large retail chain stores often have a duty to their
customers to have some kind of online purchasing
available. However, selection is not necessarily good.

Sure, but thats an entirely separate issue to what was being
discussed, whether its POSSIBLE to buy Samsung drives in
Canada without having to physically enter the store.

Case in Point: Future Shop.ca for computer
component such as motherboards and hard drives.

Irrelevant to what was being discussed, whether
its POSSIBLE for a Canadian to buy a Samsung
drive without having to physically enter the store.

Corse you're always welcome to buy one of the other
manufacturer's drives that dissipate more power if you want to.

 

[John H.]

The problem with coolers which blow air into a 5 1/2" bay
is that they put more air into the top of the case, but they also raise
the air pressure inside the case, preventing air from being sucked
in at the bottom front of the case - where the primary hard drive
usually sits. So the cpu and PSU benefit at the expense of the
primary hard drive and the lower PCI expansion cards.

That makes sense, but OTOH if the air pressure at the top of the case is
increased then the PS fan(s) will (or should) move a little more air out the
rear which may cancel out most of any effect from the small drive fans.

Without
a fan blowing in at the bottom front of the case - a hard thing to
do right

Many new cases have HD cages going all the way to the bottom of the case
with one or two fans in front. This looks like an excellent way to provide
great cooling to me - no need to mount HDs in 5 1/2" bays.

- the only other compensation for the increased case air
pressure is to increase the capacity of the case exhaust fan(s) at
the rear (not always practical). No wonder then, that the 3-fan
model is for sale on eBay.

I decided to check my fans with surprising results. All I have is one PS
fan plus one extra fan mounted at the rear about 1" below the PS. Both fans
*seem* to be working properly and should move air OUT to the rear. But when
I put a lit match in front of the PS fan, what very little air flow there is
seems to be going INTO the case. It sort of feels this way with my hand too
(hard to tell with such a low air flow). Only the extra fan below the PS
can blow out the match (if I put it real close). The DC fans they use in
PCs aren't much more than toys, they can't move any serious air at all.
I've powered off the system multiple times to check what direction the fans
were turning in - nothing wrong there.

I have a PS with a "low noise" fan which means low power, even lower than
the normal low. Maybe that has something to do with it or maybe it's just
defective. I have no way to check the RPMs of the PS fan. I hate the
thought of having to remove the PS and taking it apart just to replace a
fan. If these systems were designed right you'd be able to replace a PS fan
in one or two minutes without removing anything other than a few screws in
back.

 

[Timothy Daniels]

That makes sense, but OTOH if the air pressure at
the top of the case is increased then the PS fan(s) will
(or should) move a little more air out the rear which
may cancel out most of any effect from the small drive
fans.

It depends of if the fans are best modelled as constant
flow devices or constant pressure devices. They're
undoubtedly a mixture of both, but which way they
lean is unknown to everyone I've asked, so I just accept
the manufacturer's description as a constant flow device.

If you assume constant flow (i.e. cubic centimeters of air
per second, or better, milligrams of air per second), then
the air introduced anywhere will decrease the unaided
inflow at the bottom/front of the case, i.e. the air "sucked"
in at the bottom will be less by the same amount at that
which air is introduced at the top or sides.

If you assume constant pressure, the air introduced at the
top or sides will not matter since the exhaust fan will just
turn faster to maintain the pressure differential between
the inside and the outside of the case.

If you assume a combination of constant pressure and
constant flow, air introduced at the top or sides will
reduce *somewhat* the air "sucked" in at the bottom.
This is quite likely the Real World situation.

All this assumes, of course, that there is no fan blowing
air in at the bottom of the case.

Many new cases have HD cages going all the way to the
bottom of the case with one or two fans in front. This
looks like an excellent way to provide great cooling to
me - no need to mount HDs in 5 1/2" bays.

If that means one or two fans would be in front of each
HD that gets installed - either permanently or as a removable
drive - that sounds like it would work, providing the
case exhaust fans acted enough like constant pressure
devices to maintain the intake (via "suction") of unheated
air in through passive holes for the CPU, graphics and
audio cards, and motherboard.


*TimDaniels*

 

[Timothy Daniels]

I decided to check my fans with surprising results. All
I have is one PS fan plus one extra fan mounted at the
rear about 1" below the PS. Both fans *seem* to be
working properly and should move air OUT to the rear.
But when I put a lit match in front of the PS fan, what
very little air flow there is seems to be going INTO the
case. It sort of feels this way with my hand too
(hard to tell with such a low air flow). Only the extra
fan below the PS can blow out the match (if I put it real
close). The DC fans they use in PCs aren't much more
than toys, they can't move any serious air at all.
I've powered off the system multiple times to check what
direction the fans were turning in - nothing wrong there.

I have a PS with a "low noise" fan which means low power,
even lower than the normal low. Maybe that has something
to do with it or maybe it's just defective. I have no way to
check the RPMs of the PS fan. I hate the thought of having
to remove the PS and taking it apart just to replace a fan. If
these systems were designed right you'd be able to replace
a PS fan in one or two minutes without removing anything
other than a few screws in back.

It's time for a PSU fan transplant! If it's not blowing, it
could not only be dangerous for the PSU, it might not
be drawing enough to air to aid in cooling the CPU,
which is right below it. BTW, have you checked the
air intakes for accumulations of hair/fur/lint? I am
repeatedly amazed at the fibrous airborne crud that
gathers wherever air enters my case.


*TimDaniels*

 

[Rod Speed]

John H wrote

In fact the main effect with bay fans is that they dont move
all that much air and dont have any real effect on the pressure
in the main case at all. Just because they are quite small
fans with quite a bit of restriction to the airflow they produce.

It depends of if the fans are best modelled as constant
flow devices or constant pressure devices. They're
undoubtedly a mixture of both, but which way they
lean is unknown to everyone I've asked,

You've obviously been asking the wrong people.

In fact that varys considerably with the
design of the fan and the way its used.

And thats why cpu fans for example operate
with the airflow in a particular direction.

so I just accept the manufacturer's
description as a constant flow device.

More fool you.

If you assume constant flow (i.e. cubic centimeters of
air per second, or better, milligrams of air per second),

You cant assume that, particularly with fans used in a very
restricted airflow situation that a drive bay fan operates in.

then the air introduced anywhere will decrease
the unaided inflow at the bottom/front of the case,

Wrong again. And the reality with drive bay cooling is
that they move MUCH less air than the much bigger
fan at the bottom/front of the case, and that might
just be why you wont be able to MEASURE any real
effect on the SMART temp of the drives in the main
3.5" bay stack with the drive bay cooling turned off
and on with a drive in the 5.25" bay stack.

i.e. the air "sucked" in at the bottom will be less by the same
amount at that which air is introduced at the top or sides.

Not a clue about even the most basic physics, as always.

If you assume constant pressure,

You cant, they dont work like that.

AND what cooling is about is MOVEMENT
OF AIR, not pressure, stupid.

the air introduced at the top or sides will not
matter since the exhaust fan will just turn faster
to maintain the pressure differential between
the inside and the outside of the case.

Thanks for that completely superfluous proof that
you've never ever had a clue about the basic physics.

That isnt even what constant pressure fans are about, and
drive bay coolers aint constant pressure devices ANYWAY.

If you assume a combination of
constant pressure and constant flow,

Mindlessly superficial all over again.
You're mindlessly over analysing, child.

air introduced at the top or sides will reduce
*somewhat* the air "sucked" in at the bottom.
Wrong.

This is quite likely the Real World situation.

The real world situation is that drive bay coolers
only move a tiny proportion of the amount of air
that fan at the bottom/front of the case moves
and has no real effect on the air moved by the
fan at the bottom/front of the case, AND its
completely trivial to PROVE that by MEASURING the
SMART temperature of the drives in the main 3.5" drive
bay stack near that fan at the bottom/front of the case
instead of desperately wanking as you keep doing.

All this assumes, of course, that there is no
fan blowing air in at the bottom of the case.

You said there was previous, stupid.

If there isnt, the drives in the main 3.5" drive bay
stack are mostly being cooled by conduction to
the main 3.5" drive bay stack itself, and then to
the air moving around in the case, and AGAIN
its completely trivial to PROVE by MEASURING
the SMART temperature of those drives that
the drive bay cooling in a 5.25" bay has no effect.

If that means one or two fans would be in front of
each HD that gets installed - either permanently or
as a removable drive - that sounds like it would work,

Corse it works, thats what those fans are there for, stupid.

providing the case exhaust fans acted
enough like constant pressure devices

They dont need to, they just move air, stupid.

to maintain the intake (via "suction") of unheated
air in through passive holes for the CPU, graphics
and audio cards, and motherboard.

Completely off with the ****ing fairys, as usual.

Let go of it before you end up blind, child.

 

[Rod Speed]

It's time for a PSU fan transplant!

It is indeed.

If it's not blowing, it could not only be dangerous for the PSU,

Yes, thats a real possibility, that not
enough air is moving thru the PSU currently.

it might not be drawing enough to air to
aid in cooling the CPU, which is right below it.

Mindlessly silly. Its the other fan thats providing that, stupid.

BTW, have you checked the air intakes for accumulations
of hair/fur/lint? I am repeatedly amazed at the fibrous
airborne crud that gathers wherever air enters my case.

Thats just because you wank so enthusiastically that
its causing your clothes to fall to bits and your childish
tantrums are likely whats tearing up the carpet as well.

 

[J.Clarke]

It depends of if the fans are best modelled as constant
flow devices or constant pressure devices. They're
undoubtedly a mixture of both, but which way they
lean is unknown to everyone I've asked, so I just accept
the manufacturer's description as a constant flow device.

If you assume constant flow (i.e. cubic centimeters of air
per second, or better, milligrams of air per second), then
the air introduced anywhere will decrease the unaided
inflow at the bottom/front of the case, i.e. the air "sucked"
in at the bottom will be less by the same amount at that
which air is introduced at the top or sides.

If you assume constant pressure, the air introduced at the
top or sides will not matter since the exhaust fan will just
turn faster to maintain the pressure differential between
the inside and the outside of the case.

If you assume a combination of constant pressure and
constant flow, air introduced at the top or sides will
reduce *somewhat* the air "sucked" in at the bottom.
This is quite likely the Real World situation.

All this assumes, of course, that there is no fan blowing
air in at the bottom of the case.

The data sheets usually have a table of flow rate vs backpressure.

If that means one or two fans would be in front of each
HD that gets installed - either permanently or as a removable
drive - that sounds like it would work, providing the
case exhaust fans acted enough like constant pressure
devices to maintain the intake (via "suction") of unheated
air in through passive holes for the CPU, graphics and
audio cards, and motherboard.

You seem to have the impression that a pressurized case can't provide
adequate cooling.

 

[J.Clarke]

You may be right about the transplant but the fan IS working the best
I can tell. When I stick a match in the fan I can tell it's turning
in the right direction and it *appears* to have normal power and
speed, yet there's not enough air coming out to amount to a hill of
beans. If I move a 1" x 3" strip of paper towel in front of the two
fans, the paper will move out slightly with the lower fan and not move
at all in front of the PS fan except for a little bit at the left
edge. Really piss poor air flow.

When I take the side cover off there does seem to be a little more air
flow from the PS fan (a match in front of it will blow out immediately
as I slide back the cover). A paper strip moves some too (but not
much) with the cover off. If I put my ear to the fan I can hear it
speed up a little and feel some extra air on my face as I remove the
cover. I guess the moral of the story is don't buy a PS with a "low
noise" fan which means low air flow too.

Fans probably should be matched in power - my two aren't. The lower
fan is reducing the air pressure inside the case making it harder
(near impossible it seems) for the lower powered PS fan to move any
air.

My drives aren't overheating. The one in a 3.5" bay is running at 35C
and one in a 5.25" bay is 38C. Room temp is 76F. But that might be
true even if the PS fan went out completely because I'd still have the
2nd fan. The PS doesn't feel hot to the touch so it can't be
overheating too much.

What bothers me is that I know I've checked the fans a few times over
the last 3 years and don't remember anything unusual which 'should'
mean I had better air flow then. Or maybe I didn't check them very
well or had the side cover off. I'll never know.

If your power supply is a typical "low noise" design then the fan is
thermally controlled--if the second fan is handling most of the cooling
load for the case then the power supply will never get hot enough to
move its fan off of the lowest speed.

 

[John H.]

It depends of if the fans are best modelled as constant
flow devices or constant pressure devices. They're
undoubtedly a mixture of both, but which way they
lean is unknown to everyone I've asked, so I just accept
the manufacturer's description as a constant flow device.

Cooling a PC case can get rather involved. I have a 1999 Intel paper on
cooling ("ATX Thermal Design Suggestions version 1.0," atx_thermal_dg1.pdf).
You should be able to find a newer version on their site. If not, I can
email the old copy I have to anyone who wants it. It's 449kB. I also have
a 1999 paper named "ATX Thermal Design Guide" (PADSTDS_10.pdf, 1.7 MB).

An interesting excerpt:

"Multiple fans can be used in two combinations, parallel and series.

* Two fans in parallel, Q = Q1 + Q2 at zero back pressure
(Q = volumetric flow)
* Two fans in series, p = p1 + p2 at zero airflow
(p = static pressure)

An example of a parallel fan combination is a system fan and a power supply
fan both either pressurizing or evacuating a chassis. Ideally, a parallel
fan combination doubles the system airflow. An example of a series fan
combination is a system fan blowing air into the chassis and a power supply
fan exhausting air from the chassis. Ideally, a series fan combination
doubles the system's ability to overcome built-up back pressure. In
reality, because of venting, leakage, and design compromises, when we employ
multiple fans, we often are implementing a combination series/parallel
configuration. The effect of employing series/parallel fan combinations is
shown in Figures 2.4 and 2.5.

Employing multiple (identical) fans in a system does provide some marginal
increase in airflow. The exact amount depends on many factors, including
fan speed and configuration, as well as chassis airflow impedance. If the
fans are not identical, then the figures will change slightly, but the
treads will be similar. The general rule is, if the chassis has high
impedance, place the fans in series. If the chassis has low impedance,
place the fans in parallel."



So if your system has medium or average air flow impedance (how would you
know?), should fans be in series or in parallel? Does a second fan
even do any good if not blowing directly onto something that needs special
attention (the above excerpt says extra fans provides only a "marginal"
increase in airflow)? Maybe it's better to have a more powerful single fan.

Considering the location of the fans in my PC case I think the answer is
clear, they should be in parallel (both blowing out the rear). But if I had
a 5.25" drive bay cooler for my HD, should it blow in or out? My guess is
out. A fan in the lower front is probably worth little to nothing unless
your HDs are mounted there and the fan is blowing in directly on them.

If that means one or two fans would be in front of each
HD that gets installed - either permanently or as a removable
drive - that sounds like it would work, providing the
case exhaust fans acted enough like constant pressure
devices to maintain the intake (via "suction") of unheated
air in through passive holes for the CPU, graphics and
audio cards, and motherboard.

Two 80 mm fans or one 100 mm fan in the lower front of these cases provide
air for 3-5 HDs mounted right in front of the fans. No question about good
HD cooling.

 

[John H.]

It's time for a PSU fan transplant! If it's not blowing, it
could not only be dangerous for the PSU, it might not
be drawing enough to air to aid in cooling the CPU,
which is right below it. BTW, have you checked the
air intakes for accumulations of hair/fur/lint? I am
repeatedly amazed at the fibrous airborne crud that
gathers wherever air enters my case.

You may be right about the transplant but the fan IS working the best I can
tell. When I stick a match in the fan I can tell it's turning in the right
direction and it *appears* to have normal power and speed, yet there's not
enough air coming out to amount to a hill of beans. If I move a 1" x 3"
strip of paper towel in front of the two fans, the paper will move out
slightly with the lower fan and not move at all in front of the PS fan
except for a little bit at the left edge. Really piss poor air flow.

When I take the side cover off there does seem to be a little more air flow
from the PS fan (a match in front of it will blow out immediately as I slide
back the cover). A paper strip moves some too (but not much) with the cover
off. If I put my ear to the fan I can hear it speed up a little and feel
some extra air on my face as I remove the cover. I guess the moral of the
story is don't buy a PS with a "low noise" fan which means low air flow too.

Fans probably should be matched in power - my two aren't. The lower fan is
reducing the air pressure inside the case making it harder (near impossible
it seems) for the lower powered PS fan to move any air.

My drives aren't overheating. The one in a 3.5" bay is running at 35C and
one in a 5.25" bay is 38C. Room temp is 76F. But that might be true even
if the PS fan went out completely because I'd still have the 2nd fan. The
PS doesn't feel hot to the touch so it can't be overheating too much.

What bothers me is that I know I've checked the fans a few times over the
last 3 years and don't remember anything unusual which 'should' mean I had
better air flow then. Or maybe I didn't check them very well or had the
side cover off. I'll never know.

 

[Timothy Daniels]

If your power supply is a typical "low noise" design
then the fan is thermally controlled--if the second fan
is handling most of the cooling load for the case then
the power supply will never get hot enough to
move its fan off of the lowest speed.

Good point! But since the PSU fan is designed
primarily to cool the PSU's components, the
load on the power supply is probably not great
enough, given the current number/type of powered
devices, to ever get it hot.


*TimDaniels*

 

[Timothy Daniels]

You seem to have the impression that a pressurized case
can't provide adequate cooling.

I'm sorry about seeming to have that impression.
Maybe I haven't been verbose enough.

All that really matters in getting cool air in and warmed
air out of a case (admittedly only part of cooling) is a
pressure differential between the entrance and exit.
The most efficient way to do that is:
1) let gravity aid it by putting the entrance low and the
exit high,
2) keep the path straight as possible,
3) keep the path clear of obstructions as possible (e.g.
by use of short "round" cables, use of cable ties, etc).

Beyond that, it doesn't matter if air is blown in or blown
out or a comination of blowing in/blowing out is used -
as long as the pressure at the entrance is higher than the
pressure at the exit. But if you introduce passive holes
in the case, that differential is hard to design and maintain.
Harder, yet, is the path of air flow when you have such
holes.

Most ATX cases are designed with an active (fanned)
exit and a passive (multiple holed) entrance with the
straightest path available - diagonally from bottom/front
to top/rear. When you add blowing into the case at
some intermediate point, the pressure differential is
reduced between that point and the entrance holes,
and flow at the entrance is thereby reduced.

But there are reasons to use interior fans that don't have
an effect on this pressure differential - to help direct
the interior air flow and to increase turbulence against
components. Good examples of this are fans that blow
air against CPU and graphic cards' heatsinks. Another
example is a fan that blows air directly against the face
of a hard drive. It doesn't bring in any fresh air, but it
does direct the flow against the hard drive's largest metal
surface and it increases the turbulence of that flow. Such
would also be the effect of a non-gasketed fan just inside
the lower front entrance of the case - it would maintain
air velocity and turbulence against the primary hard drive
(if their positions were right) - and lowered temperatures
measured at the hard drive via SMART would lead the
naive to think that an increased intake flow had been
accomplished when, in fact, it hadn't.


*TimDaniels*