H100 Installation

I've tried with both directions. It depends on your case the flow of air you want to create in the case. I find.........I find that the best is to have the fans blowing case air over the radiator and exhausting through the top of the case. The reason for this is to create a flow from the front intakes and side intakes and exhaust out the rear case fan and top via the rad.

Alan is right, it depends on your case. I tried it both ways and had better results blowing outside air through the radiator and into the case. But, there is no argument. Try it both ways and see which way gives you better temps. A lot of people have tried and had better results each way. There is no right or wrong, just which way is best for you and your case.

See this video from Corsair. They recommend taking air in through the radiator providing you have rear fan to exhaust the hot air. See the part on the H100.



Jim

Cooler air sounds like it makes sense and I was shocked to net a higher average case and core temp with my four fans pushing more air into the case and this was my thoughts. That made (2) front 120's (4) 120's rad. (1) 240 on side all bringing air in.......or trying to, against my (1) 120 rear (2) 5770 gpu's (2) 50mm's rear below the gpu's. I think that I created too much positive pressure which confused the case air flow. So though it made total sense maybe more changes like making the front fans exhausts? The more I thought about the flow I was looking to create the more sense the exhausting hotter air out the top and back made with fresh cool air in from front and sides. As I mention over and over, "Your Mileage May Vary" ! Experiment and observe and tell you spirited family and friends that you appreciate their input but in the end air flow over this superior cooler is all you're looking for and the 1 or 2 degree difference makes little changes, but the air flow through the case helps cool all components and not just the CPU !

Its all about balance and air flow. Corsair likes cool air coming in through the radiator as this is best for it. BUT they also say you have to have the proper air flow to exhaust the hot air. On my system I have the Antec 620 which is a single fan radiator. It is located near the top and exhausts out the back. My intake fans are as follows: 2 120 bottom/front, 1 140 on bottom, 2 140 on side. My exhaust are: 1 120 on the radiator and 2 140 on top. I use a fan controller to lower the intakes a bit to balance the air flow and looking at getting air filters for my side fans which will reduce their airflow by 15%. With all these new cases that have a lot of fan mounts, a fan controller can come in handy.

Jim