Solved CPU

Should a CPU Fan be intake or exhuast?

  • Intake

    Votes: 14 87.5%
  • Exhuast

    Votes: 2 12.5%

  • Total voters
    16
I agree, everyone is entitled to their opinions, and they are entitled to express them, but I prefer to know and understand the nature of what a person says, whether it is simply opinion, or something more substantial.

Along the lines of personal opinion or perspective, I have been thinking about your vacuum fan arrangement. Obviously, what counts is the amount of heat that is imparted to the airstream, and since the majority of the heat is going to be at the base of the fins, nearest the CPU, it would seem that the amount of air that comes in cantact at that point would be a critical factor in cooling. Since the vacuum fan would be pulling air laterally along the full length of the fins, some of the airflow would never have contacted the base area. Plus there would be a point between these lateral flows, near the base, that would be either a dead zone or an eddy, which would not conduct heat as well as a fan blasting directly and evenly on it.

Hi guys, I think I might be able to settle this for you... There is good reason why cooling fans always blow air onto a heatsink instead of drawing it away...

It's as simple as this...

Moisten (lick?) the palm of your hand, hold it about 2 inches from your mouth... Now suck air in as hard as you can... Feel any cooling effect?

Ok, now repeat the procedure, moist palm, about 2 inches from your mouth... now blow out as gently as you can.... Feel that?

Blowing cool air onto a heatsink is rougly 10 times as effective as trying to draw the hot air off.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Homebrew
OS
XP Pro SP3 X86 / Win7 Pro X86
CPU
Amd 64 x2 4200 (2.4ghz)
Motherboard
Asus M2N-MX SE Plus
Memory
Kingston DDR2 800 2gb
Graphics Card(s)
Nvidia GF-8400
Sound Card
Realtek on Motherboard
Monitor(s) Displays
Acer x-193bw
Screen Resolution
1440 x 900
Hard Drives
Western Digital 500g
PSU
350watt In-Win
Case
In-Win
Cooling
Air
Keyboard
yes
Mouse
yes
Internet Speed
5mpbs
Other Info
Also ASRock ION 330 as HTPC (on XP).
Acer Aspire as GP netbook (on XP).
I have thought about this in depth, if my cpu fan is set as exhaust then there is not any cool air helping the cpu stay cool. If i have it set to intake then air is helping keep the cpu cool whilst still blowing heat back. Answer this, shall there be more cool air getting blown back than there is hot air.

I think the cpu need cool air.

What do you think??????????

I agree that the CPU needs cool air and I personally think the the fan vlowing toward the heatsink and CPU is the most efficient. However, even if the fan is exhausting - blowing away from the heat sink, cooler air is still being drawn across the heatsink and CPU. I just don't think doing so is as efficient.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Home built
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate 32 bit
CPU
Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 3.00GHz
Motherboard
ASUS P4P800-VM Motherboard Chipset: Intel 865G + ICH5
Memory
2.50 GB RAM
Graphics Card(s)
NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GS
Sound Card
SoundMax Integrated Digital Audio (Chip)
Monitor(s) Displays
ViewSonic VX 1962 wm
Screen Resolution
1680 X 1050
Hard Drives
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 80 GB
ST380215A ATA Device 18.6 GB
Western Digital "My Book" external hard drive 750 GB
Cooling
Fan based
Keyboard
Microsoft Comfort Curve Keyboard 2000 v10 USB
Mouse
Logitec optic USB
Internet Speed
3.01 Mb/s download 0.64 Mb/s upload
Good points, i suppose it also depends on how you have your intake fans set up.

I shall try it when i wake up and take temp readings. Thanks.

This is what I had hoped that Product FRED had already done. At least if there is a difference, then it would give us something to go on, more than opinions. Let us know what you find out.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
DIY
OS
W7x64 Pro, SuSe 12.1/** W7 x64 Pro, XP MCE
CPU
Phenom II 1090T w/Noctua NH-D14 /**4400+ X2 w/CM Hyper TX 3
Motherboard
ASRock 890FX Deluxe 4/**A8N-SLI
Memory
2 x 2GB Patriot PGS34g1600LLKA/**4x1GB Corsair VS
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA GTX460 SC/**EVGA 8800GTS
Sound Card
Asus Xonar D2X/**Xonar D1
Monitor(s) Displays
Acer X233H, Dell E152FPc /**LG M237-WD
Screen Resolution
1920x1080 & 1024x768/**1980x1080
Hard Drives
WDC 2TB, 1.5TB, 1TB, 500GB,Seagate 500GB , Maxtor 80GB /**500GB Seagate & WDC 1TB Black
PSU
CM RS600 w/ APC BX1000G/**Antec 500 TP w/ APC BX1000
Case
HAF922/**Antec 1040IIB
Cooling
3x200mm, 1x140 and 1x120mm/**5x80mm fans
Keyboard
Logitech Media USB/**Saitek Eclipse
Mouse
Cordless Trackman Wheel/**Ditto
Internet Speed
3.3Mbps
Other Info
SB 560 5.1 w/ Sennheiser RS140/**Creative T20 speakers, Dvico FusionHDTV7 Gold RT, Cisco E3000, HP 5510V AIO, Linksys E3000, Belkin F5U237 hub and **F5D8055 adapter
(** = 2nd rig)
Either way, the air is cooler coming in, than going out. The crux is which direction is permitting the air to absorb more heat? The question is somewhat rhetorical, unless you have something to add that you haven't already said.

Like I said, I called for advice and was told what I expected. That exhaust is the way it's supposed to be. You create a low-pressure buffer zone when you use an exhaust system, drawing in the cool air as the hot air is fanned out.

Good points, i suppose it also depends on how you have your intake fans set up.

I shall try it when i wake up and take temp readings. Thanks.

This is what I had hoped that Product FRED had already done. At least if there is a difference, then it would give us something to go on, more than opinions. Let us know what you find out.

This is who I called: http://www.spoke.com/info/p6Jv6mt/AbeSuleiman
 

My Computer

OS
Windows 7 Enterprise 64-bit
CPU
AMD Phenom II X4 3.0GHz
Motherboard
ASUS M5A97
Memory
8GB G-Skill Ripjaws DDR3 1333
Graphics Card(s)
PNY GeForce 460 GTX 1GB OC - Enthusiast Edition
Sound Card
VIA High Definition Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell 19"
Screen Resolution
1280x1024
Hard Drives
1TB - Primary
160GB - Secondary
250GB - External backup for important files
PSU
OCZ Fata1ty 700W Modular PSU
Case
ASUS
Keyboard
Microsoft Wireless Keyboard 2000
Mouse
Microsoft Wireless Mouse 2000
Internet Speed
3 Mbps/768 kbps
seekermeister, i have a nice side fan blowing air on to my gpu and and just above it to help keep my case under the cpu cool. If i set my cpu fan as exhaust, would that air be blown back by some of the air coming from my side fan.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Customised
OS
Windows 7 64Bit Ultimate Edition SP1
CPU
AMD Phenom II X5 955 @ 3200 Mhz
Motherboard
Asus M5A99X EVO
Memory
G.Skill 12GB DDR3 1333MHz
Graphics Card(s)
Palit GeForce GTX 550 Ti OC Sonic 1GB
Sound Card
Onboard
Monitor(s) Displays
LG 32" HDTV
Screen Resolution
1920x1080 @ 60Hz
Hard Drives
Internal 250GB SATA 3.0 Western Digital WDC WD25 00AAKX-001CA0

Internal 500GB SATA 2.0 Seagate ST350041 3AS

Internal 500GB SATA 2.0 Western Digital WDC WD50 00AAKS-00WWP

External 1TB USB 2.0 Western Digital

External 2TB USB 2.0 Buffalo
PSU
Colors-IT 750w BLACK 12CM Silent
Case
Xigamatek CPC-T45UB-U01 Asgard Chassis
Cooling
4 120mm Fans In Total
Keyboard
ADVENT Illuminated Keyboard
Mouse
Genius
Internet Speed
30MB
Other Info
CPU Cooler - Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus Cooler

My Computer

OS
Windows 7 Enterprise 64-bit
CPU
AMD Phenom II X4 3.0GHz
Motherboard
ASUS M5A97
Memory
8GB G-Skill Ripjaws DDR3 1333
Graphics Card(s)
PNY GeForce 460 GTX 1GB OC - Enthusiast Edition
Sound Card
VIA High Definition Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell 19"
Screen Resolution
1280x1024
Hard Drives
1TB - Primary
160GB - Secondary
250GB - External backup for important files
PSU
OCZ Fata1ty 700W Modular PSU
Case
ASUS
Keyboard
Microsoft Wireless Keyboard 2000
Mouse
Microsoft Wireless Mouse 2000
Internet Speed
3 Mbps/768 kbps

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
DIY
OS
W7x64 Pro, SuSe 12.1/** W7 x64 Pro, XP MCE
CPU
Phenom II 1090T w/Noctua NH-D14 /**4400+ X2 w/CM Hyper TX 3
Motherboard
ASRock 890FX Deluxe 4/**A8N-SLI
Memory
2 x 2GB Patriot PGS34g1600LLKA/**4x1GB Corsair VS
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA GTX460 SC/**EVGA 8800GTS
Sound Card
Asus Xonar D2X/**Xonar D1
Monitor(s) Displays
Acer X233H, Dell E152FPc /**LG M237-WD
Screen Resolution
1920x1080 & 1024x768/**1980x1080
Hard Drives
WDC 2TB, 1.5TB, 1TB, 500GB,Seagate 500GB , Maxtor 80GB /**500GB Seagate & WDC 1TB Black
PSU
CM RS600 w/ APC BX1000G/**Antec 500 TP w/ APC BX1000
Case
HAF922/**Antec 1040IIB
Cooling
3x200mm, 1x140 and 1x120mm/**5x80mm fans
Keyboard
Logitech Media USB/**Saitek Eclipse
Mouse
Cordless Trackman Wheel/**Ditto
Internet Speed
3.3Mbps
Other Info
SB 560 5.1 w/ Sennheiser RS140/**Creative T20 speakers, Dvico FusionHDTV7 Gold RT, Cisco E3000, HP 5510V AIO, Linksys E3000, Belkin F5U237 hub and **F5D8055 adapter
(** = 2nd rig)

My Computer

OS
Windows 7 Enterprise 64-bit
CPU
AMD Phenom II X4 3.0GHz
Motherboard
ASUS M5A97
Memory
8GB G-Skill Ripjaws DDR3 1333
Graphics Card(s)
PNY GeForce 460 GTX 1GB OC - Enthusiast Edition
Sound Card
VIA High Definition Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell 19"
Screen Resolution
1280x1024
Hard Drives
1TB - Primary
160GB - Secondary
250GB - External backup for important files
PSU
OCZ Fata1ty 700W Modular PSU
Case
ASUS
Keyboard
Microsoft Wireless Keyboard 2000
Mouse
Microsoft Wireless Mouse 2000
Internet Speed
3 Mbps/768 kbps
seekermeister, i have a nice side fan blowing air on to my gpu and and just above it to help keep my case under the cpu cool. If i set my cpu fan as exhaust, would that air be blown back by some of the air coming from my side fan.

Read this: Side Case Fan Position - Exhaust or Intake? - Cooler-and-Heatsinks - Overclocking
Simply looking at the title of the link, it appears that it is speaking of the direction of the side fan, not the CPU fan.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
DIY
OS
W7x64 Pro, SuSe 12.1/** W7 x64 Pro, XP MCE
CPU
Phenom II 1090T w/Noctua NH-D14 /**4400+ X2 w/CM Hyper TX 3
Motherboard
ASRock 890FX Deluxe 4/**A8N-SLI
Memory
2 x 2GB Patriot PGS34g1600LLKA/**4x1GB Corsair VS
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA GTX460 SC/**EVGA 8800GTS
Sound Card
Asus Xonar D2X/**Xonar D1
Monitor(s) Displays
Acer X233H, Dell E152FPc /**LG M237-WD
Screen Resolution
1920x1080 & 1024x768/**1980x1080
Hard Drives
WDC 2TB, 1.5TB, 1TB, 500GB,Seagate 500GB , Maxtor 80GB /**500GB Seagate & WDC 1TB Black
PSU
CM RS600 w/ APC BX1000G/**Antec 500 TP w/ APC BX1000
Case
HAF922/**Antec 1040IIB
Cooling
3x200mm, 1x140 and 1x120mm/**5x80mm fans
Keyboard
Logitech Media USB/**Saitek Eclipse
Mouse
Cordless Trackman Wheel/**Ditto
Internet Speed
3.3Mbps
Other Info
SB 560 5.1 w/ Sennheiser RS140/**Creative T20 speakers, Dvico FusionHDTV7 Gold RT, Cisco E3000, HP 5510V AIO, Linksys E3000, Belkin F5U237 hub and **F5D8055 adapter
(** = 2nd rig)
seekermeister, i have a nice side fan blowing air on to my gpu and and just above it to help keep my case under the cpu cool. If i set my cpu fan as exhaust, would that air be blown back by some of the air coming from my side fan.

Read this: Side Case Fan Position - Exhaust or Intake? - Cooler-and-Heatsinks - Overclocking
Simply looking at the title of the link, it appears that it is speaking of the direction of the side fan, not the CPU fan.

Yes, because he was asking about the side fan as well. Now if you have a side fan sucking out air, you'd need the CPU fan to also suck out the air (exhaust), otherwise there would be two head-on air currents and heat would build up inside the computer.
 

My Computer

OS
Windows 7 Enterprise 64-bit
CPU
AMD Phenom II X4 3.0GHz
Motherboard
ASUS M5A97
Memory
8GB G-Skill Ripjaws DDR3 1333
Graphics Card(s)
PNY GeForce 460 GTX 1GB OC - Enthusiast Edition
Sound Card
VIA High Definition Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell 19"
Screen Resolution
1280x1024
Hard Drives
1TB - Primary
160GB - Secondary
250GB - External backup for important files
PSU
OCZ Fata1ty 700W Modular PSU
Case
ASUS
Keyboard
Microsoft Wireless Keyboard 2000
Mouse
Microsoft Wireless Mouse 2000
Internet Speed
3 Mbps/768 kbps
Interesting conversation... Considering that all Intel, AMD, and 95% of the aftermarket guys all move air toward the heat sink, you gotta wonder why anyone would consider it wrong, or at least, inefficient.The objective is to cool the cooler! (hestsink)

Many years ago I had read a post on XtremeSystems by a guy claiming flipping the fan to draw instead of push would yield a better result. At that time I tested it myself with a few different coolers, and it always hurt me 5 to 10 degrees.

So from my perspective, I follow the manufactures on this.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Home Grown
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate (64)
CPU
i7-2600K
Motherboard
Asus P8P67-M Pro
Memory
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB)
Graphics Card(s)
ATI 5750
Sound Card
On-Board
Monitor(s) Displays
LG W2486L
Screen Resolution
1920X1080
Hard Drives
Intel X-25M 80 Gig SSD | Intel X-25M 160 Gig SSD | WD Black 500MB - External eSata
PSU
Zalman ZM770-XT 770 Watts
Case
Antec 180 mini
Cooling
Cooler Master V8
Internet Speed
15MB - Cable
Other Info
Sissy OC - 4.6 @ 1.3175 24/7 | 18' Idle - 55' Load
Well, thanks for all the input guys. Appreciated.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Customised
OS
Windows 7 64Bit Ultimate Edition SP1
CPU
AMD Phenom II X5 955 @ 3200 Mhz
Motherboard
Asus M5A99X EVO
Memory
G.Skill 12GB DDR3 1333MHz
Graphics Card(s)
Palit GeForce GTX 550 Ti OC Sonic 1GB
Sound Card
Onboard
Monitor(s) Displays
LG 32" HDTV
Screen Resolution
1920x1080 @ 60Hz
Hard Drives
Internal 250GB SATA 3.0 Western Digital WDC WD25 00AAKX-001CA0

Internal 500GB SATA 2.0 Seagate ST350041 3AS

Internal 500GB SATA 2.0 Western Digital WDC WD50 00AAKS-00WWP

External 1TB USB 2.0 Western Digital

External 2TB USB 2.0 Buffalo
PSU
Colors-IT 750w BLACK 12CM Silent
Case
Xigamatek CPC-T45UB-U01 Asgard Chassis
Cooling
4 120mm Fans In Total
Keyboard
ADVENT Illuminated Keyboard
Mouse
Genius
Internet Speed
30MB
Other Info
CPU Cooler - Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus Cooler

Yes. Good friend of mine. He works in the city. The only mistake on that profile page is that on the top it should say he works at Ambac Assurance. It is corrected in the bio though.
I don't mean to demean your friend in any fashion, but the job description given does not make it clear that he is an expert on all things computer wise. I have no doubt that he is quite knowledgeable in the things that he deals with directly, but what you are reporting is what would be called heresay in court. This may not be a court, but it is still a place in which validity does come into question.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
DIY
OS
W7x64 Pro, SuSe 12.1/** W7 x64 Pro, XP MCE
CPU
Phenom II 1090T w/Noctua NH-D14 /**4400+ X2 w/CM Hyper TX 3
Motherboard
ASRock 890FX Deluxe 4/**A8N-SLI
Memory
2 x 2GB Patriot PGS34g1600LLKA/**4x1GB Corsair VS
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA GTX460 SC/**EVGA 8800GTS
Sound Card
Asus Xonar D2X/**Xonar D1
Monitor(s) Displays
Acer X233H, Dell E152FPc /**LG M237-WD
Screen Resolution
1920x1080 & 1024x768/**1980x1080
Hard Drives
WDC 2TB, 1.5TB, 1TB, 500GB,Seagate 500GB , Maxtor 80GB /**500GB Seagate & WDC 1TB Black
PSU
CM RS600 w/ APC BX1000G/**Antec 500 TP w/ APC BX1000
Case
HAF922/**Antec 1040IIB
Cooling
3x200mm, 1x140 and 1x120mm/**5x80mm fans
Keyboard
Logitech Media USB/**Saitek Eclipse
Mouse
Cordless Trackman Wheel/**Ditto
Internet Speed
3.3Mbps
Other Info
SB 560 5.1 w/ Sennheiser RS140/**Creative T20 speakers, Dvico FusionHDTV7 Gold RT, Cisco E3000, HP 5510V AIO, Linksys E3000, Belkin F5U237 hub and **F5D8055 adapter
(** = 2nd rig)
Most, if not all of the fans mounted on heat sinks have the air blowing on the heat sink.

And, for people who have a chassis that supports a side case fan, having the CPU fan blow away from the heat sink would pose unnecessary turbulence from the air coming in from the side case fan--resulting in overall poor case cooling.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Rig 1
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
CPU
AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition @ 3.4GHz (AM2+)
Motherboard
Gigabyte GA-MA790X-UD4P (AM2+)
Memory
Corsair CM2X4096-8500C5 (4 X 2GB)
Graphics Card(s)
XFX Radeon HD 5770 / Diamond Radeon HD 5770 CrossFireX
Sound Card
Asus Xonar DS (PCI)
Monitor(s) Displays
Samsung SyncMaster 932bw+ (3)
Screen Resolution
4320x900
Hard Drives
OCZ Vertex 2 80 GB - Windows 7 System --
WD Caviar Black 1TB - Music, Movies, Vids, Pics --
WD Caviar Black 640GB - User Profiles & Games --
WD My Book 320GB external
PSU
Corsair CMPSU-750TX
Case
Cooler Master HAF 932
Cooling
Corsair Hydro Series H50
Keyboard
Logitech Desktop Wave
Mouse
Logitech LX8 Laser
Internet Speed
20 down / 2 up
Other Info
LG GGC-H20L Blu-Ray / HDDVD combo --
Hauppauge HVR-1250 --
Silverstone MFP-51 --
Logitech Webcam C600
You called?

Yes. Good friend of mine. He works in the city. The only mistake on that profile page is that on the top it should say he works at Ambac Assurance. It is corrected in the bio though.
I don't mean to demean your friend in any fashion, but the job description given does not make it clear that he is an expert on all things computer wise. I have no doubt that he is quite knowledgeable in the things that he deals with directly, but what you are reporting is what would be called heresay in court. This may not be a court, but it is still a place in which validity does come into question.

Oh please. Listen, I know you don't mean to judge or anything, and I don't expect you to believe me when I say this, but he is an expert on these things. Besides, just look at the laws of physics, specifically a vacuum. Overall, the system will be cooler if you just suck the air out from every fan. Why would you have two conflicting fans (rear and CPU)? This thread is over anyways, he'll try it out and we'll see.

Most, if not all of the fans mounted on heat sinks have the air blowing on the heat sink.

And, for people who have a chassis that supports a side case fan, having the CPU fan blow away from the heat sink would pose unnecessary turbulence from the air coming in from the side case fan--resulting in overall poor case cooling.

As I stated before, a side fan should suck air out, not push it in.
 

My Computer

OS
Windows 7 Enterprise 64-bit
CPU
AMD Phenom II X4 3.0GHz
Motherboard
ASUS M5A97
Memory
8GB G-Skill Ripjaws DDR3 1333
Graphics Card(s)
PNY GeForce 460 GTX 1GB OC - Enthusiast Edition
Sound Card
VIA High Definition Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell 19"
Screen Resolution
1280x1024
Hard Drives
1TB - Primary
160GB - Secondary
250GB - External backup for important files
PSU
OCZ Fata1ty 700W Modular PSU
Case
ASUS
Keyboard
Microsoft Wireless Keyboard 2000
Mouse
Microsoft Wireless Mouse 2000
Internet Speed
3 Mbps/768 kbps
I agree that the CPU needs cool air and I personally think the the fan vlowing toward the heatsink and CPU is the most efficient. However, even if the fan is exhausting - blowing away from the heat sink, cooler air is still being drawn across the heatsink and CPU. I just don't think doing so is as efficient.

It's about the way air moves... If you stand behind a fan you don't actually feel the air motion, because 90% of it occurs very close to the fan in a very disorganized way as local air pours in to fill the vaccuum behind the blades.

This same air becomes the air stream you feel from a goodly distance in front of a fan. You feel it, because it's organized... it penetrates and travels.

This is what they call the Bernouli effect... moving air gathers more moving air along with it. The problem is that Bernouli's effect only works with pressure, not decompression of air (or fluids). The blowing on the palm example is one simple demonstration another is to bundle a garbage bag and blow it up like a baloon... it's going to take a lot of huffing and puffing to blow it up. But if you hold the end open and simply blow into the bag, you can inflate it with one good blast of breath. Because the air you blow into the bag gathers other air with it and causes a momentary pressure burst.

This relates to fans in that the front of the fan (which normally faces the heatsink, blowing air into it) creates pressure inside the fins, forcing air deeply into the blades getting far more heat conduction, whereas reversing the fan counts on a vaccuum to cause an air inrush which is mostly going to happen immediately behind the fan, with little or no penetration into the fins themselves. It will simply take the path of least resistance to fill the small pocket of reduced pressure right near the blades.

An odd confirmation of this is that a fan will spin faster when drawing air off a heatsink than when blowing air in... because the Bernouli effect causes pressure which causes resistance against the fan blades... and it's that pressure that drives cool air across the entire fin surface of the heatsink.

WHEW... does that help?
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Homebrew
OS
XP Pro SP3 X86 / Win7 Pro X86
CPU
Amd 64 x2 4200 (2.4ghz)
Motherboard
Asus M2N-MX SE Plus
Memory
Kingston DDR2 800 2gb
Graphics Card(s)
Nvidia GF-8400
Sound Card
Realtek on Motherboard
Monitor(s) Displays
Acer x-193bw
Screen Resolution
1440 x 900
Hard Drives
Western Digital 500g
PSU
350watt In-Win
Case
In-Win
Cooling
Air
Keyboard
yes
Mouse
yes
Internet Speed
5mpbs
Other Info
Also ASRock ION 330 as HTPC (on XP).
Acer Aspire as GP netbook (on XP).
Oh please. Listen, I know you don't mean to judge or anything, and I don't expect you to believe me when I say this, but he is an expert on these things. Besides, just look at the laws of physics, specifically a vacuum. Overall, the system will be cooler if you just suck the air out from every fan. Why would you have two conflicting fans (rear and CPU)? This thread is over anyways, he'll try it out and we'll see.

A rear out-blowing case fan and a heatsink-blowing fan are not conflicting. If anything, the rear case fan would help draw in cool air from the front--and over the cpu fan to aid in cooling the heatsink.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Rig 1
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
CPU
AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition @ 3.4GHz (AM2+)
Motherboard
Gigabyte GA-MA790X-UD4P (AM2+)
Memory
Corsair CM2X4096-8500C5 (4 X 2GB)
Graphics Card(s)
XFX Radeon HD 5770 / Diamond Radeon HD 5770 CrossFireX
Sound Card
Asus Xonar DS (PCI)
Monitor(s) Displays
Samsung SyncMaster 932bw+ (3)
Screen Resolution
4320x900
Hard Drives
OCZ Vertex 2 80 GB - Windows 7 System --
WD Caviar Black 1TB - Music, Movies, Vids, Pics --
WD Caviar Black 640GB - User Profiles & Games --
WD My Book 320GB external
PSU
Corsair CMPSU-750TX
Case
Cooler Master HAF 932
Cooling
Corsair Hydro Series H50
Keyboard
Logitech Desktop Wave
Mouse
Logitech LX8 Laser
Internet Speed
20 down / 2 up
Other Info
LG GGC-H20L Blu-Ray / HDDVD combo --
Hauppauge HVR-1250 --
Silverstone MFP-51 --
Logitech Webcam C600
I agree that the CPU needs cool air and I personally think the the fan vlowing toward the heatsink and CPU is the most efficient. However, even if the fan is exhausting - blowing away from the heat sink, cooler air is still being drawn across the heatsink and CPU. I just don't think doing so is as efficient.

It's about the way air moves... If you stand behind a fan you don't actually feel the air motion, because 90% of it occurs very close to the fan in a very disorganized way as local air pours in to fill the vaccuum behind the blades.

This same air becomes the air stream you feel from a goodly distance in front of a fan. You feel it, because it's organized... it penetrates and travels.

This is what they call the Bernouli effect... moving air gathers more moving air along with it. The problem is that Bernouli's effect only works with pressure, not decompression of air (or fluids). The blowing on the palm example is one simple demonstration another is to bundle a garbage bag and blow it up like a baloon... it's going to take a lot of huffing and puffing to blow it up. But if you hold the end open and simply blow into the bag, you can inflate it with one good blast of breath. Because the air you blow into the bag gathers other air with it and causes a momentary pressure burst.

This relates to fans in that the front of the fan (which normally faces the heatsink, blowing air into it) creates pressure inside the fins, forcing air deeply into the blades getting far more heat conduction, whereas reversing the fan counts on a vaccuum to cause an air inrush which is mostly going to happen immediately behind the fan, with little or no penetration into the fins themselves. It will simply take the path of least resistance to fill the small pocket of reduced pressure right near the blades.

An odd confirmation of this is that a fan will spin faster when drawing air off a heatsink than when blowing air in... because the Bernouli effect causes pressure when causes resistance against the fan blades... and it's that pressure that drives cool air across the entire fin surface of the heatsink.

WHEW... does that help?

So basically, exhaust.
 

My Computer

OS
Windows 7 Enterprise 64-bit
CPU
AMD Phenom II X4 3.0GHz
Motherboard
ASUS M5A97
Memory
8GB G-Skill Ripjaws DDR3 1333
Graphics Card(s)
PNY GeForce 460 GTX 1GB OC - Enthusiast Edition
Sound Card
VIA High Definition Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell 19"
Screen Resolution
1280x1024
Hard Drives
1TB - Primary
160GB - Secondary
250GB - External backup for important files
PSU
OCZ Fata1ty 700W Modular PSU
Case
ASUS
Keyboard
Microsoft Wireless Keyboard 2000
Mouse
Microsoft Wireless Mouse 2000
Internet Speed
3 Mbps/768 kbps
Side fan should blow in and the top fan (if you have them) should blow out.

Look at the Cooler Master HAF series... One front intake fan, one side intake fan, one rear exhaust, and one top exhaust.

I think Cooler Master and other case makers have some knowledge in what they're doing.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Rig 1
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
CPU
AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition @ 3.4GHz (AM2+)
Motherboard
Gigabyte GA-MA790X-UD4P (AM2+)
Memory
Corsair CM2X4096-8500C5 (4 X 2GB)
Graphics Card(s)
XFX Radeon HD 5770 / Diamond Radeon HD 5770 CrossFireX
Sound Card
Asus Xonar DS (PCI)
Monitor(s) Displays
Samsung SyncMaster 932bw+ (3)
Screen Resolution
4320x900
Hard Drives
OCZ Vertex 2 80 GB - Windows 7 System --
WD Caviar Black 1TB - Music, Movies, Vids, Pics --
WD Caviar Black 640GB - User Profiles & Games --
WD My Book 320GB external
PSU
Corsair CMPSU-750TX
Case
Cooler Master HAF 932
Cooling
Corsair Hydro Series H50
Keyboard
Logitech Desktop Wave
Mouse
Logitech LX8 Laser
Internet Speed
20 down / 2 up
Other Info
LG GGC-H20L Blu-Ray / HDDVD combo --
Hauppauge HVR-1250 --
Silverstone MFP-51 --
Logitech Webcam C600
I think Intel and AMD certainly have more...
 
Last edited:

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Home Grown
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate (64)
CPU
i7-2600K
Motherboard
Asus P8P67-M Pro
Memory
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB)
Graphics Card(s)
ATI 5750
Sound Card
On-Board
Monitor(s) Displays
LG W2486L
Screen Resolution
1920X1080
Hard Drives
Intel X-25M 80 Gig SSD | Intel X-25M 160 Gig SSD | WD Black 500MB - External eSata
PSU
Zalman ZM770-XT 770 Watts
Case
Antec 180 mini
Cooling
Cooler Master V8
Internet Speed
15MB - Cable
Other Info
Sissy OC - 4.6 @ 1.3175 24/7 | 18' Idle - 55' Load
Back
Top