"Advanced" cooling

By strong acceleration.

***illustration black_mamba

Cold and silent:

Air is our everything!

But, if you don’t have a top-end gaming system and you are not an avid overclocker, then you probably won’t need a water system, much less a liquid nitrogen system, or any other sophisticated system. In order to lower the temperature by a few degrees (up to ten), which is what is required in the hottest summers, it will be enough to update the conventional air cooling (and also do a couple of simple steps; see the “10 Commandments of Proper Cooling” box). To do this, it will be enough to add several new coolers or update existing ones. In this context, it is important to remember that for correct, productive air cooling location plays a big role

The coming summer, according to weather forecasters, promises to be quite hot. And you readily believe this, remembering the unprecedented heat already in mid-April. This means that our computers, or rather their components, will again be subject to additional load in the form of extra degrees. Of course, if you have air conditioning at home, then you don’t have to worry about this, but if you don’t have it, there is real threat overheating of components and their failure. How to help our electronic friends in the summer heat? Simple, inexpensive and advanced methods will be discussed further.

"Advanced" cooling

There are many ways to further cool your PC. For example, using radiator, liquid, freon, liquid nitrogen and liquid helium cooling, as well as cooling based on liquid metal. Such systems are used mainly in overclocking, and ordinary users do not have an urgent need for them. Actually, it’s like comparing the needs of a racing driver and an ordinary (even advanced) car enthusiast. The difference between these very technical needs is obvious.

Water cooling systems are deservedly popular among overclockers. The principle of their operation is based on coolant circulation. Computer components that need cooling heat the water, and the water, in turn, is cooled in the radiator. In this case, the radiator can be located outside the case and even be passive (that is, work without a heat sink fan).

Special mention should be made of cryogenic cooling systems for PCs, which operate on the principle of changing the phase state of matter, similar to a refrigerator and air conditioner. The disadvantages of cryogenic systems are high noise, large mass and cost, and difficulty in installation. But only using such systems is it possible to achieve negative temperatures of the processor or video card, and, accordingly, the highest performance by strong overclocking.

Cold and silent: This is how a PC equipped with a water cooling system looks quite nice. The big advantage of such a system is that the computer operates almost silently.

It is worth adding a few words about the advantages of complex cooling systems. They are silent, and at any time you can enable forced enhanced cooling in your PC. Among the disadvantages for the average user, it is worth noting the rather high cost (from $100) of the finished system, the requirement for great care when using it and the need for additional accessories during installation. In any case, experiments with these types of cooling should be carried out only when necessary - if your PC has truly enormous power.

Air is our everything!

But, if you don’t have a top-end gaming system and you are not an avid overclocker, then you probably won’t need a water system, much less a liquid nitrogen system, or any other sophisticated system. In order to lower the temperature by a few degrees (up to ten), which is what is required in the hottest summers, it will be enough to update the conventional air cooling (and also do a couple of simple steps; see the “10 Commandments of Proper Cooling” box). To do this, it will be enough to add several new coolers or update existing ones. In this context, it is important to remember that for proper, efficient air cooling, the location of the fans plays an important role. Actually, maximum effect is achieved not when as much cold air as possible is pumped inside the case, but when effective air flows are organized, with proper input of cold air inside and removal of warm air outside (if all the fans work for blowing, the air inside will simply heat up quickly, without being able to normal to go beyond the body).

The options for installing additional fans depend not only on your wallet, but also on the case. In this regard, you won’t envy the owners of the old or cheapest cases. Often they do not have additional places for installing coolers, and the hot air extraction in them is very simple: the flows are removed using a fan located on the power supply and the back wall of the computer. This creates a serious load not only on it, but also on the processor, which in most motherboards is installed right at the top. So if you buy new computer, do not regret the extra 300-400 UAH for the body. Yes, and the old PC can be moved to a new “home” - this is not difficult to do.

Most modern cases provide several places for installing coolers. If you carefully read the case tests in several previous issues of our magazine, you probably noticed that in the technical specifications we indicated the number of not only pre-installed coolers, but also seats for additional ones. Let's look at where it is best to install which fans (for simplicity, we will assume that our virtual case has seats on all panels).

Advanced cooler models have a number of advantages over conventional fans. For example, this nice green "baby" from ThermalTake, thanks to its six copper heatpipes, has a heatsink located quite far from the processor. To cool the radiator, two fans are used at once. One pumps air, the other effectively removes it

For blowing:

Coolers operating on blowing must be installed on the front panel. There they will cool effectively hard disks and force air inside - a kind of gate for cold air. If you have one HDD, you can completely get by with such injection fans, but it’s better (and if hard drives several, it is highly recommended) to install fans on the side panels (or on one of them, often such places are on the left, less often on both, and in a very exceptional case, when only on the right). As a result, the air will be pumped directly into the area of ​​the motherboard (that is, directly onto the processor and video card, which will be a significant help for their standard cooling systems) and will refresh the air flow from the front panel, heated hard drives. If there is such an opportunity, you can put a fan on the bottom panel (bottom) - cold air from the bottom will also effectively complement the air flows and better displace heated air to the top.

For blowing:

Coolers that remove warm air outside the case are placed on the rear and, if possible, on the top panel. Thus, we get a constant blowing air flow, which effectively cools all PC components and instantly, when heated, goes outside the case, thus freeing up space for cold air.

What not to do:

Set the fan on the rear panel to blow. Because of this, a closed air ring is created between the power supply and the cooler, and some of the hot air from the power supply is immediately sucked back inside.

Set the front fan to exhaust. There are several options here, depending on the location of other fans, but in any case, given that the cooler on the power supply also works as a blower, effective air flow will not work, and the hard drives will carry an additional thermal load.

Perhaps the most clinical case is when all the fans are blowing, thus creating a rarefied atmosphere and low pressure inside the case. Yes, we know that a rarefied environment heats up worse, but with such a design of the cooling system there will be almost no air movement inside, and the air that exists will still heat up significantly over time. This scheme, by the way, is the heaviest for PC components, which have nowhere to throw off the accumulated heat.

The cooling method indicated in the diagram is one of the most effective. Depending on the needs, blow-in coolers can be supplied to the bottom and side panels

Silence is the key to health

Some users are deterred from installing additional fans by the fact that this will increase the noise level emitted by the system. But in reality, the number of additional decibels can be kept to a minimum. Here are some recommendations:

1. If the slot allows, buy a larger fan. Contrary to popular belief, with the same volume of air blown in, it will make less noise than a small one, due to the fact that it needs to make fewer revolutions to do this. More blades will also result in less noise.

2. Some cases have a function for manually adjusting the fan speed. If yours doesn’t have one, you can use special programs(they have the ability to automatically adjust depending on the temperature of the components). In any case, maximum cooler speeds are not always needed, and at minimum speeds the system, even with many coolers, will work very quietly.

3. If the motherboard has four-pin connectors for powering coolers, then buy four-wire fans. They are very quiet, and their automatic speed control range is quite wide.

4. Pay attention to the type of bearing. For example, hydrodynamic bearings ensure very quiet fan operation.

The Zalman ZM-F2 FDB cooler uses a hydrodynamic bearing, which significantly reduces vibration and, as a result, noise level

Younger "brothers"

When it comes to cooling laptops, the story is completely different and much more complicated. Although in terms of heat dissipation, they are much inferior to desktop PCs, and the optimal design of heat sinks in them is laid out by the manufacturer himself; changing anything in the laptop’s cooling system (if its capabilities are insufficient) is very problematic. So to speak, there is nowhere to screw in an additional cooler. Therefore, there are other options. By the way, the first thing worth mentioning is the same notorious installation of a program for checking temperatures. You can find out the normal temperature for specific laptop components on the manufacturer’s website. Although there are still approximate standards for laptops. So for the processor normal temperature we can consider 75–80 °C under load (if above 90, it’s definitely overheating); for a video card - 70–90 °C; for a hard drive - 50–55 (if above 60, then you should copy important data from the hard drive. There is a risk of losing it); and the chipset can easily withstand temperatures up to 90°C.

The golden rule for a laptop user should be to check that the ventilation holes are not blocked. Under no circumstances should the computer be placed on a bed or other upholstered furniture, blankets, etc., as the characters in many films do. That's why they are films, and the laptop is guaranteed to overheat. Usually nothing bad happens, but in some cases the video card, north and south bridges may fail. The hard drive may also fail, leading to loss of information. This happens because the chips have Maximum temperature, after which the destruction of their structure begins. Usually this is 110–125 °C. At this temperature, both the chip itself and the contact between the chip and the board are damaged. As a result, the laptop may either not turn on at all due to problems with the chipset, or display various artifacts on the screen. But the processor fails very rarely.

If you really want to work on the bed, but you can’t spend money on a cooler stand, you can use a regular plastic/metal/wooden food tray or a plywood board that fits the size of the device to work in a chair or bed. Naturally, you should make sure that no ventilation holes are blocked.

When using a laptop at a table, there is one trick - to put something under its back end. In most cases, the air that cools the laptop components is drawn through holes and slots in the bottom of the laptop. Some air is also sucked in from the keyboard. When you lift the back end of the laptop, the gap between the bottom and the table increases. As a result, air circulation improves. In other words, the air that is forced through the radiator of the cooling system becomes colder. Also, by reducing the resistance of this air, more air is sucked in. As a result, the temperature may drop by 5–10 °C. You can put anything under the back end, from books to rubber bands. Although there are special gadgets for this, for example, Belkin Laptop CoolStrip.

Finally, laptop coolers are also a good option for cooling. But again, not everyone is effective enough. For example, small folding fans that are placed under a laptop usually simply disperse the air around them and raise dust. It is optimal to take a stand that is not curved inward, but with a straight surface, perhaps slightly tilted for greater convenience, so that the laptop screen is positioned a little higher. The majority of such models are CoolerMaster NotePal, Zalman, Vantec LapCool and many others. By the way, with additional cooling, the maximum heating of the laptop is 4–5 °C less than without it. And cooling to a normal level occurs much faster: returning to the “background” temperature value takes only about two minutes, and without it - almost 15.

10 Commandments of Proper Cooling

Like the mathematician and philosopher Rene Descartes, let's go from simple to complex. Repeating common truths about PC cooling sometimes helps to understand what was missed. So…

1. It is better to lower the system unit lower (ideally, on a special stand on wheels). From your school physics course, everyone probably remembers that hot air usually rises, and cold air goes down.

2. Explore the environment of the system unit - are there any curtains, napkins, chairs and other household utensils nearby that may interfere with the proper air exchange of the computer.

3. Regularly blow out the inside of your PC with a vacuum cleaner. Dust and animal hair can very noticeably clog coolers, especially on the power supply.

4. Set the coolers on the front panel to blow in, and on the back to blow out.

5. Make sure that in this case there are no large gaps in the system unit (for example, holes from the removed socket for the drive).

6. The wires inside should also not interfere with air circulation, so they should be carefully laid and secured with ordinary clamps.

7. Check the availability of thermal paste and renew it if necessary (a 50-gram tube costs a penny, but is enough for 40–50 cleanings). To do this, you need to remove the coolers from the processor and video card and carefully wipe off the remnants of the old thermal paste with alcohol, then just as carefully lubricate the contact surfaces of the processor and the radiator and put everything back in place.

8. If there are several hard drives in the case, they should be placed in slots away from each other.

9. If possible, do not connect power-consuming devices such as USB refrigerators, fans, etc. to your PC (especially laptops).

10. If necessary, replace the standard coolers with more advanced ones or deliver new ones if there are corresponding slots on the case.

The above-mentioned techniques for PCs - cleaning dust and updating thermal paste - are also good for laptops. Although, of course, you should disassemble them yourself only under the following conditions: a) the warranty period has expired and the seals can be broken; b) you are sure that you will put the laptop back together (with a PC, in terms of assembly, everything is much simpler). If the first condition is not met, but you suspect that your portable “friend” is clogged, it is better to contact a service center. Replacing thermal paste requires experience and knowledge, and the warranty is void if you clean it yourself.

Laying wires inside a PC is a matter of five minutes, but the effectiveness will be obvious

How to properly organize cooling in gaming computer

The use of even the most efficient coolers may be useless if the air ventilation system in the computer case is poorly thought out. Therefore, correct installation of fans and components is a mandatory requirement during assembly. system unit. Let's explore this issue using the example of one high-performance gaming PC

⇣ Contents

This article is a continuation of a series of introductory materials on assembling system units. If you remember, last year a step-by-step instruction was published, which described in detail all the main points for creating and testing a PC. However, as often happens, when assembling a system unit, nuances play an important role. In particular, proper installation of fans in the case will increase the efficiency of all cooling systems and also reduce the heating of the main components of the computer. It is this question that is discussed further in the article.

I warn you right away that the experiment was carried out on the basis of one standard assembly using an ATX motherboard and a Midi-Tower form factor case. The option presented in the article is considered the most common, although we all know very well that computers are different, and therefore systems with the same level of performance can be assembled in dozens (if not hundreds) of different ways. That is why the results presented are relevant exclusively for the configuration considered. Judge for yourself: computer cases, even within the same form factor, have different volumes and number of seats for installing fans, and video cards, even using the same GPU, are assembled on printed circuit boards of different lengths and are equipped with coolers with different numbers of heat pipes and fans. And yet, our small experiment will allow us to draw certain conclusions.

An important “detail” of the system unit was the central Core processor i7-8700K. Detailed review this six-core is located, so I won’t repeat it again. I will only note that cooling a flagship for the LGA1151-v2 platform is a difficult task even for the most efficient coolers and liquid cooling systems.

The system was equipped with 16 GB of DDR4-2666 RAM. operating system Windows 10 was written on solid state drive Western Digital WDS100T1B0A. You can find a review of this SSD.

MSI GeForce GTX 1080 Ti GAMING X TRIO

The MSI GeForce GTX 1080 Ti GAMING X TRIO video card, as the name suggests, is equipped with a TRI-FROZR cooler with three TORX 2.0 fans. According to the manufacturer, these impellers create 22% more powerful airflow while remaining virtually silent. Low volume, as stated on the official MSI website, is also ensured by the use of double-row bearings. I note that the radiator of the cooling system, and its fins are made in the form of waves. According to the manufacturer, this design increases the total dispersion area by 10%. The radiator also comes into contact with the elements of the power subsystem. MSI GeForce GTX 1080 Ti GAMING X TRIO memory chips are additionally cooled with a special plate.

The accelerator fans begin to rotate only at the moment when the chip temperature reaches 60 degrees Celsius. On an open bench, the maximum GPU temperature was only 67 degrees Celsius. At the same time, the cooling system fans spun up by a maximum of 47% - this is approximately 1250 rpm. The actual GPU frequency in default mode remained stable at 1962 MHz. As you can see, the MSI GeForce GTX 1080 Ti GAMING X TRIO has a decent factory overclock.

The adapter is equipped with a massive backplate, increasing the rigidity of the structure. The back of the graphics card has an L-shaped strip with built-in Mystic Light LED lighting. User using application of the same name can separately configure three glow zones. In addition, the fans are framed by two rows of symmetrical lights in the shape of dragon claws.

According to the technical specifications, the MSI GeForce GTX 1080 Ti GAMING X TRIO has three operating modes: Silent Mode - 1480 (1582) MHz core and 11016 MHz memory; Gaming Mode - 1544 (1657) core and 11016 MHz memory; OC Mode - 1569 (1683) MHz for the core and 11124 MHz for the memory. By default, the video card has gaming mode activated.

You can get acquainted with the performance level of the reference GeForce GTX 1080 Ti. The MSI GeForce GTX 1080 Ti Lightning Z was also released on our website. This graphics adapter is also equipped with a TRI-FROZR cooling system.

The assembly is based on the MSI Z370 GAMING M5 motherboard of the ATX form factor. This is a slightly modified version MSI boards Z270 GAMING M5, which was released on our website last spring. The device is perfect for overclocked Coffee Lake K-processors, since the power converter is digital control Digitall Power consists of five double phases, implemented in a 4+1 circuit. Four channels are directly responsible for the operation of the CPU, another one is for the integrated graphics.

All power circuit components comply with the Military Class 6 standard - this includes both titanium core chokes and Dark CAP capacitors with at least a ten-year service life, as well as energy-efficient Dark Choke coils. And DIMM slots for installing RAM and PEG ports for installing video cards are dressed in a metallized Steel Armor case, and also have additional solder points on back side fees. Additional track insulation is used for the RAM, and each memory channel is located in its own PCB layer, which, according to the manufacturer, allows for a cleaner signal and increases the stability of overclocking DDR4 modules.

One useful thing to note is the presence of two M.2 format connectors at once, which support the installation of drives PCI Express and SATA 6 Gb/s. The top port can accommodate SSDs up to 110 mm long, and the bottom port up to 80 mm. The second port is additionally equipped with a metal M.2 Shield heatsink, which is in contact with the drive using a thermal pad.

The wired connection in the MSI Z370 GAMING M5 is handled by the Killer E2500 gigabit controller, and the sound is provided by the Realtek 1220 chip. The Audio Boost 4 audio path features Chemi-Con capacitors, a paired headphone amplifier with a resistance of up to 600 Ohms, a front dedicated audio output and gold-plated audio connectors. All components of the sound zone are isolated from the rest of the board elements by a non-conductive strip with backlight.

The Mystic Light motherboard backlight supports 16.8 million colors and operates in 17 modes. You can connect an RGB strip to the motherboard; the corresponding 4-pin connector is soldered at the bottom of the board. By the way, complete with the device goes 800 mm extension cable with splitter for connecting an additional LED strip.

The board is equipped with six 4-pin fan connectors. The total quantity is selected optimally, as is the location. The PUMP_FAN port, soldered next to the DIMM, supports the connection of impellers or a pump with a current of up to 2 A. The location is again very good, since it is easy to connect a pump to this connector from both a maintenance-free life-support system and a custom system assembled by hand. The system deftly controls even “Carlson” cars with a 3-pin connector. The frequency is adjustable both in terms of revolutions per minute and voltage. It is possible to completely stop the fans.

Finally, I’ll note two more very useful features of the MSI Z370 GAMING M5. The first is the presence of a POST signal indicator. The second is the EZ Debug LED block located next to the PUMP_FAN connector. It clearly demonstrates at what stage the system is loaded: at the initialization stage of the processor, RAM, video card or storage device.

The choice of Thermaltake Core X31 was not accidental. Here is a Tower case that meets all modern trends. The power supply is installed from below and is insulated with a metal curtain. There is a basket for installing three drives of form factors 2.5’’ and 3.5’’, however, HDD and SSD can be mounted on the barrier wall. There is a basket for two 5.25-inch devices. Without them, nine 120mm or 140mm fans can be installed in the case. As you can see, Thermaltake Core X31 allows you to completely customize the system. For example, on the basis of this case it is quite possible to assemble a PC with two 360 mm radiators.

The device turned out to be very spacious. There is plenty of space behind the chassis for cable management. Even with careless assembly, the side cover will close easily. The space for hardware allows the use of processor coolers up to 180 mm in height, video cards up to 420 mm in length and power supplies up to 220 mm in length.

The bottom and front panel are equipped with dust filters. Top cover equipped with a mesh mat, which also limits dust from getting inside and makes it easier to install case fans and water cooling systems.

The most energy-consuming part of a computer is the processor, and removing the generated thermal energy is an urgent task, especially when the temperature environment high. Not only the stability and durability of its operation, but also its performance depend on the heating temperature of the processor, which processor manufacturers usually keep silent about.

In the vast majority of computers, the processor cooling system is designed to ignore the elementary laws of physics. The system cooler operates in short circuit mode, since there is no screen to prevent the cooler from sucking in hot air coming out of the processor radiator. As a result, the efficiency of the processor cooling system does not exceed 50%. In addition, cooling is produced by air heated by other components and assemblies located in the system unit.

Sometimes an additional cooler is installed on the back wall of the system unit, but this is not The best decision. An additional cooler works to push air from the system unit into the environment, just like the power supply cooler. As a result, the efficiency of both coolers is much lower if they worked separately - one sucked air into the system unit, and the other pushed it out. As a result, additional electricity is consumed and, worst of all, additional acoustic noise appears.

The proposed design of the processor cooling system is free from the above disadvantages, is easy to implement and provides high cooling efficiency for the processor and, as a consequence, other components of the motherboard. The idea is not new and simple; air for cooling the processor radiator is taken from outside the system unit, that is, from the room.

I decided to improve the cooling system of my computer’s processor when I came across a design from the cooling system of a branded, obsolete system unit.

All that remains is to secure this part in the system unit and connect it to the processor cooler. Since the length of the pipe was not sufficient, it was necessary to increase it using polyethylene tape twisted into a tube. The diameter of the tube was chosen taking into account a tight fit on the processor cooler body. To prevent the tape from developing, it is fixed with a metal bracket using a stapler.

The system is secured using self-made two corners with self-tapping screws to the rear wall of the system unit. Precise positioning relative to the center of the cooler is achieved due to the length of the sides of the corners.

This simple design made it possible to practically eliminate the flow of hot air from the system unit into the processor cooling system.

The cover of my system unit already had a ready-made hole, which simplified the work. But making a hole yourself is not difficult; you need to project the center point of the cooler onto the side cover, and use a compass to draw a circle slightly smaller than the diameter of the tube. Drill with a drill with a diameter of 2.5-3 mm in increments of 3.5 mm along the entire length of the hole's circumference line. The drilling points must be pre-marked with a core. Then drill out the drilled holes with a drill with a diameter of 4 mm. Finish the edges of the resulting hole with a round file. All that remains is to install a decorative grille, although it is not necessary.

You can successfully use a plastic drink bottle as an air duct. If there is no suitable diameter, then you can take a larger one, cut it lengthwise and sew it with thread. High tightness is not necessary here. You can also secure the tube with small screws directly to the cooler body. The main thing is to provide air supply to the processor cooling system from the outside.

Temperature measurements showed the high efficiency of the cooling system made Pentium processor 2.8 GHz. At 10% processor load, at an ambient temperature of 20°C, the processor temperature did not exceed 30°C, and the heatsink was cold to the touch. At the same time, the cooler effectively cooled the radiator at the lowest speeds.

Summer has quickly come into its own; The thermometer is creeping up, and more and more often we have to think about how to ensure a comfortable temperature. Believe me: for computers the problem of dealing with heat is no less pressing than for their users. Even if the room conditions are quite normal (20 - 22°C), the temperature in the system unit reaches 30–32°C. And that's the best case scenario. The hotter it is outside and in apartments, the more acute the issue of protection from overheating and the more attention is paid to the cooling systems of the system unit and its components.

To correctly solve the problem, you need to have at least a general idea of ​​why computers need cooling systems at all, why system units overheat, and how to protect your “computing friend” from heat stroke. In this article you will not find a long list of cooler models, but after reading it, you yourself will be able to choose the appropriate components of the PC cooling system and competently approach the choice of a new case.

Why is it heating up?

The reason is trivial: like any electrical appliance, a computer dissipates part (sometimes quite significant) of the electricity consumed in the form of heat - for example, the processor converts almost all of the energy used into heat. The more it is needed by the system unit, the hotter its components heat up. If the heat is not removed in time, this can lead to the most unpleasant results (see “Consequences of overheating”). The problem of heat dissipation and cooling is especially pressing for modern processor models (both central and graphic), which are setting new records for performance (and often heat dissipation).

Every PC component that dissipates a lot of heat is equipped with a cooling device. As a rule, such devices contain a metal radiator and a fan - these are the components a typical cooler consists of. The thermal interface between it and the heating component is also important - usually it is thermal paste (a mixture of substances with good thermal conductivity) that ensures effective heat transfer to the cooler radiator.

Progress in the field of cooling systems, thanks to which technological innovations such as thermal tubes appeared, provided the creators of components for personal computers with new opportunities, allowing them to abandon noisy coolers. Some computers are equipped with water cooling systems - they have their advantages and disadvantages. All this is discussed below.

Increased PC heat dissipation

The main reason why computers generate more and more heat is because their computing power. The most significant factors are:

• increase in clock frequencies of the processor, chipset, memory bus and other buses;
• an increase in the number of transistors and memory cells in PC chips;
• increase in power consumed by PC nodes.

The more powerful the computer, the more electricity it “eats” - therefore, an increase in heat generation is inevitable. Despite the use of sophisticated technological processes in the production of chips, their power consumption still increases, increasing the amount of heat dissipated in the PC case. In addition, the area of ​​​​video card boards increases (for example, due to the fact that it is necessary to place more memory chips). The result is an increase in the aerodynamic resistance of the case: the bulky board simply blocks the access of cooling air to the processor and power supply. This problem is especially relevant for PCs in small cases, where the distance between the video card and the “basket” for the HDD is 2–3 cm - and yet in this space drive cables and other cables are still laid... RAM chips are also becoming more and more voracious ", and modern operating systems require more and more RAM. For example, in Windows 7, 4 GB is recommended for it - thus, several tens of watts of heat are dissipated, which further aggravates the heat dissipation situation. Chip system logic on the motherboard is also a very “hot” component.

VULNERABILITY OF HARD DRIVES

Inside the hard drive housing, movable magnetic heads, controlled by high-precision mechanics, slide over the surface of the rotating platters. They write and read data. When heated, the materials from which the disk components are made expand. In the operating temperature range, mechanics and electronics cope well with thermal expansion. However, if it overheats, it exceeds acceptable limits, and the hard drive's heads can "overshoot", writing data in the wrong place until the computer is turned off. And when it is turned on again, the cooled hard drive will not be able to find data recorded in an overheated state. In such a case, information can only be saved with the help of complex and expensive special equipment. If the temperature exceeds 45°C, it is recommended to install an additional fan to cool the hard drive.

There is a paradox: the thermal load in modern cases is growing at a high rate, but their design remains almost unchanged: manufacturers take as a basis the design recommended by Intel that was almost 10 years ago. Models adapted to intense heat generation are rare, and low-noise ones are even less common.

Consequences of overheating

If there is excess heat, the computer will, at best, begin to slow down and freeze, and at worst, one or more components will fail. High temperatures are very harmful to “health” element base(chips, capacitors, etc.), especially for a hard drive, the overheating of which can lead to data loss.

APPROXIMATE HEAT DISSEMINATION PARAMETERS

Approximate parameters of heat dissipation of components of an average computer system unit (at high computing load). The main heat sources are the motherboard, CPU and graphics card GPU (they account for more than half of the heat dissipated).

The capacity of modern HDDs allows you to store extensive collections of music and videos, work documents, digital photo albums, games and much more. Disks are becoming more compact and faster, but this comes at the cost of greater data recording density, fragility of the design, and therefore vulnerability of the filling. Tolerances in the production of high-capacity drives are measured in microns, so the slightest “step to the side” will damage the drive. That's why HDDs are so sensitive to external influences. If the drive has to operate under suboptimal conditions (for example, overheating), the likelihood of losing written data increases dramatically.

PC Cooling: Basics

If the air temperature in the system unit remains at 36°C or higher, and the processor temperature is more than 60°C (or the hard drive constantly heats up to 45°C), it’s time to take measures to improve cooling.

But before you run to the store to buy a new cooler, there are a few things to consider. It is possible that the overheating problem can be solved in a simpler way. For example, the system unit should be positioned so that there is free air access to all ventilation openings. The distance at which its back part is separated from the wall or furniture should be no less than two diameters of the exhaust fan. Otherwise, the resistance to air outflow increases, and most importantly, the heated air remains near the ventilation holes longer, so that a significant part of it again enters the system unit. If it is installed incorrectly, even the most powerful cooler(the efficiency of which is determined by the difference between its temperature and the temperature of the air cooling the radiator).

COOLER BASED ON THE PELTIER EFFECT

One of the newest models that uses the Peltier effect. Typically, such coolers feature a full range of the latest technological advances: TEMs, thermopipes, fans with advanced aerodynamics and an impressive design. The result is impressive; there would be enough space in the system unit...

The most effective cooling is achieved when the air temperatures in the system unit and in the room where it is located are equal. The only way to achieve this result is to ensure effective ventilation. For this purpose, coolers of various designs are used.

A standard modern personal computer usually has several coolers installed:

• in the power supply;
• on the central processor;
• on the graphics processor (if the computer has a discrete video card).

In some cases, additional fans are used:

• for system logic chips located on the motherboard;
• for hard drives;
• for PC case.

Cooling efficiency

When choosing a case for a PC system unit, each user is guided by his own criteria. For example, modders need an original design solution or the ability to remake it to implement it. Overclockers need a case in which a fully overclocked processor, video card, RAM (the list goes on) will feel comfortable. And at the same time, everyone, of course, wants the system unit to be quiet and small in size.

However, a fancy PC can generate up to 500 W of heat (see table below). Are the wishes feasible from the point of view of the laws of physics?

HOW MUCH HEAT DOES A COMPUTER GENERATE

There are several ways to measure heat dissipation.

1. According to the power consumption values ​​specified in the documentation for the PC components.

• Advantages: accessibility, simplicity.
• Disadvantages: high error and, as a result, increased requirements for the cooling system.

2. Using sites that provide a service for calculating heat dissipation (and power consumption), for example, www.emacs.ru/calc.

• Advantages: you don’t have to rummage through manuals or visit manufacturers’ websites – the necessary data is available in the databases of the services offered.
• Disadvantages: database compilers do not keep up with node manufacturers, so databases often contain unreliable data.

3. Based on the values ​​of power consumed by nodes and heat dissipation coefficients found in the documentation or measured independently. This method is for professionals or big enthusiasts of optimizing the cooling system.

• Advantages: gives the most accurate results and allows you to most effectively optimize your PC.
• Disadvantages: to use this method, serious knowledge and considerable experience are required.

Solutions

The main principle: in order to remove heat, it is necessary to pass a certain amount of air through the system unit. Moreover, its volume should be greater, the hotter the room and the stronger the overheating.

Simply installing additional fans will not solve the problem. After all, the more numerous, powerful and “resourceful” they are, the more “sounding” the PC is. Moreover, not only are the motors and fan blades noisy, but the entire system unit is noisy due to vibrations (this happens especially often with poor-quality assembly and the use of cheap cases). To correct this situation, it is recommended to use low-speed, large-diameter fans.

To achieve efficient cooling without using noisy fans, the system unit must have low resistance to the air that passes through it (in professional language this is called aerodynamic resistance). To put it simply, if the air has difficulty “squeezing” through a tight space clogged with cables and components, you have to install fans with high excess pressure, and they inevitably create loud noise. Another problem is dust: the more air you need to pump, the more often you need to clean the inside of the case (we’ll talk about this separately).

Aerodynamic drag

For optimal cooling, it is always advisable to use a large case. This is the only way to achieve it comfortable work without noise and overheating even in abnormal (over 40°C) heat. A small case is only appropriate if the computer has low heat dissipation or uses water cooling.

However, to minimize noise it is not at all necessary to assemble an air-cooled PC in a shipping container or in a refrigerator. It is enough to take into account the recommendations of experts. Thus, the free cross-section in any section of the housing should be 2–5 times larger than the flow area of ​​the exhaust fans. This also applies to the air supply openings.

COOLER WITH THERMAL PIPE

Thermal tube coolers are “silent” and allow you to cool even very hot PC components, such as GPUs video cards However, it is imperative to take into account the specific features of these cooling systems.

Hybrid systems include, along with thermal pipes and radiators, conventional fans. But the presence of thermal tubes, which facilitate heat removal, allows you to get by with a smaller fan or use low-speed, and therefore not so noisy, models.

In order to reduce aerodynamic drag, you need to:

• provide enough free space in the housing for air flow (it should be several times larger than the total cross-section of the exhaust fans);
• carefully lay the cables inside the system unit using zip ties;
• at the point where air is supplied to the housing, install a filter that traps dust, but does not provide strong resistance to air flow;
• The filter should be cleaned regularly.

Following simple rules will allow you to install low-speed exhaust fans. As already mentioned, the case must provide cold air from the room where the PC is located to all “hot” components without high energy costs (i.e., with a minimum number of fans). The volume of air must be sufficient so that its temperature at the outlet of the case does not turn out to be too high: for effective heat transfer of PC components, the difference in air temperature at the inlet and outlet of the system unit should not exceed several degrees.

OPTIONS FOR LAYOUT OF FANS AND SYSTEM UNIT ELEMENTS PROVIDING EFFECTIVE PC COOLING

Here is one concept for building an air cooling system:

• air intake is carried out at the bottom and front, in the “cold” zone;
• The air is exhausted at the top and rear, through the power supply. This corresponds to the natural upward movement of heated air;
• if necessary, an additional exhaust fan with automatic adjustment is installed, located next to the power supply unit;
• additional air intake for the video card is provided through the PCIE plug;
• poor ventilation of 3" and 5" drive bays is ensured due to slightly bent plugs for unoccupied bays;
• it is important to let the main air flow through the “hottest” components;
• It is advisable to increase the total area of ​​the intake openings to twice the area of ​​the fans (more is not required, since this will not give any effect, and the accumulation of dust will increase).

In accordance with these recommendations, you can modify the cases yourself (interesting, but troublesome) or choose the appropriate models when purchasing. Approximate options for organizing air flows through the system unit are given above.

The “correct” fan

If the system unit weakly “resists” the flow of blown air, you can use any fan, as long as it provides sufficient flow for cooling (you can find out about this from its passport, as well as using online calculators). It’s another matter if the resistance to air flow is significant - this is exactly the case with fans mounted in densely “populated” cases, on radiators and in perforated holes.

If you decide to replace a failed fan in a case or on a cooler yourself, install one that has no less air flow and excess pressure values ​​(see data sheet). If there is no relevant information, it is not recommended to use such a fan in critical components (for example, to cool a processor).

If the noise level is not too important, you can install high-speed fans of larger diameter. Thicker models reduce noise levels while increasing air pressure.

In any case, pay attention to the gap between the blades and the fan rim: it should not be large (the optimal value is tenths of a millimeter). If the distance between the blades and the rim is more than 2 mm, the fan will be ineffective.

Air or water?

There is a fairly widespread belief that water systems are much more efficient and quieter than conventional air systems. Is it really? Indeed, the heat capacity of water is twice that of air, and its density is 830 times higher than that of air. This means that an equal volume of water can remove 1658 times more heat.

However, with noise, things are not so simple. After all, the coolant (water) ultimately gives off heat to the same “outboard” air, and water radiators (with the exception of huge structures) are equipped with the same fans - their noise adds to the noise of the water pump. Therefore, the gain, if any, is not that great.

The design becomes much more complicated when it is necessary to cool several components with a flow of water proportional to their heat generation. Apart from branched tubes, it is necessary to use complex control devices (simple tees and crosses will not do). An alternative option is to use a design with flows adjusted once and for all at the factory; but in this case the user is deprived of the opportunity to significantly change the PC configuration.

Dust and the fight against it

Due to speed differences, computer system units become real dust collectors. The speed of the air flowing through the inlets is many times higher than the speed of the flows inside the housing. In addition, air flow often changes direction around PC components. Therefore, the majority (up to 70%) of dust brought from outside settles inside the case; It is necessary to clean it at least once a year.

However, dust can become your “ally” in the fight to increase the efficiency of the cooling system. After all, its active subsidence is observed precisely in those places where air flows are not distributed optimally.

Air filters

Fiber filters intercept more than 70% of dust, which allows you to clean the case much less often. Often, several exhaust fans with a diameter of 120 mm are installed in modern PC cases, while air enters the case through many inlets distributed throughout the structure - their total area is much less than the area of ​​​​the fans. There is no point in installing a filter in such a housing without modification. Professionals give a number of recommendations here:

• the inlet openings for the intake of cooling air should be located as close as possible to its base;
• the entry and exit points of air, the paths of its passage must be organized so that the air flows “wash” the hottest elements of the PC;
• The area of ​​the air intake openings should be 2–5 times larger than the area of ​​the exhaust fans.

Coolers based on Peltier elements

Peltier elements - or, as they are also called, thermoelectric modules (TEMs), operating on the principle of the Peltier effect - have been produced on an industrial scale for many years. They are built into car refrigerators, beer coolers, and industrial coolers for cooling processors. There are also models for PC, although they are still quite rare.

First, about the principle of operation. As you might guess, the Peltier effect was discovered by the Frenchman Jean-Charles Peltier; this happened in 1834. A cooling module based on this effect includes a plurality of n- and p-type semiconductor elements connected in series. When direct current passes through such a connection, one half of the p-n contacts will heat up, the other will cool.

These semiconductor elements are oriented so that the heating contacts come out on one side, and the cooling contacts on the other. The result is a plate, which is covered on both sides with ceramic material. If a sufficiently strong current is applied to such a module, the temperature difference between the sides can reach several tens of degrees.

We can say that a TEM is a kind of “heat pump”, which, using the energy of an external power source, pumps the generated heat from the source (for example, a processor) to a heat exchanger - a radiator, thus participating in the cooling process.

To effectively remove heat from powerful processor, you have to use a TEM of 100–200 elements (which, by the way, are quite fragile); Therefore, the TEM is equipped with an additional copper contact plate, which increases the size of the device and requires the application of additional layers of thermal paste.

This reduces the efficiency of heat removal. The problem is partially solved by replacing the thermal paste with soldering, but this method is rarely used in models available on the market. Note that the energy consumption of the TEM itself is quite large and comparable to the amount of heat removed (about a third of the energy used by the TEM also turns into heat).

Another difficulty that arises when using TEMs in coolers is the need to accurately regulate the temperature of the module; it is ensured by the use of special boards with controllers. This makes the cooler more expensive, and the board takes up additional space in the system unit. If the temperature is not regulated, it can drop to negative values; Condensation may also form, which is unacceptable for computer electronic components.

So, high-quality coolers based on TEM are expensive (from 2.5 thousand rubles), complex, bulky and not as effective as you might think, judging by their size. The only area in which such coolers are indispensable is cooling industrial computers operating in hot (above 50°C) conditions; however, this is not relevant to the topic of our article.

Thermal interface and thermal paste

As already mentioned, an integral part of any cooling system (including a computer cooler) is a thermal interface - a component through which thermal contact is made between the heat-generating and heat-removing devices. Thermal paste acting in this role ensures effective heat transfer between, for example, the processor and the cooler.

Why do you need thermal conductive paste?

If the cooler radiator does not fit tightly to the cooled chip, the efficiency of the entire cooling system immediately decreases (air is a good heat insulator). Making the surface of the radiator smooth and flat (for perfect contact with the cooled device) is very difficult, and not cheap. This is where thermal paste comes to the rescue, filling irregularities on the contacting surfaces and thereby significantly increasing the efficiency of heat transfer between them.

It is important that the viscosity of the thermal paste is not too high: this is necessary to displace air from the thermal contact point with a minimum layer of thermal paste. Please note, by the way, that polishing the cooler base to a mirror finish may not in itself improve heat transfer. The fact is that with manual processing it is almost impossible to make the surfaces strictly parallel - as a result, the gap between the radiator and the processor may even increase.

Before applying new thermal paste, carefully remove the old one. For this, napkins made of non-woven materials are used (they should not leave fibers on surfaces). It is highly undesirable to dilute the paste, as this greatly impairs the heat-conducting properties. Let's give a few more recommendations:

• use thermal pastes with a thermal conductivity of more than 2–4 W/(K*m) and low viscosity;
• When installing the cooler, apply fresh thermal paste each time;
• When installing, it is necessary to fix the cooler with a fastener, press it firmly (but not too much, otherwise damage may occur) by hand and rotate it several times around its axis within the existing play. In any case, installation requires skill and accuracy.

Thermal tubes

Thermal tubes are great for removing excess heat. They are compact and silent. By design, these are sealed cylinders (can be quite long and arbitrarily curved), partially filled with coolant. Inside the cylinder there is another tube made in the form of a capillary.

The thermotube works as follows: in the heated area, the coolant evaporates, its vapor passes into the cooled part of the thermotube and condenses there - and the condensate returns through the capillary inner tube to the heated area.

The main advantage of thermotubes is their high thermal conductivity: the speed of heat propagation is equal to the speed at which coolant vapors pass the tube from end to end (it is very high and close to the speed of sound). In conditions of varying heat dissipation, thermal tube cooling systems are very effective. This is important, for example, for cooling processors, which, depending on the operating mode, emit different amounts of heat.

Thermal tubes currently produced are capable of removing 20–80 W of heat. When designing coolers, tubes with a diameter of 5–8 mm and a length of up to 300 mm are usually used.

However, despite all the advantages of thermal tubes, they have one significant limitation, which is not always written about in manuals. Manufacturers usually do not indicate the boiling point of the coolant in the heat pipes of the cooler, however, it is this that determines the threshold, upon crossing which the heat pipe begins to effectively remove heat. Until this moment, a passive heat pipe cooler, which does not have a fan, works like a regular radiator. In general, the lower the boiling point of the coolant, the more efficient and safer the heat pipe cooler; the recommended value is 35-40°C (it is better if the boiling point is indicated in the documentation).

Let's summarize. Heat pipe coolers are especially useful for high (more than 100 W) heat dissipation, but they can be used in other cases - if the price does not bother you. In this case, it is necessary to use thermal pastes that effectively transfer heat - this will allow you to fully realize the capabilities of the cooler. The general principle of choice is this: the more thermotubes and the thicker they are, the better.

Types of thermotubes

High Pressure Thermal Tubes (HTS). At the end of 2005, ICE HAMMER Electronics introduced a new type of cooler based on high-pressure heat pipes, built using Heat Transporting System (HTS) technology. We can say that this system occupies an intermediate position between heat pipes and liquid cooling systems. The coolant in it is water mixed with ammonia and other chemical compounds at normal atmospheric pressure. Due to the rise of bubbles formed when the mixture boils, the circulation of the coolant is significantly accelerated. Apparently, such systems work most efficiently when the tubes are in a vertical position.

NanoSpreader technology allows you to create hollow heat-conducting copper tapes 70–500 mm wide and 1.5–3.5 mm thick, filled with coolant. The role of a capillary is played by a sheet of copper fibers that returns the condensed coolant from the condensation zone to the heating and evaporation zone. The shape of the flat tape is supported by an elastic, large-porous material that does not allow the walls to collapse and ensures the free movement of vapors. The main advantages of thermal tapes are their small thickness and the ability to cover large areas.

Modding and cooling systems

The word “modding” is derived from the English modify (modify, change). Modders (those who engage in modding) transform the cases and “insides” of computers in order to improve technical characteristics, and most importantly, appearance. Like car tuning enthusiasts, computer users want to personalize their tool for work and creativity, an indispensable means of communication and a home entertainment center. Modding – powerful tool self-expression; This is, of course, creativity, an opportunity to work with your head and hands, and gain valuable experience.

MODDING PRODUCTS

There are a lot of specialized online stores (both Russian and foreign) that offer modding products, delivering them all over the world. Domestic ones are more convenient to use: foreign ones are more hassle (for example, when transferring money), and delivery is usually expensive. Such specialized resources can be easily found using search engines.

Sometimes modding accessories appear unexpectedly in the price lists of regular online stores, and their prices are sometimes lower than in specialized ones. Therefore, we recommend that you do not rush into purchasing this or that accessory - first carefully study several price lists.

What do modders change in computers?

It is unlikely that the average modder is able to remake a complex filling: the capabilities of a user who does not have special knowledge in the field of radio electronics and circuit design are still limited. Therefore, computer modding involves mainly a “cosmetic” transformation of the computer case.

MAIN MANUFACTURERS OF MODDING PRODUCTS

To better navigate the components, it makes sense to know the names of some companies specializing in the production of fashion products: Sunbeam, Floston, Gembird, Revoltec, Vizo, Sharkoon, Vantec, Spire, Hanyang, 3R System, G. M. Corporation, Korealcom, RaidMax, Sirtec ( computer cases and power supplies), Zalman, Akasa (power supplies, cooling systems), Koolance, SwiftTech (water cooling), VapoChill (cryogenic cooling systems), Thermaltake (mainly cases and mod panels).

In particular, so-called blowhole mods are carried out: holes are cut in the case for ventilation, as well as for installing additional coolers. Such modifications not only improve appearance– they are useful for the overall “health” of the computer, since they enhance the cooling of system components.

Experienced modders often combine business with pleasure: install fluid systems cooling (most of them have a completely futuristic design).

Building an efficient water cooling system (WCO) is not an easy task, both technically and financially. As was said, you need a solid amount of special knowledge, which not everyone has; Yes, and you can’t do without technical skills. All this greatly stimulates the purchase of a ready-made SVO. Leaning towards this option, be prepared to shell out quite a bit. Moreover, it is far from a fact that the increase in performance of the processor and other components of the system unit, even overclocked thanks to the effective heat removal of the new air cooler, will pay for the difference in cost compared to a standard (or even improved) air cooling system. But this option also has obvious advantages. By purchasing a ready-made SVO, you will not have to select it yourself individual components, order them on the websites of different manufacturers or sellers, wait for delivery, etc. In addition, you do not have to modify the PC case - often this advantage outweighs all the disadvantages. Finally, serial SVOs are usually cheaper than models assembled in parts.

An example of a cooler that provides a reasonable compromise between creative freedom and ease of assembly (without compromising cooling efficiency) is the KoolanceExos-2 V2 system. It allows you to use a wide variety of water blocks (the so-called hollow heat exchangers that cover the cooled element) from the wide range produced by the company. The block of this air cooler combines a radiator-heat exchanger with fans, a pump, an expansion tank, sensors and control electronics.

The process of installing and connecting such SVOs is very simple - it is described in detail in the user manual. Please note that the ventilation holes of the air cooler are located at the top. Accordingly, there must be enough free space above the fans for the outflow of heated air (at least 240 mm with a fan diameter of 120 mm). If there is no such space on top (for example, the tabletop of a computer desk is in the way), you can simply place the SVO unit next to the system unit - although this option is not described in the instructions.

The simplest and most obvious way of modding is to replace standard coolers with modder ones with backlighting (their choice is also quite wide: there are both powerful processor coolers and weak decorative ones).

The main rule: compare prices in different search engines and online stores! The amplitude of the oscillations will surprise you a lot. Of course, you should choose cheaper offers, always paying attention to the terms of payment, delivery and guarantee.

It's no secret that when a computer is running, all its electronic components heat up. Some elements heat up quite noticeably. The processor, video card, north and south bridges of the motherboard are the hottest elements of the system unit. Overheating is generally dangerous and leads to an emergency shutdown of the computer.

Therefore, the main problem of the entire electronic part of computer technology is proper cooling and efficient heat dissipation. The vast majority of computers, both industrial and home, use heat removalair cooling. It gained its popularity due to its simplicity and low cost. The principle of this type of cooling is as follows. All the heat from the heated elements is transferred to the surrounding air, and the hot air, in turn, is removed from the system unit case using fans. To improve heat transfer and cooling efficiency, the hottest components are supplied with copper or aluminum radiators with fans installed on them.

But the fact that heat removal occurs due to air movement does not mean at all that the more fans are installed, the better the cooling will be overall. Several incorrectly installed fans can do much more harm than solve the problem of overheating, when one correctly installed fan will solve this problem very effectively.

Selecting additional fans.

Before purchasing and installing additional fans, carefully examine your computer. Open the case cover, count and find out the dimensions of the mounting locations for additional case coolers. Look carefully at the motherboard to see what connectors it has for connecting additional fans.

You need to choose the fans yourself big size, which will suit you. For standard cases this size is 80x80mm. But quite often (especially in Lately) fans of sizes 92x92 and 120x120 mm can be installed in cases. With the same electrical characteristics, a large fan will operate much quieter.

Try to buy fans with more blades - they are also quieter. Pay attention to the stickers - they indicate the noise level. If the motherboard has 4-pin connectors for powering coolers, then buy four-wire fans. They are very quiet, and their automatic speed control range is quite wide.

Between fans receiving power from the power supply throughMolex connectorand running from the motherboard, definitely choose the second option.

There are fans on sale with real ball bearings - these are best option in terms of durability.

Installation of additional fans.

Let's look at the main points of correct installation of case fans for most system units. Here we will provide advice specifically for standard cases, since non-standard cases have such a varied fan arrangement that it makes no sense to describe them - everything is individual. Moreover, in non-standard cases, fan sizes can reach 30cm in diameter.

There are no additional fans in the case.

This is the standard layout for almost all computers sold in stores. All the hot air rises to top part computer and, due to the fan in the power supply, goes outside.

The big disadvantage of this type of cooling is that all the heated air passes through the power supply, heating it even more. And therefore, it is the power supply of such computers that most often breaks down. Also, all the cold air is not sucked in in a controlled manner, but from all the cracks of the housing, which only reduces the efficiency of heat transfer. Another disadvantage is the thin air produced by this type of cooling, which leads to the accumulation of dust inside the case. But still, it's better than incorrect installation additional fans.

One fan on the rear wall of the case.

This method is used more out of desperation, since the case has only one place to install an additional cooler - on the back wall under the power supply. In order to reduce the amount of hot air passing through the power supply, install one fan that works to “blow” out of the case.

Most of the heated air from the motherboard, processor, video card, and hard drives exits through the additional fan. And the power supply heats up significantly less. Also, the overall flow of moving air increases. But the rarefaction increases, so dust will accumulate even more.

Additional front fan in the case.

When there is only one in the case seat on the front part of the case, or it is not possible to turn on two fans at once (there is nowhere to connect), then this is the most ideal option for you. It is necessary to install one fan on the front part of the case.

The fan must be installed opposite the hard drives. It would be more correct to write that the hard drives should be placed opposite the fan. This way, the cold incoming air will immediately blow over them. This installation is much more effective than the previous one. A directed air flow is created. The vacuum inside the computer decreases - dust does not linger. When additional coolers are powered from the motherboard, the overall noise is reduced as the fan speeds are reduced.

Installing two fans in the case.

Most effective method installation of fans for additional cooling system unit. A fan is installed on the front wall of the case for “blowing”, and on the rear wall – for “blowing”:

A powerful, constant air flow is created. The power supply operates without overheating, since heated air is removed by a fan installed underneath it. If a power supply with adjustable fan speed is installed, the overall noise will be noticeably reduced, and more importantly, the pressure inside the case will be equalized. Dust will not settle.

Incorrect installation of fans.

Below are examples of unacceptable installation of additional coolers in a PC case.

One rear fan is set to "injection".

A closed air ring is created between the power supply and additional fan. Some of the hot air from the power supply is immediately sucked back inside. At the same time, there is no air movement in the lower part of the system unit, and therefore cooling is ineffective.

One front fan is set to “exhaust”.

If you install only one front cooler and it works as a blower, then you end up with very low pressure inside the case and ineffective cooling of the computer. Moreover, due to the reduced pressure, the fans themselves will be overloaded, since they will have to overcome the back pressure of the air. The computer components will heat up, resulting in increased operating noise as the fan speeds increase.

The rear fan is for “blowing”, and the front fan is for “blowing”.

Air is created short circuit between the power supply and the rear fan. The air in the area of ​​the central processor works in a circle.

The front fan tries to “lower” the hot air against the natural convection rise, working under increased load and creating a vacuum in the housing.


Two additional coolers are set to “blowing”.

An air short circuit is created in the upper part of the housing.

In this case, the effect of the incoming cold air is felt only for the hard drives, since it then enters the oncoming flow from the rear fan. Excessive pressure is created inside the case, which complicates the operation of additional fans.

Two additional coolers operate as a blower.

The most severe operating mode of the cooling system.

There is reduced air pressure inside the case; all case fans and inside the power supply operate under reverse suction pressure. There is not enough air movement inside the air, and, therefore, all components work overheating.

These are, in principle, all the main points that will help you in organizing the correct ventilation system for your personal computer. If there is a special plastic corrugation on the side cover of the case, use it to supply cold air to central processor. All other installation issues are resolved depending on the structure of the case.