Case Fans for NZXT 530?

[Edge]

I'll be picking up the Phantom 530 for a future build, and I wondered what is the optimal fan setup for air cooled systems? I'll be using a Havik 140 as my CPU cooler.

So, what sizes to buy, and where to set them up for optimal cooling and airflow?

 

[Feronix]

I'd say get 3x 140mm fans and put two intakes in the front and an exhaust at the back. Side panel- and bottom fans are completely useless in most cases and the air will passively rise out of the top anyway.

You'll also want more intake than exhaust in order to have positive air pressure. This will help keeping the dust out. If you have more exhaust than intakes, dust will get sucked in.

If you want silence, a 200mm fan in the front might be benificial, but there's simply not a lot of choice out there for bigger fans.

What hardware will you be using with the case?

 

[Edge]

Any advantage to having two 140mm's at the front, instead of 200mm? Will that even fit? I know 200mm front comes as standard.

I'm hoping to keep quiet as I do record from my microphone, so noise can be an issue .

Case: NZXT Phantom 530
Processor: Intel Core i7-4770k
Aftermarket CPU Cooler: NZXT Havik 140
Motherboard: Asus Sabertooth Z87
RAM: 16GB (2x8) Corsair Dominator Platinum 1600MHz
GPU: GTX 780 Ti (waiting for aftermarket coolers)
SSD: Samsung 840 Series Pro 256GB
Primary HDD: WD Caviar Black 2TB
PSU: Corsair RM850
Case Fans & Lighting: NZXT, haven’t decided on fan setup or LED hue.

 

[Feronix]

The NZXT site states that it can fit

Front 2x140mm/ 120mm or 1x200mm
(1 x 200mm included)

http://www.nzxt.com/product/detail/134-phantom-530.html

The advantage would be that a lot more manufacturers make 140mm fans, they come in all sorts and shapes while the 200mm market is still very small.

If you really do want silence, I'm afraid that the Phantom series aren't really what you should be looking for tbh. There's a lot of mesh and open parts. What about the H series (H230/ H630)?

 

[Edge]

If you really do want silence, I'm afraid that the Phantom series aren't really what you should be looking for tbh. There's a lot of mesh and open parts. What about the H series (H230/ H630)?

Understandable, I'm not really worried about dead silence, but I'd like a Phantom case, and simply the quietest I can get out of it Any particular fans you can recommend that will go well with the setup, aesthetically?

 

[Excalabur50]

The Corsair AF 140 quiet editions or performance edition or Noctua NF-F14's I think, they are are great fans whilst being very quite

 

[Feronix]

- Nexus Real Silent series
- Fractal Design Silent R2
- Bitfenix Spectre/ Spectre Pro
- Corsair AF series Quiet Edition
- BeQuiet! Shadow Wings

Are all black or black & white and will be fairly quiet.

 

[Edge]

Thanks Feronix.

I've decided to go for the H100i cooler instead of Havik 140. Takes up much less space. Assuming I mount that at the top, will a two front 140mm and one rear exhaust 140mm setup still work okay in the 530?

Thanks again.

 

[Feronix]

If you mount the H100i in the top as an exhaust, I'd swap the rear fan around and use it as an intake. This way you still have more intakes than exhaust and your rear fan will also feed cool air to your radiator.

Be sure to get a dust filter if you do that though.

 

[Edge]

If you mount the H100i in the top as an exhaust, I'd swap the rear fan around and use it as an intake. This way you still have more intakes than exhaust and your rear fan will also feed cool air to your radiator.

Be sure to get a dust filter if you do that though.

So have three intakes, two at the front, one rear, and use the two from H100i as the exhaust? That makes sense, but would it work okay, air flow wise?

 

[Feronix]

So have three intakes, two at the front, one rear, and use the two from H100i as the exhaust? That makes sense, but would it work okay, air flow wise?

Yes, exactly like that. It's a great way to keep your system dust-free for the biggest part without sacrificing cooling.

Your motherboard and RAM heatsinks will still catch airflow from your rear fan to the H100i and your front intakes will take care of the GPU. A lot of people have their systems set-up like this cause it works so well

 

[Edge]

Yes, exactly like that. It's a great way to keep your system dust-free for the biggest part without sacrificing cooling.

Your motherboard and RAM heatsinks will still catch airflow from your rear fan to the H100i and your front intakes will take care of the GPU. A lot of people have their systems set-up like this cause it works so well

Sounds brilliant. Looking forward to getting it set up. Think the H100i is a good idea, let's me use Dominator RAM without worrying about space issues, and it should all look great too.

Thanks for your help!