Pump or fan issue, not sure which.

To preface; I am running Corsair LINK version 4.3.0.154

 

My fans tend to speed up really fast, then they'll slow down rather quickly. The best way that I can describe the noise is it sounds like waves at a beach, rolling in and out. This is on the 'Performance' setting. I usually use 'quiet' mode, but for gaming, if I remember, I'll set it to performance. This issue also seems to occur on the 'Balanced' setting, but only after I've set it to 'performance'.

 

Unfortunately, my read outs regarding RPM of the fans as well as the pump does not change much at all! My pump idles at 2290-2292 RPM.

 

Is this an issue, because I've not ever noticed this before, or is this normal for the H100i? I've had the "breaking-in" issue with this pump, where I had to lay my system on its side for a while. If that helps. I've installed new system fans, but I am still running the stock fans that came with my H100i.

 

That is all that I can think of that could relevant, though if anyone needs any more information, such as temps (27.5C) or anything else; I'll gladly supply said information!

You may need to post a screen shot of your Link Home screen so we can we what's going on. Also, make sure your H100i v2/GTX radiator fans are configured to base their speed on the H100i Temp Group (water temperature) and not CPU temp.

I'm pretty sure that my fans are revving and then slowing based on CPU usage. How would I go about setting the the rad fans to my H100i temp? also my pump RPM drops when set to 'performance' as shown in the image that I took. On 'quiet' the pump RPM is 2292.

 

I attached a picture, so hopefully it'll show up.

 

EDIT: I figured out how to change the rad fans. They were set to CPU, but are now set to the temp of the H100i pump. It appears as though I resolved the issue.. Hopefully. I've got a fan running right now because my fiance is sleeping, so I'll do a 'listening test' later.

The fans are intended to run from water temperature (H100i Temp) by default. Running off CPU temp will cause fan ramping regardless of control mechanism without some sort of fan spin up/down delay. More importantly, the fans help remove heat from the water, not cool the CPU directly. It makes more sense to control their speed based on water temp changes, if you can.

 

Are you using this version of the H100i (square block, glossy black)? If so, the pump speed is does not change like on the newer GTX/v2 models. It is relatively constant, usually within a +-50 rpm range.

Yes, my H100i has a square block with a high gloss finish. I bought it... oh about a year ago I believe when Corsair was promoting the GTX. I got it for $89.99.

 

Also; the issue is resolved. I did my test. Thank-you for the help, c-attack!

OK, good. One last thing... In your screen shot, your fans were up near 2000 rpm at idle. I suspect this was an unintended consequence of using the included fan curves that were designed for water temperature, not CPU temp. With the fans back in the H100i Temp group, the fan speeds should be much lower with the Quiet, Balanced, and Performance curves.** Water temperature as a variable is somewhat unique to your environment. It will always start at your room temperature for a minimum, with higher values in Summer and likely lower in Winter months when the room temperature changes as well. The amount of expected rise is dependent on the CPU model, voltage, and then your case design and layout. The H100i Temp (water temp) will usually idle about 4-6C over the room temp and you might see a +10C rise beyond that at load. If you start seeing +20C H100i temp above room temperature, it's time for a check up or system analysis. Also, a +1C rise in water temp is equal to a +1 rise in CPU temp. There is no reason to stress over small water temperature differences until you reach your upper comfort limit on the CPU. So, when you are gaming and the CPU temps are in the low 50's, there is no reason to blast the fans to the point where they become irritating. You can only reduce the CPU temps by 1-3C with the extra speed. Probably not a great trade.

 

**The default curves run on an approximate 23-40C scale for min to max fan speed. There is nothing special about these numbers other than it is appropriate for the typical 20-23C room temperature in a climate controlled space. In your room temperature is a +5C or more than this, the fan speeds can get irritating quickly and they extra speed cannot make things any cooler. This is when you need to set-up your own custom fan curve with more relaxed control points.

Yes, I believe so. As of right now on 'performance' my fans are at 1650 RPM. The previous screenshot was also taken with my H100i set to "performance before I switched the fans from CPU to the pump. I did notice that while set to 'performance' and gaming my GPU temp went up from 69C to 76C during a long session of both The Witcher 3 and GTAV. However, I do have my H100i fans configured for intake instead of exhaust to build more positive air pressure within the case. It has kept my CPU cooler by about 4C. Originally my GPU temps were hitting 66C at load, but now hit 69C at load with the rad fans as intake. Seemed like a nice trade off since I'm looking to overclock my CPU up to 4.5 or 4.7 Ghz again.

 

Shamefully, I admit that I do not know what would considered well... normal water temps per se. Right now my temps for my H100i are 26.5C.

Normal water temp depends on your room temperature and the factors mentioned above. Unless it's 14C in your room, 26.5C is a good idle number. Mine is 29C in a 25C room after a few hours of moderate use in the same case. I usually idle 2C over room temp, but I have an advantage with 280mm H110.

 

At some point, you may want to try reversing your H100i fans to exhaust. First, in a 540 with either 3x120 or 2x140 on the front rail, you will still have "positive pressure" in your case at all times. Even at higher speeds, you can't move a lot of air through a radiator. You might get half of the free air rated volume when faced with that level of resistance. That would be a maximum speed, something you likely prefer to avoid and not a common condition when running through the water temp sensor. That leaves the rear 140mm as real exhaust workhorse. You can run the numbers, but the front free air fans are going to be supplying more air that the 3 exhaust. Second, the benefits of positive pressure are dubious at best. There are some cases with strange shapes or configurations where it might be useful, but the 540 has clean and simply flow patterns and air is going out regardless. The "dust" thing is a myth too, but I rant about that one enough as it is. If positive pressure was an effective to way to remove air from the case, then running all intake fans would work and the air would simply be pressed out the venting. I assure you that is not a viable set-up. The amount of air your can force out by pressure is a trifle compared to what a fan can evacuate. Just put your hand behind your rear exhaust to feel the difference. However, rather than try to further convince you, I'll leave it with 'you will have positive pressure either way'.

 

So what difference would it make? Best way to know is to try it. The supposed advantage of using colder external air is it might keep your CPU temps 2-3C cooler. The trade-off is you then dump the 5-10C warmer exhaust air into your case, load dependent. Now every case is different and the rules for super large cases like a 900D are not the same as m-ATX form, however this is likely to increase your other hardware temps by that same 5-10C (memory, motherboard components, etc.). Now neither the CPU nor any other hardware is anywhere close to their thresholds, so it doesn't matter either way. However, there is often a heat building effect in many cases when faced with longer moderate loads like gaming. If you cannot rapidly exhaust the CPU waste heat, in combination with the GPU waste heat, the entire case ambient temperature will increase by a noticeable amount. This includes the water inside the radiator. That "cooler" air you thought was an advantage is meaningless when the water temp goes up +5C over what it would be as exhaust. You can't universally apply this to every situation, but based on two years of running a pair of 540 set-ups with HW-E CPUs, I have not found a better configuration than front in, top/rear out. The CPU waste heat is dumped directly out the top. The rear exhaust can handle any GPU waste heat.

My room temp is 22.7C give or take a degree in fluctuation. I'm running three 120mm fans as intake in the front and a single 140mm as exhaust in the rear. I've thought of switching the rad fans back to exhaust because it leads to lower temps overall on my GPU, but 3-4 degrees higher on my CPU. I just finished playing some more GTAV and as soon as I closed out the app, my H100i is sitting at 27.3C. I do love my Air 540! The only issue I have with it, is that I wish it didn't accumulate so much dust, so quickly; so I do know that one is a myth.

 

I'll go ahead and reverse the fans to exhaust and see what happens with the overall temps. I'll let you know, if you interested? Thanks for the detailed explanation! What is your opinion on a push/pull config in the 540?

I am generally hesitant to recommend push-pull straight away. It's unnecessary on a 280mm radiator. On a 240mm, like the H100i, it can have some advantage, although perhaps not what you think. You can't really make the CPU temps any cooler, but you can increase the airflow at lower speeds. However, this then introduces the paradox about what makes less noise.... 1) 2x120mm fans at 1500 rpm? or 2) 4x120mm fans at 1100 rpm? I think it is very fan specific. Some fans have a sweet spot where the airflow is good and the sound is almost unnoticeable. If you can keep yourself in that zone, then it is worth it.

 

There is a major catch in this instance. You need to be super careful about running push-pull with four fans from the H100i controller. It is supposed to be 2.0A total across the two fan channels, but those square black H80i/100i were super sensitive about current fluctuation along the fan lines. I went through three H80i fan controllers and I was careful and stayed well under 1.0A. If you decided to try this, I recommend you power the fans from two motherboard headers (1 splitter for each). Since this kind of defeats the purpose of water temp control and isn't really necessary, my recommendation would be to look at an alternative fan choice that can provide adequate airflow with less noise. That really is what you are after with this anyway. The SP120's can run up to 2200-2300 rpm. If you need more airflow, all you have to do is turn up the fans you have now, rather than strap 2 more on.