Hydro H110i really loud

[Knappe]

Crosspost from here.

 

Hi,

 

I've built a new PC with the following hardware:

 

• MSI MPG Z390 Gaming Edge AC
  
• Corsair Hydro Series H110i
  
• Intel Core i5 9600K 6x 3.70GHz
  
• 500GB Samsung 970 Evo M.2 2280 NVMe PCIe
  
• 8GB MSI GeForce RTX 2070 GAMING Z 8GB
  
• 16GB G.Skill RipJaws V schwarz DDR4-3200 DIMM CL16 Dual Kit
  
• EVGA 650W SuperNOVA 650 G3 Modular (80+Gold)
  
• be quiet! Pure Base 600 Silver
  

 

I had to install the hydro in the front of the case instead of the top because it wouldn't fit in the top because of a heatspreader of the mainboard. I looked up all the parts on pcpartpicker.com and the only incompatibility was that the RTX 2070 wouldn't fit becasue of drive cages. I don't have 3,5" drives anyways so I just took out the drive cages.

 

I was surprised to learn that the AiO cooler didn't fit in the top of the case so I had to install it in the front.

 

Now to my actual problem. The Hydro H110i is obnoxiously loud. I've OC'ed the 9600k to 5Ghz and everything is running stable. In Prime95 I reach ~80°C in small FFTs with AVX enabled which is fine imo. In gaming loads the CPU sits around 55-60°C on all cores.

 

When I'm just in Windows 10 on the desktop, doing nothing the temps are 25-30°C on all cores. I'm not 100% sure right now but I think CorsairLink showed the H110i temp as around 33°C in idle. Ambient temps should be around the same.

I didn't do exact messaurements but from looking at CorsairLink I would say temps of the cooler are rising 1°C every few minutes. I tested this while running Prime95 with small FFTs and AVX enabled like I mentioned above.

 

I can still clearly hear the pump (which is somewhat expected) and the fans of the Hydro are constantly spinning up a bit and then start slowing down again. This really drives me crazy. If it was at least one constant sound but I hear a sound that is changing which is really annoying.

 

Also when I play Rocket League the CPU and GPU are barely doing anything (sitting between 30-50% load) but the H110i is still sounding like a jet engine. Is this normal?

 

I've CorsairLink installed and set the profile to quiet but the only thing that it does is that you can't hear the fans of the H110i all the time. As soon as the block heats up a bit it's jet engine time.

 

I'm really thinking abot going back to air cooling like a Scythe Mugen 5 or something.

 

Does anybody have any advise? Can I reduce the noise through configurations somehow?

 

The H110i is connected to the CPU_FAN connector, the fans are connected to the block itself, I have a SATA power cabel connected to my PSU and the usb kabel is connected to the cooling block and a USB header on my mainboard.

 

I have a picture of my PC attachted (sorry for bad quality)

 

 

This is my first go at AiO liquid coolers. Did I install it the wrong way?

Edited December 7, 2018 by Knappe

[c-attack]

The fans change their speed based on coolant temperature and that should not change from one second to the next. That is assuming the radiator fans are connected to the pump’s fan controller and not the motherboard. It doesn’t sound like the cooler is failing or the temps would be unsustainable. However, the coolant temperature (H110i Temp) in Link is still the key to knowing what’s going on.

 

On a side note, it appears you have the radiator fans positioned to exhaust out the front. The rear is exhaust as well. Hopefully this means the top fans not in frame are being used as intake. I haven’t tried that in that case, but is your overall temperatures across all hardware are not as you like, that may be something to change.

 

In the interim, I would suggest making a custom curve in Link to control the fans at the level you desire. Those three fan presets are just points on a graph. “Quiet” isn’t always going to be quiet and it will flow it’s plot.

[Knappe]

On a side note, it appears you have the radiator fans positioned to exhaust out the front. The rear is exhaust as well. Hopefully this means the top fans not in frame are being used as intake. I haven’t tried that in that case, but is your overall temperatures across all hardware are not as you like, that may be something to change.

 

Oh shoot. I installed the H110i the only way it would fit and the rear fan is as it was installed when I got the case. I don't have top fans so as it is now I don't have any intake as it seems.

 

Should I get 2-3 intake fans for the top of my case or might it be enough to reverse the rear fan so it pulls air in?

 

I will monitor the H110i temp under load when I get home from work to see if maybe the problem lies there.

 

Thanks for your help!

 

EDIT:

 

 

So I got rid of the front intake fan becasue I couldn't fit the H110i otherwise. I'm really not sure what to do here. I think I will get two 140mm fans as top intake and hope that it works.

Edited December 7, 2018 by Knappe

[c-attack]

It’s ok to put in on the front, although it is more common to then make those fans act as intake. That arrangement is usually beneficial to cpu and coolant temps at the expense of moving slightly warmer air into the case. Your radiator exhaust temp will be the same as the coolant temp. It’s not a small case, so pushing 35C air in shouldn’t have visible negative consequences to things that already run hotter, like the GPU or VRM. Let’s look at coolant and case temps before flipping the fans around, if anything simply as a comparison point to any other set up.

[Knappe]

I ran some tests and paid attention to H110i temps in CorsairLink:

 

IDLE

 

Prime95 small FFT (AVX on) - Here the H110 temp increases by 1°C about every 30 Seconds.

 

In Rocket League - Hardware does barley anything and H110i temp is decreasing but the fans still sit around 1300 rpm

 

I'm not sure but I think temps should be OK. Why are the fans spinning so fast? Are there any guides on how to set the fan curve correctly?

 

I don't care if the PC gets louder while I'm gaming. That's expected but I'd like to keep it quiet in idle or when the hardware is hardly doing anything like in Rocket League.

 

Edit: I set the two H110i fans to the default custom fan curve in Corsair Link and now I'm sitting at around 30°C with ~600 RPM on both fans in Rocket League and the PC is quiet.

Edit2: Is it possible to turn the H110i fans around so they pull air in? Would that give me better temps even though the air is warm or would I raise ambient temp if I tried that?

Edited December 7, 2018 by Knappe

[DevBiker]

The temps look good. As to why the fans are spinning so fast ... we'd need to see the fan curves. But you found that.

 

And yes, you can reverse the fans so that they are intake. It'll warm up the case interior temperature but it should give you better coolant temps.

[Knappe]

Thank you so much for your assistance. I flipped the fans and adjusted the curve in CorsairLink and now everything is running really well!