Help Installing H100i Platinum

This is the first time I've ever installed an AIO CPU cooler so some help please...

 

1. The manual says it's best to mount the two fans as air-intake to the case. That's counter intuitive to me. I always thought it's best to exhaust hot air out of the case. But, as I said, I'm a first-timer with this so what's the best way?

 

2. Regardless of the answer to the above question, how do I tell which way the fans will blow the air? I'm asking this so that I know how to mount the fans to the radiator. I do not see an arrow or other obvious indicator of which way the fans will move the air. On the center part of each fan, on one side is just the Corsair logo. On the other side is a label with the logo, model number, 12V DC and "Made in China." Is that an indicator of airflow direction?

 

3. I'm just starting my build of a new PC. AMD Threadripper 3960X CPU. It seems that I should get the CPU mounted on the motherboard and the motherboard mounted in the case before I mount the H100i radiator to the case. Does that make sense?

 

Thanks!

1) That is a general disclaimer rather than a requirement. The actual answer is always case and hardware dependent. If you describe your layout, we can probably make a recommendation. Either way, most of the time the difference is 1-3C at most.

 

2) Fans - Pretty side is the intake. The frame side with the specifications sticker is the exhaust side. This is the opposite to most house/desk fans, so it does throw people off.

 

3) Most likely, although once again case dependent. The AIO is meant to taken in and out easily. Can't usually say that about a motherboard. It's always going to be the base layer.

The case is Fractal Design R6 USB-C. The case comes with one exhaust fan at the rear near the top plus two intake fans at the front. CPU is AMD Threadripper 3960X. CPU cooler is the H100i Platinum. Motherboard is Asus ROG Zenith II Extreme. 32GB G.Skill Trident Z memory. Two M.2 PCIe 4.0 drives (one for OS & programs, one for data) plus one 12TB Western Digital Gold hard drive. Windows 10 Pro. No plans to overclock. No RGB. No gaming.

No GPU on that list, but I'll describe and let you figure out how that fits with your plans. Theoretically, you get the most heat release from the radiator by having the coolest possible intake air temp on that side of the radiator. This is the basis of the "use the fans as intake". However, putting a radiator that only fits in one place and turning the fan to the inside is not an automatic win and you need to see how it fits into the overall airflow plan.

 

In the R6, you can front or top mount so you have choices. Most people get hooked into thinking the heat released from the CPU radiator will overly heat the case. Heat is being released and it won't make anything cooler, but it has to be put into context. High CPU coolant temp might be 38-40C, but that is still the about the normal surface temperature of your motherboard, RAM, and definitely cooler than any GPU surface temperature. The only thing a front mounted radiator might heat up is one of those "m.2 sticks" that jut out into the front intake fan path. I would not use that m.2 slot with a front mounted radiator.

 

Personally, I still like to exhaust waste heat directly whenever possible. This would be top exhaust for most people. However, there is a down side. One of the warmer part of the case is right above the VRM heatsink and RAM. It is usually about 2-3C warmer up there than the front or bottom rail. This means you start at 2-3C higher coolant temp (and thus a 2-3C higher CPU temp) right from idle. The load delta is usually the same, but you won't regain that advantage.

 

I am not sure if your are CPU intensive or mixed CPU/GPU in your work, but it seems most likely your best performance is going to be a front mounted 240mm as intake. The top fans (if any) and rear fans can handle any exhaust duties at light speed. This prioritizes the CPU and you may need a few degrees on the coolant for a 3960x and a 240mm radiator.

 

Incidentally, the Platinum series coolers all come with RGB fans and rather complicated RGB pump and those are part of the price. All can be set to 0,0,0 black (off). Just FYI.

Sorry ... the GPU is an EVGA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti XC.