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3x 120mm or 2x 140mm fans?


Gunship24

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Hey guys,

My case will be the Corsair Spec Omega RGB. In the front I will put either 3 LL120 with a H150i Pro Radiator (280mm) or 2 LL140 with the H115i Pro (360mm) (everything is made by Corsair).

 

The CPU that should be coooled by one of the two radiators mentioned is the Intel I7-7800K and my graphics card is a NVIDIA RTX 2080 FE, if that is important. There will also be 3 more LL120 fans in this case; one in the back and two at roof.

 

Thank you for your help.

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It looks like you have your measurements flipped :)

 

To be honest the 360mm will out perform the 280mm radiator. Also when it comes to fans. The 140s tend to have higher CFM, though lower Static Pressure. The 140s will run at a lower speed, while making a little less noise, though the 120s will be able to force the air through the radiator better, due to their slightly higher static pressure. To be honest I think that 3x120mm look cooler, when mounted to the front.

 

Then again GPUs tend to throttle more from heat. It might be best to use the 280mm in the top exhaust, while using the front to supply fresh cooler air to the GPU. I would question if a 3rd rear exhaust fan would negatively impact performance.

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It looks like you have your measurements flipped :)

 

To be honest the 360mm will out perform the 280mm radiator. Also when it comes to fans. The 140s tend to have higher CFM, though lower Static Pressure. The 140s will run at a lower speed, while making a little less noise, though the 120s will be able to force the air through the radiator better, due to their slightly higher static pressure. To be honest I think that 3x120mm look cooler, when mounted to the front.

 

Then again GPUs tend to throttle more from heat. It might be best to use the 280mm in the top exhaust, while using the front to supply fresh cooler air to the GPU. I would question if a 3rd rear exhaust fan would negatively impact performance.

 

 

Yes, that shounds very Logical. The GPU might get not as good cooled as it would with air that didn't flwe through the hot radiator before. But the case is that I've never seen anyone puting the Radiator at the top in this case. Also corsair itself Shows the front as the Right place for the Radiator in the official Spec Omega RGB YouTube Trailer.

 

 

Please excuse the incorrect capitalized words in my comments. My Computer is doing it automatically because of the german interface. ;)

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In terms of cooling power, it is pretty irrelevant and both the 280mm and 360mm offer more cooling than you need. The throughput differences between 3x120mm and 2x140mm are largely inconsequential unless you intend to run the absolute lowest possible fan speed without regard to temperature or insist on the maximum possible, even if it does not aid CPU cooling any further.

 

It is the case itself that should tilt the decision one way or another. Most cases have a slightly better set-up for 120 or 140mm moounts, depending on the frame and rails. Your right, you never see top mounted radiators with that case because it is similar to a lot of recent releases with very little top headroom. That brings you back to the front rail. To me the case screams out for 3x120, with both the rail mounting design and the peak through front window. It's not a super wide case and those 140mm may block some grommets. Perhaps anything further is best answered by a Spec Omega owner. There is only so much I can see in the pictures.

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Not to any measurable degree. Maybe 1C under certain conditions. The ML-Quiet may be slightly better at low fan speeds where the flatter blade has an advantage. As the speed increases, the LL probably puts more air through the radiator. In either case, we are talking about 1C in coolant temp differences. Don't decide on this factor and the statistical differences are not enough to be meaningful. I just switched back to MLs from my HDs, which are very similar to the LL blade design. Zero change. Not even measurable.

 

The aesthetics of the two fans you can judge for yourself. The more notable physical (or acoustic) differrences are when the fans are at medium speeds. The HD/LL will start to become noticeable about 200 rpm or so sooner than the ML. Thus, you can run the ML faster (providing slightly more air) for the same level of noise. Nevertheless, that does not mean it provides an improved cooling effect. The difference in fan noise is very noticeable when mounting them in the inverted top position. The sound differences are lot less when vertically mounted, like as front intake where most 360mm radiators will go.

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Thank you very much for the detailed response. It is good to know because I really like the LL aesthetically but also didn't want to have spent so much on a cooling solution and then hold it back performance wise.

 

One question though, why is louder when inverted top position vs vertical mount? I was actually planning to top mount the radiator as intake.

 

Not to any measurable degree. Maybe 1C under certain conditions. The ML-Quiet may be slightly better at low fan speeds where the flatter blade has an advantage. As the speed increases, the LL probably puts more air through the radiator. In either case, we are talking about 1C in coolant temp differences. Don't decide on this factor and the statistical differences are not enough to be meaningful. I just switched back to MLs from my HDs, which are very similar to the LL blade design. Zero change. Not even measurable.

 

The aesthetics of the two fans you can judge for yourself. The more notable physical (or acoustic) differrences are when the fans are at medium speeds. The HD/LL will start to become noticeable about 200 rpm or so sooner than the ML. Thus, you can run the ML faster (providing slightly more air) for the same level of noise. Nevertheless, that does not mean it provides an improved cooling effect. The difference in fan noise is very noticeable when mounting them in the inverted top position. The sound differences are lot less when vertically mounted, like as front intake where most 360mm radiators will go.

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Most fans are a bit louder when inverted in the horizontal plane (top exhaust) because of the bearing design. The fan blade hangs down on the end of its "spindle" and you get some wobble. When flipped the other way, the gravity pulls the blade onto the cushioning (of whatever type) and balances the blade. It's not a night and day kind of difference, but it usually perceived as a coarse tinge to the tone. Most any fan made in the last 5 years uses the FDB/rifle bearing variation that is prone to this. An exception is the ML series that uses a magnetic levitation system to keep the blade off the opposing ends of the spindle. Works fabulously for inverted fans and the coarse tone disappears. However, there is no free lunch and the mag lev action might be perceived as hum at very low fan speeds in a very quiet room.

 

Unless you are running an 8-16 core CPU for professional work, you are unlikely to notice any performance differences at all between the various fans. You will have a lot of surface area on the 360mm and airflow will not be the limiting factor. Your CPU + voltage will be. You can expect single digit coolant deltas, so again a fan difference might be +-1C. Given how much these fans cost, always go with the one you really want.

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Thanks so much for the info. Well, I'm getting a 9700K so I guess it will be an 8 core CPU, but not professional work :)

 

Decided to get a H110i, it's a third of the price (locally, so not in US) for what I imagine is 80 to 90% of the performance. It will be top intake not exhaust so should be good with the wobble noise :)

 

Most fans are a bit louder when inverted in the horizontal plane (top exhaust) because of the bearing design. The fan blade hangs down on the end of its "spindle" and you get some wobble. When flipped the other way, the gravity pulls the blade onto the cushioning (of whatever type) and balances the blade. It's not a night and day kind of difference, but it usually perceived as a coarse tinge to the tone. Most any fan made in the last 5 years uses the FDB/rifle bearing variation that is prone to this. An exception is the ML series that uses a magnetic levitation system to keep the blade off the opposing ends of the spindle. Works fabulously for inverted fans and the coarse tone disappears. However, there is no free lunch and the mag lev action might be perceived as hum at very low fan speeds in a very quiet room.

 

Unless you are running an 8-16 core CPU for professional work, you are unlikely to notice any performance differences at all between the various fans. You will have a lot of surface area on the 360mm and airflow will not be the limiting factor. Your CPU + voltage will be. You can expect single digit coolant deltas, so again a fan difference might be +-1C. Given how much these fans cost, always go with the one you really want.

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The 280mm should be plenty of cooler. I use the H115i Pro for my 8700K at 5.0/1.30v. Coolant temps are laughable at +4-5C for vigorous use. It should be plenty for the 9700K as well, although I am interested to see how real works TDP compares between mine and the 8c/8t model. I am predicting about +6C when overclocked. We shall see.

 

280 vs 360 - always chose the one that fits the case best. Outside of specialized custom components, you won’t see much differential on AIO models.

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The 280mm should be plenty of cooler. I use the H115i Pro for my 8700K at 5.0/1.30v. Coolant temps are laughable at +4-5C for vigorous use. It should be plenty for the 9700K as well, although I am interested to see how real works TDP compares between mine and the 8c/8t model. I am predicting about +6C when overclocked. We shall see.

 

280 vs 360 - always chose the one that fits the case best. Outside of specialized custom components, you won’t see much differential on AIO models.

 

Thank you, either should fit just fine

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