Lian Li PC-O11 Dynamic Case Fan Configuration

[joji]

So I’m about to swap cases and already bought 9 fans plus a new aio which is the nzxt kraken x72. I already have a fan config in mind but I was wondering if it would workout nicely that’s why I’m here to consult some of the knowledgeable people of the forums for a good or better fan configuration

The current fan config I have in mind is having 3 intake fans on top, 3 intake fans on the bottom, and finally 6 exhaust fans on the side where I will be putting the radiator with a fans sandwiching the rad if that makes sense.

All tips and suggestions would be very much appreciated. Cheers!

[Autumn_]

I would personally flip top to intake, so you're only exhausting at the side.
That gives cool air to the VRMs and GPU, but makes the air for thr CPU a little warmer (couple of degrees at most.)

Push/pull on radiators from AIOs don't really do that much, but (personally) I'd do it, and don't really have complaints about doing it.

I'd wait for Escorves recommendation, since he has the case too, and has done some testing iirc.

[joji]

Nguyên văn bởi Autumn_:

I would personally flip top to intake, so you're only exhausting at the side.
That gives cool air to the VRMs and GPU, but makes the air for thr CPU a little warmer (couple of degrees at most.)

Push/pull on radiators from AIOs don't really do that much, but (personally) I'd do it, and don't really have complaints about doing it.

I'd wait for Escorves recommendation, since he has the case too, and has done some testing iirc.

Thanks for the response! After doing some research, I might've changed my mind regarding the fan configuration that I'm gonna for. Now I'm thinking of having 3 exhaust fans on top, 3 intake fans on the bottom, and 6 intake fans on the side which is the push and pull rad config

[Supafly]

Rad between fans is a Push/Pull config.

I'd make the top exhaust. Heat rises so that'd be the obvious choice for top.

Depending on what can be fitted where my setup would be
3 x 120mm Front/side = intake
3 x 120mm Bottom = intake
Rad at top in push/pull = exhausting hot air upward.

If you can't push pull at the top due to space

3 x 120mm Bottom = intake
3 x 120mm Top = Exhaust
Then Rad in push/pull.....intake or exhaust. If I'm feeling picky I'd run Prime95 for 30-60 minutes whilst monitoring temps then switch fan directions and see if it is better, worse or the same.

Edit: Don't have the same case but I have my fronts (your sides) as Intake and bottoms as intake. I then have rear as exhaust along with push/pull on the top exhausting. I'd have tried rad at front but can't push/pull and have all my drives in at the same time.

[_I_]

lian li cases are often reverse airfow (rear intake, front exhaust)

look at the site for its specs to see how its fans should be mounted

[Heaven Fall]

I have the same case
I have

- 2 intake 140mm Bottom
-3 exhaust 120mm Top
-1 exhaust 120mm Left side
- Right side AIO cooler fan in exhaust

It work I don't if is good ^^ but it work.

[Grimy_RIck]

My case is a an Corsair Air240, Small case looks large but half of it is just for the PSU and Cable's at the right side behind Mobo, i have an I9-9900k and a EVGA Superclocked 2 fan GTX 1080 crammed in there and it gets hot, i have tried the fans in every single config and found this to be the best,

4 x 120mm Intake on front Sandwiching a 240mm Rad
2 x 120mm Intake on the bottom as intake
1 x 120mm Exhaust on top at the back end
2 x 80mm Exhaust on the back

It is usually best to have your exhaust on top as heat rises so you should make use of that, if you have room at the bottom for intake then do so as it throws nice cool air directly on to your GPU, i tried my Rad at the bottom also but found it made no difference to CPU temps but the GPU was hotter as a result, i also tried an extra fan at the top as exhaust but it seemed that as it was so close to the front it was just blowing out cool air, Rad at the top as an exhaust just means your CPU will run hotter as you are blowing out warm air through your Rad, i know it's a different case i have but the physics are the same, i would recommend this Config, with slight alterations in fan sizes and numbers to suit your case of course.

If i read right you intend to put your Rad on the side with 6 fans on it, bear in mind this will make opening and cleaning/amending anything a bit of a nightmare with all those wires and AOI tubes hanging of the side panel, you may also find this would come into contact or be to close to your GPU unless your case is extra wide, and the heat from the GPU would be pushed directly out through your only Exhaust right next to it making CPU cooling pretty bad.

[sawdust3d]

Hey all,
Man it's been a long time, hope everyone is well.

OP, great case choice.

My main can configuration in this case is :
3 exhausting top
3 exhausting bottom
4 intake on the side ( cannot fit 6 in push/pull due to the upper and lower radiators)

Now, given that the whole system is underwater, I'm not as concerned with in case temps, but I did leave a couple stray temp probes in there, I'll check those temps compared to ambient temp when I get home tonight.

The really cool part, IMHO, is the secondary can set I snuck in to get more fresh air to the exhaust race and to help maintain a slight overpressure:
1 50mm can in the rear (side) under the PSU.
1 50mm and 2 25mm fans on the back around the I/O panel.

Just over a year running and the case is still squeaky clean inside!

For your solution, barring any added secondaries, I would recommend definitely keeping you 6-pack intake and top exhaust. The bottom is the only question. As intake ( more fresh air is always good) you'll be blowing at your GPU and have significant overpressure but it will be more of a dust suck. But that's what all the filters are for.

Exhausting will put you slightly negative in pressure as the push/pull doesn't actually move 2x the air as one might think. And you loose the fresh air bonus. I'd intake the bottom in your situation.

Good news is, with that many fans in that case, it'll be a whirlwind in there no matter what, so you're really just trying to goose the max result a bit.

If you click my profile you can see the extra fans, except for the rear 50mm that is attached to the panel and fits just under the PSU.

Best regards, enjoy your new build.

[r.linder]

A few notes from someone who actually uses that case:

1. Side is best used for the AIO as intake. It is literally designed for that express purpose.
2. Top is best used as the exhaust because hot air rises.
3. Bottom is best used for intake to feed fresh air to the GPU.
4. Case fans on the bottom can make plugging in the USB3 connector on many motherboards quite annoying because it's such a tight fit for such a big cable.
5. If you ever want to run multi-GPU for some reason, you're going to have a difficult time with thicc modern GPUs if you have case fans on the bottom, which you should anyway.

[Jelly Donut]

Nguyên văn bởi Escorve:

A few notes from someone who actually uses that case:

1. Side is best used for the AIO as intake. It is literally designed for that express purpose.
2. Top is best used as the exhaust because hot air rises.
3. Bottom is best used for intake to feed fresh air to the GPU.
4. Case fans on the bottom can make plugging in the USB3 connector on many motherboards quite annoying because it's such a tight fit for such a big cable.
5. If you ever want to run multi-GPU for some reason, you're going to have a difficult time with thicc modern GPUs if you have case fans on the bottom, which you should anyway.

I am not sure about bottom fans, but unless you don't care about acoustics or noise, they may help, but not by much.

I use 2 AIOs in my PC-011 build with side fans and top fans only to keep my PC running whisper quiet.

More info of my build is here: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/1184997-rainbow-dash-wizardry-mark-ii-my-overclocked-quiet-rgb-pc-build/

[r.linder]

Nguyên văn bởi Badonkadonks!:

Nguyên văn bởi Escorve:

A few notes from someone who actually uses that case:

1. Side is best used for the AIO as intake. It is literally designed for that express purpose.
2. Top is best used as the exhaust because hot air rises.
3. Bottom is best used for intake to feed fresh air to the GPU.
4. Case fans on the bottom can make plugging in the USB3 connector on many motherboards quite annoying because it's such a tight fit for such a big cable.
5. If you ever want to run multi-GPU for some reason, you're going to have a difficult time with thicc modern GPUs if you have case fans on the bottom, which you should anyway.

I am not sure about bottom fans, but unless you don't care about acoustics or noise, they may help, but not by much.

I use 2 AIOs in my PC-011 build with side fans and top fans only to keep my PC running whisper quiet.

More info of my build is here: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/1184997-rainbow-dash-wizardry-mark-ii-my-overclocked-quiet-rgb-pc-build/

Case fans don't need to be running at a high RPM. I keep mine running below 30% to keep fan noise low, and the more fans you have, the more viable that speed becomes because you won't lose much.

[Jelly Donut]

Nguyên văn bởi Escorve:

Case fans don't need to be running at a high RPM. I keep mine running below 30% to keep fan noise low, and the more fans you have, the more viable that speed becomes because you won't lose much.

For me, I did have experience putting a fan, intake side up on a grill, the sound was horrible and I was using Noctuas.

[r.linder]

Nguyên văn bởi Badonkadonks!:

Nguyên văn bởi Escorve:

Case fans don't need to be running at a high RPM. I keep mine running below 30% to keep fan noise low, and the more fans you have, the more viable that speed becomes because you won't lose much.

For me, I did have experience putting a fan, intake side up on a grill, the sound was horrible and I was using Noctuas.

I have my case fan curve set to never exceed 30% in BIOS, and it's near silent, but they're Corsair SP120s.

[Jelly Donut]

Nguyên văn bởi Escorve:

I have my case fan curve set to never exceed 30% in BIOS, and it's near silent, but they're Corsair SP120s.

Ah I see..

[Jamebonds1]

It would be better if fans on the top of the case are exhaust since air heat like to rise, not fall. So, fans on the top of the case should be the exhaust, fans on the bottom of the case should be intake, and fans on the side of the case should be intake or exhaust. AIO can be on the side of the case or the top of the case.

[r.linder]

Nguyên văn bởi Jamebonds1:

It would be better if fans on the top of the case are exhaust since air heat like to rise, not fall. So, fans on the top of the case should be the exhaust, fans on the bottom of the case should be intake, and fans on the side of the case should be intake or exhaust. AIO can be on the side of the case or the top of the case.

Better off on the side, because you always want AIOs as an intake, but an intake on the top isn't really ideal. You can cut temperatures by quite a bit when running an AIO as an intake instead of an exhaust because it isn't using already warm air.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNAMxZgvves