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New cpu fan..direction?

B

bluesmap

Limp Gawd
Joined
Dec 13, 2006
Messages
147
I jist received my new heatsink: xigmatek loki sd963. Im just confused which directipn the fan needs to face the actual heatsink. Does the fan blow into the heatsink or does the fan blow away from the heatsink?
The instructions are horrible, and from looking at the drawn pictures it looks like i mount the fan so it blows away from the metal heatsink.

Im on my phone and its hard to google an amswer

Thanks


**note: i dont have a case. My motherboard sits on a second table in a cold room o havent used a case in years.

***edit 2** see pics below, as i have fan installed. "back" of fan is to heatsink, "front" of fan is facing away.
i used speedfan to check my temps and they are as follows:
temp1: 36c
temp2: 39c
temp3: 25c
core 0: 35c
core1: 34c
gpu: 41c

are these about right? no overclocking here.

pics

k4782b.jpg


2lmrtdx.jpg
 
Last edited:
Afaict unless space and airflow considerations force you to do otherwise it's generally better to blow air through a heatsink than suck it through.
 
edit to my first post:



***edit 2** see pics below, as i have fan installed. "back" of fan is to heatsink, "front" of fan is facing away.
i used speedfan to check my temps and they are as follows:
temp1: 36c
temp2: 39c
temp3: 25c
core 0: 35c
core1: 34c
gpu: 41c

are these about right? no overclocking here.

pics

k4782b.jpg


2lmrtdx.jpg
 
The side of the fan that has the sticker and the 4 arms that hold the hub is the side that the air blows out of. The side where the center part spins in the side air sucks into. So your configuration is sucking air through the heatsink. I am unsure of your specific details, but conventionally, they are configured with the fan in the opposite direction (label against the heatsink).

It's also usually installed with the fan over the RAM, blowing out the back of the case (90 degrees from how you have it now), but depending on your case that may or may not be the best method.

edit - also, you might want to double check that your RAM is in the correct dual channel mode. I can't see the model number or socket, but the mounting hardware looks Intel, and usually Intel likes the RAM in slots 1 and 3 or slots 2 and 4. See how two are black and two are blue? Usually you'd do both black or both blue. That's what my Core 2 Quad and i3 and i5 are like, at least.
 
ok, so blow air into the heatsink then, as has been stated by post #2?
ok ill do that now. by the way you may be right ^^^^^^^.
i thought that ram should be in slots 1 and 2 and thats how it is now. i did not know it should be 1 and 3 (or 2 and 4) so ill do that now too.

thanks
 
thanks guys
i switched it and temps dropped by 10.
thanks much, using speedfan and shows decrease even when playing game (need for speed)

appreciate the help
 
bluesmap said:
ok, so blow air into the heatsink then, as has been stated by post #2?
ok ill do that now. by the way you may be right ^^^^^^^.
i thought that ram should be in slots 1 and 2 and thats how it is now. i did not know it should be 1 and 3 (or 2 and 4) so ill do that now too.

thanks
Click to expand...

No the RAM should always be installed in alternating slots unless specified otherwise by the manufacturer. They typically color the slots so you know how to install them. In your configuration you want the RAM in the blue slots. The slot closest to the CPU is almost always the 1st RAM slot which may be DIMM slot 0 or DIMM slot 1 depending on how the manufacturer labels their slots and that slot should almost always be populated.
 
NoOther said:
No the RAM should always be installed in alternating slots unless specified otherwise by the manufacturer. They typically color the slots so you know how to install them. In your configuration you want the RAM in the blue slots. The slot closest to the CPU is almost always the 1st RAM slot which may be DIMM slot 0 or DIMM slot 1 depending on how the manufacturer labels their slots and that slot should almost always be populated.
Click to expand...

AFAIK, AM3 boards have you install in side-by-side slots. Intel is still alternating, though.
 
nalc said:
AFAIK, AM3 boards have you install in side-by-side slots. Intel is still alternating, though.
Click to expand...

That goes under "unless specified otherwise by the manufacturer." It doesn't really depend on Intel or AMD, just how the manufacturer wired the board.

Notice, here are a number of AM3 boards that are color coded for RAM placement:

Alternating
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131644
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131646
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131636

Side by side
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157176

And notice how even the same brand manufacturer uses different methods
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130293
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130565

Generally you see more alternating than you do side by side, but you should always consult the manual or manufacturer first, especially if for some reason there are no color codes.
 
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