Build Complete; Few Concerns.

[Like2game]

Finished my build, kinda. The PSU i ordered doesn't actually release for another week or so, so i just put my old TX750 in for the time being.

Few of the things that are making me a bit worried are as follows:

HDD makes a little noise. Not an overall lot, but i can hear it when its loading a game ect. It is a 7200rpm WD 1TB. The last HDD i had never made noise, but it was a lot smaller and 5400rpm i believe. Is it normal for a 1TB HDD to make a little noise and quiet clicking sounds?

Corsair H-50. my cpu (i7-930) is idling at around 35-38 degrees at stock voltage/speed. I am going to pick up 2 solid 120mm fans for it tomorrow, but even for the stock fan that seems a bit high, no? I also have it set up to blow air out the back of my case right now, should i be switching it to intake air from that back slot? I got the HAF X case so i am thinking the air will be vented out one of the 2 top 200mm fans before it gets the chance to heat anything up.

MY GPU is louder than my window AC unit.....I have got to put watercooling on it or get a $5000 stereo. I live in Canada, and the only place (reputable place) i have found to get water-cooling parts is NCIX. Not the best selection for blocks/pumps/rads/ect. Anyone know where a canuk can get some watercooling parts without waiting 6 weeks or paying duty or paying $150 for shipping or ect.

 

[CalcProgrammer1]

HDD's vary a lot between models and manufacturers. Some are silent, others are whiny, some click a lot, some click a little, some click with a loud metallic clattering sound, it isn't really easy to tell between two different drives.

I have two 1.5TB drives, one (Seagate 7200.11 7200RPM) makes metal "clink" sounds all the time when it turns on while my other (Samsung HD154UI 5400RPM) makes a more solid and rapid movement sound. Both drives are fine.

35-38 for an i7 is wonderful, there's no reason to complain there, my 930 idles around 55 and load temp is around 70-74 C using stock heatsink and fan. The real issue is your load temps, so before you get too worried run it through a stress test and see what your max temps are.

As for GPU fans, they are usually pretty loud, live with it or get an aftermarket heatsink/fan or water block.

 

[Like2game]

Good to know about the HDDs. I am just being a bit jumpy i guess. Only reason i am a bit concerned about the cpu temp is that i have been reading that people are getting their i7-930s (with the H-50) up to ~4ghz and keeping temps close to what i am getting at stock. Tomorrow i am going to put 2 scythe kaze 3000rpm fans on this corsair rad and reverse the airflow to suck air into the case. I am going to apply some artic cooling MX3 on the waterblock too.

I am with you on the waterblock for my gtx480, i just need to find a place that is trustworthy and has a decent selection of pump/rad/reservoir/waterblock/tubing. I am in Canada so i might b a bit limited.

 

[Sean W.]

i have the H50, it is best to have it as an intake... taking fresh air from out side the case pulling that cold air through the radiator... i know that means you are going to be injecting hot air into your case, but thats why you need a good exhaust system for your computer. also, if you are going to get new fans for your H50, i recommend fans with a minimum of 78cfm. its going to be hard to find fans that move that kind of air that dont sound like a jet engine, but they do make them. i have also found through experimentation that anything over 80cfm ( i got two 110cfm fans ) on a H50 doesnt make any kind of decreese in temeratures.

 

[Like2game]

I picked up the Ultra Kaze fans today. They are huge, 38mm thick. They are going to be loud as well, but not louder than my gpu so it don't matter for now. I am going to have to go to the hardware store and get some new screws or some nuts and bolts or something to get these on the h50 rad.
EDIT: Would it be a dumb idea to use zip ties to hold the fans on?

My plan now is to have my push fan on the outside of the case, and my rad and pull fan on the inside of the case. The only thing that i think may end up being a problem is my motherboards heatsink is going to blow directly against the air current the h50 is creating. Might just cause a dead spot over my motherboard heatsink. I am going to try both directions i think, but i am fairly sure using the H50 as intake will be best.

 

[Sean W.]

zip ties are a dumb idea, go get " 6-32 " bolts

 

[Slaymate]

I use zipties for everything

I would set the fans to blow out of the case.

Use as little Thermal Paste as possible. It needs to be just thick enough to fill in any surface imperfections while still leaving a minuscule film on both the cpu heatspreader and the heatsink.

(2) Scythe Kaze's will be louder than your GPU fan, or they should.

 

[Like2game]

I use zipties for everything

I would set the fans to blow out of the case.

Use as little Thermal Paste as possible. It needs to be just thick enough to fill in any surface imperfections while still leaving a minuscule film on both the cpu heatspreader and the heatsink.

(2) Scythe Kaze's will be louder than your GPU fan, or they should.

Nice to get conformation on the zipties. I am going to set it as an exhaust at the top of the case. Working on a duct right now to get cool air from the 5.25" bays. Just modding the gpu duct that came with the Haf x, should work good. This is going to help me huge with the basic airflow of the case and will look way nicer having the corsair tubing virtually hidden.

For the thermal paste on the cpu, the guy at the store told me to just stick with the thermal tape corsair used, and to only use aftermarket paste if i have to take it off for another reason.

If the Kaze are louder than my 480 at 80% fan i will just tough it out for now and get quieter fans down the road. They were fairly cheap, and a guy can always find a use for a solid fan.

 

[Slaymate]

The guy at the store is just a guy at the store. It will perform better if you use a "Good Quality" paste and not every paste is the same. Don't buy Arctic Silver 5, it's old tech and there are much better choices available. For the money, this is the Best Paste you can buy. I would replace the Thermal Tape as soon as possible.
Newegg.com - Tuniq TX-2 Cooling Thermal Compound