Airflow direction

[iamjn]

Ok, I have a stupid question:

Will I get better results with the fan on my heatsink blowing air on the heatsink, or blowing away from it?

Thanks for your answer in advance.

jn

 

[kimber]

that would probably depend on a number of factors but most alphas seem to like to suck.;<)

 

[jiffylube1024]

Try both. It's usually only a 1-2 degree C difference, sometimes a bit more. This is a very convoluted issue with many factors: Alpha, I believe recommends blowing on the HS, but many report better performance (lower temps) the other way around. If you have a shroud on the HS that TOTALLY covers it then you'd think that sucking would be better (well, I would think that anyways) ... many shrouds on heatsinks are designed so that when air blows on the heatsink it blows out the sides of the shroud. However if it's just a heatsink then it's a crapshoot - try both and see if it makes a difference for you.