Phenom II X4 965 BE & Hyper 212, does fan orientation matter?

[MooseParade]

I just built a Phenom II x4 965 BE with a Hyper 212 Plus. I still think my temps are high and I ordered more case fans.

My question is does the fan orientation matter on the 212? I have the stock fan (don't know exactly what model it is, blademaster maybe?) in push and a Rosewill 2000rpm 74cfm 120mm in the pull. Would swapping the fans, having the higher cfm fan in the push, lower my temps?

Edit: The 212 is exhausting out the top of the cases dual 120mm cutouts with no exhaust fans.

 

[KingFatty]

From what I've read, having both push/pull fans provides about a 3 degree reduction in temperature or there about compared to just using one fan, when setting everything to 100% speed. So ask yourself, wouldn't that extra fan provide a greater benefit if you took it off the heatsink, and used it as a case fan? Ideally you could keep it as is and add case fans as appropriate.

As for using different speeds or flow rates between the fans, I haven't seen much info on that. However, it may be possible that using different amounts between the two fans may be more efficient than using the same flow rate/speed on both. Maybe someone can chime in with more info.

As for orientation, I would suggest orienting it to complement whatever exhaust setup you have. If you have a rear case fan, maybe point the heatsink to blow toward it. Or, maybe move your rear case fan to the ceiling of the case to complement the current vertical orientation. But if you have a case fan for the rear and for the ceiling, I don't think it would matter which orientation.

The heat pipes in the heatsink don't really rely on gravity, because the liquid moves due to wicking. And for air movement, the same is true because the flow caused by fans blowing is far far greater an effect than any convection currents due to heated air. But maybe someone has some anecdotal info about changing orientation to get different temperatures. I just think you should weigh whether any changes are due to complementing the existing case airflow, or perhaps due to a better application of thermal paste during re-orientation etc. I think the consensus is that orientation alone doesn't really matter when you rule out other factors.

 

[ghost03]

I'm sure others know more about this than I do, and hopefully they will chime in soon, but my logic suggests you want the high CFM fan pushing.

If air is pushed in faster than it is pulled out, you will have positive air pressure in the fins--more air can grab more heat.

If air is pulled out faster than pushed in, you will have a small amount of vacuum between the fins. Vacuum isn't good for conducting heat--as an extreme example, spacecraft have a difficult time dissipating heat because there is no conduction in the near-complete vacuum space.

 

[ghost03]

Also I expect the differences to be relatively minor; I wouldn't bother playing around with it too much unless you're having fun.