fans

[orntar]

*if* i needed to put a fan in my cabinet, near the computer, should i have it exhausting or blowing? i have a 4" 12v fan that i might have to put in my already copmplete cab.  

if exhaust, i have plenty of air in from the front under the cp. this id for a homebuilt with a computer in a case style upright. http://neogeo.orntar.net/  (might be down right now, check back)

[eightbit]

personally I believe in exhausting the hot air and would put the fan at the top. If your going to use it for an intake I would recomend a vent near the top.

Look at how computers and electronic devices cool things, they usually exhaust.

[Witchboard]

I couldn't tell if your computer is in a different compartment than your monitor from your construction shots.  If you're needing additional cooling and your monitor and computer aren't sealed off from one another, I would put the fan exhausting out the top and maybe put a vent in the bottom.  It's natural for heat to rise so either way, I would put the fan exhaust towards the top of whatever compartment your having heat problems.

Wow, that was lengthy for such a short answer.  

[orntar]

I couldn't tell if your computer is in a different compartment than your monitor from your construction shots.  If you're needing additional cooling and your monitor and computer aren't sealed off from one another, I would put the fan exhausting out the top and maybe put a vent in the bottom.  It's natural for heat to rise so either way, I would put the fan exhaust towards the top of whatever compartment your having heat problems.

Wow, that was lengthy for such a short answer.  

the two compartments are pretty well sealed. there is only about a half inch of space at the rear of the monitor shelf. i am not having cooling problems per se. i just don't ever want to run into one.  i have left it running for as long as 2hours (i know, not long at all), but it has never even felt warm anywhere. i just have the fan laying around and thought i might put it in the computer compartment and the tv is rear vented already, so i think it is ok.

[Witchboard]

Well, if you can keep from adding active cooling it will keep the noise down.  You'd be suprised how loud those little 115V fans can get.  You could probably boot into your BIOS of your motherboard and watch the tempuratures and see if you'll need it.

[orntar]

Well, if you can keep from adding active cooling it will keep the noise down.  You'd be suprised how loud those little 115V fans can get.  

right, they are. but i have a 12v. it dern near silent  

[Witchboard]

Oh yeah, you kind of already said that in your first post.  Sorry. ^_^

[cdbrown]

I think it would depend on the fans in your PC.  generally the front has intakes and the rear has exhaust, so as you would be having the fan at the rear?? make it an exhaust, but don't forget to let air in somewhere lower in the cab.  That will allow for nice circulation. Excuse the crappy air flow diagram.


  /  pc intake-->  --> pc exhaust -->    cab exhaust-->
 ^
 ^
  \          <--             <---             <--cool air in

[paigeoliver]

Make it exhaust for sure. Some original arcade cabinets came with fans, you DO NOT want to see what the inside of a cabinet with an intake fan looks like after a couple of years (like one giant dustball).

Real life example. My Out Run has an intake fan, even after I cleaned it the inside still looks like it is caked with dirt (except the boards, which are oddly clean), the monitor is especially dirty.

My Do! Run Run has an exhaust fan. It is older than my Out Run by a couple of years, yet is so so clean inside that you could eat pudding right off the bottom of the cabinet.

[Spaced Invader]

You could just use the Powersupply fan...works for me. Oh, what Paige said...deffinately exhaust.

[Stingray]

is so so clean inside that you could eat pudding right off the bottom of the cabinet.

Yuck!    


I'm actually putting two fans in mine. One that blows air out of the cab, and one mounted opposite the exhaust fan on the other side of the mother board.

fan -> MB -> Fan -> outside of cab

I did this to make sure that the air flows across the board, and not around it. Maybe overkill, but better safe than sorry.

-S