Aurora R8 + EVGA RTX 3080 XC3 Ultra Gaming + Noctua nf-a12x15-pwm-chromax-black-swap

[r72019]

I had considered doing the @HanoverB approach and hole sawing the top to open up airflow for the top half of the upper front fan, then putting an RGB fan up there and a cutout of an alien head so the eyes lit up red and wire mesh + filter background.  But then I was worried my cutout wouldn't look as good as the black widow and also I didn't want to spend money fixing a problem I didn't have so I left the plastic facia stock up there (aside from adding the second front fan).  You still get partial fan coverage even with the plastic obstruction, and the lip doesn't go all the way to the metal grate so the rest gets some coverage too.  But maybe that explains why my DVD drive is so dusty LOL. 

[markburv]

@r72019 doing nothing then means dust gets sucked in through the optical drive slot, good to know. Thanks for the tip 🙂

[markburv]

@Dell630i or even just cut several slots in it to allow air to flow to the top . . . not major surgery

Now that's not a bad idea for simplicity, I might try that... thanks for the tip 🙂

[Dell630i]

@markburv    Now that's not a bad idea for simplicity, I might try that... thanks for the tip 

If minor surgery does not get the air flow you want, then this is the @HanoverB  "Black Widow" to which @r72019  is referring . . . and it only takes a 4 1/2" hole saw  😂  😂  😂

(click photos to embiggen)

. . . and The Dragon

[r72019]

@Dell630i  

Do you know how he made the shapes?  Are they just custom plastic cutouts?

[Dell630i]

@r72019    Do you know how he made the shapes?

fan grill of your choosing and then an appropriate fan filter 

[kianthemann]

• 

   did the same thing. 2 front fans, push pull, and a msi 3070 2x

[markburv]

Hi @kianthemann 

Nice upgrade in that R9, Kudos in your thread.

Before I replace the CPU cooler, which I am considering, I will be replacing the thermal paste as this can often make a big difference, Arctic Silver 5 ordered today. At the same time I will dismount, clean and measure things up to see how the contraption is pieced together.

I was at one point considering a 3070, but getting one just took too long as they were never in stock except for the first 20 minutes and I was in a meeting 😞 So I started paging thru here and found the EVGA 3090 install results which encouraged me to look up to the EVGA 3080 cards.

How is that 3070 hanging ?

[markburv]

@Dell630iI also ordered a few other things, inspired by that XPS mod you did for zero dust, 2x120mm square filters and a cheap dremel type tool which will help me do a quick job on that bezel lip and cut off those tabs to avoid destroying the filters 😄

Not so sure about cutting a square out of the R8 front bezel, I do prefer it as it is, (Edit) It is 95mm from grill to the tab inside the bezel so would need to look at options around 75mm or smaller if I do. We shall see, this project is progressive for now.

Order of next installations with tests:

• Install M2 NVME in bottom PCIE above the SSD (coming wednesday), move games to it, check all thermals, if not satisfactory remove SSD and check again all thermals
• Install new thermal paste and maybe filters, check CPU thermals
• Cut up the front bezel lip, maybe 4 triangles, check CPU thermals, if not satisfactory cut 2 more triangles and check again all thermals

Any ideas/improvements on this plan?

[kianthemann]

The 3070 is doing alright but crashes when I play very all around demanding titles like Metro exodus. I believe it is my Thermaltake PSU as it only has 576W on the 12V rail without accounting for the 80% efficiency. I'm pretty sure this means I only have 460W available for my PC to run on. In pcpartpicker my System draws exactly 460w. I will keep this updated on my 3070 crash thread if you were interested. (through my profile)