Ninja Airflow Testing.

[bluefront]

I've been testing a Ninja, trying to determine the best airflow direction, the best fan size and speed........trying to find the quietest setup that returns the best temperatures. I used a P4-2.4 (about 60W) for the test, but the results apply closely to most CPUs. Different cases, different components, will no doubt skew the results for your own computer......but the results are interesting, and might prove useful. Comments/suggestions welcome.

Ninja airflow testing.

[tacc]

looks neat, how long did it take to make that?

sorry if its mentioned, I didn't quite read it throughly.

[bluefront]

That last photo shows the best/quietest setup for a ducted Ninja......using a 92mm Nexus (27CFM), blowing straight upward. Took about two hours to make. I cut the wood slightly larger than necessary, then using the Ninja as a template, glued the wood pieces together. After it dried, I sanded down the excess wood. It's a snug fit.



This is from the thread at SilentPCReview.....

It's made to be adjustable. You can install the fan to either blow or suck. The one outer flange of the Yate Loon was cut off. The hole in the duct was sized so the fan is a tight fit. You can raise or lower the fan about 15mm (for tweaking purposes). If you mount the duct on the video-card side of the Ninja, with the fan blowing into the Ninja, the NB heatsink gets a fair amount of airflow. Plus the back-side of the video card gets even more airflow. The fan in this orientation is about 25mm from the card (on this MB anyway. I made the sides of the duct shorter than the first duct in the original photos. This gives you the ability to experiment with the length of the duct (by closing off some fins by various means....like tape). The whole thing just slides off/on.....and is held in place by the three heatpipes that poke through the one side of the duct. This thing mounts the fan blades about 5-20mm from the Ninja fins......and it does quiet the airflow somewhat.

The amazing find in the testing....just how little airflow is necessary to cool the Ninja. Great heatsink if mounted properly....

[Shinigami]

Hi

really nice guide. Ninja Plus is basically designed to run with very low airflow. Your experiements are interesting and it seems you had some ideas and goals. This one is really cool:



I wonder what you make next

Greets

[bluefront]

Thanks.....I've been doing computer mods for at least ten years. I've posted most of the interesting stuff on SPCR. The Ninja has become my heatsink of choice.

Today I'm finishing another Ninja combo-duct that is designed to also cool the ram, and the motherboard components......similar to a "blow-down" type heatsink, but with all the benefits of a Ninja. Stay tuned.

[Shinigami]

Hey,

Yep, I'm excited to see more. Glad you like the Ninja that much. It is a really nice Cooler for sure. But the real benefits are not really seen by most people...

Andy

[bluefront]

Here are a few pictures of this new Ninja duct. You can put the duct on either side, with the fan either blowing or sucking. The best setup has the duct on the video card side, with the board in a tower case, with the fan blowing upward. With the fan on top with the fan blowing upward, the temps are almost the same. Other photos and the whole story are in the SPCR thread (link in first post).

[Oli]

Your pictures make me think about a duct or something like that which closes the Ninja on two sides to that the airflow can move trough Ninja fan, Ninja and then through the case fan in a straight line. So the air would no longer interfere with the PSU fan.

I'll add some pictures soon to describe it better.


Bye Oliver

[Shinigami]

Hi,

It is getting more and more interesting, good job. It makes me want to try some tests as well. What is the RPM you run your fans on Ninja?? The Yate Loon e.g.

Oliver: See the other thread, I wonder how your TR Duct project will go. It is getting really excited.

Stay tuned

Andy

[bluefront]

FWIW....In my on-going series of tests, I've found there seems to be a "sweet-spot" for airflow through a Ninja. If you push more air than about 45CFM through this heat-sink, you get very little temperature improvement. This probably has something to do with the fin spacing. Remember that the Ninja is probably the best heat-sink for a low-airflow setup available today. (the 92mm Yate Loon fan I tried runs about 45CFM @12v, but is too noisy for me).

This last duct I showed was designed for a positive pressure case, with all the air exiting the case through various venting setups on the top of the case. I usually use fan-less power supplies, so this exhaust airflow at the top, helps to cool a fan-less PSU also. The little extensions to the sides of this new duct, divert some of the airflow directly at the mother-board components, and at the ram sticks........something that a ductless Ninja cannot do.

Also....the use of a 120mm fan on a Ninja seems to be un-necessary. The over-lap of a 120mm size fan, wastes the edges of the airflow, missing a Ninja completely. A 92 or 100mm fan works just as well, maybe better.

Remember that I'm trying for a quiet CPU cooling solution, designed for a system running moderate temperatures. My next tests will try out this new duct with a P4-3.4, which runs about 100W. Stay tuned.....

After more testing (different 92mm fans) I expect to install a Ninja with this "wing-duct" in this setup, replacing the Zalman 7700 cooler. That lower intake fan (120mm Scythe) is the only other fan in the case.