Okay, so a slightly less n00b question. ^_^
My FTW K has a 40mm fan on the VRM heat sink, as they all do. But it's the loudest thing in my case literally all the time so far. It's not broken loud, don't get me wrong, it's what I'd expect from a 40mm fan, and I'm going to improve it with curve adjustments. But no matter how you tune it, fans that small don't come in "quiet," much less "silent," and as my case is built for maximum airflows so there is zero sound dampening, I hear all of it.
What I'd like to do is
improve it! I'd like to build a directed duct from a much larger (and therefore both quieter and higher airflow) fan, and direct that duct to the heat sink. I have some conveniently close mounting points for a 120mm fan - well, for two, really - on top of the case, and I could get one or another ultraquiet fan, and hook it up there. The distance to cover would be very short. This would also be an LED opportunity, as I saved a lot of money in building this thing by not going that way, but that doesn't mean I don't want to prettify my case a bit. ^_^
To me, this sounds like a simple mod, reasonably easily accomplished. But this fan did come with the motherboard, and I really don't want to screw up the board.
So I'm looking for advice. Are there downsides here that I am missing? I doubt there is a water cooling solution specifically for the VRM, but if there is, I will be amused to hear about it and possibly interested, though that would take a little longer to do.
(Attached: CHONKYBOI, a.k.a. Chonki, a.k.a Chonk, the gaem compy in question. Attach points are visible on the case top.)
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