Best Notebook Coolers for 18" Alienware Laptops

ok man , i think i have a few spare 12v fans !!

 

I am doing a third U3 mod. Just ordered more stuff today.

Kingwin Four Channel Turn Knob Multi-Fan Cooling Controller FPX-001

Coolerguys 100-240v AC to 12 & 5v DC 4pin Molex 2A Power Adapter

120mm Computer PC Dustproof Cooler Fan Cover Dust Filter Mesh 5pcs

ARCTIC F12 - Value Pack (5pc) - 120 mm Standard Low Noise Case Fan

Cooler Master NotePal U3 Notebook Cooler with 3 Fans R9-NBC-8PCK-G

 

I have to purchase a fan control for my mod U3. What model is ok? My adapter is 15v. Not much to choose from here at home. Everything over 35$(included shipping) I have to pay 25% tax. + extra money for handling the tax when I order this in other countries.

 

I have not tested the one I ordered today (linked above). It should work out fine, but until I have it and try it out, I do not know for certain.

The one I used for the two previous mods was this model, which works fine: http://www.amazon.com/Silenx-IXAFCEX-Channel-External-Controlle/dp/B0030EZLSO

I purchased them from NewEgg before, but they no longer have these: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811999167

 

Then I'll see if l can get 2. Unfortunately, I must pay 25% tax on top of everything (including shipping and customs fees).

Edit: With more pict of my U3 and changed to 3X 120mm EK-Furious Vardar FF5-120 (3000rpm) fans.

Here is my new U3 mod.





Homemade fan filters from my wife's used nylon stockings Work nice and will reduce the cleaning innside the laptop to minimum.


Cut holes in the cooler will give better air flow. Look at the newspaper pages. They flash rapidly. LOL


Max temp at 58 degrees Celsius in wprime 1024 with stock i7-6700K (tested with ambient temperature of 17.5 degrees Celsius).
My U3 mod and maximum fan speed (Fn+1), means lower temperatures than Ambient... Strange this is possible. One of the two sensor must be inaccurate, HaHa

 

I think it is possible due to the radiators in the cooling system. Same as the air coming from a fan can be cooler than ambient temperatures because it is compressed and then expands.

 

Yes there may be something in this. But I like it What is normal maximum processor temp in Wprime 1024 by about 20 degrees celsius with stock/top quality paste as Icd and stock i7-6700k?

 

Love the idea of using the U3.

Currently, I have swapped all my fans and replace it with 6 pcs of Cooler Master Silencio FP 120 PWM Performance Edition Fans with one 200MM Megaflow to exhaust heat.

My Alienware 18 has just had it's heatsink replaced and I am currently using Arctic MX-4 Thermal Paste.

Tested temperature is 25 C. Without using Coollaboratory Liquid Ultra, the results were impressive, since these fans are static pressure (More air pressure) and is able to push more cool air over the confined space of the laptop and without cutting holes on the U3, versus my previous 3 Jetflo fans and 1 Sickleflow X.

Consumes less power and I could now feel air coming from the cooler on my keyboard!

Idle:
CPU: 40C
GPU 1: 50C (Primary GPU)
GPU 2: 32-35C

Load (Core Damage 100%, Heaven Benchmark, Ultra, 8X AA, 1920 X 1200):
CPU: Max Temp: 83-85 C (Fans on Maximum Speed, 18 now reacts in time)
GPU 1: 75C (65-70C if Fans on max speed)
GPU 2: 75C (65-70C if Fans on max speed)

 

O.k. So I decided to to mod my own laptop cooler. The mod is not completed. I need some assistance to get the required items to make the fans work. Once i get the required materials and have the fans working , I will finalize it. So here is what I got and did to it. I used antec fans that I have found in my desktop. The CPU fan is a lot thicker than the left/right.

Targus HD3 Chill Mat

http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/...79&acd=12309152537461010&ven1=sE1inYhPj&ven2=,

Here are some pictures of original and after.

 

Continue ......

 

O.k. Finally got my fan mod done , well 99.9% done. Here are some pictures.

 

The rest of the pictures. The fan in the middle has variable 3 speed. I placed it there for the CPU.

 

I ordered the U3 and these fans are worthless... The computer actually gets hotter now :/ ... If you notice these fans come with knots that fits in the holes. How would I be able to attach lets say 12v fans to this mod since you can out a screw on them?

 

For me I just drill 3 holes on my table which match the fans' location and it just perfect solution!

 

Yes, the stock fans are worthless. In fact, just about any cooler is worthless out of the box. They all suck. But, the U3 is hands-down the best foundation to start with and once given the proper mod treatment it is excellent.
http://imgur.com/a/iZ192#0
http://imgur.com/a/IGq3C#0

 

dupe

 

@Terrablade pm me for help. He did not know how a mod should be done. I helped him in the best way

 

cant find those fan filters anywhere.. any other you'd recommend?

 

you don't need a filter, it's only necessary if you have an excessively dusty environment

 

There are lots of options on Amazon and NewEgg last time I checked. They don't have to be exactly the same ones. I bought those in particular because they were the cheapest option. As long as it is easily removable and cleanable, that's what matters most. Or, you can use panty hose like @Papusan does. That is not fancy, but it works perfectly. If you have a mom, sister, wife or girlfriend, they probably have a pair with runs in them that you can use instead of throwing them in the garbage.

That's not necessarily true, and since he needs to use his system in bed there is going to be extra linen fuzz, hair and skin flakes, etc. that will be more problematic than under normal circumstances. The filters do an amazing job of reducing the amount of crap that the laptop fans ingest. I would not recommend skipping the filters or more frequent cleaning of the fans and heat sink radiators can be expected.

 

Hello guys,

I'm also now building a U3Plus mod tired of this messy AW EC that only kicks when 50C is reached with this Dell EC, can't use the Compal with 980M It doesn't work with the custom tables or manual also no spin at all. Forcing me to run fans at 2000RPM all the time (idle and slight usage) except for gaming they're maxed (Dell EC only 3 steps - 0, 2000, max)

Looking at @Mr. Fox 's recommendation of Kingwin 4 Fan controller and the adapter too along with the Noctua NF P12 3 Pin 120mm, Kingwin's 3 Pin So I think we can't use EKWB Vardar that @Papusan uses since they are 4pin and also does that Kingwin ship with a 3x4pin to 1x4pin molex ?

I'd like to get the LED fans if they are worth (Corsair AF120 seems quite good @54CFM, they'll look awesome with the AlienFX) and how the design should be implemented, 3x120mm fans plus a bigger 140mm or bigger (? mm) downside to exhaust and keep the air flow natural ? or just the 3x120mm ones suffice ?

Any advice on CFM / choice of components, building would be greatly helpful, Oh yeah the dust clogging in the heatsinks is too much of a hassle I mistakenly rubbed too much alcohol on the gum that sits in between the heatsink and the black plastic label that's on the Alienware heatsinks caused slight removal of that gel like gum dunno how it does impact, So surely will get the filters too, should the standard ones suffice for any of the 120mm fans ?

Thanks, will order the components right away once I get clarity !!

 

You could make it easy. I use a old 15v psu or you could use other power adapters and soldered 3x 4 pin connections on the psu cable to fit the Vardar fans connection. You can't change the fan speed, but you can put on different values resistance for lower volttage if you want. Use only 3x 120mm high performance fans. Minimum the airflow and static pressure like the fans I use. Also mod 3 holes on the U3. With your problems, you should have maxed airflow.

 

Thanks papusan, but I think I won't be able to cut the U3Plus now, will do that later, for now I'd like it to be simply done like the Mr. Fox's old one..

EDIT : Found this Silverstone filter, also @Mr. Fox , If your setup is working I'll also order the same , Actic F12 has 74CFM highest of Noctua & Corsair AF both at 50+ CFM, and I think only Noctua gives those plugs rivets for attaching the fans onto the U3, Corsair gives only screws, no molex either. Plus Noctua and EKWB are quite expensive with the whole setup, LED's are sure bonus tho !

 

@Ashtrix look also on @kosti 's fan mod. Nearly the same as me. Same Vardar fans also. I'm on phone so you will find it self.

 

It's best to get fans with high static pressure ratings, not just airflow (CFM). This is especially important if you are planning on leaving the U3 surface stock.

I recommend high RPM fans (at least 1800rpm). Low RPM fans are not going to push much air. Get a fan speed controller to tame them if they are too loud.

Avoid sleeve bearing fans because they tend to fail sooner on horizontal mounts. Fluid Dynamic Bearings will work well but dual ball bearings are the way to go imo.

I have tried two different types of filters (aluminum mesh, and foam) and both restrict way too much airflow so I'm running them without filters on mine. I do get a bit of dust buildup because of my modded bottom tray, but I usually clean my laptop every couple of days anyway so it doesn't become a huge problem.

Also, you'll notice that airflow improves significantly if you lift the U3 up on it's hind legs by an inch or two. This gives these 25mm fans more clearance to pull more air. If the angle gets too steep for your laptop, you can offset it by lifting the front of the U3 with something.

 

So the CoolerMaster SF-19 got a V2 recently, with both USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 variants, however, it seems like it's already impossibile to get the USB 3.0 version.
I've only been able to locate it in Australian shops:
https://www.ao3.com.au/product/R9%2DNBC%2DSF93K%2DGP 149$
http://shop.bestdeal4u.com.au/product/coolermaster-sf19v2-laptop-pad/ 157.67$
http://www.acquireit.com.au/acquire/default.asp?PageID=ProductDetail&pf_id=4658967 161.25$
http://www.megabuy.com.au/coolermas...e-cooling-gaming-laptops-coolers-p661608.html 164.46$
http://www.tech4u.com.au/coolermaster-sf-19-v2-dual-force-cooling-gaming-laptops-p661608.html 164.70$
http://www.itspot.com.au/coolermaster-sf-19-v2-dual-force-cooling-gaming-laptops-p661608.html 164.83$
https://www.spotit.com.au/coolermaster-sf19v2-laptop-pad-up-to-19-usb3-0-r9-nbc-sf93k-gp.html 165$

First of all, to any AU members, are any of there sites legit?

 

Done !!

A big thanks to @kosti for guiding me through everything.
Excuse me for the not so good workspace and the not great quality photos.

Powered by 3 x EK Vardar F4-120 2200RPM fans, Note : Using Silverstone filters, so that should affect the airflow further.
https://imgur.com/a/kVgCV & Yeah I got the silver one by mistake.

Will refine it further, need memory wires for the filters to hold right now only using 2 per fan, will get more later and the temps are as follows.

Ambient 72-75F.

IDLE (notebook fans on auto)
33-36C GPU
40-44C CPU

Edit : When AC is on Temps further drop idling to 31-33 and 36-38 respectively on GPU and CPU.

Load (notebook fans maxed)
Heaven all maxed out.
61C max CPU
73C max GPU (Ran a 35-40Min session on Heaven, with all tesselation size / distance / factor jacked to highest, before that temps started at 63C and went all the way upto 73C when I was looking at that dragon and the houses with a wide fov point making the GPU stress a lot for nearly 15-20 mins & then ran a bench)

Heaven Benchmark (Since the GPU ws hot before, upto 73C but during the Bench temps dropped to 68-69C)
HWInfo reading

Spoiler

GPU has some issues, more here if you are interested.

Pending work - Switch like Kosti's mod later.

 

Nice. I have 3 modded U3 coolers. I've since added a black painted strip of wood at the front with rubber bumpers on the bottom so the coolers have no angle and that gives more clearance for the fans. I have screws attaching it through the existing front row of holes.

 

Would be great if we can get to see some snaps

 

Here are a few... very simple. Not a lot to look at.

 

Much refined look and perfection

 

@Mr. Fox Can I use this https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M1HW61Y/ref=ox_sc_act_title_4?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=AJ4ULFLLD51Q4 as a way to control the speed of these fans https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KFCRATC/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER by decreasing the voltage? I'm planning to mod a Cooler Master U3 but I don't know what to do so that I can control the speed of these fans as they're really loud if left to run at 3000 RPM all the time. I really really mind the noise but the people around me will really be annoyed by it.

Thanks!

 

Any suggestions with updates parts to mod my U3? Seeing as all your parts are out of stock now and I'm not too sure what the best setup would be for my p870KM-1.

 

Sure, see the video description for links to the parts I am currently using.

* click image*

 

How did you

How did you cut the holes in the laptop stand, a dremel tool?

 

I'm also looking into buying a NotePal U3 Plus and modding it with better fans. I was curious though instead of running 3x120mm fans, would it be better or more efficient to run 2x140mm, 2x180mm, 1x200mm or 1x360mm fan instead?

140mm (107cfm @ 42dB): http://www.performance-pcs.com/ek-f...iquid-cooling-fan.html#Additional-Information
180mm (130cfm @ 34dB): http://www.performance-pcs.com/silv...eling-fan-sleeved.html#Additional-Information
200mm (149cfm @ 28dB): http://www.performance-pcs.com/bit-...eries-200mm-black.html#Additional-Information
360mm(127cfm @ 22dB): http://www.performance-pcs.com/perf...ing-bezel-sleeved.html#Additional-Information


Static Pressure of a fan doesn't really matter if you aren't blowing it directly through a radiator as far as I'm aware. But CFM and the amount of air that it pushes would help keep the laptop cooler in this instance correct?

 

Bigger fans means only one thing, air will pushed into the plastic instead of into the bottom grills. Aka no gain!! See the Red and the yellow example as how a bigger fans will work vs. 3x 120mm fans.

 

Ahh! I see what you mean. However my bottom plate will have a bit more open design in the middle. This is what it looks like and Donald from HIDevolution is being kind enough to get me measurements for the lines I marked.

 

You could of course use 2x 90mm and a single 140/150mm with high pressure and airflow. But snaller fans will have more noise for same amount of air vs. 120mm.


And the bigger fans like 180/200mm have often bigger motor housing. + the air won't go into the ventilation grills on both sides. Aka the small two grills.

 

yes but I think the bigger one has too a good power on positive static pressure, also in both way the escaping air is less than the intaked one

 

All depends... Not all of the bigger fans is as powerful as the best from 140mm and down (See Noctua a well known brand). I wouldn't put my money on it. What I use EK-Furious Vardar(3000rpm)

 

Editing this to move it to its own thread since this isn't Alienware specific.

 

Good day,

While there's been plenty of mixed views regarding the effectiveness of the SF-19, I'd like to hear any experiences regarding the SF-17 instead with 18-inch alienwares. I'm more interested in upright elevation over actual cooling performance, the latter seems to have more of an impact towards temps than the fan does anyway. Though the SF-17 is rated for 17-inch laptops, it looks to be the only the only stand of the market that looks strong enough to take the weight of an M18x R2. It won't be flush but if it gets the job done, that's enough for me. $50 its quite the entry fee just to test the waters blind.

There is also the COOSKIN Ventilated Laptop Stand with no such cooling fan to be found. But with it looking so flimsy and with user reviews using Macbooks as their basis both call its 55kg weight limit and 18-inch laptop rating into suspicion.

So here I am looking for advice.

 

A quick question, is there any difference between the U2, U2 plus, U3, and U3 plus? Can I mod the U2 plus the same way everyone else has modded their U3/U3 plus/U2? I'm asking because I never saw any particular mods for the U2 plus. Is there anything stopping me from doing so?

 

Forget the smaller U2 cooler if you have bigger laptop than 15,6". U2/3 is the predecessor of today's U2/3 Plus models. All of the models can be modded with better, bigger 12v fans. U2(plus)=2x120mm - U3(plus)=3x120mm fans.