H90 cooler - questions

Just installed an H90 closed-loop CPU cooler. So far so good, but then...

... I went and read the instructions. The last page said to install the radiator with the hoses at the bottom. I never thought about it and have mine installed with hoses at the top. Apart from some bubbling noises for the first five minutes, it seems OK - temps about 42C idle up to mid 70s under 100% CPU on Prime95, CPU is a i7-3770 (non-K), 3.9GHz. Does this seem OK?

Also, just realised my motherboard supports voltage-based CPU fan speed control. Currently this is enabled and the pump is running about 760rpm at CPU idle, have seen it jump to around 1200rpm and around 1500rpm. Am I asking for trouble leaving it like this or is this OK?

My H50 reaches 66 Celsius under load. 34 Celsius idle.

i7 4790k

I don't expect gravity really comes into it as my radiator is on its side and at the bottom of the case.

I don't let the motherboard control the pump speed btw, I have voltage control turned off. It can only do 50% or 100%.

Technically, it doesn't really matter how you position the hoses, it can really go either way with no performance difference. IIRC, the only reason why it was recommended to have it below the pump is to prevent the loop from making that bubbling sound from time to time. Otherwise, having the hoses top or bottom is a non-issue in the grand scheme of things.

Your temp are ok, and expect that to go a few degrees lower in a couple of days once the cooler's TIM has fully cured. And btw, I'd suggest that you keep the pump at max rpm (100%) all the time. You want the pump to be consistent for optimal cooling. So if you have it connected to a fan header that has smart temp control, disable it so the pump gets 12v all the time (as said above).

Thanks to both of you. Out of interest, what is the RPM of the pump at 100%?

Yeah, no problem at all. Pump speed is around ~1500rpm.