Performance Drops When Replacing Corsair H100i Fans

hankmarvin · Nov 6, 2013

The internet is full of people replacing the fans that come with the H100i and, well all of the Corsair Hydro series water coolers really. So what I'd like to know is how much of a performance drop do you see after doing this, after all the stock fans have an amazing pressure rating of 4mm-H20, none of the quiet fans I've seen have anywhere near that, even the Quiet High pressure fans Corsair sell are only 1.29mm/H20.

Jake Wenta · Nov 7, 2013

hankmarvin :

There is actually a benefit from replacing these fans. You won't run loud fans at 100% for a couple degrees difference but also 50DBa. Noctuas for example are better, so are cougars. But not just any fan, but the ones recommended for Radiators. Although the Corsair ones that are Stock are okay.
Plus, static pressure is only good for Push fans, and higher CFM for pull. (At least that's how it is in my experience)

Only Listing 120mm Fans (NZXT Kraken Support 140mm)
NF-F-12: 2.61 mmH20 (~20DBa Max)
http://www.noctua.at/main.php?show=productview&products_id=42&lng=en

Akasa: 2.64 mmH20 (Max 16 DBa)
http://www.akasa.com.tw/update.php?tpl=product/product.detail.tpl&no=181&type=Fans&type_sub=PWM%20Control&model=AK-FN057

Corsair SP120 High Performance 3.1 mmH20 35DBa
http://www.corsair.com/en/cpu-cooling-kits/air-series-fans/air-series-sp120-high-performance-edition-high-static-pressure-120mm-fan.html

Cougar CF-v12HP 2.2 mmH20 18DBa
http://www.cougar-world.com/products/fans/vortex_pwm.html

CoolerMaster Excalibur 3.53 mmH20 30DBa
http://www.coolermaster.com/product/Detail/cooling/case-fan/excalibur.html

And if I'm not mistaking, it's 4mm because of 2 fans. 2mmH20 x2=4mmH20.

But you won't be running loud fans at 100% to achieve the cooling unless they're quiet enough. At least that's how I am. Especially at night :lol:

hankmarvin · Nov 7, 2013

Wow what a cool answer my friend, lots of lovely info!.

The generic fans shown in that Pink Floyd graph thingy-me-bob aren't the Corsair fans are they?, just bog standard cheapo's right?...I wonder how the Corsair triangle would look, a big old boy I'd guess!.

The first thing is that I was actually intending to run the fans at full all the time, I find fan noise hypnotic and relaxing, and I was led to believe that 4mm/H20 was per fan, I will try to find out.

I have a load of really quiet fans which are Arctic Cooling F12's, I've mailed the company to try and find out the static pressure rating because
all I can find is "they have good static pressure" which is not very helpful when putting a system together or buying components. But I did my not very scientific tissue test last night, I fold a square of toilet tissue up into four and place it on top of the radiator with two different fans underneath, the F12's just sat there occasionally jiggling a bit, and the Stock Corsair ones it blew it straight off, indicating to me at least that you do need high power fans to effectively move air through the radiator grill. If the corsair ones are actually only 2mm/H20 the fans you listed would be a very good option. More specifically the Akasa Apache

Don't get me wrong I'm not opposed to changing the fans or buying new ones all over again, I just want the best performing fans for the job, ideally yes the quieter the better.

I will also be using a shroud mainly to reduce the noise the fans make.

Oh and my fans would be pushing the air not pulling, I might add pull ones though if there's space and it makes a difference to the performance.

Calculatron · Nov 7, 2013

The stock fans are most likely to perform better than the F12 fans, but the F12 fans will still do the job. I wouldn't be surprised if the difference is ~5C, but fan reviews and comparisons are all over the place. (There are round-ups which show the Arctic F12 barely beating out the Noctua NF-F12s in terms of decibels and thermal performance.)

On both my Enermax ETS-T40 and Arctic A30 Freezer, the absolute performance of an F12 fan compared to a Corsair SP120 Performance edition is ~3C. I have a Cougar fan, that that operates at 1C less than the Corsair SP120, but has far more desirable acoustics.

If you already have the Arctic F12 fans, go ahead and try them out. Use Prime95 for about an hour, then switch fans, rinse and repeat. Then share with us! For science!

toolmaker_03 · Nov 7, 2013

Ok why I pull air rather than push air through my radiator
Well all the radiator filters are designed to be attached to the radiator, thus the fans would need to pull air through the radiator for the filter to work.
I use shrouds on my radiators between the fans and have always placed them in a pull position from the radiator as this setup will also prevent large particles from getting to the fans like hair these types of things tend to shorten the life span of a fan, so placing them in the pull position will extend the life of the expensive fans that where just purchased.

here is one in a push pull config, i do not have any type of filter setup for it yet, but i am considering a single filter per fan setup for the intake fans.

hankmarvin · Nov 7, 2013

This is how I interpret the other fan choices based purely on numbers:

CoolerMaster Excalibur 3.53 mm H20 30DBa (Reported to be very loud at maximum speeds by the way, if they weren't loud these seem like the best choice)

Corsair SP120 High Performance 3.1 mmH20 35DBa
(the stock fans are only 2 Db louder and you gain an extra 1mm/H2o)

Cougar CF-v12HP 2.2 mmH20 18DBa
(about half the static pressure and noise, so in my simplistic mind that must equal half the performance although I know it can't)

The Noctua work out better at more than half the static pressure at about half the Dd level, if they perform as well then that's great.

The F12's are about equal if not better performance wise according to our friend Calculation, so I will do a comparison between them and the Stock Fans when I get it set up (just waiting for my RAM to arrive)

The Akaska Apache's look to work out at about half the H2O/mm and half the noise.

I know that real world performance is a completely different kettle of fish and testing things out on your own rig is the only real way of knowing, so I will and I will report back here after, but I just wondered if anyone had noted their temperatures before and after they changed over to the quieter fans and if so what was the temperature difference.

Oh and I will be Push/Pulling by the way.

hankmarvin · Nov 7, 2013

Anyone tried the Delta 120x25mm FFB1212EH High Speed Case Fan's?...

Jake Wenta · Nov 7, 2013

hankmarvin :

Rated at 56DBa :ouch:

But 11.3 mmH20 Wow! :bounce:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835213006

:lol: The newegg Reviews :lol:

Use a fan controller and turn down for day-to-day operating. Can be used for hair drying.

Don't stick a finger into it.

most of the time I have to manually get the fan going for it to start spinning.

Here's Something to take into consideration:

And every 10DBa is twice as loud,so 40 is 4 times as loud as 20 decibels, and 80 is 64 times as loud as 30 DBa.

hankmarvin · Nov 7, 2013

he he he! I bet that would cool er down though, I just have to put my PC in the next room is all!

Jake Wenta · Nov 7, 2013

Another thing to note, and it was stated. The ratings are wrong, I don't think they run the fans at 100% during rating. Because I have 38DBa fans, and at 75% they are 38DBa. But at 100%, they are ~55DBa. Huge increase in sound. Almost 4 times louder.

Here's an example-I don't own this:
It states 30DBa Max:
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Raijintek/Aidos/

But tested, it hit 50DBa
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Raijintek/Aidos/7.html

hankmarvin · Nov 7, 2013

bloody hell!, also I just found out that the 4mm/H20 is the lowest the Corsairs will perform, they were originally rated 4-7mm/H20!. I think I will be sticking with the stock fans, at the end of the day Corsair know what they're doing and they were the ones who matched the fans to the radiator in the first place. And the radiator is quite dense, "each fin being 8mm wide and is separated by a mere 1.5mm making the array very dense"

http://www.vortez.net/articles_pages/corsair_hydro_series_h100i_review,4.html

Also I think when we talk about the stock fans themselves there are 2 different sets that Corsair sent out with the kits, mine are the square type, not the ones that look like the quiet performance ones they sell now. I don't know whether mine comes from old stock, I suppose they do but I've contacted Corsair about it as obviously I want the best ones on my set up. Any information about these would be good to know if anyone is in the know?.

Calculatron · Nov 8, 2013

hankmarvin :

Here are two of the round-ups that show the Arctic F12s on par with the Noctua NF-F12s. In both cases, the lead that the Arctic Fans have on the Noctua fans are ~2C and <5db. They are both within a margin of error, and are narrow enough difference to be considered negligible.

http://www.overclock.net/t/1274407/fans-the-most-complete-and-comprehensive-array-of-tests-and-benchmarks

http://www.vortez.net/articles_pages/120mm_and_140mm_fan_comparison,19.html

To say that only these two round-ups provide definitive truth would be folly, but the fact that they achieved these results does say something. *Shrugs* just food for thought.

hankmarvin · Nov 8, 2013

Yep food for thought indeed especially considering the price difference between the Arctic Cooling F12's (£4.40) and the Noctua (£16-£17), you can basically get four ACF12's for one Noctua!.

toolmaker_03 · Nov 8, 2013

noctura can get the prices there asking because there is nothing better for preformance to noise level ratio than there fans.

Calculatron · Nov 8, 2013

Someone took a glance at the links.

hankmarvin · Nov 8, 2013

I'm also thinking about making a duct that attaches from the rear exhaust (set as intake) that connects directly to the air intake of the H100i. So the cool air from outside the case is drawn in directly to the cooler and exhausted out the top vents, just gotta figure out how now brown cow.

toolmaker_03 · Nov 8, 2013

look if you really want to get the best kind of air flow through that radiator your best bet is to mount it off the back of your case.

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/10347/ex-rad-179/XSPC_Radiator_Mounting_Bracket_Set_-_632_Thread.html?tl=g30c637s1731

or off the top like i did

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/9728/koo-195/Koolance_Radiator_Shroud_Mounting_Bracket_-_Black_Plate_BKT-HX003BK.html?tl=g30c637s1731

hankmarvin · Nov 8, 2013

I would but the Corsair H100i's pipes aren't long enough, plus I like tinkering!

Jake Wenta · Nov 8, 2013

toolmaker_03 :

It's so sexy!

That's similar to what I did-made another 140mm slot on the top of my case, and placed the Kraken on top

But I didn't raise it up with brackets, I just mounted the fans to the case with silicone padding in between the case and fans

Jake Wenta · Nov 8, 2013

hankmarvin :

If you are going to invest ~ 100 into the cooler, ~30 for fans and who knows how much for modifying. Why don't you get this 360mm Radiatore Custom Loop kit from XSPC]
http://www.frozencpu.com/products/21236/ex-wat-271/XSPC_Raystorm_750_EX360_Extreme_Universal_CPU_Water_Cooling_Kit_New_Rev_4_Pump_Included_w_Free_Dead-Water.html?tl=g30

Jake Wenta · Nov 8, 2013

toolmaker_03 :

I have a 140mm noctua on my cablebox right now cooling it :lol:
I'm testing it at 100% speed for ` week to see if there will be any deficiencies.
(I have the coolest cablebox of them all :lol

toolmaker_03 · Nov 8, 2013

That is a pretty good idea; I did not start off with using nice stands I tried out different configurations using 3 ½” bay converters, until I found a configuration that I liked.

Then I bought a radiator stand that worked in that radiator orientation, there are stands for every configuration possible.

hankmarvin · Nov 8, 2013

Jake Wenta :

Because I already have the H100i, I already have the fans from previous builds, and I live in the UK (that shop is in the US). But it looks really good and I would prefer a triple radiator set up as it would fit nicely on my Corsair 800D!, and it looks sexy. BAD JAKE! stop it!

hankmarvin · Nov 8, 2013

You fellas have mental (good) set ups!

Jake Wenta · Nov 8, 2013

hankmarvin :

I'm sorry :lol:

toolmaker_03 :

That's neat, but why the tiny fans? Is it for the mmH20? (Because the small ones get LOUD.

I would take pictures of my rig, but my phones broken :lol:.
Lasted two years

Performance Drops When Replacing Corsair H100i Fans

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