Best Case Fan??

[Storm1234]

I'm trying to choose what I should get out of these or any others that are real quite and perform. My main goal is silence with good airflow. Here are my choices as of right now.

Arctic Cooling Case Fan 56.3 CFM 24.5 dBA $7.99
ENERMAX UC-12EB 44CFM 17DB $10.99 +4.99 Shipping
Global Win 41.70CFM 19 DB $5.95
Nexus 36.87CFM 22.8 DB $13.95
SilenX 58CFM 14 DB $29.95 +$6 Shipping
Yate Loons 47CFM 28 DB $5.95


Ill probably get more then 1 of the best 1 or 2, or a few different of them.

What ones should I get?
And also can someone find me a nice fan filter and a fan Grill? Thanks alot

Thanks for any suggestions / opinions. Storm~

 

[Lionhardt]

I believe Noctua owns the award for best quiet/airflow fans, as well as the most xpensive.

$20 a fan anyone?

 

[Lionhardt]

lol, Tacos ur 1 min ahead of me posting these answers.

;(
hahah

 

[Oldguy]

take a look at scythe s-flex. 3 models, each at different speeds/cfm and sound. Slowest 800rpm at 8db, fastest 1600rpm at 20+. I use different fans in different locations. e.g. front intake low rpm/silent. mid case intake mid rpm, still cannot hear it and exhaust 2 high speeds but venting location rear makes them almost inaudible.

 

[tehrobzorz]

you evil taco :twisted:



ill eat you up xP

 

[Ycon]

Scythe SFlex 800rpm
Look. No. Further.

 

[Storm1234]

Well which one should I get exactly, or ones that I should try out. According to my picks from dba and cfm ratings the SilentX wins but it also costs 36$ for 1.
So I'm not sure what to get if there the best I dont mind 36$ to try em out.

Can someone provide me with a link to a website with a Noctua in-stock, iv'e looked on sites that I know.

And also could someone give me a link to good fan grill's & 120mm Fan Filters.


Very much appreciated. Thank you Storm~

 

[plguzman]

Don't know about the other fans, But I have 3 Silenx Ixtrema installed in my case and they are very, very quiet fans and move lots of air. Great fans, expensive tho.

They are in stock @ Frozencpu. $19.99.

Silenx @ Frozencpu

 

[Storm1234]

One of my fans I will be modding on my case side panel so I can do without the filter as u suggested, but I need something to attach it to, probably a grill in less u have a different idea.

Thanks for any suggestions or ideas. Storm~

 

[raytracer06]

They're not in your list, but personnally I've been pretty satisfied with Akasa PaxPower fans. they're certainly not the best fans available, but they are almost inaudible, and their pricing is quite interresting.

On the other hand, I've been very disappointed with Noiseblocker fans : I bought two 8cm S2 fans, and one of them was vibrating from the beginning, and the other one became noisy after only a few months. Maybe I was just unlucky, but given the price of noiseblocker fans, I expected something better.

anyway, the Akasa fans I bought to replace them were far better, and also 3 times less expensive...

 

[eckre]

you will be pleased with nexus

http://www.silentpcreview.com/article63-page1.html

 

[nvalhalla]

I'm trying to choose what I should get out of these or any others that are real quite and perform. My main goal is silence with good airflow. Here are my choices as of right now.

Arctic Cooling Case Fan 56.3 CFM 24.5 dBA $7.99
ENERMAX UC-12EB 44CFM 17DB $10.99 +4.99 Shipping
Global Win 41.70CFM 19 DB $5.95
Nexus 36.87CFM 22.8 DB $13.95
SilenX 58CFM 14 DB $29.95 +$6 Shipping
Yate Loons 47CFM 28 DB $5.95


Ill probably get more then 1 of the best 1 or 2, or a few different of them.

What ones should I get?
And also can someone find me a nice fan filter and a fan Grill? Thanks alot

Thanks for any suggestions / opinions. Storm~

I am by no means an expert on silent cooling, but I think the S-flex deserves a look as well. 63.7 CFM at 28 db is good, and they're 15 bucks at newegg

 

[stefx]

you will be pleased with nexus

http://www.silentpcreview.com/article63-page1.html

Yeah I got 4 x Noctua fans, they are awesome.

 

[bberson]

I tried a couple of 120mm Noctua fans and yeah, they're quiet, but they exhibit really weird behavior when anything, even a mediocre grille, is placed too close to either the intake or the output side of the fan. When I tried them I initially thought maybe I had them in backward, the air flow was so poor. Go ahead and use 'em if you want but you may have to remove or cut out your fan grille(s) completely and take care not to have obstructions or perpendicular airflows too close to the intake.

On my newest system I ended up yanking the Noctuas and replaced them with a couple of Scythe S-Flex S-FDB fans instead, and I'm quite happy with the results.

-Brad

 

[ZozZoz]

Scythe S-Flex (F-grade at 1600rpm) coupled with an RPM regulator (fanmate for instance).

Scythe Minibea are equally as good, and may be even better.

 

[bullaRh]

i have Noctua NF-S12-1200 and it pushes the air pretty good and is very silent even with my fan grill :b so i cant see what the problem is? unless u bought the 800 version

 

[bberson]

Nope, I definitely the 1200 version (NF-S12-1200), and those two Noctua fans I bought performed identically. It was the darnedest thing I've ever seen. They did seem to push air fine until they were mounted, then it went to hell. Motherboard confirmed no problem with rotation speed, just something about that nifty quiet fan blade design that doesn't take well to the slightest obstruction.

If you want to try a very un-scientific experiment, take a Noctua and something else fairly competitive for RPM and airflow, just connect them to a 12v source and leave them standing on edge on a desk. Spread your fingers across the width of the fan frame and move them to within an inch or so of the intake on one, then feel the output air flow. Then try it on the other.

The Scythe fans seemed to be much better performers when mounted. I also have a set of Artic Cooling fans (the new PWM+PST units) that I've been fiddling with, that seem to be excellent performers and are not bothered by minor obstructions.

The Noctua fans are now in my "to be eBay'd" box. If you think they're great then go right ahead and bid on 'em when I post them next week.

In the interest of science, if someone can tell me how to CHEAPLY build an apparatus to reliably measure air flow for a 120mm fan, I'll do it and show everyone in nice clear numbers, exactly what I'm yakking about. I have a good Fluke DVM, a freshly charged motorcycle battery and lots of duct tape. If I can't build a test rig I could at least make an interesting movie...

Until then, you can find a lot of articles that discuss the frequently disappointing relationships between the free flow air measurements that fan manufacturers proudly tout, and static pressure.

-Brad

 

[omgitslong]

SilenX iXtrema 120mm x 25mm 14dBA 72CFM $22
SilenX IXtrema 120mm x 38mm 18dBA 90CFM $23


SilenX homepage

 

[Storm1234]

@ Taco's

So if you had to choose 2 fans for silence which one's would you choose?

Thanks very much Storm~

 

[raytracer06]

I would add that even at the same noise level, it depends on the kind of noise the fan makes. some noises are more disturbing than others.

And the simple fact of having a grill near the fan will change its noise.

The noise level of a PC is something very subjective... generally, you're OK with your computer, until the day you work on something more silent... after that, your computer's noise becomes unbearable, even if it didn't disturb you at all before.

 

[rdhood]

From the cheapskate's point of view:

I would get the Yate Loons... often available at $3 shipped or less. If you go to silentpcreview, you'll see that the Nexus fan and the Yate Loons are *the same* fan, except that Nexus has been engineered to run at lower rpm/sound. You can undervolt the Yate Loons and lose a little CFM and be as silent as just about any fan listed.

The Global Win is probably the best value of the bunch... if you can find them.

The Noctua and Scythe are just too expensive. I could outfit three computers with two Yate Loons each for the price of one Noctua


BTW, I went with Yate Loon 120s in case exhaust and PSU, Scythe Minibea in 92mm intake, and Scythe Mini Kaze on NB.

 

[proof]

The absolute best case fan is the Noctua 120mm. It also just so happens to be one of the quietest.

 

[proof]

Hahahaha! Touche. But they are almost silent and move much more air than you would expect. They are just all around, great quality, low noise, high flow, fans. Its so hard to tell what is quality now with all these freakin' colors and LEDs and $hit. The Noctua stuff is quality.

 

[Storm1234]

One thing I'm not getting is that Antec TriCool fans on high push 79cfm and are rated at 30dba. Yate loons are rated 47cfm and 28 dba.

So either the ratings don't mean anything, or the yate loons aren't better, cause i have 2 Antec TriCool fans and they are loud!! on high.

According to all that, yate loons are only 2 dba quieter but push 30cfm less.


So are they really gonna be better then my Antec TriCool's?

Thanks Storm~

 

[brshelton]

Have you looked at yate loons blade shape? Thats sorta whats unique about noctua. IMHO it doesnt matter if theyre made at the same factory in asia if they aren't the same design. Noctua FTW or for cheaper Scythe. EDIT Antec Tri Cools suck I hate mine EDIT