Verax or Papst? -> Which one is less audible?

PSUs: The source of DC power for all components in the PC & often a big noise source.

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DarkLord
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Verax or Papst? -> Which one is less audible?

Post by DarkLord » Tue Nov 19, 2002 4:15 pm

I want to replace the Fan within my Zalman ZM-300APF and on a sidenote I'd like to get my CPU as quiet as possible (it's an AthlonXP 1700+ Palomino). The case is of special interest as well, because it is a mini tower, where the PSU is mounted right over the CPU.

I looked up a bunch of fans and can't really decide which one would be the quietest, while still providing *just enough* airflow
The fans that are readily available and seem pretty appealing to me are:

I do not really know the exact specs, so i have listed two different specs for several fans, IF my two sources (two silent-hardware shops) differ (IF there were specs for the fan on both sites), the second source is given in italics. unfortunately I don't have any accurate specs for the Verax right now, so any advice on them would be really heldpfull.

Papst 8412NGL (12db(A) | 11db(A), 28m³/h | 33m³/h)
Papst 8412NGLV (10-12dB(A), 28m³/h)
Papst 8412 N/2GML (19dB(A), 39m³/h)
Papst 8412N/2GL (12dB(A), 30m³/h)
Papst 8412NGMLV (12-19dB(A) | 10-19dB(A), 30-39m³/h | 27-45m³/h)
Papst 8412NGML (12-19dB(A), 30-39m³/h)
Verax 80x80 KT
Verax 80x80 Pro KP
(((Noiseblocker)))-UltraSilentFan-S2 Blue (11-19db(A), 23-50m3/h)

And finally:
(((Noiseblocker)))-UltraSilentFan-S2 OEM (19 dB(A), 50m3/h) -> I actually *have* this Unit here, and will be replacing the zalman Fan with this one tomorrow, cause it is pretty quiet compared to the Zalman Fan, but I hope one of the above might help dropping the nosie a little bit more.

Price range for the papst is 15€ - 20€ Papst/Noiseblocker up to 45€ (Verax), so this is more than acceptable

I do not want to spent too much more money on "not-quite-right-yet-sollutions"... if possible at all I'd really like to get the specific components (PSU & CPU) as quiet as possible within my current mini tower right now, even if it might cost that little bit more.

So, what do you think of all those fans? Is anyone of these REALLY quiet and would suit my needs?

DarkLord
Posts: 66
Joined: Tue Oct 01, 2002 2:59 am
Location: Hellenthal, NRW, Germany

Post by DarkLord » Wed Nov 20, 2002 5:45 am

on more thing about the Noiseblocker UltraSilentFan-S2. I actually tested it yesterday with less than 12V. With 12V it is not really quiet. A bit better than the stock Zalman fan maybe, but thats it. now that I did* put it into the Zalman PSU I am poweering it with a simple 3Pin-molex to 4Pin Molex (HDD power connector) adaptor. So this means it gets less power than it should, I', ust not sure if it is 5V or 7V... the red string is connected, not the yellow one.
While it *IS* actually quiet this way, I guess this doesn't do any good to my PSU or the rest of my system, because the airflow coming out from the back is pretty limited..... Now what? I think the noise from the NB-S2 (at 5 / 7V) is alright, but I REALLY did hope for more with another fan maybe at 12V or something. I mean, is this ALL (or even too much) I can hope for, or might one of the fans listed above (maybe the Verax) be quieter than the NB-S2 at 5/7V while giving my PSU a bit more airflow??

Please, help!

DarkLord
Posts: 66
Joined: Tue Oct 01, 2002 2:59 am
Location: Hellenthal, NRW, Germany

Post by DarkLord » Wed Nov 20, 2002 6:08 am

My thoughts.... (but I'm really not a very good advisor to myself on this subject)

Papst 8412NGL (12db(A) | 11db(A), 28m³/h | 33m³/h)
Papst 8412N/2GL (12dB(A), 30m³/h)
(is there really a difference between those two?)

Papst 8412NGLV (10-12dB(A), 28m³/h)
Vario Version of the 8412NGL -> sounds interesting

Verax 80x80 Pro KP
-> well, don't have much data on this one, but it really sounds interesting.. I mean the Fortron PSU seems to be pretty quiet and my Zalman has even better passive cooling than that unit...

(((Noiseblocker)))-UltraSilentFan-S2 Blue (11-19db(A), 23-50m3/h)
Don't know.... looks interesting (transparent / blue chassis) but don't know if it could beat the papst or Verax fans in quiet operation


Not interesting(?):
Verax 80x80 KT -> Verax KP seems to be the better sollution
Papst 8412 N/2GML (19dB(A), 39m³/h) -> too loud(?)

Papst 8412NGML (12-19dB(A), 30-39m³/h)
-> guess I should prefer the 8412NGLV over this one, cause it is quieter and I *guess* the 8412NGLV would give enough airflow to my setup as well.

Papst 8412NGMLV (12-19dB(A) | 10-19dB(A), 30-39m³/h | 27-45m³/h)
-> Vario version of the above... should this one have one certain db(A) rating instead of the 12-19 range?

So, any *real* suggestions? And would any of these be interesting for quiet operation of my AthlonXP 1700+? (If yes, what copper heatsink to choose?)

MikeC
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Post by MikeC » Wed Nov 20, 2002 8:03 am

My 2 cents:

The Papst fans are very suspect in these forums, with umpteens of people reporting poor noise performance due to excessive "clicking" noise. Caveat emptor!

Few seem to have used Vario fans, and even fewer have compared them to others, so little is known. Perhaps you can test the waters. :wink:

DarkLord
Posts: 66
Joined: Tue Oct 01, 2002 2:59 am
Location: Hellenthal, NRW, Germany

Post by DarkLord » Wed Nov 20, 2002 12:25 pm

Thanks for the reply.
Didn't know that Papst were regarded as so 'suspicious' over here, hmmm. I'm talking to some other people in a german silent-board as well, and over there it looks like the Papst 8412NGL seems to be the top product regarding it's silent capabilities.

Well I guess i'll have to find out. the papst are not *that* expensive, so one of them will surely find it's way to my home... question is if i'll havethe money to testthe verax as well.... I'll surely share my thoughts then.

Any more advice would be apppriciated.

JohnMK
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Post by JohnMK » Sat Nov 23, 2002 9:19 pm

There's a certain placebo effect possibly going on. It's a German company, it's got to be good. I just paid $20 for a fan, it's got to be good. ;)

DarkLord
Posts: 66
Joined: Tue Oct 01, 2002 2:59 am
Location: Hellenthal, NRW, Germany

Post by DarkLord » Sun Nov 24, 2002 3:46 am

Hmm I guess one might say so about Verax' Fans, since they are 45€ each.... thats a lot of money for a fan, but neverthe less, most reviewers over here state that they *are* actually pretty quiet, but just don't give a lot of airflow. This is why most people like Papst or Panaflo more... not much (if any) more noise, way better cooling.

But I think the Papst fans are really cheap. I wouldn't considere 14€ (for the 8412 N/2GL) too much, or is it?
Have heard a lot of good stuff from this fan and its slightly louder / more airflow cousin 8412N/2GML over here where i live, but most people here seem to consider the Papsts as too loud, while some reviewers in germany stated that the Papst would beat the panaflo (comparing the Papsts a Panaflo (the 'silent' one, don't recall it's name) and some Vantec and another one).

Well I don't really know, my personal guess is that it's simply about better availability (germany: Papst, USA: Panaflo) and/or where you put your priorities: I *think* (hey, i have been wrong before;) ) that the the papst 8412 N/2GL is actually a bit quieter than the Panaflo but that the Panaflo does produce considerably more airflow... if this is the case, and people start to run their papsts and panaflos @ 5V / 7V / 9V / anything I guess it is really hard to compare even just those two at their different voltages/amounts of airflow to one another....

Oh yeah, I ordered one papst for my Zalman now, maybe i'll see if i can get one of those panaflos as well, since they shouldn't be too expensive. And if it gives me a little less noise, while still producing just enough airflow to keep everything up and alive, I could be a happy panaflo owner as well ;)

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