Which PWM, CPU or Specialty Fan do you Want SPCR to Review?

Control: management of fans, temp/rpm monitoring via soft/hardware

Moderators: NeilBlanchard, Ralf Hutter, sthayashi, Lawrence Lee

Which PWM or Specialty Fan do you Want Reviewed?

The new Variable Scythe PWM fans
18
17%
Akasa Apache with Akasa PWM Y Splitter
9
8%
Arctic Cooling PWM fans (with multiple fan linking option)
21
19%
Both NoiseBlocker PWM pans
8
7%
Oldies but Goodies - Scythe Kama & Nexus PWM
6
6%
Dorothy Bradbury's high impedance NMB-MAT RB-12025-L & NMB-MAT RB-12025-H
1
1%
Feser/Noiseblocker Triebwerk TK-121 120x55mm 1200 RPM
2
2%
Thermalright TR-FDB-1000 & TR-FDB-2000
1
1%
San Ace Pulled from the Seasonic X 650
2
2%
Noctua, Scythe, Noiseblocker & Yate Loon slow 140mm fans
13
12%
Silverstone 700 rpm 180mm FN181-BL with matching filter
1
1%
Silverstone 120mm & 180mm Air Penetrator AP121
12
11%
Nexus BeamAir 120mm Fan Airflow Straightener
1
1%
Nanoxia PWMX (converts non-PWM fans to PWM)
1
1%
Other (choose this option, then leave details below)
13
12%
 
Total votes: 109

ces
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Which PWM, CPU or Specialty Fan do you Want SPCR to Review?

Post by ces » Sun Apr 04, 2010 10:24 am

Which PWM, CPU or Specialty Fan do you Want SPCR to Review?

1. If you choose "other", leave a message indicating what "other" fan.

2. If you want to see testing of specific attributes, leave a message.

3. If you want to see specific types of testing, leave a message.

4. If you have any input or a specific view point that needs to be heard, leave a message.

IF YOU DON'T VOTE, DON'T COMPLAIN

danimal
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Post by danimal » Sun Apr 04, 2010 2:48 pm

good thread ces

ces
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Post by ces » Sun Apr 04, 2010 4:02 pm

danimal wrote:good thread ces
As they say in Chicago, vote early and vote often.

nyu3
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Location: Canada

Post by nyu3 » Sun Apr 04, 2010 4:30 pm

I wish this is a "choose 3 items" kind of poll. Anyways, I voted for the Noiseblocker fans.

* NoiseBlocker PWM pans: Noiseblock has been getting a lot of good reviews from other sites. The previous generation NoiseBlocker fans were SPCR recommended. I'd like to know how much of an improvement the new fans are.

* San Ace Pulled from the Seasonic X 650: would be interested in the results, even though these are impossible to buy.

* Silverstone 120mm & 180mm Air Penetrator AP121: obviously, this fan will have high turbulence noise. The question is how much better it performs (or maybe not at all).
Last edited by nyu3 on Sun Apr 04, 2010 4:49 pm, edited 2 times in total.

ces
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Post by ces » Sun Apr 04, 2010 4:39 pm

Here is the specs on the family of NMB fans that Dorothy Bradbury sells:
http://www.nmbtc.com/cgi-bin/start.cgi/ ... _size=4.69
These are the two 120mm models she sells:
4710KL-04W-B10
4710KL-04W-B50
(her exact models may have slightly higher grade bearings and electronics)

If you click on the PDF on the above page on NMbtc's website, you can see detailed graphs of their performance. Notice the relationship between impedance and CFM.

NMB fans tend to have a fairly smooth slope. Most the fans take a big hit in CFM when they hit a certain back pressure point. In the NMB fans this wall is less pronounced than many others. A good flexible CPU fan should have a smooth slope on that graph.

I believe that most good case fans likely have a bigger and earlies drop of off performance against high impedance.

I would like to see Mike find a fan with well documented Specs like the 4710KL-04W-B50 and use it as a reference fan to compare against other CPU fans.

I really wonder, what does that graph look like for the Nexus, the Slipstream, the Sflex and the Noctua? I think knowing that might help us better select certain fans for certain situations.
Last edited by ces on Sun Apr 04, 2010 5:20 pm, edited 2 times in total.

ces
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Post by ces » Sun Apr 04, 2010 4:42 pm

nyu3 wrote:I wish this is a "choose 3 items" kind of poll. Anyways, I voted for the Noiseblocker fans. Go back, use the edit function and bold the names of the additional fans. It makes it easier to scan the messages and see what people are most interested in - that they didn't have enough votes to vote for.
Go back and use the edit function to bold the names of the extra fans you were not able to vote for. It makes it easier to scan the messages and see which fans are of most interest to those who didn't have enough votes to vote on all they wanted.

ces
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Location: US

Post by ces » Sun Apr 04, 2010 4:46 pm

nyu3 wrote:San Ace Pulled from the Seasonic X 650: would be interested in the results, even though these are impossible to buy.
Not exactly true, but at around $150 it would be the most expensive fan you ever bought :) Though I think I have seen the local Microcenter selling Noiseblockers for prices approaching $50.
Last edited by ces on Mon Apr 05, 2010 7:48 am, edited 1 time in total.

ces
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Post by ces » Sun Apr 04, 2010 4:49 pm

nyu3 wrote:Silverstone 120mm & 180mm Air Penetrator AP121: obviously, this fan will have high turbulence noise. The question is how much better it performs (or maybe not at all).
That isn't that obvious to me. You may be right, but I think it would be worth testing to see if in fact that is so - and if so, to what extent.

ces
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Post by ces » Sun Apr 04, 2010 5:41 pm

ces wrote:I would like to see Mike find a fan with well documented Specs like the 4710KL-04W-B50 and use it as a reference fan to compare against other CPU fans.

I really wonder, what does that graph look like for the Nexus, the Slipstream, the Sflex and the Noctua? I think knowing that might help us better select certain fans for certain situations.
Here is an example where that kind of information might be helpful:

Rear fan gets louder when I close the case
viewtopic.php?t=58353&highlight=

funklizard
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Post by funklizard » Sun Apr 04, 2010 8:14 pm

I voted for the Noiseblockers, too. I've actually already got a couple of M12-P fans (mounted for intake) and they're pretty quiet. I think most of the noise I hear from them is actually wind noise introduced by the filter screen they draw air through.

But another fan I'd like to see reviewed that no one has mentioned is the Scythe Slip Stream PWM (SY1225SL12LM-P). I've got one of these and it seems very quiet. Its spec'd CFM rating of 74.25 is impressive; however, I'm so far not terribly impressed with its performance as a CPU fan. In fact, I'm going to try replacing it with a Noiseblocker XLP.

I'd also like to add my voice to those expressing interest in the forthcoming Silverstone AP121. In fact, I'll broaden this a bit: it would be great to see some special attention given to preferred applications for fans that promise a higher static pressure. Comparing these fans to some more conventional choices could be very interesting.

ces
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Post by ces » Sun Apr 04, 2010 10:47 pm

funklizard wrote: it would be great to see some special attention given to preferred applications for fans that promise a higher static pressure. Comparing these fans to some more conventional choices could be very interesting.
I agree.

Flanker
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Location: New Zealand

Post by Flanker » Mon Apr 05, 2010 12:14 am

quite interested to see some numbers of these gelid fans that claims to be silent

ces
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Post by ces » Mon Apr 05, 2010 7:53 am

Missing in Action:
I should have included the Scythe Gentle Typhoons as well as the standard Scythe Slipstream PWM fan without the variable controls, in the list options to vote on.

trident
Posts: 56
Joined: Sat Jan 13, 2007 10:16 am
Location: Indiana, U.S.A.

Post by trident » Mon Apr 05, 2010 7:16 pm

Voted other, would like a review of 92mm and 120mm
Scythe Gentle Typhoons

eddieck
Posts: 56
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Location: Tucson, AZ

Post by eddieck » Wed Apr 07, 2010 8:45 am

GT!

axee
Posts: 170
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Location: Slovenia

Post by axee » Thu Apr 08, 2010 6:02 am

AC F12 PWM

and

Slipstream PWM

bozar
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Location: Sweden

Post by bozar » Thu Apr 08, 2010 6:28 am

I want a review of several fans, PWM from Scythe and Arctic Cooling as well non PWM fans from BE Quiet, Scythe GT and Thermalright.

loimlo
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Location: Formosa

Post by loimlo » Thu Apr 08, 2010 8:46 am

Aside from FDB series, Thermalright has also released X-Silent 120 which is very quiet from my experience. I would like to see them being reviewed by SPCR.

Joytoy
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Contact:

Post by Joytoy » Tue Apr 13, 2010 9:56 am

I have thermalright X Silent 140.
Good fan, but IMHO, I prefer the Noiseblocker PK-1 because is a little more silent.
Also, I love the FDB S-Flex motor @ <700rpm

Joy!

Dezeer
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Location: Finland

Post by Dezeer » Tue Apr 13, 2010 9:27 pm

Well I already answered for 140mm fans, but I would specifically like to see Coolink 120mm fans, Noiseblocker M12-S1 and S2, PK1 and XK1 and Scythe gentle typhoons. And I would like to have my mind blown away with some really good 140mm fan.

nutball
*Lifetime Patron*
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Post by nutball » Wed Apr 14, 2010 5:11 am

I'm going to add a vote for the new Scythe PWM Slipstreams.

QuietCat
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Post by QuietCat » Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:37 pm

bozar wrote:I want a review of several fans, PWM from Scythe and Arctic Cooling as well non PWM fans from BE Quiet, Scythe GT and Thermalright.
+1

Shai-tan
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Location: NZ

Post by Shai-tan » Thu Apr 22, 2010 4:30 pm

What about the new Noctua NF-S12B range? They are proven to be a lot better that the original NF-S12 fans reviewed on SPCR.

physROCKS
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Post by physROCKS » Sun Apr 25, 2010 10:53 pm

The new Variable Scythe PWM fans

and

Arctic Cooling F12 PWM fans (with multiple fan linking option)

Copyright
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Post by Copyright » Mon Apr 26, 2010 10:00 am

I just ordered 3 of the Arctic Cooling PWM fans with linking. Really looking forward to trying them out.

cmthomson
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Post by cmthomson » Tue Apr 27, 2010 1:43 pm

I recently replaced my very old P5W motherboard with a P5Q, which requires a 4-pin PWM CPU fan if you want to control the speed.

I had a Nexus 120mm PWM fan lying around (bought some time ago on a whim), so I stuck it in.

Very disappointing. At 12V, this fan is loud and obnoxious (over 1800RPM, with a hum/buzz in addition to the whoosh). Rebooting with this fan is an ordeal.

At 4% :shock: in SpeedFan (600 RPM), it is quite a bit louder than a classic orange Nexus at that RPM. It doesn't click, but it does kind of buzz. Still, at this speed, buried deep inside a P180, it can't be heard. So it's good enough, just disappointing.

cordis
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my vote

Post by cordis » Tue Apr 27, 2010 2:38 pm

I voted for the 140mm fans, but I'm really intrigued by the silverstone air penetrator fans, I haven't seen any reports on those at all, it'd be very interesting to see if they lived up to their claims.

ascl
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Post by ascl » Tue Apr 27, 2010 3:01 pm

Scythe GT, some newer San Ace (ie 9S1212L401) and any and all 140mm fans.

compet_pl
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Location: Poland

Be quiet! SilentWings

Post by compet_pl » Thu Apr 29, 2010 4:00 pm

Be quiet!
SilentWings USC (3-pin)
SilentWings PWM (4-pin)
http://www.be-quiet.net/be-quiet.net/in ... iteLang=en

widdlecat
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Post by widdlecat » Wed May 05, 2010 9:34 am

I'd love to see a review of quality quiet 180mm fans! Does Nexus, Scythe or Noctua have a 180mm fan in the future? Surely Silverstone aren't the only source of 180mm fans are they? I'd like to see fans that can fit in the raven / fortress ft-02 cases.
Last edited by widdlecat on Fri May 07, 2010 7:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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