SPCR

Well, using Noctua 120mm fans now, running very slow but they can still be heard!!

Can anyone recommend an almost silent 120mm Fan?

What setting (rpm) and what fan exactly do you have? Any fan, unless it is running at 300 or so rpm, can be heard when you try to listen to it up close.

As for what's good, it depends what you want it for.
For general case fan I would say slipstream 800 if you want quiet.
Just look at the fan roundups and see for yourself.

tbh most (decent quality) fans sound very similar at the same rpm, and judging by the reviews on spcr airflow is also pretty close between most of them at the same rpm, so don't expect any wonders there.
The advantage on more expensive fans (like the noctua) is that you get decoupling kits (which may help) and the ability to run the fan at a very wide range of voltages (if you haven't already try the adapter that came with the noctua), they may also stay quiet longer than cheaper fans (although that's very much open to debate, I don't think anyone has thoroughly tested that yet - that'd actually be a very interesting topic for spcr - thb I'd rather buy 1 30$ fan that stays quiet longer than a 15$ fan that gets noisy after half the time or even less...).
What may also make a difference is the type (or the removal) of any mesh or grid in front of the fan (for case mounted fans).

Noctua is running with the RPM reducer. Its the 800RPM Noctua fan.

kel wrote:What may also make a difference is the type (or the removal) of any mesh or grid in front of the fan (for case mounted fans).

Just one this... my Antec 300 has the honeycomb mesh in front of every case fan - would removing this reduce some fan-generated noise?

Thinking of clipping out the mesh on the internal fan cages that are hidden behind the case front.

I did removed all the meshes/fanguards on my case, but for my case (lian-li) they were easily removable in the first place and they were "meshes" (i.e. ~1mm holes) so I didn't have to take any drastic measures like clipping and the fanguards were much more confining than a honeycomb.
If it's a really widely spaced honeycomb the difference might not be that noticeable...

I had some Noctua 92mm and wasn't impressed. I replaced them with Nexus ones.

I replaced the 120mm fans in my Lian-Li B25B with orange Nexus ones and they are okay. I mounted them using the long fan mounts, as the screw holes ar enclosed.

My vote goes for the 800 rpm Slipstream, at 12V it moves a bit less air that a Nexus at 12V, but it's a lot quieter.
I usually keep it at 600 rpm, which is very quiet but not silent, since my Seasonic PSU is much louder, and go to full 800 rpm when gaming.

I use scythe S-Flex 120mm 1200rpm and Kama Flex 92mm 1600rpm exclusively now. I use a zalman fanmate to slow them down to around 7v, which would put their RPM at like 700 and 933rpm respectively.

I cant hear them. the cieling fan in my room makes more noise than my computer. the cieling fan is about 20feet away, my computer is at eye level and around 3 feet away.

I've had other people power on my computer, and then look confused as to why it isnt working, because they couldnt hear it power on.

The only way i can hear them is if i put my ear right up next to the exhaust fan, or open the case and put my ear right up next to it. But i dont use the computer like that, so i dont care.