Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
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Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
Hardware Scientist just uploaded his 140mm fan review.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rv1S9Rh ... ploademail
Winner by a landslide is the Arctic P14
Previous 120mm review:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVPV9omPuyw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rv1S9Rh ... ploademail
Winner by a landslide is the Arctic P14
Previous 120mm review:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVPV9omPuyw
Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
This review paints a bit different picture: The Best 120mm/140mm Case Fan Shootout, feat. Arctic, BlackNoise, Noctua, and Scythe
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUdsTiRmuuU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUdsTiRmuuU
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Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
Thanks. That's interesting. TBG uses more data points and holds noise as a fixed variable, which is probably a better way of doing a test. I don't know why he doesn't test dual fans in front though, since a lot of builds are configured that way.Tzupy wrote: ↑Sat Jul 11, 2020 2:28 pmThis review paints a bit different picture: The Best 120mm/140mm Case Fan Shootout, feat. Arctic, BlackNoise, Noctua, and Scythe
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUdsTiRmuuU
Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
Very interesting reviews, although not that similar in terms of who won.
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Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
Using 3600x + Gammax 400.
Next, x4 955 + stock cooler (which I have nicknamed "helicopter" because of it's noise), it's beautiful. I use different office software (Excel, WorkTime, Skype) and did not even hear it work(1st time I was scared).
Next, x4 955 + stock cooler (which I have nicknamed "helicopter" because of it's noise), it's beautiful. I use different office software (Excel, WorkTime, Skype) and did not even hear it work(1st time I was scared).
Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
In the Hardware Scientist test the case fans are tested essentially in free air as they are set up as exhaust fans. That means there's no filter or any other obstruction in front of the fans. The results are thus invalid for an actual case intake fan scenario.
The Silent Wings 3 for instance is horrible as an intake fan against a mesh filter, even though it is nearly silent in free air.
This review by TBG tests the fans against a mesh filter and the results are dramatically different.
The Silent Wings 3 for instance is horrible as an intake fan against a mesh filter, even though it is nearly silent in free air.
This review by TBG tests the fans against a mesh filter and the results are dramatically different.
Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
I wish we could have SPCR did the testing, to many people have different results and preferences.
You can also see the Noctua vs. Arctic, Nidec - Ultimate 120mm Fan Re-match!, which favors noctua, and compares lots of the same fans as TBG tests.
Scythe GentleTyphoons (now marketed as the original OEM Nidecs) were considered one of the best radiator fans on the market by the watercooling community, they perform well behind very restricted high fpi rads, Even SPCR liked them, Fan Roundup #6: Scythe, Noiseblocker, Antec, Nexus, Thermalright
You can also see the Noctua vs. Arctic, Nidec - Ultimate 120mm Fan Re-match!, which favors noctua, and compares lots of the same fans as TBG tests.
Scythe GentleTyphoons (now marketed as the original OEM Nidecs) were considered one of the best radiator fans on the market by the watercooling community, they perform well behind very restricted high fpi rads, Even SPCR liked them, Fan Roundup #6: Scythe, Noiseblocker, Antec, Nexus, Thermalright
And noctua practically ninjaed their design, and perfected it on the NF-A12x25, for me... that would be my pick for rads/heatsink and heavily filter intakes.The GT 800 RPM model is extremely quiet, yet provides the best cooling result of all the fans in this roundup at 12 dBA@1m. No other fan provides 24°C temperature rise.
The GT 1450 RPM model is also very quiet for its cooling performance. The 19°C temperature riseat the 20 dBA SPL (at full speed) is comparable to what the big Thermalright 17cm can achieve at the same noise level. No other 120mm fan in this roundup does as well.
The standouts for me are the Noiseblocker M12-S1 and the Scythe Gentle Typhoon 12, for amazingly low noise and excellent cooling performance at those low sound levels.
Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
This test has the same flaw as the Hardware Scientist test. They only test the fan noise levels in free air with no mesh filter or any other obstruction in front of them. That makes a huge difference for some fans, like the Silent Wings 3.Abula wrote: ↑Sun Aug 30, 2020 7:44 pmYou can also see the Noctua vs. Arctic, Nidec - Ultimate 120mm Fan Re-match!, which favors noctua, and compares lots of the same fans as TBG tests.
I know not all PC cases have dust filters on intakes but I for one would not use a case that doesn't have any. The NZXT case they use is an outlier in that it does have a dust filter but it is not directly in front of the fans.
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Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
I picked up a Noiseblocker fan recently at a big sale. I haven't got around to installing it yet. Reading the reviews on it talking about how it channels the air flow instead of spreading the air flow out made me think about how a good intake fan might differ from a good exhaust fan.
Would a good exhaust fan have different characteristics from an intake fan? I assume it should be good at sucking air out through itself, rather than having good static pressure against a filter or rad?
Would a good exhaust fan have different characteristics from an intake fan? I assume it should be good at sucking air out through itself, rather than having good static pressure against a filter or rad?
Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
I'm under the impression that static pressure is also important for pulling air through a filter or obstructed intakes (like on most Fractal cases).whispercat wrote: ↑Sun Aug 30, 2020 11:28 pmI picked up a Noiseblocker fan recently at a big sale. I haven't got around to installing it yet. Reading the reviews on it talking about how it channels the air flow instead of spreading the air flow out made me think about how a good intake fan might differ from a good exhaust fan.
Would a good exhaust fan have different characteristics from an intake fan? I assume it should be good at sucking air out through itself, rather than having good static pressure against a filter or rad?
In unobstructed or unfiltered cases a fan with a high airflow but low static pressure, such as the Noctua S12, would do better. They would also make better exhaust fans.
Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
So how much is considered restricted.... DemiC filter like? or a Metallic mesh is enough? there are no standards on the market for this type of settings, thus the review of TBG is also flawed to some point. Until we get something like SPCR doing test, we will be tied to flaw web/youtube reviews.Exel wrote: ↑Sun Aug 30, 2020 10:00 pmThis test has the same flaw as the Hardware Scientist test. They only test the fan noise levels in free air with no mesh filter or any other obstruction in front of them. That makes a huge difference for some fans, like the Silent Wings 3.Abula wrote: ↑Sun Aug 30, 2020 7:44 pmYou can also see the Noctua vs. Arctic, Nidec - Ultimate 120mm Fan Re-match!, which favors noctua, and compares lots of the same fans as TBG tests.
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Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
But wouldn't an exhaust fan need enough static pressure to blow out through the back grill?Exel wrote: ↑Sun Aug 30, 2020 11:34 pmI'm under the impression that static pressure is also important for pulling air through a filter or obstructed intakes (like on most Fractal cases).whispercat wrote: ↑Sun Aug 30, 2020 11:28 pmI picked up a Noiseblocker fan recently at a big sale. I haven't got around to installing it yet. Reading the reviews on it talking about how it channels the air flow instead of spreading the air flow out made me think about how a good intake fan might differ from a good exhaust fan.
Would a good exhaust fan have different characteristics from an intake fan? I assume it should be good at sucking air out through itself, rather than having good static pressure against a filter or rad?
In unobstructed or unfiltered cases a fan with a high airflow but low static pressure, such as the Noctua S12, would do better. They would also make better exhaust fans.
Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
I guess some, but aren't exhaust grills typically quite open?whispercat wrote: ↑Mon Aug 31, 2020 5:26 pmBut wouldn't an exhaust fan need enough static pressure to blow out through the back grill?
Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
You're right that it's hard to test to some sort of a standard where there is none. No test is therefore going to be perfect or representative of all use cases.Abula wrote: ↑Mon Aug 31, 2020 6:31 amSo how much is considered restricted.... DemiC filter like? or a Metallic mesh is enough? there are no standards on the market for this type of settings, thus the review of TBG is also flawed to some point. Until we get something like SPCR doing test, we will be tied to flaw web/youtube reviews.Exel wrote: ↑Sun Aug 30, 2020 10:00 pmThis test has the same flaw as the Hardware Scientist test. They only test the fan noise levels in free air with no mesh filter or any other obstruction in front of them. That makes a huge difference for some fans, like the Silent Wings 3.Abula wrote: ↑Sun Aug 30, 2020 7:44 pmYou can also see the Noctua vs. Arctic, Nidec - Ultimate 120mm Fan Re-match!, which favors noctua, and compares lots of the same fans as TBG tests.
That said, I would guess that the most common setup for dust filtration is having the filter sit flush against the fan frame or the fan mount. That's how aftermarket filters are typically installed as well.
Ideally every case fan test would have the fans tested both directly against a dust filter and pulling through a mesh filter behind and air gap. Those two seem to be the most common mid-range and high-end case types on the market.
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Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
Some are, some aren't. A grill type would be more open than say a honeycomb type. Still, I would imagine some fans would be better than others at pushing air through it. The question is what kind of fan?Exel wrote: ↑Mon Aug 31, 2020 7:26 pmI guess some, but aren't exhaust grills typically quite open?whispercat wrote: ↑Mon Aug 31, 2020 5:26 pmBut wouldn't an exhaust fan need enough static pressure to blow out through the back grill?
Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
The obstructions are in most cases minimal compated to intakes or radiators, so a high-airflow fan would be best in a typical setup.whispercat wrote: ↑Tue Sep 01, 2020 9:30 amSome are, some aren't. A grill type would be more open than say a honeycomb type. Still, I would imagine some fans would be better than others at pushing air through it. The question is what kind of fan?Exel wrote: ↑Mon Aug 31, 2020 7:26 pmI guess some, but aren't exhaust grills typically quite open?whispercat wrote: ↑Mon Aug 31, 2020 5:26 pmBut wouldn't an exhaust fan need enough static pressure to blow out through the back grill?
Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
Yes, but exactly what characteristics you want from the exhaust fan depends on the total setup.whispercat wrote: ↑Sun Aug 30, 2020 11:28 pmWould a good exhaust fan have different characteristics from an intake fan?
* If the exhaust fan is to provide all airflow, with no intake fans present, then it should be (relatively) high flow.
* If you have intake fans and want overpressure then the exhaust fan must be very low flow, as it's operating at a negative pressure gradient and should only direct some (not all) airflow away from other openings in the case.
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Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
Thanks, what do you mean by "overpressure"?Olle P wrote: ↑Tue Sep 01, 2020 11:56 pmYes, but exactly what characteristics you want from the exhaust fan depends on the total setup.whispercat wrote: ↑Sun Aug 30, 2020 11:28 pmWould a good exhaust fan have different characteristics from an intake fan?
* If the exhaust fan is to provide all airflow, with no intake fans present, then it should be (relatively) high flow.
* If you have intake fans and want overpressure then the exhaust fan must be very low flow, as it's operating at a negative pressure gradient and should only direct some (not all) airflow away from other openings in the case.
Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
He means positive pressure, where there's more intake to the case than exhaust. That creates a higher-than-ambient pressure inside the case, which prevents air (and dust) from getting in from anywhere else but through the intake fans (and their filters).whispercat wrote: ↑Fri Sep 04, 2020 3:21 pmThanks, what do you mean by "overpressure"?Olle P wrote: ↑Tue Sep 01, 2020 11:56 pmYes, but exactly what characteristics you want from the exhaust fan depends on the total setup.whispercat wrote: ↑Sun Aug 30, 2020 11:28 pmWould a good exhaust fan have different characteristics from an intake fan?
* If the exhaust fan is to provide all airflow, with no intake fans present, then it should be (relatively) high flow.
* If you have intake fans and want overpressure then the exhaust fan must be very low flow, as it's operating at a negative pressure gradient and should only direct some (not all) airflow away from other openings in the case.
Conversely if you have more exhaust than intake you will have a negative pressure inside the case, which sucks in air (and dust) from all around the case from every small hole there is.
Re: Fan round up - Best 140mm and 120mm
Correct, but one must add the words "actual active" to "intake/exhaust to make it meaningful.
If there's no intake fan there will be a lower pressure inside the case than outside.
With three moderate intake fans and a single weak exhaust fan the net result might very well also be an underpressure if the intakes are blocked in any way (by for example a dust filter and/or less than full size intake holes).