What's the Best Case Fan?

[surfsk8snow.jah]

As a general hunt for the best case fan. I wanna make this into a poll, so make your nominations, one for each category. In general this is considering a 120mm, but the question applies to all fan sizes.

PLEASE VOTE BASED ON THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA::

Performance: Just as much wind blown as possible.
Silent: Nice and quiet, while still putting out some good airflow.
LED: Has nice colors, good airflow, and not too noisy.
Cost: Not too expensive for the quality.

PLEASE VOTE FOR MAX. TWO (2) FANS, thank you.

The poll is live, so let's duke it out, and see which fan wins.

[tater]

size is also a big factor. do best fans in each size range..because if you determine that some 90MM fan is the best in the world, you havent helped the guy looking for a 80mm fan

[Chewy]

I'd say Noctua have the best fans,they give quietness and performance.

for leds I give antec tri-speed a thumbs up, thier good fans.

[sneekypeet]

I have to say the ANTEC 3 speed switchable fans ROCK.....79CFM on High speed , silent on low speed ....enough said, enjoy! (120mm)

[choppy]

hmm i see there is no mention for price, value for money is an important aspect , no? i would never pay over £5 for any fan regardless of noise or whatever, i mean, its just a fan!!

[Chewy]

go with arctic cooling for a cheap good fan.. especially thier rubber mount fans.

[surfsk8snow.jah]

Tater, You're definitely right, I put that in my edit. Thanks.

Choppy, I did mention price as a concern also, "--All take into account cost also."

I think you guys have the right idea so far tho, a general model will be good in any size, or especially a make, e.g. - Noctua, Antec, Scythe...
Keep It Coming! :D

So Far for the List I have:

-Noctua [1 nomination]
-Antec Tri-Speed [3 nominations]
-Scythe S-Flex [1 nomination & Other Post Recommendation: http://forums.techpowerup.com/showpost.php?p=412728&postcount=5]
-SilenX
-Thermaltake
-Arctic Cooling: Rubber Mount [1 nomination ]
-Apevia
-Vantec
-Silverstone FN & FM [1 nomination]
-Aerocool
-KingWin
-Enermax
-AeroCool
-CoolerMaster
-Rosewill
-MassCool
-Zalman
-Logisys
-EverCool
-Dynex [1 nomination]
-Bgear
-Dynatron
-Hiper
-Rexus
-Sunon
-NoyseBlocker [Recommendation From Other Post: http://forums.techpowerup.com/showpost.php?p=159066&postcount=25]

-The Cheapest Thing I Can Find! [1 nomination]

EDIT: It will take at least one nomination, or a recommendation of it somewhere else on the forums, for a fan to make it to the poll.

[choppy]

oic! its rather late over in uk...can i use that as an excuse? :o

[sneekypeet]

hmm i see there is no mention for price, value for money is an important aspect , no? i would never pay over £5 for any fan regardless of noise or whatever, i mean, its just a fan!!

good point , no one wants to put out loads of cash on a fan...but they are NOT created equal. Ask any overclocker on air only if a fan is just a fan, they will agree with me ....PERFORMANCE outways COST!

[erocker]

Silverstone FM and FN series fans are great, but a little pricey. Cheap Dynex fans that you can get at Best Buy are decent (79cfm), but can be a little loud for some. My vote however, goes to the Antec 3spd. w/l.e.d.'s, they look good, don't cost too much, and are versitile.:D

[choppy]

-The Cheapest Thing I Can Find!

lol i just saw that too, ok firstly i look for anything thats under 30db at max rpm then i look at price

[marsey99]

you also need a compramise of performance and noise.

my pc runs 24/7 so it needs good cooling but also i dont want to live with wind turbine in the corner.

for that i chose the 1600rpm scythe sflex as they shift a fair bit of air but arent too noisey and i dont need to open the case to flick a switch as they run 100% 24/7.

[surfsk8snow.jah]

Ok a few more nominations and I'll start the poll later today. Thanks guys!

I'm wondering about these SilenX fans; they boast 90CFM @ 18dBA which seems absolutely amazing, but maybe overstated. Plus they're a little expensive... Anyone have any experience with these fans?

[Nemesis881]

Arctic cooling fans are the best IMO. They don't move as much air as their competition, but they are SOO quiet.

[ryboto]

Try the new Enermax Marathon fans. A magnetic bearing, no contact between the fan hub and the frame, it floats by magnetic fields. Similar to Sunons maglev fans, but these are more widely available, and slower spinning, so not only do they lack bearing noise, they wont make much noise by turbulence(1000rpm @12v). Cheaper than the Scythe S-Flex, which are arguably as quiet as a Nexus.

[Grings]

Acoustifan Dustproof, expensive though

http://www.acoustiproducts.com/en/acoustifan.asp

[ryboto]

Acoustifan Dustproof, expensive though

http://www.acoustiproducts.com/en/acoustifan.asp

if they're anything like the originals, they're only quiet if you use the resistor, and even then they still spin above 1000rpm.

[Sasqui]

For 120mm, I've been really happy with Thermaltake for price/performance/noise/control

All of these have both thermistor control (auto temp), or 3-way manual:

I have two of these, one in each of two computers, I use the manual switch
On medium, you can barely hear it, high is bearable:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811999122

These also look good:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835106100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811999145

For smaller fans (80mm), I swear by Panaflo, the ones I've used are by far the quietest.

[ryboto]

For 120mm, I've been really happy with Thermaltake for price/performance/noise/control

All of these have both thermistor control (auto temp), or 3-way manual:

I have two of these, one in each of two computers, I use the manual switch
On medium, you can barely hear it, high is bearable:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811999122

These also look good:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835106100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811999145

For smaller fans (80mm), I swear by Panaflo, the ones I've used are by far the quietest.
ugh...thermaltake makes incredibly shoddy products. Panaflo's are amazing fans, but nowadays there are much quieter alternatives. The panaflo isn't very quiet, users who say they are have a much higher tolerance for noise, I know because I once found my Panaflo to be quiet, I've bought better fans, and I now know better.

[pbmaster]

I have this fan for my case

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811999122

This thing moves soooo much air..but I won't lie, it is one of loudest fans I've ever heard.

[AndyBroke]

I like Noctua fans. They are quiet and they blow a lot of air (81 m³/h at 17 db)

[Sasqui]

ugh...thermaltake makes incredibly shoddy products.

Of the two I'm using, they're great - speaking from experience. I do however see others on Newegg with crappy ratings (and large sample size, save one). Two of the ones listed have large review sizes and overall very good ratings >70% positive.

The panaflo isn't very quiet, users who say they are have a much higher tolerance for noise

A subjective comment. Don't get me wrong - I'm sure there are better out there.

[boogerlad]

silentx fans r lying! the real specs are like 34 db at 55 cfm

[KBD]

ugh...thermaltake makes incredibly shoddy products. Panaflo's are amazing fans, but nowadays there are much quieter alternatives. The panaflo isn't very quiet, users who say they are have a much higher tolerance for noise, I know because I once found my Panaflo to be quiet, I've bought better fans, and I now know better.

Not true, i currently have 5 120mm Thermaltake blue LED fans in my rig and they are best case fans i ever owned. i also own a couple of other TT products and can't compain about them so far. I'm taliking about these fans right here:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811999127

These have the best noise to airflow ratio at 21dba and are moving 78 CFM, i simply can't hear them at all and they move a ton of air. When i was doing my build i was looking for a nice blue LED fan and i was considering getting the Thermaltake A2018 120mm mentioned by 2 posters above but eventually went with this one and have no regrets. Antec Tricools are also very good, my friend has 3 of those, they are bit louder at full speed than my TTs and they move the same amount of air however they have a nice 3 speed switch and can be toned down.

From what i've read there are other very quirt fans out there such as Yate Loons, Coolermaster, Scythe, Noctua and so on but those are relatively low RPM fans that don't move as much air as fans i mentioned above. So i vote my Thermaltake fans as first choice and Antec tricools as second.

By the way, where's the poll?

Edit: In regards to SilenX fans, i tend to agree with boogerlad, i don't have firsthand experience with them, however i inquired about these fans at jonnyguru.com and a few members who actually owned SilenX pointed out that these fans are way louder than advertised.

[Judas]

Id have to say thermaltake 120 mm fans too, can get them in al sorts of colours

[ryboto]

Not true, i currently have 5 120mm Thermaltake blue LED fans in my rig and they are best case fans i ever owned. i also own a couple of other TT products and can't compain about them so far. I'm taliking about these fans right here:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811999127

These have the best noise to airflow ratio at 21dba and are moving 78 CFM, i simply can't hear them at all and they move a ton of air. When i was doing my build i was looking for a nice blue LED fan and i was considering getting the Thermaltake A2018 120mm mentioned by 2 posters above but eventually went with this one and have no regrets. Antec Tricools are also very good, my friend has 3 of those, they are bit louder at full speed than my TTs and they move the same amount of air however they have a nice 3 speed switch and can be toned down.

From what i've read there are other very quirt fans out there such as Yate Loons, Coolermaster, Scythe, Noctua and so on but those are relatively low RPM fans that don't move as much air as fans i mentioned above. So i vote my Thermaltake fans as first choice and Antec tricools as second.

By the way, where's the poll?

Edit: In regards to SilenX fans, i tend to agree with boogerlad, i don't have firsthand experience with them, however i inquired about these fans at jonnyguru.com and a few members who actually owned SilenX pointed out that these fans are way louder than advertised.


Like the other user said, silence is subjective. The overall opinion at SilentPCreview is that Thermaltake fans should be avoided.

[Sasqui]

Recent:

http://www.silentpcreview.com/article739-page6.html

Doesn't have any TT products in that article though

[ktr]

Noctua fans are great. good noise/performance ratio. But there are 20 bucks per fan.

http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/no12nf34cfm1.html

Also, Akasa amber series is very very good, very similar to noctua but cheaper...

http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/ak12amseulqu.html

http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/sidewindercomputers_1960_17860070

and Scythe fans with S-FLEX are good to.

I say go with the Akasa!

[newtekie1]

I will never buy another thermaltake fan, I had one of the blue 120mm fans literally shatter at the hub sending fan blade shapnal all over my case.

My nomination goes to the Antec Tri-Speed fans. They move a lot of air when needed and can be absolutely silent when needed, or a mix of both worlds.

[KBD]

Like the other user said, silence is subjective. The overall opinion at SilentPCreview is that Thermaltake fans should be avoided.


Yes, noise is subjective, however there many factors that contribute to the way noise is perceived, things like leaving the case door on or off, how close is your pc to you and so on. I have these fans in a system at 2 ft away on my desk and the doors closed and i can't hear them. it is my understanding that SilentPcReview is really for quiet freaks, i guess in that case if a person is extremely sensitive to noise than TT and Antec fans are not for them, those that don't fall into that category should comnsider them.

[Sasqui]

I will never buy another thermaltake fan, I had one of the blue 120mm fans literally shatter at the hub sending fan blade shapnal all over my case.

Excellent. My 32x DVD drive killed my cat.

[ryboto]

Yes, noise is subjective, however there many factors that contribute to the way noise is perceived, things like leaving the case door on or off, how close is your pc to you and so on. I have these fans in a system at 2 ft away on my desk and the doors closed and i can't hear them. it is my understanding that SilentPcReview is really for quiet freaks, i guess in that case if a person is extremely sensitive to noise than TT and Antec fans are not for them, those that don't fall into that category should comnsider them.

Fact is, most of the users(myself included) at SPCR don't have Silent PCs. Unless the system is 100% passive and uses a SSD your system will make noise. If you can't hear your pc, and your fans are spinning above 1000rpm, it's either very well damped, or your ambient noise level is greater than the noise from your computer. SPCR isn't just about silence, it's about efficiency and quality in computers. And the majority of the users who frequent the site will advise you to stay away from Thermaltake. Antec is a decent brand that many recommend at SPCR, their fans aren't the best, but they are "silent" minded. Still as for good fans, My vote goes to Enermax right now. The Scythe and Nexus fans are just too expensive.

[Havoc]

I'm interested in this also, I should really buy some more, but I want the quietest available? Anyone have any ideas?

[WarEagleAU]

I prefer 12cm fans if you case can take it, they cool better, spin slower and are quieter. LED Fans are nice,I have an antec 12cm tri cooler led fan and I love it.

[ktr]

I'm interested in this also, I should really buy some more, but I want the quietest available? Anyone have any ideas?

noctua 120mm at 800rpm...less then 8db!

[ShadowXP]

noctua 120mm at 800rpm...less then 8db!

Got two of these, and they're silent plus effective as hell. Recommend these to all my friends here in Norway.

[TUngsten]

Ok a few more nominations and I'll start the poll later today. Thanks guys!

I'm wondering about these SilenX fans; they boast 90CFM @ 18dBA which seems absolutely amazing, but maybe overstated. Plus they're a little expensive... Anyone have any experience with these fans?

I use SilenX fans. I've tried others, but I think they are the best performing quiet fans out there. They push a ton of air, and they are truly quiet. They have nice LEDs, but not as bright as some.

They cost more and are totally worth it. IMHO thermaltake fans are junk. I have a nice 12cm Aerocool turbine fan as well, and it's really quiet but doesn't move enough air for me.

[Agility]

CoolerMaster Stack 832. B-ATX and ATX. Swappable doors, 9 120MM fans total, dust filter at the side. =)

[Chewy]

about the thermaltake fans I have a 120mm blue led one its decent but my antec tri-cool fan is quieter on max by a little bit not a huge amount but noticeable. though if you dont need the speed switch def get the thermaltake over the antec tri-cool unless you just got extra cash around.. thermaltake one is brighter too cause it has 4 leds.

[marsey99]

Excellent. My 32x DVD drive killed my cat.

sorry, i know im miles off topic here but, thats so random i might add it to my sig.
:laugh:

[surfsk8snow.jah]

Added Poll, and Updated First Post. Thanks for your input!!

Oh, and def:

Excellent. My 32x DVD drive killed my cat.
sorry, i know im miles off topic here but, thats so random i might add it to my sig.
For Reals that's hilarious... horrible! Did that really happen tho?

[ktr]

As a general hunt for the best case fan. I wanna make this into a poll, so make your nominations, one for each category. In general this is considering a 120mm, but the question applies to all fan sizes.

PLEASE VOTE BASED ON THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA::

Performance: Just as much wind blown as possible.
Silent: Nice and quiet, while still putting out some good airflow.
LED: Has nice colors, good airflow, and not too noisy.
Cost: Not too expensive for the quality.

PLEASE VOTE FOR MAX. TWO (2) FANS, thank you.

The poll is live, so let's duke it out, and see which fan wins.

looks like you already decided on what fan you want, for the fact that you voted on your own poll...:roll:

[surfsk8snow.jah]

haha I didn't know what to put in, so I just put what my case's gonna come with. I totally haven't decided yet tho, I'm gonna upgrade them, just wanna make sure I get the right ones.
Plus, I'm looking for a good one for my Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme I'm gonna be getting. I want one with a RED LED so it's like my CPU is glowing blazing, even tho it'll be Ice Cold w00t haha

[imperialreign]

I have to throw my recommendation for Evercool . . . the LED's are brilliant and uniform across the fan, airflow is really good (even when your haxorz case mod is blocking 1/3 the fan!), design for some of their aluminum fans is fairly unique, too. Not the quietest in the world though, but they're not too excessively loud (don't sound like a turbine for sure!).

Decently priced, I've been happy with them as compared to some other brands.

Running currently 2 of their 60mm fans on the front of my case, about 1/3 of the fans are blocked by the case itself, and these still have had more of an impact on my entire system cooling than another brand I've swapped out around the case.

[surfsk8snow.jah]

Well I would've added Evercool but its too late to add another option to the poll sorry.

PLEASE VOTE! :) The more input & responses the better the poll is.
At least just vote for the fans you would buy/have bought for your case.

[i_am_mustang_man]

arctic cooling has those rubber mounted fans that rock

other than those, CHEAP please!

[Sasqui]

Added Poll, and Updated First Post. Thanks for your input!!

Oh, and def:

For Reals that's hilarious... horrible! Did that really happen tho?

:laugh: No not really - the whole exploding DVD thing was an urban legend and I doubt any Thermaltake fan ever exploded either ;)

[surfsk8snow.jah]

:laugh: No not really - the whole exploding DVD thing was an urban legend and I doubt any Thermaltake fan ever exploded either ;)

Haha. Ya there was a MythBusters on that where they put a CD on a variable speed table drill and spun it till it exploded into a BILLION pieces lol... centripetal force oh man.

[Sasqui]

Haha. Ya there was a MythBusters on that where they put a CD on a variable speed table drill and spun it till it exploded into a BILLION pieces lol... centripetal force oh man.

Yea saw it too - the shrapnel in the ballistic gel was priceless!

And marsey99 - that sig is a hoot.

[ktr]

I went to microcenter and saw the slienx, they claimed on the packaging that the fan can do 75cfm @ 14db?!?!?!? If so that's the winner.

[imperialreign]

meh. I'll throw my vote for Antec and Arctic Cooling

[surfsk8snow.jah]

I went to microcenter and saw the slienx, they claimed on the packaging that the fan can do 75cfm @ 14db?!?!?!? If so that's the winner.

exactly that's what I'm saying... however, people are saying that they are way overstated. Someone should do a test and call them on this, False Advertising

and let's KEEP VOTING! :)

[trt740]

Scythe fans and Arctic cooler fans both are super good Arctic coolers are cheaper.

[trt740]

Silenx burn up alot

[surfsk8snow.jah]

Alright, So far it's the Antec Tri-Speed FTW, with Thermaltake & Artic Cooling tieing for close second. Anyone else have an opinion for the final word?

[trt740]

Yes the Antec and Thermaltake fans are louder than Arctic cooler fans and are more expensive. The Arctic cooler fans have liquid ball bearings and rubber mounts and are ultra quiet. I've owned all three brands Arctic cooler is the best for the money.

[tofu]

Im using 2 x 120mm Arctic Cooling standard case fans with the "patented ceramic bearing technology". They're TERRIFIC fans, but underrated, they have a the power for high speed spinning (using one on my Scythe Ninja), and when you tune the voltage on them down a bit (using one at 5V for rear case exhaust), they're as quiet as those Nexus and Noctua fans.

Bottom line is, flexibility, performance, reliability and cheap ass price: $9 CAN a pop, and ceramic bearings are quiet and last long too :)

[ryboto]

scythe and enermax! Antec are still just ball bearing fans, it's not as cool!

[Havoc]

If this is actually correct, it makes interesting reading:

http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/products/120mmfans

On that basis, the most quiet is the Noctua, while the most effiecient is the Zalman, but that sounds like Concorde taking off...

[surfsk8snow.jah]

but those specs on that site are just (as advertised) right? They're not tested specs... in that case, those SilenX fans would win, but after all the reviews (newegg & official), the brands don't live up to their uber-specs. That's esp why I'm trying to get the experience of the most TPU users as possible, to get a fair and usage based view of the fans.
Thanks for all your votes, anyone else want to add their opinion?

[ryboto]

Thanks for all your votes, anyone else want to add their opinion?

I still have to say I'm not sure why TT fans are used so much. Maybe it's brand loyalty, maybe word of mouth. When something is being sold in radio shack, I really start to doubt it's quality.

[surfsk8snow.jah]

funny how radioshack used to be the shiz, now its like the last resort... I wonder what happened to them.
I mean, tho, if that many people currently prefer them over the other fans, there's gotta be a reason... TPUers generally evaluate their parts by absolute quality; there's only a few fanbois on here, not enough to dominate a poll.

[surfsk8snow.jah]

wow I'm stoked more people have voted! This will totally help my decision come new setup time =)

[Chewy]

well find out how much your willing tro spend per fan and if your going to have a side window.. the Noctuna fans rock for sound/airflow.. but are a bit ugly :P does a loud sytem bug you? stock thermaltake fan is loud... evn louder than a antec tri-cool on max by a littlebit.

[AsRock]

My favs are Artic Cooling Panaflo and Rosewill. Which 2 of them are not in that list right ? so not voted.

[surfsk8snow.jah]

Figured I'd keep this thing alive, and maybe get some more votes.
Could we maybe get a sticky on this, seeing its versatility, applicability, and longevity? (w00t, 3 $1 words right there haha).

[CrAsHnBuRnXp]

I dont know exactly how I came about this thread but Ill put in my $0.02. I love Thermaltake fans. I have 2x120mm fans and 2x90mm fans. I want to replace the 120mm fans with another Thermaltake 120 just for the sheer fact that the 2x90mm fans I just got are more vibrant than my old 120mm that came with the case.

I do also like Sunbeam fans. They are nice and bright, have 4 led's, and blow a very good amount of air. Anyone with a Sunbeam Transformer case will know what Im talking about.

[asb2106]

I was alittle disapointed that I didnt see any panflo fans here!! I use a panflo 120x38mm ultra high speed for my main intake fan, and that thing rocks! and its not that loud(all things considered), I expected much much louder!

[ShadowFold]

My rosewill fans move alot of air outta my case and I cant even hear them.

[thoughtdisorder]

Had to vote for Thermaltake, but Rosewill makes nice fans as well. Seems lots of folks knock Rosewill, but of late I've had pretty good luck and they're quiet.....

[TechnicalFreak]

Thermaltake (I have that orange fan w. fancontroller @ front bay). Ballbearings, rather quiet compared to the 4 other fans I have. Have had the fan on the system for 4 years and 1 month now, and my system runs almost 24/7.. it has never let me down so far.

[Widjaja]

I have two fans for case cooling.
One Titan DC fan 120mm X 25 39dB 2200rpm 78CFM:-
Solid construction, plain, loud & relatively cheap.
Type of fan which seems like it could keep on going.

One SilenX iXtrema Pro 120mm X 25 11dB 1100rpm 46CFM:-
Seems quite fragile, expensive, looks good, and comes with extras.
I managed to get this fan for half price and does the job well for my case.

[asb2106]

has anyone else in here ever used panflo's. They are great fans and they are really cheap! They are made by panasonic and they have a great CFM at low noise. The only place I buy them from is sidewindercomputers.com They have a great selection of fans and they are very well priced! I got the panflo under their recommendation and I couldnt be happier, best 120x38mm fan ive ever owned, by far!

[Silverel]

The best price/performance fans are always the free ones. I don't pay for case fans. Our tech dept. graveyard has 50+ old dell boxes sitting on racks. Many of the fans I've pulled from there are 80mm Yate Loons, however, the 92mm fans from the CPU shroud are 3 pins, and mod easy enough for standard boards. Rubber mounts/washers I find are much more important when it comes to noise. Any fan with ball bearings can be shut up quite nicely with a squirt of WD-40. Rubber mounts keep the wobbly fans quiet by reducing the vibrations against the case.

Also, it's nice to use all 28a on my 12v rail. Otherwise I'd feel like I'm wasting its potential. PSU doesn't hit over 45c at full load. Case is at 26c-27c, and cpu moves from 33-37c. I need a temp sensor for the video card, but I've done 3dmark runs at 510/206 from the stock 400/200. Memory OC sucks on that 9600 pro... Things are pretty damn quiet considering the amount of crappy fans I've got in that thing.

60mm Thermaltake (cpu)
2x80mm rear exhaust (1 from PSU)
120mm PSU exaust (transfer from cpu)
2x80mm front intake upper(fitted for 2x5.25 bays) Yate Loon
120mm front intake lower Enermax(?)
80mm side intake Yate Loon
80mm (video) Yate Loon

[CrAsHnBuRnXp]

Thermaltake (I have that orange fan w. fancontroller @ front bay). Ballbearings, rather quiet compared to the 4 other fans I have. Have had the fan on the system for 4 years and 1 month now, and my system runs almost 24/7.. it has never let me down so far.

Nice. Orange? I have wanted orange case fans but was wondering what it looked like. Any possible way you can show me?