120mm Fan Testing on an MCR120 Radiator Round 6 [Archive]

Martinm210

11-04-2010, 05:34 PM

http://img602.imageshack.us/img602/1359/groupphotor6and8.jpg
This thread will serve as my updated 120mm radiator based fan testing work in progress. While fan specs are helpful, like pumps they represent how the fan performs in an artificial open air and unmounted condition without any restriction, mounting vibrations, or undervolting effects. In addition there are many different mathematical methods in which noise levels are calculated (Removal of ambient noise) and measured making the task of comparing fans based on specs alone for a radiator application a best guess. In addition, those testing conditions do not include vibration created noises that exist once a fan is mounted to a radiator. Many fans also exhibit motor ticks or harmonics at some voltage levels other than 12V when using a fan controller. That brings me to the purpose of this test, to test in a more real world like radiator scenario without any adjustments to noise levels and record it for your own review.

This round will focus in testing and comparing 120mm fans on a Swiftech MCR120 radiator using a voltage based fan controller to evaluate a more real world radiator condition on a constant test platform.

First off, a HUGE thanks to the following sponsors. It's been amazing how much support I have received in this so far..a real tribute to the community we have here::up:

This includes the parts/fans and the sponsors who have donated for this cause as well as some tabular results:
Click to enlarge:
http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/2057/fantable124800.png (http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/9652/fantable124.png)

I'll start creating a new post for each new fan including the pictures and the data tables then link them back up in this main post.

MASTER NOISE vs CFM CHART

I'll update this from time to time. Per my reading, it normally takes about 3dbA for most people to perceive a change in noise level...that's about the spread of "Most" of the fans here. But if we're splitting hairs...here is the chart for your viewing pleasure...:)

Just note this is NOISE LEVEL only. I think this is only half the picture, noise quality is what you get by listening which points out the things like motor tics, and other less that smooth sounds.

ALL FANS ALL LEVELS
http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/1977/ra7sstreamhvvsall.th.png (http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/1977/ra7sstreamhvvsall.png)

NOISE LEVEL BAR CHARTS dbA @ X CFM

http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/71/112710b.png

NOISE QUALITY (MOTOR TICKS/RESONANCE/SMOOTHNESS)
And last but not least, my completely subjective rating on noise quality. I suggest you listen to the videos to sort this out yourself, I think everyone will have a slightly different opinion on this, but this is what I came up with as a place to start. Noise quality has nothing to do with noise level. I made up my own scoring system by listening for motor type noises and resonance issues. If a fan sounded like very smooth air, it would get high marks. I also marked against resonance issues. If the fan had specific voltage ranges where it resonated, I marked it down. I rated quality in 3 steps and resonance in one field, and averaged them out. I wish there was some sort of scientific way to do this, but this was the best I could do. Again, I suggest rating this with the videos for yourself.

Generally anything with a 7 or better is really good and pretty tight. I just had a slight preference toward fans with slightly lower pitch and or smoother air noises.

Many fans below that were also very good in some areas, but may have had a small motor tick or resonance issue during the test. Resonance is one of those tricky things that may be specific to one test bed. I can only rate what was tested though, it would be impossible to see how the fan behaves in all situations. I'm also typically only testing one sample, and it's very possible the one fan I test was flawed or less that perfect.

Bottom line, there is no replacement for trying out a fan yourself. Before you go buying 20 fans of the same type, I suggest trying out at least one sample for yourself and see how you like it.
http://img703.imageshack.us/img703/4609/noisequality1127b.png

AndreaBZ SPREADSHEET LINK

AndreaBZ (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/member.php?u=101739) took the data collected and created an analysis spreadsheet, so anyone that wants to sort the data into different formats can easily do so. To do this, he had to create trendline equations for all the data, so it's going to average out some of the bumps from the actual data points. The great things is you can now sort by CFM or dbA or RPM and click a macro button to automatically sort the results. You can also pick and choose up to 5 fans and compare the charts.

Here is the PM he sent me, thanks for doing this::clap:

Hello Martin!

Fans Spreadsheet update.

http://www.coolingtechnique.com/index.php?option=com_docman&task=cat_view&gid=84&Itemid=124

Update! With fans from 140 mm

If you want you can also put the link in the post "Testing on a 140mm Fan Radiator HWlabs SR1 Round 7"

Greetings ......
:up:

DETAILED INDIVIDUAL RESULTS LINKS - INCLUDES NOTES, CHARTS, & VIDEOS

Aero Cool Case Fan (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4626583&postcount=133)

Antec TriCool LED Fan (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4637187&postcount=214)

Arctic Cooling F12 (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4617007&postcount=40)

Cooler Master Blade Master PWM (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4622774&postcount=94)

Cooler Master Excalibur (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4613172&postcount=)

Cooler Master R4 C2R (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4618575&postcount=56)

Coolink SWiF2 1201 (http://www.overclock.net/water-cooling/859483-round-6-fan-testing-working-thread-6.html#post11249931)

Corsair H50 Fan (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4629398&postcount=163)

Delta AFB1212VHE 38mm (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4639883&postcount=253)

Enermax Magma (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4615907&postcount=28)

Gelid Silent 12 (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4616024&postcount=29)

Gentle Typhoon AP-13 Old Batch? (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4632671&postcount=179)

Gentle Typhoon AP-14 New Batch (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4620230&postcount=71)

Gentle Typhoon AP-15 New Batch Sample A & Sample B (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4631619&postcount=164)

Nexus Real Silent D12SL-12 (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4636850&postcount=211)

Noctua P12 (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4617104&postcount=44)

Noctua NF-S12B (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4633862&postcount=183)

Noise Blocker M12-S3HS (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4635824&postcount=196)

Noise Blocker PL-2 (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4618641&postcount=58)

NZXT Case Fan (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4633709&postcount=180)

Panaflo NMB-MAT FBA12G12U Ultra High Speed 38mm Fan (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4624616&postcount=115)

PAPST Type 4112 N/2H (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4644766&postcount=305)

Rosewill Black Case Fan Medium Speed (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4624197&postcount=107)

Sanyo Denki San Ace 25mm 9S1212M401 Medium Speed (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4636048&postcount=205)

Sanyo Denki San Ace 25mm 9S1212H4011 High Speed 2500RPM (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4635942&postcount=203)

Sanyo Denki San Ace 9G1212M101 38mm (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4639821&postcount=252)

Sanyo Denki San Ace 9G1212H101 38mm (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4638545&postcount=227)

Sanyo Denki San Ace 109R1212H1011 38mm (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4638609&postcount=232)

Scythe Slip Stream High Speed (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4622450&postcount=78)

Scythe S-Flex F (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4626901&postcount=137)

Scythe Ultra Kaze 2000 (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4615756&postcount=25)

Scythe Ultra Kaze 3000 (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4625044&postcount=116)

Scythe Kama-Flex H (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4634917&postcount=192)

Thermalright FDB-12-2000 (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4616888&postcount=37)

Triebwerk TK-122 Mid Speed Fan (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4637558&postcount=216)

Yate Loon D12SL-12D 38mm (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4615632&postcount=24)

Yate Loon D12SL-12 Curved Blade Black From P.T.S (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4616770&postcount=36)

Yate Loon D12SM12 Curved Black from PTS (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4612887&postcount=3)

Yate Loon D12SM-12 From PPCS (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4644854&postcount=312)

Yate Loon D12SM-12 Curved Black From SWC (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4636129&postcount=208)

Zalman ZM-F3 (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4612938&postcount=6)

Zalman ZM-SF3 (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4626730&postcount=136)

CONCLUSION SO FAR

I think from a noise level only perspective...most fans (90%) perform pretty much the same per CFM level. Supposedly it takes 3dbA for most humans to barely perceive a noise level change, and that's about the spread I have found for most fans with a few exceptions. I'll list out some of my favorites below:

The Scythe Gentle Typhoon Series - 1000-1800 Medium Speed is dominating in CFM/dbA ratio. At $15-20 it's not the cheapest, but a real amazing fan on a radiator.

The Delta AFB1212VHE - 1800+ High Speed is dominating the 38mm fan category in CFM/dbA ratios. At $17 at SWC, it's not a low cost fan, but very reasonable compared to other industrial grade 38mm fans of similar performance levels. The downside of Deltas is they are high speed fans and generally don't even like turning down to lower speeds (not that I would recommend doing that with a 38mm fan much anyway). They do really well at high speeds 2000+ RPM, but definitely a high minimum noise level.

And some other favorites:

Yate Loon D12SL-12 and D12SM-12 from PTS or SWC are my pick for budget fan. They do pretty much the same as every other fan below 1000RPMs at a fraction of the price of around $6 and do very well at all voltages.

Arctic Cooling F12 is my pick for lower speed PWM and semi budget fan. This fan gives you awesome PWM capabilities, a better bearing, and better looks than yates and can be bought for under $10. This fan also does really well at all voltages.

Scythe Kama Flex H or Zalman ZM-F3 are also pretty good all around fans at good prices.

The TFC Triebwerk TK-122 is one for those that are not happy with the ordinary fan looks. While this fan is not at all a low cost fan, it is very different than most fans and actually performs pretty well at higher speeds and produces a touch more CFM than the GT15 if you're not overly concerned with dBA levels. Just make sure you have all 55mm worth of width available...this fan is a MONSTA!..I like it for it's features and unique looks.

I would still highly recommend visiting and listening carefully to the videos. This is the only way to pick up on the fan characteristics that the noise meter simply misses.

MYTH - You can have it all, High Speed 38mm fans and smooth low speed using a fan controller--WRONG!!
I'm calling BS on this, I have yet to find a good strong 38mm fan that works acceptably good at low speeds. I've even made the mistake of trying medium speed panaflos back in my earlier days. I figured, what the heck, I may need a little more fan power, so I'll just plan on turning them down a bit with my fan controller. Well, after forking over the $$ for 6 new panaflo medium speed fans, I was sorely dissapointed when I undervolted. Sure they have great power, but they were also very ticky at low volts. This problem seems to be common to pretty much all 38mm thickness fans with the large fan hub and also to some extent with most higher speed 25mm fans. You simply can not have it all.

You can have a kick ass high speed fans with really crappy low speed sound quality or you can have a kick ass low speed fans with really good low speed sound quality, you simply can not have both.

Here is one of my first watercooling setups many years ago, and this was before doing any sort of fan testing. I took the advise of my fellow forum members and bought 6 medium speed panaflos to replace my yate loon D12SL12s. I've had many people say they can't hear the ticking that I complain about and that's fine, but I sure did. It was enough clicking noise to make me go back to 25mm fans. I'm very much convinced that each fan and each fan motor is ideally ran at or near 12V. There are a few fans that undervolt and operate in all ranges fairly well, but I have yet to find a 38mm fan that does so to a level I would be happy with. My recommendation (and I feel very passionately about this), buy a fan that runs nearly at 12V to a sound level you're willing to put up with at all times.

FAN CONTROLLER + HIGH SPEED FANS = GOOD HIGH SPEED FAN + REALLY CRAPPY LOW SPEED FAN
And a picture of my old system:
http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/1156/panafloexperiment1.th.jpg (http://img8.imageshack.us/img8/1156/panafloexperiment1.jpg)

http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/793/panafloexperiment2.th.jpg (http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/793/panafloexperiment2.jpg)
If you are picky about noise quality, don't make the same mistake I did. High speed fans have no business running at 1000RPMs. That's not all that unlike trying to mow a putting green with a brush hog...

Cheers!
Martin

Martinm210

11-04-2010, 05:34 PM

Reserved for Test Rig Notes

Anemometer
MASTECH 407123 (http://www.extech.com/instruments/product.asp?catid=1&prodid=39)
Measures air speed in Feet per Minute at back of port. This is a Hot Wire anemometer of industrial grade and ultra sensitive to the lowest of air movement, down to 40 feet per minute. Best of all, it's completely silent, so there is no noise or reaction to the fans that are typical of vane type anemometers.
http://img51.imageshack.us/img51/2760/extechanemometer.jpg
http://img823.imageshack.us/img823/2488/r6btrialsetup2.png

Sound Meter
AMERICAN RECORDER TECHNOLOGY SPL-8810 (https://www.americanrecorder.com/detail.php?id=1784&d=49&c=76&start_pos=10)
Nothing too fancy here, but this one does measure in A-weighted dBA and checked out very accurately to my Zoom H1 plus YMEC software comparison. This is much more representative than my old unweighted Mastech results.

FLOW CHAMBER
Home built from 8" ID x 21" Long Heavy Duty PVC. The sole purpose of this chamber is to ensure silent mounting and controlled air flow measurements. It includes Egg Crate insulation to deaden any air movement sounds within, a Flow Spreader inside made from 34ea 1" x 4" long tubes, and a 3.66" ID outlet port to measure velocities that can later be converted to accurate air flow CFM numbers. The chamber does add some restriction, but it makes a big difference in controlling measurements more accurately.
http://img823.imageshack.us/img823/8074/r6btrialsetup.png
http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/7818/flowchamberv3.png
RADIATOR
Swiftech MCR120 QP for the low density radiator test scenario:
http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/4260/mcr1207.jpg

Additional Meters
Cen Tech meters measure Amperage and Voltage. Watts can be calcuated by multiplying amps x volts. Scythe Kaze Master is for approximate RPM only, good to about 50RPM +-. Mastech meter is measuring Hz on the RPM wire for a much more accurate RPM number RPM = Hz x 30.

AUDIO RECORDING
Zoom H1 set to manual mode 100, Low Cut On, Recorder is set 12" from Fan Hub to Microphone Tip.

VIDEO RECORDING
Canon T2I with Tokina 12-24 Lens
http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/8941/h12t.jpg
VIDEO/AUDIO COMBINING & RENDERING
Sony Vegas
Leave all level set to default, combine audio from video and Zoom via finger snap.
Output to HD video .wmv 8MBS before uploading to YT.

VOLTAGE CONTROL and PSU
The power is supplied via a Mastech 0-5Amp 0-30V variable testing power supply.

Fan control was using a Scythe Kaze Master (KM02-BK-3.5) 3.5" drive bay controller. I just modified it by attaching a large 4" wheel for more precise control.

I typically fed the controller an extra volt or so to ensure I had the full 12V capability after voltage drop and each fan is fed from 4V to 12V in one volt increments. If the fan will not start at 4V it is skipped until the nearest volt is enough. Voltage is measured close to the fan plug to minimize voltage droop and get a more accurate voltage supplied at the plug measurement. Amperage or current is measured by splicing the power line near the plug and running it to the amperage meter.

I'll be experimenting with PWM controll options later, but since a majority of the fans are 3 pin and setup for voltage control, that's my preferred method for testing and what is used unless otherwise noted.

Martinm210

11-04-2010, 05:35 PM

Yate Loon D12SM12

VIDEO LINK:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJggilRjx9k

I use these fans. They have been known for their low cost and good sound qualities in the past, but we'll see how they stack up to the latest fans. Overall still a good fan at an exceptional price. I hear a little bit of motor grind and the blades are a bit more choppy than higher blade number types...but still a very admirable performance/price ratio.

http://img44.imageshack.us/img44/7854/yld12sm12.jpg
http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/1065/r6ayld12sm12c.png

MagisD

11-04-2010, 05:54 PM

Whoooooooot more results for me to pour over.

Great job martin.

Sent from my X10a using Tapatalk

Martinm210

11-04-2010, 06:13 PM

Just getting started, but I should have some new stuff to compare against soon.

I got a couple snuck in this week and will do more over the weekend.:up:

Martinm210

11-04-2010, 06:15 PM

Zalman ZM-F3

Sponsored by Hondacity:clap:

VIDEO LINK:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vu1oGRnE54U

This is another well respected fan. Vapor pointed this fan out in his earlier work, I'm finding it to edge out the yate similarly. These are being replaced by a newer model, but you can still find them at very good sub $10 prices. They are very similar to the yate except a step up in that they use a large fan hub/motor also come with sleeved wires, rubber case mount nipples and a resistor for 7V operation. These produce a bit more flow per CFM, have a larger RPM range, and very slightly better noise level/CFM ratio. In general a yate SM of higher quality and performance, although it's pretty close on the noise front. 3db is considered barely perceptible, so it's about the same in that context.

Overall another very good fan. This is the sort of charting I plan to do. I'll keep using the yate as a baseline comparison since it's fairly well known...

http://img574.imageshack.us/img574/717/zalmanzmf3.jpg

http://img51.imageshack.us/img51/5605/r6azalmanzmf3.png

Martinm210

11-04-2010, 09:05 PM

Cooler Master Excalibur

Sponsored by Shazza:clap:

This fan is unique with a hexogonal perforated metal frame and sword like 9 bladed fan blade. It also comes sleeved and has a neat motor/cage frame that's sharp. It also has a really wide RPM range going well over 2300 RPM and clear down to 450RPM and generally didn't exhibit any odd or annoying harmonics or much motor noise at all.

But...noise level was very high (wind like noise) compared to the yate loon.:(

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kREQunQ-blc

http://img824.imageshack.us/img824/7523/coolermasterexcalibur.jpg

http://img824.imageshack.us/img824/3816/r6acoolermasterexcalibu.png

the finisher

11-05-2010, 08:39 AM

:clap: Great work, as usual.

Can't wait to add samples too this:up:

Very interested in some 140mm fan testing as well, I'm always hunting good 140's.

Alexandr0s

11-05-2010, 11:40 AM

Thanks for yet another great test Martin :D.

Manicdan

11-05-2010, 12:02 PM

when your all done (like next year), you should post results compared to sponcer, see if theres any hidden agendas, lol

seriously great work here. you convinced me to get a GT15, glad i did

also do you have a fan thats used by the corsair H50?

SpuTnicK

11-05-2010, 12:21 PM

@Martin
Congrats on a new rad, finally :)

Martinm210

11-05-2010, 03:11 PM

:clap: Great work, as usual.

Can't wait to add samples too this:up:

Very interested in some 140mm fan testing as well, I'm always hunting good 140's.

Thanks for sponsoring:up: I'm with you, I think 140mm rads are the direction we'll all be going sooner or later. Haven't tested a 140 yet, but I plan to soon..:D

Thanks for yet another great test Martin :D.

Thanks! It's been fun. I actually don't care much about changing fans out myself, but I felt like fans is one of those few areas where there hasn't been enough radiator based testing and one that makes a pretty big difference. I also really have no clue what to expect when mounting up a fan and that's also why I like it....never know what I'm going to find next..:D

when your all done (like next year), you should post results compared to sponcer, see if theres any hidden agendas, lol

seriously great work here. you convinced me to get a GT15, glad i did

also do you have a fan thats used by the corsair H50?

That's why I created the list, so I could remember who sponsored me...my memory has never been very good..:D

No I don't, can you even buy the corsair fans anywhere/ It would be good to have one for comparison, there are quite a few folks that have upgraded fans on the H50/70s and other kits, they would probably benefit having one of those tests as a comparison.

@Martin
Congrats on a new rad, finally :)

Thanks to Gabe from Swiftech for sponsoring it...:up: My old RS was getting a little rough around the edges from being tossed around in various parts bins...it was time for a new one and the MCR is wider and should be lower in restriction too.:)

Vapor

11-05-2010, 04:23 PM

Got all my fans to send out now....there's a few surprises in there :up:

Should go out tomorrow or more likely Monday (gameday in town tomorrow).

Martinm210

11-05-2010, 06:28 PM

Got all my fans to send out now....there's a few surprises in there :up:

Should go out tomorrow or more likely Monday (gameday in town tomorrow).

Awesome...thanks!!:clap:

Mystery fan:eek:s... I like that:D

I plan to get the rest of the in hand newcomers recorded tonight along with as many of the retested fans as I can get done. Time to start brewing some coffee

skinnee

11-05-2010, 07:56 PM

Time to start brewing some coffee

That is the only way I can actually stay awake and get some testing done. :)

Church

11-06-2010, 03:43 AM

skinnee: just move on to testing while sleepwalking :D

kinghong1970

11-06-2010, 06:10 AM

Martinm210, thank you again for all your efforts.

it is always with much gratitude and pure enjoyment that i read your tests and data for the benefit of the community.
and this pretty much goes for all those who, out of varying reasons, be it passion or otherwise, takes the time to provide these valuable information to this community.

again, thank you.

btw, love that tokina 12-24, eh? that lens seems to love the skies...

Martinm210

11-06-2010, 07:35 AM

That is the only way I can actually stay awake and get some testing done. :)

Yeah, I drink way too much...can't seem to get going in the morning without it. Got about a dozen or so tests recorded last night, now if I can just get my main PC to behave and render the videos and extract the data. For some reason my old Q6600 started having stability issues when rendering.

If it behaves, I should get a few new fan results out over the weekend.:up:

Martinm210, thank you again for all your efforts.

it is always with much gratitude and pure enjoyment that i read your tests and data for the benefit of the community.
and this pretty much goes for all those who, out of varying reasons, be it passion or otherwise, takes the time to provide these valuable information to this community.

again, thank you.

btw, love that tokina 12-24, eh? that lens seems to love the skies...

Thanks!

Hope it's all helpful. Yes, I do like the Tokina, by far my favorite lens, although that 50 1.2L would be a lot of fun I'm sure, I've been really fortunate to collect what I have: Tokina 12-24, Sigma 20mm 1.8, Canon 35mm F2, Canon 50 F1.4, Canon 80 F1.8, Sigma 50-500. I probably use the Tokina 80% of the time, and the Canon 35 19% of the time, and the other the last 1%.

I had a 17-40F4L (my only L), but sold it off after finding out I liked the 12-24 range so much better.

Anyhow...should see some additional results over the weekend.:up:

Martinm210

11-06-2010, 09:09 AM

Disregard, I figured out what was going on. I wasn't looking closely enough and mixed up the SL for the SM..:eek::D I think my test data may actually be ok..:)

antiacid

11-06-2010, 09:34 AM

Yeah, I drink way too much...can't seem to get going in the morning without it. Got about a dozen or so tests recorded last night, now if I can just get my main PC to behave and render the videos and extract the data. For some reason my old Q6600 started having stability issues when rendering.

Isn't it fun how stuff works as long as it's not really needed, but the opposite isn't usually true?

Anyway, you should get off coffee completely. Drugs are bad, mmmmkay? :P

Out of curiosity, what's your take on FPI vs Noise? I was considering swapping out some mcr320 I have but then I figured I'd wait for your test results before selecting a new fan/rad combo ;)

Currently I'm running gt 1850rpm on 2x mcr320 per loops (overkill, why not) and I figured since I can get away with no fans at all during browsing/office work, I maybe should move to a sub 1000rpm setup (16 fans do make some noise). As you know, the gt squeal when undervolting, so there's that annoying me...

Martinm210

11-06-2010, 09:51 AM

Isn't it fun how stuff works as long as it's not really needed, but the opposite isn't usually true?

Anyway, you should get off coffee completely. Drugs are bad, mmmmkay? :P

Out of curiosity, what's your take on FPI vs Noise? I was considering swapping out some mcr320 I have but then I figured I'd wait for your test results before selecting a new fan/rad combo ;)

Currently I'm running gt 1850rpm on 2x mcr320 per loops (overkill, why not) and I figured since I can get away with no fans at all during browsing/office work, I maybe should move to a sub 1000rpm setup (16 fans do make some noise). As you know, the gt squeal when undervolting, so there's that annoying me...

Actually, I've been drinking Lipton Tea lately, antioxidants are good for you right...:D

I'm not sure, but I've been thinking about ordering a GTX120 to maybe do some work in that area. While I wouldn't be able to compare CFM/noise, I could compare RPM/Noise between the two. I've heard people say more dense radiators create more noise, but I'm not sure myself.

I'll be doing some lower RPM GTs here in not too long to so you can get a feel on the lower models.

In general I think it's always good to pick a fan that runs 12V at the RPM you want, there almost always seems to be some negatives with undervolting with some fans doing better than others.

But as far as FPI, I'm not sure. I think there is more to the # of fan blades than there is FPI, but I haven't tested it..yet.:D

Martinm210

11-06-2010, 11:45 AM

OK, now that I found the right fan:D...this new testing batch checks in just fine, better than I expected.

Such a relief I don't have to start over again...:D

Anyhow, I have about a dozen new fans tested with this batch last night and I'll start processing.:up:

http://img256.imageshack.us/img256/1733/batch2isok.png

[XC] Oj101

11-06-2010, 01:23 PM

I'm looking forward to seeing the GT :up:

Martinm210

11-06-2010, 02:45 PM

Yate Loon D12SL12-D 38mm

Special thanks to Shazza for sponsoring this fan:clap::clap:

Since I've always had yates myself and like to undervolt them under 1000RPM, I was really curious to see how this 38mm variety did. It is slightly more expensive and sports that typical larger size hub that most 38mm fans have, but very different blades than that of the normal yate 25mm thickness series.

The fan did pretty well, but it was not better than the 25mm varieties. In addition to the below noise level, I noticed some motor ticking present at higher volts that you don't get with the 25mm version. On average it produced about 1dbA more than the SM 25mm baseline fan for the same performance level. And what about CFM per RPM you might ask?...worse. Perhaps the larger hub is to blame for that. In general, fairly close to the 25mm yates, but more motor tick and more noise level. Also much lower top end so less ability to increase if needed with a fan controller. I'd suggest sticking with the 25mm SL or SM version..

Video Link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxe3XHG0zOU

I good value in the context of 38mm fan costs, but in general I would prefer the 25mm D12SL12 over this 38mm version.

http://img257.imageshack.us/img257/9661/yateloond12sl12dback.jpg

http://img257.imageshack.us/img257/4589/yateloond12sl12dfront.jpg

http://img257.imageshack.us/img257/6915/r6a2yld12sl12d.png

Martinm210

11-06-2010, 04:45 PM

Scythe Ultra Kaze 2000

Yet another fan sponsored by Shazza:clap::clap:

I've used the UK3 in previous radiator testing and alway thought they were a great value fan for high speeds, but they had a tendency to tick when undervolted....so I wanted to try the UK2. The good news is the fan is much better with the ticking problem I think is more apparent in the UK3.

In general I thought it has a bit more motor whine than 25mm fans at similar performance levels, but slightly less wind/blade type noise.

It actually performed fairly similarly to the yate medium speed 25mm fan with the exception of a few bad voltage spikes. It seemed to resonate at around 5V, 8V, and 10V with about a 1-3dbA spike over the normal trend with the biggest spike at 8V.

As far as CFM/RPM it does very well, a bit better than the yate 25mm fans. The fan is also more electrically efficient drawing about .5 watts less than the 25mm yate medium.

Overall a pretty good value fan for higher speeds, but if you plan to run lower than about 1700RPM, you'd be better off with a 25mm fan. If you do undervolt, you may want to tune off of those resonating points.I also thought the motor sound was a bit whiny in general at lower volts.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=My2Y3cTnlsM

http://img600.imageshack.us/img600/3913/scytheuk2.jpg
http://img600.imageshack.us/img600/1391/scytheuk2front.jpg
http://img600.imageshack.us/img600/738/r6a2scytheuk2.png

ericFX1984

11-06-2010, 05:15 PM

I might be able to send over a jabtech D12SH-12, maybe

Martinm210

11-06-2010, 07:20 PM

I might be able to send over a jabtech D12SH-12, maybe

You have PM..:D:up:

Martinm210

11-06-2010, 07:29 PM

Enermax Magma

Another fan sponsored by Shazza:clap::up:

Since Shazza let me pick the fans, this was just one of those grabs because of the batwing blades. I also noticed the blade is removable so I was curious how it did.

NOISE LEVEL
It was about 1-2 dbA higher than the yate medium.

NOISE QUALITY
Very good, no apparent or obvious motor noises, ticks, or resonance peaks.

EFFICIENCY
Not quite as efficient as the yate medium, but close and still kept it under 2W at 12V.

CFM per RPM
Not quite as good as the yate medium. Not sure the bat-wing style is the most efficient, but perhaps it gives it that smoother air sound.

OVERALL
I liked the smooth sound, but it was a higher noise level than the yate medium. Removable blade might come in handy for cleaning or adding lube to the bearing long term.:shrug:

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzGeL01YhmM

http://img258.imageshack.us/img258/1864/enermaxmagma.jpg

http://img258.imageshack.us/img258/5061/enermaxmagmafront.jpg
http://img258.imageshack.us/img258/6255/r6a2enermaxmagma.png

Martinm210

11-06-2010, 10:28 PM

Gelid Silent 12

Special thanks to charliehorse55 for sponsoring this fan..:clap:

It's a PWM fan and seem to exhibit some odd behavior for start up. It did not want to start any earlier than 6V and both 6 and 7V were really low RPM, then suddenly a big hop up at 8V. In the end, I really only was able to produce good results for 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12V.

Those results were fairly similar to a Yate medium with about .5 to 1dBA higher noise level. Noise quality was ok, nothing major bad jumping out at me, but also nothing really special in smoothness.

I do like the looks of the white on black though. It also didn't quite scale as high in performance as the yate medium, so it's really geared for low/mid RPM duties.

Overall did ok, similar to a yate medium with lower top end RPM and PWM ability.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKrQfsZJhVg

http://img713.imageshack.us/img713/3296/gelidsilent12.jpg
http://img713.imageshack.us/img713/6475/gelidsilent12front.jpg
http://img713.imageshack.us/img713/2455/r6a2gelidsilent12.png

Martinm210

11-06-2010, 10:32 PM

Creekin

11-06-2010, 10:39 PM

antiacid

11-07-2010, 08:37 AM

it just sort of occurred to me that this project would look wonderful in a neat web page that lets you pit 2-3-4-5 (or more) fans of your choosing against each others and get Martin's comments on each sections (noise level, quality, etc) displayed in a neat table. Community effort time? :)

I'm not great with webdev but I'm pretty sure I could fit a ghetto version of that idea into an excel spreadsheet!

Anyway, good to hear about the 140mm rad, I am very curious about that myself.

SpuTnicK

11-07-2010, 08:52 AM

Martinm210

11-07-2010, 09:09 AM

@Martin
I have noticed you changed you ampere-meter to some Radioshack device which I can't i understand what its measures? Does not look like it show current drawn - big numbers.
Can you explain what is it?

Yes, it's still measuring current, only it measures in milliamps.

Typcally, you can assume amps except the decimal is on the far left .0001 Amps, but with the Gelid it actually autoranged and moved that point around because the 6 and 7V steps were very very low.

The Centech meter was only giving me .01Amp resolution so it was to blame for the roughness of the watts graph...just not enough resolution at these smaller currents. I did check in ok though, the first tests was done with the old centech meter, the new one with the radioshack meter. There was no change on the noise or CFMvsRPM chart, but a bit smoother curve on the watts vs CFM chart in the middle.

Minor meter change to get better current resolution is all.
http://img256.imageshack.us/img256/1733/batch2isok.png

Martinm210

11-07-2010, 09:12 AM

I chose the Enermax UCTB14 for the removable blade, for cleaning.
As well as its low speed specs 750rpm/45cfm/15dba suit my HWL SR1s 140/280/560

looking forward to your results, especially your thoughts on the SR1s built in shroud...
thanks for all your effort! :up:

Yeah, I liked the enermax. When ordering it I thought...great here is another gimmick "batwing blades", but it actually seems to soften the wind sound. I like the fan even though it turned out to have a higher noise level than the yate, very smooth sound.

it just sort of occurred to me that this project would look wonderful in a neat web page that lets you pit 2-3-4-5 (or more) fans of your choosing against each others and get Martin's comments on each sections (noise level, quality, etc) displayed in a neat table. Community effort time? :)

I'm not great with webdev but I'm pretty sure I could fit a ghetto version of that idea into an excel spreadsheet!

Anyway, good to hear about the 140mm rad, I am very curious about that myself.

I've already talked with Skinnee about publishing this on his site after I get a majority of the work done. I just didn't want to wait on sharing the info as it gets done. This is all community sponsored, so I figured I'd publish it working thread style then wrap it all into a webpage later. I'm also holding back a little on ordering some more fans, figured I'd wait until I'm closer to being done so I can maybe order some fans that appears to be doing well or if there is some sort of trend I find, I can test some more in a particular area. I can also make this available by excel no problem..:up:

Martinm210

11-07-2010, 10:42 AM

Yate Loon D12SL-12 from P.T.S.

This is a fan I had lying around for a while, bought at Petra's since they had the better higher quality yates.

Yates have been known as an exceptional value fan for some time, and I have used them on several builds myself.

The finish of the fan is generally a little low, the stickers are never on centered and it seems like the blades are not quite balance, but in the end they do really well from a noise/CFM perspective. They also do not come with wire sleeving or any accessories...not even a box. They are basically an OEM type package, fan only.

Regardless of the absent package, the fan does really well. No apparent undervolting issues, no harsh vibrations or motor ticks, and a relatively good sound. Perhaps not as smooth in sound as some other, but the noise level is low and consistent throughout the voltage range.

My results had this fan pretty well matching the medium speed model with perhaps slightly lower noise levels. I say perhaps because 1dBA is possibly within testing error and 3dBA is considered barely perceptible. Personally, I can't tell the difference between the SM and SL models at like performance levels.

Previously I had thought the SM was better than the SL, but with this I think they are the same.

This fan gets my "Amazing Value" thumbs up..:up: ...:D

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUZCgbR5jEk

http://img826.imageshack.us/img826/8682/yld12sl12.jpg

http://img826.imageshack.us/img826/8782/yld12sl12front.jpg
http://img826.imageshack.us/img826/1674/r6a2yld12sl12.png

Martinm210

11-07-2010, 12:36 PM

Thermalright FDB-12-2000

Another fan sponsored by Shazza:clap:...thanks!!:up:

This was my first Thermalright fan, and picked the higher speed model to get a feel.

PACKAGE
The packaging was very minimalist, basically the bare fan in a brown box. No sleeving on the wire, etc...but the build quality looks good. It has a larger fan motor similar to the Scythe S-flex series.

POSSIBLE DEFECTIVE FAN?
Upon initial testing, I suspect the sample I have may have a defect. It sounds like something is very slightly rubbing internally which is fairly obvious in the videos at lower volts. Regardless, I pressed on to complete the whole test.

NOISE LEVEL
Was slightly worse than the yate medium baseline fan at very low volts, but a fair amount better at the higher speed area. Noise level was overall pretty good.

NOISE QUALITY
Due to the possible defect rubbing sound, noise quality suffered quite a bit at the low end. It wasn't quite as obvious at higher speeds, but it was still there to some degree causing some roughness and irregularity to the sound.

EFFICIENCY
The fan is extremely energy efficient. It actually consumed less power than the yate medium while producing much more air flow. Very impressive and probably a good indicator of the low friction bearing within and possibly a good long life indicator as well.

RANGE
The fan has exceptional RPM range, from 570RPM at 4V to 2060 RPM at 12V, that's quite a range..

OVERALL
I would really like this fan if it wasn't for the rubbing noise (poor noise quality) I had with this sample and I'm curious if it's just this sample or common to them all (I don't know?). Obviously at 2000RPM the motor needs to be stout, and it does appear to have some optimizations at the higher speed area. I'd be curious to see how the lower RPM models do.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdeL9PFN5EE

http://img251.imageshack.us/img251/9300/trfdb2000.jpg

http://img251.imageshack.us/img251/9533/trfdb2000front.jpg

http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/8251/r6a2trfdb122000.png

systemviper

11-07-2010, 01:03 PM

Martinm210

11-07-2010, 02:16 PM

@Martinm210 :surf:
As always very impressed with your methodology, i made a lot of choices over the years
based on your data and when i saw the thread, i wondered how you could and would
make it on point and understandable. Very well done,

I am very impressed with your bench setup = Top Notch :up:

Thanks!

The fan testing has been a challenge for me. Seems like it has taken me up to this round 6 to finally have some level of comfort with the charted results. Everything prior was a good learning experience..:D

Martinm210

11-07-2010, 02:36 PM

Arctic Cooling F12

I bought this one myself, because it was cheap and I like the # of blades for pressure...I also never had an arctic cooling fan, so I wanted to try one out.

Turns out very promising, perhaps a yate loon/value fan contender costing only around $9 or so..:up:

PACKAGING
Very minimalist, but they do have color printing on the little box. Also a little instruction manual, some case screws, and stickers. The wires do not come sleeved, but it does come with a daisy chain PWM plug. Apparently you can run these in series off of one PWM controller.

VALUE
I'm always on the hunt for value fans. Googling this fan brings up a cost of around $5-8, but I've seen it typically selling for $9 which is what I paid. So, it's not quite the same value as the $5-6 yates, but it is under the $10 mark. It's a good value.

WIRE GAUGE
If there was one thing I really don't like, it's the exceptionally thin wires. By far the lightest gauge wires I've seen on a fan, it's probably adequate for the current needs, but be careful...would be really easy to break if you tug too hard or shut it in a case door.

NOISE LEVEL
Was very good and perhaps very slightly better than the Yate medium. The test gave about 1dBA lower noise levels for the same performance CFM level as compared to the Yate.

NOISE QUALITY
Very good in most areas, but there were a couple of voltage points where it seems the fan blades created a low frequency pulsing type sound. But..outside of those couple of iffy spots the noise quality was very good. The higher number of blades seemed to really smooth out the fan chop and I never really heard any apparent motor type noises.

EFFICIENCY
Not very good, it actually consumed about 50% more power per CFM than the yate, this is probably due to the smaller motor and larger/greater # of fan blades.

MOTOR HUB SIZE
Just wanted to note this fan hub motor is actually smaller than most 25mm fans. This should be good for reducing fan hub dead spots.

CFM per RPM
Did very well, better than the yate medium by a bit.

OVERALL
I'm fairly impressed for the price. It's right up there with the yates & Zalman for being a good quality value fan. The PWM daisy chain feature would also be nice in some installations. My only real complaint with this fan is the tiny gauge wires.

I give it a thumbs up for value fan with smooth sound and better than yate looks:up:

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XQVMutaETQ

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/490/arcticcoolingf12.jpg

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/566/arcticcoolingf12front.jpg

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/6297/r6a2arcticcoolingf12.png

Church

11-07-2010, 02:40 PM

penguins

11-07-2010, 03:08 PM

Also FYI,
I ordered a HWlabs SR1 140mm radiator for the 140mm fans radiator based testing. I went with it since it was a low density radiator that is also over width. I figured it would have very low pressure drop and have very little obstruction of the shroud edges. It also uses M4 screws which I much prefer over M3 that some of the others are using.

Anyhow, it should be on it's way..

I can probably test with the adapter first, but I wanted to have a radiator template in actual 140mm form as well.

you read my mind! i was thinking a couple hours ago after looking at a sr1 560.. boy i want one of those.. too bad martin doesn't have one to test fans yet!!!!

now i can sit back for the next 6 months and let you do the work... prolly still have to send you a fan or so to figure out which to get 4 of lol.

Martinm210

11-07-2010, 03:46 PM

Regarding thermalright FDB fans i recall reading from Jordan's 120mm fan roundup (http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/coolers/display/120-140-fans-roundup_23.html#sect0), that yes, quality of these fans varies from fan to fan. Lotery/game of luck.

Good to know, I may order one of the lower speed models, seems like it would have been a good fan otherwise. By reading his review, he seemed to indicate the 2000 model was the worst and the 1300 was one of the better. I'll put the 1300 on my short list of possible fans I'll order later.

you read my mind! i was thinking a couple hours ago after looking at a sr1 560.. boy i want one of those.. too bad martin doesn't have one to test fans yet!!!!

now i can sit back for the next 6 months and let you do the work... prolly still have to send you a fan or so to figure out which to get 4 of lol.

I was on the fence on the 140 sized rad. Magicool makes a really low cost one that would probably be fine for testing, but they were OOS at the momemt where I was looking to place an order. I was looking really hard at the EK, but it's more narrow like the RS120 is which may obstruct the fan edges a little. Then I noticed the M3 screws which I've had nothing but trouble with in cross threading screws and that's just not something I want to fight when mounting many many fans. Sure I could drill it out and tap to M4, but I didn't want to bother. The SR1 is pretty expensive, but what the heck, it's really low density so that should be a good test case. I had some money in my fan fund thanks to some sponsors...so the SR it is.

But yeah, I am a bit short on 140mm fans, so I'll be looking to round up anything in a 140 pretty soon.:up: I'll probably be ordering some as well, but I have a few in shipping right now highlighted in orange on the fan list.

Martinm210

11-07-2010, 04:04 PM

NOCTUA P12

Special thanks to Masika for sponsoring this fan:clap:

I've tested and retested this fan a few times now on various test beds and this round on the MCR120 was it's worst yet. Not sure why, but the fan on this radiator resonated really bad at 12V and also a bit at 7V.

I've noticed a little resonating in my prior round of tests on the RS120, but it wasn't quite this strong.

Electrical efficiency and CFM/RPM is almost exactly the same as the yate medium. Noise level however was higher and noise quality roughly the same where resonance didn't occur, but much worse where I did have trouble.

Not a good test...I guess I expected more for the price and for it's high and dense blade count...:( The fan is also fairly limited in RPM range 840-1377 is all you get. On the bright side I do like the overall construction of the fan and packaging, the casting quality looks good and it feels well made.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qD0_VRxtmhQ

http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/9438/noctuap12.jpg

http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/2168/noctuap12front.jpg

http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/1013/r6a2noctuap12.png

Utnorris

11-07-2010, 04:14 PM

Hey Martin,
If you need the old style San Ace fan or a Pabst fan, let me know, I have a few (something like 60 of them :D) laying around I could send you.

Church

11-07-2010, 04:22 PM

Martin: btw, can you add cfm/db lines of fan performance without rad on charts? It would be interesting to see, how much cfm what type of fan relatively looses. Probably would be good case for illustrating role of different fan blade shape/count/size.

Martinm210

11-07-2010, 04:47 PM

Hey Martin,
If you need the old style San Ace fan or a Pabst fan, let me know, I have a few (something like 60 of them :D) laying around I could send you.

Sent you a PM on OCN..that would be awesome, thanks!:up:

Martin: btw, can you add cfm/db lines of fan performance without rad on charts? It would be interesting to see, how much cfm what type of fan relatively looses. Probably would be good case for illustrating role of different fan blade shape/count/size.

That's priority #2, first priority is rad based testing. 120mm fans first, then 140mm fans. Xbit and a few others have already done quite a bit of work on open air type testing, but I think this would provide some value, if nothing else a second test QC type check on my radiator based round.

I did create a case fan (no radiator) template, just haven't made it there yet.:up:

Good luck on trying to determine performance based on characteristics or box specs though...every time I think I'm finding a generality..I test a fan that throws that off completely. About the only thing I have some feel for is high numbers of blades that sweep forward tend to produce smoother air flow type sound. I have no idea what to expect with the motors or bearings since you can't see the differences without taking the fans apart and the motor noise is almost more critical than the blade..:shrug:

Martinm210

11-07-2010, 06:28 PM

Coolink SWiF2 1201

Another fan sponsored by Shazza:clap::up: Very much appreciated:yepp:

Never heard about this fan before, but I picked it out when Shazza gave me the option because I liked the higher number of blades and forward sweep. I think this is a good fan overall.

PACKAGE
This is more of your standard package and comes with some bright green rubber case mount nipples as well as case screws. The fan itself seems very well cast and constructed visually, and the wires are sleeved with heatshrink type tube. That's not as flexible as regular braided sleeving, but better than bare wires.

NOISE LEVEL
It was spot on the exact same level as the yate medium which is good.

NOISE QUALITY
The 11 bladed impeller is an improvement in sound quality over your typical 7 blade types. This tends to smooth out the air/wind type noises to more of a constant. I particularly liked the noise qualities of this fan at lower voltages. I did not notice any apparent motor noises or resonance issues throughout the voltage range

CFM per RPM
The 11 bladed impeller was a good gain per RPM over the yate medium and produced roughly the same CFM as the yate did at about 80 RPM lower speeds.

VALUE
Running around $15 a fan, this would be about average in value.

EFFICIENCY
Not as good as the yate medium, consumes roughly 50% more power per CFM.

OVERALL
In general the fan performed roughly the same noise level as the yate medium with slightly better sound quality. It was roughly similar to the Arctic Cooling F12, except it wasn't quite as low in noise level, but it was a little more consistent throughout the voltage range..

A better than average fan for an average price.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8W1QQRbTDJE

http://img822.imageshack.us/img822/4545/coollinkswif21201.jpg
http://img822.imageshack.us/img822/7052/coollinkswif21201front.jpghttp://img822.imageshack.us/img822/2271/r6a2coollinkswif21201.png

Martinm210

11-07-2010, 09:37 PM

FYI, I'm throwing out my GT15. Tried testing it twice now in both batches and getting very different results. I simply think this fan is defective.

As a tester, this single fan has created me more headache by far than any other fan. For some undiscovered reason, it simply performs very differently by day.:shrug::down:

I noticed in previous rounds that gave me very different results depending on the round. It performed anywhere from exceptional I mean beyond exceptional to only average or less than average. I had hoped it was all just my test rig and that there was some strange interaction with the old anemometer vane probe, so I've changed that. I also thought it could be a harmonic issue with the RS120...so I've changed that too.

I tested the Yate Loon D12SM12 AND the GT15 both in batch 1 and batch 2. The yate matched up almost perfectly +-.5dbA, while the GT gave two very different results(+-7dbA):confused::confused:.

AND all this time, I thought "MOODS" were reserved for people...well...I think my GT15 has MOOD issues as well..:rofl:

I still haven't figured out why, but this fan simply tests differently on different days. Perhaps it's a humidity thing, or temperature, or run time, mounting variable, or maybe I simply have a bit of dirt in the bearings that gets caught from time to time, or maybe I simply have a defective fan..:shrug:

I do know that it uses actual ball bearings and in my own experiments with anemometer vane probes, the viscosity of the oil has a large effect on friction of those bearings. Also this fan has an extremely low torque motor so it spins with very little effort. Perhaps because this fan has sat on the shelf for a year plus, that the fan lube has settled or degraded in some way that makes it perform irregularly..

I've got an AP14 on it's way for sure, that I'll be testing, but this is what I have so far on the AP15. Test2 from Batch 1 didn't really show any harmonic spikes and performed exceptionally well. But Test 1 from Batch two, had a pretty big spike at 10V.

I guess I can accept some harmonic or variability in noise level, but I even have differences in power consumption and CFM per RPM and CFM per RPM which doesn't make ANY sense at all..:confused::confused:

Maybe I have some sort of short or something going on here....I really can't make sense of WHY it tests so differently on different days...but it does.. :wierd: Anyhow, I think I'm going to retire this fan:bsod:, it is just too variable and odd.:shrug:

We'll see if it's new AP14 brother behaves any differently. If the 14 performs consistently, I'll find a way to get another AP15 to test. The one I have now simply can't be trusted...:shakes::down:

Anyhow, this is why I'm throwing this fan out. I simply can not pin down it's results. I'm going to assume something is wrong with it and seek another sample after trying out the lower models.
http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/9598/r6a2gt15.png

Martinm210

11-07-2010, 09:54 PM

FYI,
Vapor is saving the day with another AP15 sample or two...:clap::clap::clap::clap:

Whoohoo!:D:D:D

I'll plan on holding back my frustration (having ball peen hammer visions) until one more test new(and hopefully consistent) versus old (Whacky) GT15..:)

Philwong

11-08-2010, 12:50 AM

Thanks for testing out the AC F12, Martin.

I also find these budget fans excellent for value and performance. What really seals the deal for me is the PST function or PWM daisy chaining. This allows me to tap the CPU and GPU fan headers to throttle my radiator fans to achieve optimum noise vs. cooling balance.

I've four F12s wired up to a single CPU fan header using only the PWM and RPM rails. Power is pulled directly from the PSU via a simple mod. Works fine for my 5870 GPU header as well.

Some folks have highlighted that the CPU/GPU temp's fluctuation may be higher than the coolant, but this approach still works relatively well for the F12 without audible noise issue from my seating position.

I was previously using YL SL and some of them tend to tick at lower RPMs even without PWM control.

The thin cables are a flimsy, but they can still hold up pretty well electrically.

Phil

Manicdan

11-08-2010, 08:17 AM

Perhaps because this fan has sat on the shelf for a year plus,

sorry but.. :cord:

hope the next GT15 are looking just as good as test 2 results,
im really loving mine sofar

Church

11-08-2010, 08:58 AM

Martin: Oh, so maybe Vapor was responsible for recent world-wide AP15 shortage? :)

somethingclever

11-08-2010, 11:02 AM

But yeah, I am a bit short on 140mm fans, so I'll be looking to round up anything in a 140 pretty soon.:up: I'll probably be ordering some as well, but I have a few in shipping right now highlighted in orange on the fan list.

This is fantastic, I can't wait!

Martinm210

11-08-2010, 03:01 PM

sorry but.. :cord:

hope the next GT15 are looking just as good as test 2 results,
im really loving mine sofar

Sorry but what?:confused:

Is there an expiration data printed on your fans somewhere? Is there documentation somewhere I can read that confirms fans can only be stored for 1month, 6months? How long are they stored at the vendors before you buy them? Oh and yes I'm stubborn and enjoy learning the hard way sometimes...:D

I do know that my Coolermaster R4 fan has a date printed on it of 9-13-2009. I would assume that is manufactured date, so that fan was over a year old when ordered brand new.... Should I RMA that fan for being over a year old too..?

Actually, we don't know much at all about date or ages or what if anything goes wrong with a fan in storage or even how long they are in storage before we get them..... Also this fan could have been defective from day 1...or it could be that all GTs behave randomly like this...it's all speculation. All I know is the sample I currently have performs randomly and has been since I've been working on the latter rounds of testing where I've actually tried to retest many times and have been seeing bigger variences. In round 2 my test bench was a bit lacking to pick up the find details. We really don't know anything more than this sample is currently behaving inconsistently. I will know more soon enough though as I get my hands on some other samples to check against.

I suspect there is actually quite a bit of sample variance out there. I've seen it with pressure drop testing of blocks, so I'm sure it's there with fans as well. Always a bit of a gamble, and most people would never know they got a less than ideal fan unless you tested it in detail and had another sample to compare against which nobody does...

Me too, the GTs are obviously really good, I just don't think they are perfect. I suspect they will be the fan to beat in the 1000-2000RPM range, but there are other factors to consider. For those looking to run under 1000RPM there may be better options and certainly lower cost options. But who knows....I'd like to see some good competition myself. I'm seeing stores bumping prices because supply isn't keeping up...and I don't like that.

Martin: Oh, so maybe Vapor was responsible for recent world-wide AP15 shortage? :)

No kidding, I'm just happy he's willing to share in all this AP wealth...:D

This is fantastic, I can't wait!

I am looking forward to doing some 140 testing. I've been speculating that it's a direction we'll be going toward in general, but who knows. Maybe 120 is the sweet spot? We do know that you get more CFM per RPM, but we don't know too much about noise of 140s on a radiator.

Anyhow, I have two more recordings done that I'll process in the next couple of days, then I'll plan on batch #3 this coming weekend.:up:

Martinm210

11-08-2010, 06:11 PM

Cooler Master R4-C2R

Thanks to vhaarr for the sample on this one..:clap::up:

NOISE LEVEL
Was about the same as the medium yate at the low end, but a fair amount better at the top end. I suspect this is due to the greater number of blades and forward sweep which seems to really cut down on the air type noises created by the blades.

NOISE QUALITY
I'd say average to less than average primarily due to the motor tick which makes the overall sound a bit rough and grainy or mechanical rather than a smooth air flow. Also seemed to fight a little bit of resonance as indicated by the irregular noise curve. It's too bad this fan does not come with the motor on the excalibur, it would probably make a great combo since I really didn't hear any motor noises coming from that one.

EFFICIENCY
Very similar to the yate medium, if anything a little better at the high end

CFM per RPM
Surprisingly was a little worse than the yate medium. Perhaps the blades are not deep or dished enough to get that full scoop type action, but regardless it is what it is.

RANGE
Overall a pretty very good power range from 960RPM at 4V to 2055RPM at 12V, that's good.

OVERALL
While noise level is fairly good and actually pretty impressive at the high end, I think it suffers a bit on the noise quality front which seems to come from the motor. It's an good value fan with lower noise level, but it's not the smoothest sound compared to other options.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2Z2izxVYDY

http://img695.imageshack.us/img695/9149/cmasterr4c2r.jpg

http://img695.imageshack.us/img695/8880/cmasterr4c2rfront.jpg

http://img695.imageshack.us/img695/9255/r6a2cmasterr4c2r.png

Martinm210

11-08-2010, 07:28 PM

Martinm210

11-08-2010, 07:39 PM

NOISE BLOCKER PL-2

This fan was also sponsored by vhaarr:up:

PACKAGE
This was very premium in terms of packaging, all sort of goodies included. Custom rubber gasket system with studs and thumb nuts. Also comes with two sleeved wire lengths. It really went all out in accessories.

NOISE LEVEL
Fairly similar to the yate medium, perhaps a hair lower at the bottom end and a bit higher at the upper end, but the differences were less than 1dBA which is probably within testing error and within the 3dbA (barely perceptible) range. This is good

NOISE QUALITY
A fair amount better than average. No abnormal resonance peaks, no motor ticks, just a very smooth wind sound type noise. I think it's better than the yate in it appears they use a flatter blade type to soften the noise chop type sound.

EFFICIENCY
Not as good as the yate medium

CFM per RPM
Also not as good as the yate medium, flatter/straighter blade type may be more tuned for case type fan duties.

OVERALL
Cost is a real bummer on these, but they do have very good noise qualities and a load of packaging goodies if that's important to you.

About average noise level, better than average noise quality, premium packaging, and high price.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rsMKjBZHo8

http://img829.imageshack.us/img829/7/nblockerpl2.jpg

http://img829.imageshack.us/img829/2979/nblockerpl2front.jpg

http://img829.imageshack.us/img829/9185/r6anoiseblockerpl2.png

Church

11-08-2010, 07:48 PM

Martinm210

11-08-2010, 08:04 PM

Hmm, few thoughts regarding result representation.
Watt and Rpm vs CFM can be seen from test results spreadsheet. Am i wrong to claim that only graph chart that really matters in fan choice is CFM vs Noise with other two being redundant?
After all, if some fan is quieter at 1400 rpm then other at 900 while pushing same amount of air, then does that rpm number mater at all? In such case it's just artificial tech specs number not really usuable when choosing/comparing fans.
Same about power consumed. Only things from wattage that should matter to user - maximum power consumed when working, maximum startup power draw and minimum startup voltage, to know how much fans can be fed from single channel of motherboard fan header/rheostat/fan&pump controller, and down to which voltage fans can be safely down-volted. These maximum numbers can be just looked up in test data sheet and used when summing up daisy chained fan total power draw, and rest - easily discarded. Not worth separate graph chart as well imho.

I agree, I'm just looking for any trends in those latter two, not much there really other than debunking many myths I had (38mm fans always producing better performance per RPM,etc.), but it might come in handy for comparing radiator performance levels. If a radiator is tested at one RPM, you could convert using the RPM/CFM chart.

I was also curious to see if power consumption is related things like noise level and or bearing quality/friction? In the end, I'm not sure anything correlates there.

I would still argue that noise level, even with this much more appropriate A weighted version is only half of the picture. Unfortunately there really is no way to quantify noise quality other than try to include some notes in a narrative and provide the audio for users to listen to.

That's just my thoughts though, still remains fairly subjective regardless of the tools/methods used.

The ultimate to me is a combination of noise level per CFM and noise quality. The noise level is easy enough with the meter, but noise quality remains in the audio track to listen to..

Martinm210

11-08-2010, 08:09 PM

That's it for batch #2, the fans highlighted in dark green are all I have on hand that haven't been tested so far.

My bigger PPCs order won't get here until next Friday, although I might get a couple more in from SVC before the weekend I can include in batch #3. My SVC orders usually get here in only 3-4 days, where my PPCs order it going to take 9 LONG days. That's alright, I should probably have 10 or so fans to test this weekend, I was just hoping for more since I've got some extra days off for the holidays to play. I just might have to got cut some firewood or something productive instead..:D

http://img829.imageshack.us/img829/8918/fanlist11810.png

MagisD

11-08-2010, 08:53 PM

Great work martin!

I was convinced it was a wonky gt-15.

Sad news is I got my batch of them in and there different. Its subtle about the fan itself looks like they started cutting corners. Allso No sleeveing, no heatshrink, stickers seem cheaper. Overall they seem like a knockoff of the orginal.

It could be the fc-2 I'm useing but seems to have a different harmonic.

Gona test new vs old on same setup see if i can tell the difference.

Sent from my X10a using Tapatalk

Martinm210

11-08-2010, 09:08 PM

Martinm210

11-08-2010, 09:08 PM

MASTER NOISE vs CFM CHART
Updated 11-8-10

I'm only going to update this after getting each batch done. What is obvious to me is how extremely tight the results are. Per my reading, it normally takes about 3dbA for most people to perceive a change in noise level...that's about the spread of "Most" of the fans here. But if we're splitting hairs...here is the chart for your viewing pleasure.

Just note this is NOISE LEVEL only. I think this is only half the picture, noise quality is what you get by listening which points out the things like motor tics, and other less that smooth sounds.

http://img560.imageshack.us/img560/2695/batch1and2results.th.png (http://img560.imageshack.us/img560/2695/batch1and2results.png)

antiacid

11-08-2010, 10:17 PM

iandh

11-09-2010, 12:39 AM

I should have listened to you earlier, but my stubborn self couldn't resist..:D

Sorry to hear about the changes:(, I've got some coming too.

I'm really, really hoping this is just a bad batch, and not an improper response to increased demand.

I know there's been a shortage for some time on the GT's, I pray that's not due to retooling for higher production at a reduced quality level.

The superb quality of the GT's is what has made them into the ambassador of fans, I hope that Nidec servo isn't letting profit and demand prevent them from seeing that.

I'm wondering if there was a shortage on the high quality bearings that they were using, but I can't imagine how that could be the case being that they are a standard of the server market.

MagisD

11-09-2010, 07:26 AM

I'm putting my build on hold till i have time to strip out my old fans out of my old build and play with them side by side.

But I'm very sensitive to harmonics certain fequency/tones give me mirgraines. The new gt's seem dirtier (Sound wise )to me if that makes any sense?

Sent from my X10a using Tapatalk

Martinm210

11-09-2010, 04:38 PM

FYI,
Got my SVC order in today, they are so fast... Thanks to Ratdog and twich12 for these two..:D

Batch 2 GTs have no more wire sleeving as others have indicated, a change in rear sticker, and what appears to be a change to the support frame...possibly for better circuitry cooling?

I'm curious if that opening up will add noise though..?:shrug:

Waterlogged

11-09-2010, 07:31 PM

Martin, I have 4 brand new in the box batch 1 AP14's and can say without a doubt that sleeving is not normal. I know for a fact that P-PC's sleeves fans without the customer asking (you also have little choice in the matter), two of my AP14's came from there and are sleeved (and put back in the package backwards), and the other two came from FCPU a few weeks later and those are not sleeved. I also have some AP13's from FCPU that are going in my current mini-ITX HP build and those came unsleeved as well. FCPU will sleeve it, if you pay extra for it.

Weird thing I noticed is, I have AP15 and AP14 that have the same sticker as your AP14 but the housing of your AP15 and I know both of these are batch 1 fans.

The blades on that Cooler Master fan look a bit like the blades on the Akasa Apache and Viper fans, both of which I just got. Apache Black (maybe a AP13 or AP14 competitor) is a little bit weaker but fairly quiet and the Viper (seems to be in AP15 territory) is a good bit stronger (than the Apache) but also a good bit louder with kind of a higher pitch whine to it. . .I'll be sticking with my GT's. The Viper just seems to be a souped up Apache with different colored blades as noise and flow (all subjective test methods used) seem to match up RPM wise.

Martinm210

11-09-2010, 08:13 PM

Martinm210

11-09-2010, 08:14 PM

Nidec Servo (Scythe) Gentle Typhoon AP-14

Special thanks to RatDog & Cisco Systems for giving me a general fund to pick from, I've had the old batch one AP-15 for a while and wanted to try a new batch AP-14. The AP-15 was driving me nuts with it's inconsistency, so I was really curious to get my hands on a brand new sample and also have a chance to look at the lower RPM variety.

Vapor is sending me a couple of batch two AP-15s I'll give a run on too when they come. Then I'll have an opportunity to get some good runs on some new fans from batch 2.

This fan is brand new however, so I feel more confident it's at least not suffering from shelf life.

OK, on with the results.

BATCH 1 vs BATCH 2 FANS
These fans have changes slightly, the good news is, I don't think noise was affected by the changes from what I can tell.
http://img830.imageshack.us/img830/7598/gtbatch2c.jpg

PACKAGE
Fairly average. Comes with the fan without any sleeving on the wires and it comes with some case screws and a molex connector in a plastic box. Overall, about average.

NOISE LEVEL
At the high end this fan spins around 1450RPM and is a full 8 dBA lower in noise level on my particular test rig than the yate medium, that is significant. At 7V or roughly 850 RPM is is about 3 dbA lower in noise level than the yate medium. 3dBA is considered barely perceptible, so that's not so significant, but still worthy of note. Nothing short of exceptional here I mean REALLY OUTSTANDING noise level.

NOISE QUALITY
This is a difficult one to evaluate. On one hand, the exceptional noise level is amazing, but the GT has a way with sound. The normal noise of air movement from the fan blades is nearly absent. What you are left with is very small amounts of bearing/motor noises and those small noises are not quite as smooth as the sound of air movement. Also while I didn't pick up any measurable noise spikes from harmonic issues, I could very faint amounts of tone developing over the voltage range from time to time.

In the end, I guess I've generally rated noise quality as exceptional, if it was purely a smooth air like sound where motor noise was absent. In this fan, there is no air noise, all you hear is the faint motor/bearing working. That's not quite as pleasing as smooth air. However, the fan is very quiet and there is not any motor tick that's generally the most annoying type of sound. I'll give noise quality an average rating, although I think that's totally subjective.

ELECTRICAL EFFICIENCY
How is .5 watts, the GT is absolutely the most electrical efficient fan I've seen. Even the GT15 keeps power under 1 watt. It's about twice as efficient as the yate loon. That'll keep the stress off of overloading your fan controller. Another exceptional by the GT.

CFM per RPM
About average in this test. The more I test and compare this chart, the more I think I'm just seeing variability in RPM sensor accuracy. I don't think I'll worry too much more about this comparison.

COST
I've seen this fan sell for about $15 to $19 a piece, so it is not a bargain fan and not going to be cheap to fill a case full of a dozen of these. I think it's probably justified if you need the full RPM power, but perhaps not if you're looking to undervolt down in the sub 1000RPM range.

VISUAL
This is pretty subjective, but I've seen many nicer looking fans. I suppose I appreciate the fact that they focused on performance only on this fan, but it would be nice to have a few color choices. It's unfortunate when you see people painting the fan blades, as that's a pretty good sign folks want something other than grey and black. I also wouldn't ever recommend painting, could very easily throw off blade balance if you're not careful. I'd give visual an average.

OVERALL
Jaw dropping noise/cfm ratios from 1000-1450RPM, it flat dominates in this area. Average noise quality, exceptional electrical efficiency, average to high cost, and average visual.

I'll give it three thumbs for it's dominating cfm/noise ratio on a radiator, it's really exceptionally quiet at medium speed RPMs.:up::up::up:

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yuj7GZqNpOs

http://img259.imageshack.us/img259/4430/gt14.jpg

http://img259.imageshack.us/img259/5730/gt14front.jpg

http://img259.imageshack.us/img259/5089/r6a3gtyphoonap14.png

And for giggles, I compared it to my wonky GT15, while my Batch one (lower result) didn't check out well, it did compare very well to the Batch 2 GT15 test..
http://img830.imageshack.us/img830/107/gt15vsgt14.png

And this was my retest of this fan in batch 4 compared to my results in batch 3. About 1CFM difference, but very similar.:up:

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/2226/r6a4gt14check.png

Manicdan

11-11-2010, 07:13 AM

Martinm210

11-11-2010, 08:31 AM

keep up the great work man

btw, why would someone buy a GT14 or less? it seems identical to the 15 except the range is limited. is it really just so people who have little control over speed can pick the speed they wanted?

Thanks!
Good question, it's pretty hard to tell with the 14 vs 15, but at least with other fans there is sometimes less motor noise/tick if you can keep the fan fairly close to 12V. Some other fan families like the Ultra Kaze is clearly that way. The UK3 has a really strong motor tick at lower volts, but the UK2 is a fair amount smoother at the same performance level.

nex_73

11-11-2010, 09:22 AM

Thank you for all the hard work/testing! Really appreciate it!
Seems like i have to switch my 2 excaliburs =)
Looking forward to the Scythe SS SL12H result as i have 2 SL12SH and they seem a little bit better at the same dBA regarding to:
SPCR (http://www.silentpcreview.com/article832-page1.html)

Martinm210

11-11-2010, 09:22 AM

FYI,
I got about a dozen or so fans tested or retested last night. It's a bit cooler 18C as opposed to 20-21C on this batch and this is how the batch checked in using the yate medium as my check and baseline fan. It seems noise level vs air flow remains relatively good, however the temperature does affect the air flow per RPM a bit more than I expected, I suppose because the air is slightly more dense?)

Since we're really just looking for noise vs cfm, I suppose this is still ok, but something to be aware of. There will be some error in the max CFM at 12V depending on temperature. (32.5CFM vs 30.5CFM or about a 2CFM difference in max at 12V.)

On the noise vs air flow chart, it was generally fairly close within about .5dbA, with a couple of bumps that were about 1dbA different.

I'll accept that and just acknowledge repeatability on the noise vs CFM is typically better than 1dBA, and CFM per RPM is repeatable to about 2CFM.

Plenty to start processing for a few days..mostly retests, but it should add to the round database..:up:

Martinm210

11-11-2010, 09:26 AM

nex_73

11-11-2010, 09:41 AM

I got the SS tested last night, I can probably make that first in processing now that I'm done with the check in.:up:
Looking forward to it. Would be interesting to compare it against the excaliburs... :up:

Martinm210

11-11-2010, 11:16 AM

Scythe Slip Stream High Speed

Thanks to Hondacity for sponsoring the fan..:clap:

I've had this fan in my collection for a while, I've always liked the high numbers of blades.

NOISE LEVEL
Almost spot on the same as the yate medium which is good

NOISE QUALITY
I'm going to say average to below average. It has some pretty good areas where the sound is fairly smooth, but it also has some very faint motor buzz/tick on occasion. Nothing really pronounced, but there is some motor noise there. The higher number of blades does seem to smooth out the air a little bit, but I think their steeper pitch and minimal forward sweep isn't making the air noise as soft as it could be. Listen to the video for your own interpretation, noise quality is always pretty subjective.

EFFICIENCY
Poor, this fan is extremly power hungry per CFM. I almost had to switch my Amp meter from milliamps over to Amps as it approached hitting .4AMPs at 12V which is 4.5 watts where the yate medium is only drawing about 2 watts. You definitely want to check those fan controller specs before stringing a bunch of these together.

CFM/RPM
Seems to be a little better than the yate medium with the higher number of blades which is good.

OVERALL
Good, pretty similar to the yate medium with a bit more top end and less low end range. The only thing to really watch for is the power consumption which is almost 5 watts.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8NhoZyYLtw

http://img600.imageshack.us/img600/2322/scythesstreamh.jpg

http://img600.imageshack.us/img600/7682/scythesstreamhfront.jpg

http://img600.imageshack.us/img600/1192/r6a4scytheslipstreamh.png

UPDATE 11-27-2010

Scythe SlipStream High Speed-V (Vapor Sample)

Special thanks to Vapor for providing this sample. The one I tested previous was actually being used as a case fan for a little while, so it was good to get a nice fresh sample to compare.

It came in fairly close +-1dbA, but this test did perform better. Noise quality is much the same, so I'm not going to bother with rendering another video.

Anyhow, here are the results, I'll add this information to the original sample post. In general this sample shows a fairly strong CFM/dbA at lower volts compared to most fans, and sort of creeps up into the pack at 12V. Noise quality wise, I don't think it's quite as good as the yates for example, but it's all fairly close and subjective. It is a power hungry little fan though, all 4.5 watts much like the other sample.

http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/9639/ra7sstreamhv.png

COMPARED TO ALL
http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/1977/ra7sstreamhvvsall.th.png (http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/1977/ra7sstreamhvvsall.png)

nex_73

11-11-2010, 11:28 AM

Manicdan

11-11-2010, 11:42 AM

is this one of the only fans that really sees a CFM/RPM advantage?

it might be a power hungry and very aggressive fin design.

Martinm210

11-11-2010, 11:43 AM

Thank you! Time to shift fans to the SL12SH.
They will bring even more CFM at lower noice. power consumption i'm not so worried about...
To bad you don't have some to test (I will be using the 2 i have). ;)

You bet!
Sorry I missed the S model, I only have this one H right now...but I would expect it to follow a similar trend, if anything it would probably sound a little smoother at the lower RPMs where it's able to maintain higher voltages.

The excalibur would probably do better in a case fan scenario where there is very little restriction..:shrug: but the slipstream did much better on the MCR radiator for noise level.:up:

Martinm210

11-11-2010, 11:48 AM

is this one of the only fans that really sees a CFM/RPM advantage?

it might be a power hungry and very aggressive fin design.

It does seem to be a bit more aggressive, I just don't trust the CFM/RPM too much. I suspect some of that is just the RPM sensors poor accuracy. But it does point there a bit. I think power consumption is a factor of several things. The blade aggressiveness, the bearing friction, and the noise level. Energy in = Energy out.. Since this one isn't much different in noise, it's probably generating more heat..

I'd like to see a slipstream with really forward sweeping (reverse spiral) shaped blades. It seems like that's another GOOD character besides higher numbers of blades.

nex_73

11-11-2010, 12:03 PM

It could be because the smaller center hub = smaller motor needs more power to get to the same rpm?
Hmm, i'm a little confused right now. Might just get it over with and order 2 GT15 instead.

Martinm210

11-11-2010, 12:15 PM

It could be because the smaller center hub = smaller motor needs more power to get to the same rpm?
Hmm, i'm a little confused right now. Might just get it over with and order 2 GT15 instead.
But, then i noticed this. The batch you have are B4AP and B5AP, the only place here in sweden who has them in stock has the B3AP.
Should i go for them or wait for the B5 batch instead? Hmmm...

Interesting, I'm not sure if the B number is "Batch" or not:shrug: I had my B5 AP-15 for over a year now, and the B4 is brand new:shrug: It kind of makes sense though, but not ever having a B3...I couldn't say.:confused: All I know is there doesn't seem to be any noise differences that I could tell between the B4AP14 and B5AP15 other than my 15 has been a bit wonky at times.

I did stumble upon this weird looking AP-13 the other day, the center part of the hub is not open like the ones I have..?
http://cgi.ebay.com/SCYTHE-D1225C12B3AP-13-GENTLE-TYPHOON-120MM-1150RPM-FAN-/350345253358?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item51923451ee#ht_2181wt_877

nex_73

11-11-2010, 12:19 PM

Disregard the batch, it seems to be the swedish store had the numbers wrong. (You where to fast quoteing me, before i removed it)
b2=800rpm, b3=1150rpm, b4= 1450rpm & b5=1850rpm

Martinm210

11-11-2010, 12:25 PM

Disregard the batch, it seems to be the swedish store had the numbers wrong. (You where to fast quoteing me, before i removed it)
b2=800rpm, b3=1150rpm, b4= 1450rpm & b5=1850rpm

OK, that makes sense...:up:

Manicdan

11-11-2010, 12:31 PM

I did stumble upon this weird looking AP-13 the other day, the center part of the hub is not open like the ones I have..?
http://cgi.ebay.com/SCYTHE-D1225C12B3AP-13-GENTLE-TYPHOON-120MM-1150RPM-FAN-/350345253358?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item51923451ee#ht_2181wt_877

i just did a google image search, most pictures are the same one as your link, which makes me believe thats an older revision (hence why everyone uses that image)

Martinm210

11-11-2010, 12:46 PM

i just did a google image search, most pictures are the same one as your link, which makes me believe thats an older revision (hence why everyone uses that image)

Good! thanks!:up:

FYI,
Updated master chart:

I'm not messing with formatting until I'm done though. Every time I drop another curve on here excel reformats everything, so there's no use until it's done.

http://a.imageshack.us/img574/8962/batch123part4.th.png (http://img574.imageshack.us/img574/8962/batch123part4.png)

Church

11-11-2010, 01:03 PM

Manicdan

11-11-2010, 01:10 PM

It's interesting to see 2 fans singled out from the rest. GT as lone best, and CM Excalibur as lone worst :). I see no wonders in most of fans being about the same performance/noise wise .. but it still amazes me HOW nidec servo managed to pull off making fan that much better compared to those from rest of industry. After all, similar requirements from product and resources in projecting/manufacturing it usually leads to similar designs/materials/performance (as big pack of most of the fans with rather similar results illustrate).

its also kinda odd how the gentle typhoons have such a large motor housing.

so less surface area means the same CFM has to move air faster, yet we hear less!!

i think its time we ask them (with automatic weapons) to make some 140mm 3000rpm versions

Church

11-11-2010, 01:51 PM

SiGfever

11-11-2010, 03:15 PM

Martinm210

11-11-2010, 04:39 PM

Thanks! I might have to go build another dune buggy after all these fans too...lol!

Martinm210

11-11-2010, 04:39 PM

Cooler Master Blade Master

Special thanks to twich12 for sponsoring this fan..:up::clap:

This is a higher speed PWM capable fan with sort of a wave style blade with a really good RPM range.
PACKAGE
Comes in a clear plastic box with your typical printed insert. Also comes with rubber/foam type corners that can be peeled and stuck to the corners for some vibration absorption and your standard self tapping case mounting screws.

NOISE LEVEL
A bit worse than the yate medium at low to mid speeds, but the lines cross and it's actually a fair amount better at high speeds. Appears to have high speed strengths.

NOISE QUALITY
Seems to have a fairly pronounce motor tick present that never really works itself out completely. The blades sound good and smooth, but the motor has some ticking which is more noticeable at lower levels. Perhaps this is better using PWM rather than reducing voltage...I'm not sure.

RANGE
It's worthy to note this fan has really good range from about 500 to 2100RPM is what I got tested on the radiator which is really a broad range.

OVERALL
I think the fan's noise/cfm strengths are tuned more for higher speeds where it was fairly good. The noise quality is my only concern as the motor tick may be annoying to some people. Listen to the video and make your own judgement, sound quality is very subjective.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3peLNN5FJx8

http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/1648/cmblademaster.jpg

http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/9361/cmblademasterfront.jpg

http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/9448/r6a4cmblademaster.png

charles_h

11-11-2010, 04:57 PM

I remember not that long ago reading a thread by a premier tester of the watercooling community stating that he was tired of testing and was giving it up. I sure am glad that it was only a very short vacation and not retirement. :up:

This community is a better and more informed place with you here. Thank you. :toast:
+1

My thoughts exactly. It's so great to see Martin back, doing his thang. :yepp:

I may not be active in these threads but I thoroughly enjoy them for their wealth of objective info - Cheers Martin! :)

Kenjiwing

11-11-2010, 05:32 PM

Martin,

Have you tested the 1850 Gentle Typhoons? I see a GT14 in your chart and just want to know if they're still as good as before.

Martinm210

11-11-2010, 07:07 PM

Martin,

Have you tested the 1850 Gentle Typhoons? I see a GT14 in your chart and just want to know if they're still as good as before.

I did, but at least with the first few tests...I was having trouble repeating the results. One test came in better than the 14, while the other was a pretty good match. I actually retested both of them in this batch 4 round, but I haven't processed the data yet. Vapor is sending me two newer 15's so I figured with my wonky results on my old (shelved for a long time) fan, I'd just wait on the new fans to be sure I get it right. Then I'll have two new samples to test back to back. I think they are roughly the same from what I know right now.:shrug:

BrokenArrow

11-11-2010, 08:10 PM

http://a.imageshack.us/img574/8962/batch123part4.th.png (http://img574.imageshack.us/img574/8962/batch123part4.png)

This graph is fantastic. No pun intended. Thank you Martin for all the hard work and dedication.

Martinm210

11-11-2010, 10:01 PM

Thanks!

FYI, it may be a little delay in getting these last batch fans processed. My main PC has suddenly started turning off randomly to a point where it won't even run for 5 minutes... acts like a power failure. That PC has all my spreadsheet data and video files, so I'm going to have to shift focus from testing to PC troubleshooting. I'm not sure what the problem is, but I started getting some shutdowns about a week or two ago when the house was getting warm. I thought it was heat related, so I back the OC down from 3.6 to 3, to stock at 2.4 and reset the CMOS to defaults. Things seemed to be ok for a few days until this evening when it started all over again only much worse.

Anyhow, going to be a little quiet on the updates with this fan testing until I get my main PC back in operation to a point where it's at least stable enough to do some work again..

To be continued....Computer down!..:(

Church

11-12-2010, 04:30 AM

Hmm, maybe PSU is culprit?

Martinm210

11-12-2010, 07:58 AM

Hmm, maybe PSU is culprit?

I'm not sure, but I had it do it's random shut down while in the bios menu (so it's not software), and it doesn't seem to be related to CPU load, just flat shuts down with or without any load. I also tried pulling each ram stick and the sound card, but it's still doing it.

It's weird, it'll shut down then try and restart multiple times for just a second all failing until I switch off the power for a minute...then it will start back up.

I'm almost thinking it might be the motherboard (DFI X48). If it was the PSU or CPU, I would think it would struggle more when under load, but load doesn't seem to have anything to do with it. The only thing that seems to make it worse is heat, but everything looks good there, open test bench and all the chips are under water and look good. I also have extra fans blowing over the board, etc.

UPDATE: My OCZ PSU went bad, borrowing one from the kids computer while I order another...:)

Martinm210

11-12-2010, 01:49 PM

Yate Loon D12SL-12 UV Blue Straight Blade

Another OEM fan, but with blue UV plastic and Blue UV LEDs. You would think they would perform the same as the black plastic types, but it seems like these clear types never do...perhaps harder (less flexible) plastic is the cause. Hard to say because these types also have the less desirable straight blade from yate loon.

NOISE LEVEL
Is a bit higher than the yate medium, it's not really obvious listening, but the meter is giving it higher numbers

NOISE QUALITY
Good to average and similar to the other yates, no obvious motor ticks. Sounds like mainly air flow. Not quite as smooth as some of the higher blade type fans though.

POWER CONSUMPTION
I suppose it is to be expected with the LEDs, but power consumption is poor in comparison to the yate medium. It used just over 2 watts for a fair amount less air than the yate medium.

RANGE
Not very good, didn't want to start until just under 7V giving you a range of about 950RPM to 1400RPM. The normal black model SL gives much more range 675-1563.

OVERALL
While sound quality is decent, this fan performs fairly poorly:( compared to the black model curved blade (Non LED) version. I would not recommend the LED version, if you like yates...go for the black curved blade model:yepp:, it's much better.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMV03yZtvuM

http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/3113/yatesluvblue.jpg

http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/9688/yatesluvbluefront.jpg

http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/8108/r6a4yatesluvblue.png

antiacid

11-12-2010, 02:21 PM

No need to ask with weapons pointed at them. Just buy enough of them :)
"Note: just for 1000 pc we cannot produce
When your demand is over 100.000 ps a year minimum, than we can investigate
better because we need to invest in many ways... technical / tooling" - response from Nidec Servo about possibility of 140mm GTs :(

so they're selling 100k/yr GTs then... Wow, didn't realize there were that many of us liking those fans :P

You'd think they'd use their reputation with the 120s to be an industry leader for 140mm... Oh well!

Martinm210

11-12-2010, 02:34 PM

FYI, retested the GT14 in batch 4, this is how it compared. About 1CFM off, but pretty much the same:
http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/2226/r6a4gt14check.png

Manicdan

11-12-2010, 04:13 PM

so the other thread is just gone now, does that mean your PC is working again?

Martinm210

11-12-2010, 04:51 PM

so the other thread is just gone now, does that mean your PC is working again?

Yeah, I "Borrowed" my son's PSU(Second family PC for the kids to play games on) and ordered a new Corsair 650TX this afternoon. My son's not too happy, but he'll get over it and I'm temporarily PSU patched until I get the new Corsair.

The OCZ 700 was dying after 2+ years of service, that was my problem.:up: I guess that's not a horrendous lifespan, but I was hoping it would last longer. I'm going to give Corsair a try, never had one before.

Martinm210

11-12-2010, 04:52 PM

Rosewill Black Medium Speed

This fan came out of a rosewill challenger case I bought on egg for my son's computer I built from leftover parts. The fan itself has nice curved blades and doesn't look all that different from a normal yate loon.

But that's where the similarities end...

NOISE LEVEL
About as bad as it gets, it was right up there with the worst of the worst.

NOISE QUALITY
Also very poor, while 4 and 5 volts was relatively smooth 6 & 7 volts had pretty strong harmonics, and medium to high volts also included a pretty strong motor tick. Not good.

EFFICIENCY
Fairly poor compared to the yate loons high quality

CFM per RPM
Suprisingly also fairly poor compared to the yate.

OVERALL
Poor. I really hoped this budget fan would be another option to the yate, but it's not. It might get you by in a pinch, but I wouldn't recommend this fan..it just did not do well on a radiator..:(

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_i5sFco_d9I

http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/29/rosewillblk.jpg

http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/8302/rosewillblkfrontz.jpg

http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/4802/r6a4rosewillblk.png

Martinm210

11-12-2010, 06:06 PM

Rosewill Clear LED Case Fan
This is the other Rosewill fan I pulled from my son's Rosewill Challenger case. It did better than the black version in noise level to my surprise, but still not very good... It looks nice..

NOISE LEVEL/CFM
Above average. Not quite as high as the black variety, but higher than most fans and a fair amount higher than the yate medium.

NOISE QUALITY
Has a strong motor tick present at all levels.

RPM
Has no RPM wire..

RANGE
Similar to the clear LED yate, the range is very small. While I don't have RPM data (it came without a wire), it was a fair amount smaller in range than the yate medium.

EFFICIENCY
Like the yate LED, consumes a substantially higher amount of power per CFM.

OVERALL
Very small range, higher than average noise level, and fairly poor noise quality.:( Looks nice though..

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dr7cKldijpg

http://img255.imageshack.us/img255/5651/rosewillclr.jpg

http://img255.imageshack.us/img255/3584/rosewillclrfront.jpg

http://img255.imageshack.us/img255/7186/r6a4rosewillclr.png

Boulard83

11-12-2010, 06:20 PM

These are really some awesome review Martin !

Are you going to test teh Triebwerk ? I own 3 on my TFC360 and i want to see how it compare. I also have 1850 GT's and UK3 but the UK3 are tiking even on a rehostat controller. PWN seems worse.

Church

11-12-2010, 06:56 PM

I've heard already before that yates with leds are noiser then normal ones .. but what can be the reason of it? Shape of blades same, engine same. I wonder how that transparent plastic used as material for frame and blades can impact noise :/. Less rigid/more vibration prone? Material resonates to something? Is it generic trend for other major fan makers aswell?

Philwong

11-12-2010, 07:18 PM

Manicdan

11-12-2010, 07:47 PM

Yeah, I "Borrowed" my son's PSU(Second family PC for the kids to play games on) and ordered a new Corsair 650TX this afternoon. My son's not too happy, but he'll get over it and I'm temporarily PSU patched until I get the new Corsair.

The OCZ 700 was dying after 2+ years of service, that was my problem.:up: I guess that's not a horrendous lifespan, but I was hoping it would last longer. I'm going to give Corsair a try, never had one before.

i support corsair PSUs, have a 620HX that i needed because my 2900xt on water overvolted and overclocked, was killing the PSU, literally, it sounded like a fax modem. this one is going strong, even though i dont use it for such a load anymore.

PS i think im about to smash my roswell fans, any objections? didnt think so

Martinm210

11-12-2010, 09:29 PM

i support corsair PSUs, have a 620HX that i needed because my 2900xt on water overvolted and overclocked, was killing the PSU, literally, it sounded like a fax modem. this one is going strong, even though i dont use it for such a load anymore.

PS i think im about to smash my roswell fans, any objections? didnt think so

Good to know.:yepp: I thought the OCZ was a pretty good supply, but over the course of the last few months I noticed I had to back off my OC and was getting random lockups, etc. I think it was very gradually dieing and I didn't know better. I was blaming the processor for wearing out.:eek::D

Now that I'm sitting on the temporary, life is great. It's amazing how important a good stable PSU is and how much headache one failing will give you.

I will never buy another OCZ PSU again:shakes:, this one has caused me way too much trouble. Corsair here I come..:)

Martinm210

11-12-2010, 09:37 PM

FYI,
I retested my Wonky GT15 as part of this batch 4, and this is what I got. I first ran through with my 1V normal increments, then I went back and specifically tried to pinpoint the resonance RPMs. They are there, and hopefully it's just this wonky sample I have. I found roughly 6 strong 3-4dbA resonance points that are very isolated. Rolling off the voltage by .1V is usually enough to make it go away.

Hopefully this is just this sample and it's from sitting on the shelf too long. I won't include this in the round until I've had a chance to try Vapor's samples. The 14 didn't seem to do this, although I didn't go back and check like I did this one:

http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/1559/gt15wonky.png

And this is how the last two GT15 and the two GT14 tests compare. Fairly comparable down below 25CFM, but the two GT15 test were still off by a good 3CFM at 12V...something is off with it's bearing I think..just can't get two test to match up.

http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/4438/gt15stillwonky.png

Makes me wonder if the frame change in the new batch was to eliminate these spikes or if it was for something else..:confused:

Martinm210

11-12-2010, 11:42 PM

Panaflo NMB-MAT FBA12G12U Ultra High Speed

I've had this one in my collection for a while, thanks to Hondacity..:applaud:

Gotta throw in some of the super high speed fans in there. Now that I've got the hotwire anemometer, there's really no limitation. It can read up to 4000 FPM, so no problem with the high speed stuff.

NOISE LEVEL
On the low end was slightly higher than the Yate, but up higher was about average, seems to follow the pack trend pretty well, although it does extend that CFM line a ways out there, it is built for one thing...HIGH FLOW.

NOISE QUALITY
This is an excellent example of why noise level alone doesn't cut it. These high speed fans are not meant to be undervolted and have an extremely strong motor tick. Looking at the NOISE LEVEL graph alone you could conclude that running this fan 7V would give you roughly the same thing as a yate medium at 12V. Noise level yes, noise quality..NOT EVEN CLOSE. The fans are all generally made to perform optimally in one area, very few actually do well everywhere, and this one is no different. I would not recommend undervolting this fan below 9V, the motor is extremely ticky at low volts.

RAW POWER
This fan is built for power. Were the yate medium is cranking out 32CFM through the radiator, the Panaflo is pushing 51 CFM at 12V. Almost twice the air flow.

OVERALL
This fan is a power house, but it's not one you want undervolt because of stong motor tick. If you want raw power and really don't care much about noise, this fan fits the bill nicely. But in light of the whole noise quality thing, it's a pretty gritty/ticky fan undervolted, but smooths out pretty well by the time you get to 12V.

Bottom line, huge raw power with average noise level per CFM but not a good fan to undervolt (noise quality suffers below 12V). She likes 12V...so give her what she wants or she'll chop your finger off..:D

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpGB0QRY4Fw

http://img600.imageshack.us/img600/2799/panaflou.jpg

http://img600.imageshack.us/img600/2451/panafloufront.jpg

http://img600.imageshack.us/img600/1706/r6a4panau.png

Martinm210

11-13-2010, 09:24 AM

Scythe Ultra Kaze 3000

I've had and used these fans for my past radiator testing, they are a good value fan for 3000RPM speeds, but...like most ultra high speed fans...have a strong tick when undervolted.

NOISE LEVEL
About average, slightly higher than the yate medium and about 1dBA higher than the Panaflo U.

NOISE QUALITY
Poor when undervolted, it has that typical 38mm fan tick when undervolted although I'd subjectivly say it's not as strong as the panaflo. Still not going to be anywhere nearly as smooth as a good 25mm fan at lower speeds.

**Bing has noted that a good PWM controller may go a long way in eliminating the motor tick. I will check into this. If I can build a remote (no computer necessary) PWM controller, I will retest..:)

EFFICIENCY/POWER CONSUMPTION
Seems to match pretty well with the Yate down low, but it extends that trend a LONG ways up there, drawing about 7 watts at 12V, so make sure you're watching and looking at your fan controller specs. Many fan controllers can only handle 20 watts or so, so you could easily exceed that amount with just 3 fans in series causing failure in the controller.

RANGE
Exceptionally good RPM range from 950RPM to 3000RPM.

OVERALL
A good value 3000RPM fan, but it's very ticky at lower volts. The Ultra Kaze 2000 is much better on the motor tick, but not nearly as smooth as some 25mm fans. I would recommend using the fan at 12V and leave it there if you can handle the noise level.

Bottom line, good value 3000RPM fan, but noise quality suffers when undervolted.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVCChUNwsa8

http://img718.imageshack.us/img718/758/scytheuk3.jpg

http://img718.imageshack.us/img718/4130/scytheuk3front.jpg

http://img718.imageshack.us/img718/2920/r6a4scytheuk3.png

Martinm210

11-13-2010, 09:33 AM

UPDATED NOISE LEVEL CHART
http://a.imageshack.us/img574/8962/batch123part4.th.png (http://a.imageshack.us/img718/1460/batch123most4.png)

damtachoa

11-13-2010, 11:48 AM

Can you update your fans list with rating? So we can know which one is the best.

Martinm210

11-13-2010, 12:39 PM

Can you update your fans list with rating? So we can know which one is the best.

I'm not sure I can. I can do noise level, and had thought about some sort of bar chart system for specific CFM levels, but noise quality (which I personally thick is almost more important) can't be quantified and very subjective. I suppose I could make up some sort of subjective noise quality rating, but that's pretty complex. How do you ranking noise quality for a fan that has motor tick vs one that has resonance issues vs. one that may only have one problem voltage but fine at 12V, etc.

For now, I'm going to make you work for it. You have all the same data I have now..Look at the master Noise chart, then listen to the videos..and make your own conclusion.

I do have some favorites in my back pocket from the fans tested so far, but I'm witholding judgement until I get them all done and have time to sort through all the data.

Working thread...to be continued...:D

Manicdan

11-13-2010, 12:51 PM

your data points are saved just like we see in the tables? per voltage?

so if we try and show "whats the fastest speed at [38, 40, 42] decibels" it wont be easy?

MagisD

11-13-2010, 12:57 PM

Why do i see into my head manfacuter reps refreshing over and over waiting to see who wins.

Sent from my X10a using Tapatalk

Martinm210

11-13-2010, 12:58 PM

your data points are saved just like we see in the tables? per voltage?

so if we try and show "whats the fastest speed at [38, 40, 42] decibels" it wont be easy?

Yes, but that's only noise level. I don't think you can quantify noise quality which is the motor ticks and annoying stuff and very different from what the meter reads.

For example, pull up the Panaflo U at 7V and the yate medium at 11V. Both read roughly the same CFM and the same noise LEVEL, but quality is VERY VERY DIFFERENT.

You have to listen to the audio to do that part, there is no way to measure that that I know of other than subjectively rating it somehow.

Martinm210

11-13-2010, 12:59 PM

The Vapor box has arrived...:eek::eek:

http://img543.imageshack.us/img543/409/vaporsfans.jpg

I've got my work cut out for me..:D:clap::clap:

antiacid

11-13-2010, 01:05 PM

ohhh I know who's going to be up late tonight ;)

keep it up! it's much appreciated :)

zalbard

11-13-2010, 02:15 PM

The Vapor box has arrived...:eek::eek:

I've got my work cut out for me..:D:clap::clap:
I can't wait! :D

Vapor

11-13-2010, 02:22 PM

Manicdan

11-13-2010, 02:46 PM

that white zalman looks really interesting

OldChap

11-13-2010, 03:15 PM

Just a quick thought Martin....Do you have a pair of any of the high speed fans that you expect to "tick" when undervolted? I ask because of my experience of running two Deltas in series and how much quieter (and of a more pleasing quality) that was than when running on a fan controller.

I wonder if there is any difference on the Deltas or the Panaflo NMB-MAT FBA12G12U for example, between using a fan controller and a simple rheostat?

Martinm210

11-13-2010, 04:18 PM

Glad it got there safe :up:

I wrote the source of the Yates on the connectors and on the frame (though it's hard to see on the frame)...there should be PPCs and FCPU Yates there. AP-13 should be old batch and the AP-15s are new batch. I think the unbraided San Ace is one of the ones I used back in my testing...the braided one is one I planned to use in a build but never ended up needing. The Corsair fan is a fan from an H50, I saw someone ask for that here. The Aerocool and Noctua fan should have very poor but interesting radiator results--if you do freeflow tests, they should do a lot better there I'd think. NZXT fan is from a case of theirs--may be the same fan to buy separately, just threw that one in there last second :p: Zalman SF3 was the first fan I planned to ship to you, very curious about it but when I played with it I wasn't particularly impressed. Slip Stream H and S-Flex F from my testing years ago round out the batch :)

Awesome, thanks! Yeah, I can see the markings. Really appreciate all the new fans to try out..:up: I opened up the box and the fans just kept pouring out of there...:)

that white zalman looks really interesting

Yeah, the ZM-F3 is a good all around fan, curious to see how this one does. I also thought the Excalibur looked interesting though. So far visual features doesn't correlate very well, but we'll see.:D

Just a quick thought Martin....Do you have a pair of any of the high speed fans that you expect to "tick" when undervolted? I ask because of my experience of running two Deltas in series and how much quieter (and of a more pleasing quality) that was than when running on a fan controller.

I wonder if there is any difference on the Deltas or the Panaflo NMB-MAT FBA12G12U for example, between using a fan controller and a simple rheostat?

I have the two san aces Vapor just sent and I also have several Ultra Kaze 3000s I could experiment with. I'm sure you're right, the tick should smooth out the more fans you have as they wouldn't be in sync.

FYI, Bing on OCN has given me some great guidance on how I can build a PWM controller. I went down to radio shack this afternoon and picked up the IC and 100K pot, so I'm going to try that. It's only for PWM designed fans, but it'll give me that ability to test in actual PWM format without a computer. He noted that it really improves the motor tick issue and the fan can read RPM correctly.
http://i34.tinypic.com/15yw6tg.png

I also ordered this generic DC PWM controller (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300378515720&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT#ht_2815wt_1242) on Ebay that I think should be able to run any fan in PWM (Unfortunately I'm sure RPM readout will be lost). I'd like to run some experiments on PWM to see what if any benefits there are to noise. Maybe we can get rid of the ticking problems with PWM??:shrug:

SpuTnicK

11-13-2010, 04:37 PM

That problem is due to low PWM frequency.
The ticking using PWM control (which is basically fast turning on/off of the fan motor) is the sound of current going through inductance coil in fan motor. The lower the frequency the clearer you hear the sound. Human can hear in 20-20000Hz range, approximately. So if the PWM frequency is greater than 20kHz than you wont here it. That's theory.

Martinm210

11-14-2010, 10:24 AM

Thermaltake Thunderblade TT-1225

These are fans from my air cooling days. I bought a thermaltake armor case that came with some black and orange versions of this. I thought the case was cool and not knowing any better, I adopted the fans as coolness...:)

Well, that was then, but I still like going back to revisit my decisions now and then good or bad. This fan has been sitting on the shelf a while, but I tested it regardless as it didn't seem to have any obvious problems.

NOISE VOLUME
About 1 dbA higher than the yate medium, so not too bad, but not better than the yate.

NOISE QUALITY
The motor exhibits a motor tick/buzz fairly consistently throughout it's range. It's not as pronounced as some ticks, but there is some motor and fan blade noise mixed here that's more harsh than that of the yate medium from PTS. It also seemed to resonate a little at 11V.

RANGE
Really good RPM range, from about 950RPM to 2220RPM...thats good

CFM per Watt
While all the other LED version previously tested seemed to suffer in this area, this fan actually follows the yate medium almost spot on. Not a bad efficiency.

CFM per RPM
A bit lower than the yate medium.

OVERALL
A good RPM range fan with about average noise level and bit of a motor buzz/tick. Not bad for an LED fan, but not as good as the yate medium from PTS.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffCOHNJVhyI

http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/6642/thermaltakett.jpg

http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/6210/thermaltakettfront.jpg

http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/812/r6a4thermaltakett.png

Martinm210

11-14-2010, 10:31 AM

FYI,
Ran several more tests last night as batch 5. This time I made sure the temperature was a bit more consistent and it seems to have paid off, the yate check in came in almost spot on for dBA/CFM ratios:
http://img269.imageshack.us/img269/4916/r6a5batchcheckin.png

I'll start processing these throughout the week, and should get a few in later today.

Martinm210

11-14-2010, 12:52 PM

Aero Cool Case Fan

Special thanks to Vapor for sending this fan over for testing..:clap::clap:

I was interested in trying this fan because of the high blade count, and I've never tried an AeroCool fan..so that's cool.

NOISE LEVEL
Was pretty close, but about 1dBA higher than the yate medium. On average compared to the previous in this round, a bit higher level than average, but close to average.

NOISE QUALITY
During the test I encountered what sounded like something slightly rubbing inside the fan motor. I inspected the fan after the test and was not able to find anything. If it wasn't for that rubbing sound, I would call the noise quality good, the high number of blades does seem to smooth out the air type noises and the motor seemed relatively quiet and smooth sounding.

EFFICIENCY
Very poor for the air flow produced, not sure why.

RANGE
Very poor range, it didn't want to start up until about 9 volts and only produced a range of 849-1047RPM, a very small 200RPM difference.

OVERALL
Average noise level, possibly good noise quality(possible defect or debris during test), poor efficiency, and poor RPM range.

VIDEO LINK

NOTE: I forgot to set the video camera in HD, so this batch gets SD video quality. The audio/test is the same, and I rendered in 720P so you can at least have the fan pictures in HD.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaEu2REgl2A

http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/4260/aerocoolcasefan1.jpg

http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/4633/aerocoolcasefan.jpg

http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/8729/r6a5aerocool.png

ALL FANS COMPARED

http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/8149/r6a5aerocoolvsall.th.png (http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/8149/r6a5aerocoolvsall.png)

Manicdan

11-14-2010, 01:12 PM

is there any fan in the bunch that we can hope comes close to the GTs?
also i just noticed theres a corsair fan with vapors shipment, whats it from?

penguins

11-14-2010, 01:43 PM

The Corsair fan is a fan from an H50, I saw someone ask for that here.

h50 : )

Martinm210

11-14-2010, 03:28 PM

Zalman ZM-SF3

Another fan sponsored by Vapor..:clap::toast2:

After seeing how the ZM-F3 was a good solid all around performer, I was curious to see this next generation. This one is sporting some rather unique shark like fins, not only on the tips, but scatter throughout.

NOISE LEVEL
Slightly higher than average, I was hoping for better, but it's in the main pack of fans.

NOISE QUALITY
Very good, I think it actually sounds quieter because of this, very smooth sound. No resonance points detected, and no motor noises apparent.

FRAME
The frame has a special rubber insert to help eliminate vibrations, this is a nice feature

LOOKS
I really like the looks of this fan, it is very unique

EFFICIENCY
Not as efficient as the yate medium, probably extra drag by the shark fins??

RANGE
A pretty good range from 870-1677RPM, which is very good considering it has no apparent noise quality flaws...good the whole range.

OVERALL
Slightly higher than average noise level/cfm, very good noise quality, good range, and nice features/looks. I'm a bit torn on this one, I really like everything but the noise level being just average or worse than average.:shrug:

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFaWt07gDDk

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/4826/zalmansf3.jpg

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/7010/zalmansf3front.jpg

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/1236/r6a5zalmanzmsf3.png

COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/24/r6a5zalmanzmsf3vsall.th.png (http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/24/r6a5zalmanzmsf3vsall.png)

Martinm210

11-14-2010, 06:29 PM

Scythe S-Flex F

Another fan sponsored by Vapor...thanks!!:clap::clap:

NOISE LEVEL
About average, a little worse than the yate medium down low and a little better up top.

NOISE QUALITY
Good except for 7V had a little bit of resonance. No obvious motor ticks, etc...a fairly clean sound with a bit of blade chop at higher speeds. Generally good though.

EFFICIENCY
Very good efficiency, substantially better than the yate medium only using 1 watt at 12V...that's very very good.

RANGE
Very good range from 400-1600RPM with overall good performance with the exception of the minor resonance at 7V.

OVERALL
A good all around fan, about average noise level with pretty good sound quality and a good RPM range.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_IXEdlvWLU

http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/8656/sflexf.jpg

http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/6658/sflexffront.jpg

http://img822.imageshack.us/img822/8578/r6a5sflexf.png

ALL FANS COMPARED
http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/9903/r6a5sflexfvsall.th.png (http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/9903/r6a5sflexfvsall.png)

the finisher

11-15-2010, 06:22 AM

is there any fan in the bunch that we can hope comes close to the GTs?
also i just noticed theres a corsair fan with vapors shipment, whats it from?

My San Ace shipment should be there today, tomorrow @ the latest.

I think the 9S1212M401 Silent Series can compete w/the GT. Same specs as the AP-15. But @ lower db.

Looking forward to the test:up:

Martinm210

11-15-2010, 02:58 PM

My San Ace shipment should be there today, tomorrow @ the latest.

I think the 9S1212M401 Silent Series can compete w/the GT. Same specs as the AP-15. But @ lower db.

Looking forward to the test:up:

Thanks!
I got a slip in the mail that they tried to deliver while I was at work. I'll run by the post office tomorrow and pick it up:up:

Looking forward to it..:D

MagisD

11-15-2010, 03:31 PM

Martinm210

11-15-2010, 04:40 PM

New Gt's new gt's new gt's!!!!!!!!!!!

LOL I really need that power draw breakdown you do for em , I need to figure out a fan control system for 29 of em ;-)

* OK so I'm an idiot I keep moving the decimal on the power draw of the Gt from 0.083 to 0.83 Changing them from 1 watt fans to 10 watt fans LOL.

I got them both tested the other night, but I'm not there yet. This darn night work fan test thing is messing up my sleep... I feel like I'm working graveyard again..:eek:

Anyhow, figured I'll do the tests on the weekend and slowly process as time permits during the week. FYI GT15 max amps info at 12V:

Hondacity Old Batch Sample 1 amps @12V = .0778 = .9336Watts
Vapor New Batch Sample 1 amps at 12V =.0781 = .937Watts
Vapor New Batch Sample 2 amps at 12V = .0855 = 1.026Watts

1 watt should be close, but there is some sample variation. I think the motor noise was slightly different between Vapor Sample 1 and 2. #2 was a bit more gritty at lower volts.

Anyhow, working through the list in the order tested and they are coming in a bit.:up:

MagisD

11-15-2010, 05:21 PM

Thanks ;-)

I noticed on mine there a couple of spots of whining resonance around 1050 rpm.

But it looks like I should be fine parallel Linking sets of 8 fans to each of the 4 channels on an aquaeros.

Martinm210

11-15-2010, 05:37 PM

Vapor

11-15-2010, 05:49 PM

Are you gonna test the GT + 140mm adapter on the SR1-140? I'd wager that a GT + 140mm adapter is the best 140mm fan out there based on how far it's ahead of the pack on 120mm :p:

Martinm210

11-15-2010, 05:53 PM

Are you gonna test the GT + 140mm adapter on the SR1-140? I'd wager that a GT + 140mm adapter is the best 140mm fan out there based on how far it's ahead of the pack on 120mm :p:

I wasn't thinking about it, but I might as well..:up:

The adapter won't fit on the MCR (with barbs that is), I'd have to remove the barbs and put in flat plugs to make it fit. So..I may as well use it for the 140mm testing. My 140 selection is pretty limited, so maybe I'll pick a few of the top 120's and throw them in with the 140s..:cool:

Church

11-15-2010, 06:15 PM

the finisher

11-15-2010, 08:38 PM

Vapor: Who knows, maybe really GT+adapter can beat all the 140mm fans .. and i still keep wondering how good native 140mm size GT might have been :(. Especially because going upscale it's large motor hub blind spot would matter less.

Won't beat this 140, and you can get em. Takes some doing though, much time and jing.

Anyone want to buy the other 10 @ $730:rolleyes:

http://www.newark.com/sanyo-denki/109p1412m101/12v/dp/96M5911?Ntt=109P1412M101

http://db.sanyodenki.co.jp/product_db/cooling/dcfan/group_pdf/1247020337.pdf

Church

11-15-2010, 09:14 PM

Martinm210

11-15-2010, 09:23 PM

FYI,
Took a break from the processing and built my own PWM fan controller...thanks to Bing on OcF for giving me the circuit design (http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showpost.php?p=6473318&postcount=25).

My first home made circuit....yeah I know my soldering sucks..lol! But it works and cost me all of $10 in parts at the shack..:D
http://img576.imageshack.us/img576/7420/pwmcontroller.jpg

phantomferrari

11-15-2010, 11:12 PM

I wasn't thinking about it, but I might as well..:up:

The adapter won't fit on the MCR (with barbs that is), I'd have to remove the barbs and put in flat plugs to make it fit. So..I may as well use it for the 140mm testing. My 140 selection is pretty limited, so maybe I'll pick a few of the top 120's and throw them in with the 140s..:cool:

i would also love to see a gt with a 140mm adapter. thats been the one thing holding me back from using 140mm rads is the lack of good performing fans to go with it. despite me constantly annoying nidec servo and scythe they dont seem to have any plans to produce a 140mm gt anytime soon (at least thats what theyve told me) :(

Vampiyer

11-16-2010, 12:42 AM

WoW... Martin has been productive lately.

I'm wondering how the new Thermalright TY-140 fan would compare, but the Sanyo Silent series vs Scythe GT has my interest for now.

That, as well as the 120-140mm adapter tests. I'm wondering if perhaps I should just go with a 140.3 radiator as opposed to a 120.4 (would save me money on fans).

Church

11-16-2010, 01:48 AM

Vampiyer: how do you intend to mount TY-140 on 140mm rads, if it has 120mm mounting holes, and one of dimensions was 160mm IIRC? +If you manage to mount it good thing to do would be also to close corners because of round shape of it, to not loose air pressure of fan.

Vampiyer

11-16-2010, 07:05 AM

the finisher

11-16-2010, 10:31 AM

the finisher: those san aces look fine as powerful fans .. but will they be as good noise/airflow/pressure wise as GTs at 800-1200 range as well? Imho their blades are more optimized to be most efficient for higher (&noisier) range.

Perhaps your right, that's why i like the testing that Martin is doing. These tests prove that more money spent, doesn't necessarily yield better results. Although the higher quality fans should last longer. And some of us buy fans for aesthetics, as well as performance. I have a ton of Enermax fans for this reason.(Glad to see the Magma did OK, I made the same observations that Martin did. Not as quiet as others but an agreeable sound.] That said, I like the industrial looks of San Ace, and other similar fans. GT included. Just that San Ace usually perform better, not always.

Looking forward to the Silent Series against the GT's, I see there is a H speed model up as well:) These are probably more comparable than any 38mm fan.

It's so nice to have some objective numbers to see on so many fans:clap: I've never believed the marketing crap on the box of retail fans.

Martin is awesome:up:

Because I don't actually have any 109P1412M101 $73 min of 20. The even more desirable 109L1214M101 $96 min. of 24! Plus you have to wait for over 3mo:rolleyes:
I guess the best way to partially get a handle on this is to barrow out 1 of my 140L's for testing. It's not going to be a fair test, as these are H speed 24v fans. But I've never run them @ 24v. For me they are great @12v and down. Also These have no tach sender, so I'm guessing 1300 rpm @12v w/80cfm free air:shrug: They start and undervolt to the bottom of a Sycthe fan controller. And subjectively they are very quiet subtracting the 80 cfm of air:) Also the dam things are near unobtainable, I've found you can get most San Ace 140's they come at a huge cost:down: These were $25 and I only could get 3. As much as I like them I'd love to have more, probably 12v M speed.

Anyway I only have 1-PA120.3 All The rest of my rads are Pa160's and 140's. I have a huge interest in 140's. I have a several other 140's I'll also send samples of the ones I'm not using, if they are not on the list.

Just found out I'm going back to San Francisco, like soon:eek:

I'm rounding 140's up now:up:

Utnorris

11-16-2010, 11:06 AM

Hey Martin,
Not sure if the San Ace I sent is the same as the ones you already have, hopefully not as it will give a wider view of the San Ace line up. I do not think you have the Pabst already that I included, so hopefully another canidate to toss in the mix. You should get the box today or tomorrow.

the finisher

11-16-2010, 12:08 PM

No way I can do this today. I'll do it when I get back, next week.

I'll follow along as much as possible:)

guilleguillaume

11-16-2010, 01:05 PM

More toys came to the door, thanks to Seeing Red and RatDog...:clap::clap:

I'll be setup for good 140mm rad based testing now, HWlabs SR1 is ready for service...:yepp:

Also have some additional 120mm contestants. Xbit had the NB S3 on top for their open air test, and the San Ace 9S1212H4011 seems like another high end high speed fan that needs a closer look.

I'd better process the last round, I've got more work to do..:D

That's actually fantastic!

I own a SR-1 140mm too and I was wondering before finishing my loop which 140mm fan will be the best choice. I thought about a NB-BlackSilentPro PK-2 but I will wait to see your results and then decide before purchasing.

Are you thinking about testing the Be Quiet Silent Wings 120mm-140mm?

Anyway did you receive The Triebwerk TK-22? I have one new in box that have not been opened. Maybe I can send you this for testing but I'm from Europe and don't really now the how expensive the shipping taxes will be to send it to you LOL. I will ask to receive information about that if necessary.

the finisher

11-16-2010, 01:25 PM

That's actually fantastic!

I own a SR-1 140mm too and I was wondering before finishing my loop which 140mm fan will be the best choice. I thought about a NB-BlackSilentPro PK-2 but I will wait to see your results and then decide before purchasing.

Are you thinking about testing the Be Quiet Silent Wings 120mm-140mm?

Anyway did you receive The Triebwerk TK-22? I have one new in box that have not been opened. Maybe I can send you this for testing but I'm from Europe and don't really now the how expensive the shipping taxes will be to send it to you LOL. I will ask to receive information about that if necessary.

I also have a TK-122, if you don't get one before next week I can send, much cheaper I'm sure:up:

I have a Evercool Red Scorpion 140 I can send.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835119096&nm_mc=OTC-Froogle&cm_mmc=OTC-Froogle-_-Case+Fans-_-EVERCOOL+THERMAL+CORP.+LTD-_-35119096

I have some 140 Scythe 1900rpm, I really like, but no fit on a 140 rad, 120 holes:down: I use for case/air cooling.

Martinm210

11-16-2010, 03:33 PM

I don't actually own the TY-140, but I was thinking about picking up a couple at SVC because they're having a 15% off coupon (green15) through this thursday, and they already have the lowest price.

As for mounting - I'd probably use a double-sided gasket tape of some sort. I haven't really thought that through... just wondering how it compares because I'll try to make anything work.

Edit: I just ordered 3 of the TY-140 fans. I intend to use them as case-fans, but I have AP-15's and H1011R's to compare against, subjectively.

Edit 2: I'm wondering if it'd be worthwhile to send one of my TY-140 fans to Martin (I also have H1011R Sanyo's). I'll see how difficult it is to mount - it may not fit the parameters of Martin's tests due to the awkward 140x160 size with 120mm mounting holes. Anyone (Martin?) interested in these 2 fans?

Let me get caught up with the recent packages that came in, I had 4 boxes sitting on my doorstep just a bit ago.:up:

Hey Martin,
Not sure if the San Ace I sent is the same as the ones you already have, hopefully not as it will give a wider view of the San Ace line up. I do not think you have the Pabst already that I included, so hopefully another canidate to toss in the mix. You should get the box today or tomorrow.

I got your today. I think it is the same model that Vapor sent, but I think it's always good to have a few samples. I plan to test everything, and any duplicate samples will just give some additional detail on that particular fan which is always good.:up:

That's actually fantastic!

I own a SR-1 140mm too and I was wondering before finishing my loop which 140mm fan will be the best choice. I thought about a NB-BlackSilentPro PK-2 but I will wait to see your results and then decide before purchasing.

Are you thinking about testing the Be Quiet Silent Wings 120mm-140mm?

Anyway did you receive The Triebwerk TK-22? I have one new in box that have not been opened. Maybe I can send you this for testing but I'm from Europe and don't really now the how expensive the shipping taxes will be to send it to you LOL. I will ask to receive information about that if necessary.

I have one package at the post office. I need to run down there and pick it up.:up:

I also have a TK-122, if you don't get one before next week I can send, much cheaper I'm sure:up:

I have a Evercool Red Scorpion 140 I can send.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835119096&nm_mc=OTC-Froogle&cm_mmc=OTC-Froogle-_-Case+Fans-_-EVERCOOL+THERMAL+CORP.+LTD-_-35119096

I have some 140 Scythe 1900rpm, I really like, but no fit on a 140 rad, 120 holes:down: I use for case/air cooling.

I think some more 140s would be good, but let me get all caught up with the list. I'll work to update that by tomorrow.:up:

Martinm210

11-16-2010, 05:13 PM

Wow...no less than 5 packages today, special thanks to everyone for the fans and candy!:clap::clap::D:D

http://img252.imageshack.us/img252/7919/sponsoredbyutnorris.jpg

http://img252.imageshack.us/img252/2471/sponsoredbythefinisher.jpg

http://img252.imageshack.us/img252/4751/sponsoredbyquietman.jpg

http://img252.imageshack.us/img252/7447/sponsoredbyoldchapratdo.jpg

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/958/sponsoredbyacebaran.jpg

Wow.!!:up::up:

Church

11-16-2010, 05:30 PM

That's not free candy, it's bribery!:rofl:

Martinm210

11-16-2010, 06:12 PM

That's not free candy, it's bribery!:rofl:

Haha! How did he know I like gummys..:)

Can't say I've ever had candy direct from Holland before. It's cool looking at the packaging...:D

Martinm210

11-16-2010, 07:48 PM

Corsair H50 Fan

Special thanks to Vapor for another fan to test..:clap::clap:

The Corsair H50 and H70 are fairly popular, so it's nice to have this fan run so folks that are looking to change out the fan for this kit have an idea how it compares.

PWM
The fan is a 4 pin PWM fan which is a nice feature.

NOISE LEVEL
Relative to the yate loon SM, it was similar at lower RPMs, but a bit higher at the higher speed. Relative to the current fans tested I would call it about avereage for lower RPMs and louder than average for high RPM.

NOISE QUALITY
I'm not sure if it's just this sample, but the fan "Squeeked". It's not something you hear in the context of a normal room ambient noise level as I didn't notice this when playing with my PWM controller near my computer, but under ultra silent room testing conditions with an extremely sensetive microphone, it has a bit of a squeek to the motor. This seems to smooth out a little at higher speeds. The fan blade chop seems about average. In general, not quite good noise quality, I'd say less than average to average.

RANGE
500RPM to 1800RPM, not bad and seems usable in all areas, may be better with PWM control. I'll plan to do some PWM controlled testing later. The range is good.

EFFICIENCY
Very good, only used about 1 watt and better than the yate loon per CFM at higher RPMs by a fair amount.

OVERALL
Louder than average noise level, less than average to average noise quality, good range, and PWM features.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hA:banana::banana::banana:sbzofM

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/4449/corsairh50.jpg

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/9001/corsairh50front.jpg

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/4794/r6a5corsairh50.png

COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/1486/r6a5corsairh50vsall.th.png (http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/1486/r6a5corsairh50vsall.png)

Martinm210

11-16-2010, 09:43 PM

Nidec Servo Gentle Typhoon AP-15 New Batch Sample A

Special thanks to Vapor for sponsoring this fan..:clap::clap:

This is one of the newer batch fans with a slightly different rear frame with openings near the PCB for what appears to be improved air cooling to the electrical parts.

PACKAGE
About average to less than average. No wire sleeving, comes in a clear plastic box with a molex adapter and some case screws, fairly minimalist style.

NOISE LEVEL
Nothing short of exemplary, this is the one area where this fan rules so far. It's particularly unique in that the typical fan air noise you normally hear is nearly gone completely. I suspect this is due to the very forward sweeping fan blades and high number of blades. Also the leading edge of the fan blades is more rounded and perhaps more shaped like a wing profile rather than a knife edge. Whatever it is...it works and works amazingly well in this test condition mounted on a radiator. Compared to the yate loon SM12 at 12V (32CFM), the GT is able to produce the same CFM level at nearly 9dbA lower levels. At the lower end near 16CFM, the difference reduces to about a 1-2dbA difference which is within the (3dBA barely perceptible range). This fan is really strong in noise level particularly at it's maximum RPM range

NOISE QUALITY
Variable, some good some not so good. There are certain volts and RPM where the noise quality is very good, there is very little motor noise and the ultra low level is overall a very good match. However, there are other voltage levels that resonate very slightly and create a bit of a whine. This particular sample resonated very slightly at 7V and a bit more at 8V, then pretty much gone from 9-12V. I'll see how Sample B does in this area.

RANGE
575-1800RPM is very good although you'll need to listen and pick your voltage somewhat carefully for optimal sound quality.

EFFICIENCY
This fan is exceptionally efficient, only 1 watt at maximum RPM is really amazing.

COST
Average to high. I've seen it sell anywhere from $14 to $20 a fan, so it's not a budget fan and it's not coming with a pile of features...not even sleeved wiring.

OVERALL
This is the fan to beat at the 35 CFM level for minimal noise level, but also it's noise quality is fairly good in some voltage ranges. It is not perfect though, it seems to have a very minor amount of resonance at 7 and 8V. Range is good, efficiency is excellent, and cost is ok to expensive. Overall, I suspect most people would be fairly impressed with this fan's noise level and tone, although the tone and sound is different and may not be for everyone. I suggest listening closely to the videos and make your own judgement. Better yet, buy one of your own and give it a good test before committing to a bunch more.

This fan gets another thumbs up :up:for it's amazing CFM/NOISE ratio at 12V, it really separates itself from the rest in this particular area.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6vHPwmfBlc

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/6116/gt15a.jpg

http://img258.imageshack.us/img258/2402/gt15afront.jpg

http://img258.imageshack.us/img258/2736/r6a5gt15a.png

SAMPLE A COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/5686/r6a5gt15avsallq.th.png (http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/5686/r6a5gt15avsallq.png)

UPDATE 11-17-2010

Vapor sent me not one, but two new samples to try, and this is what I got...pretty much the same thing. If anything I'd say maybe a bit more noise/grit at the 4-5V range, but actually a little smoother (less resonance) at the 7-8V range. Pretty much the same thing when you consider 3dBA the amount needed for "Barely Perceptible".

http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/7303/r6a5gt15b.png

SAMPLE B COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/7491/r6a5gt15bvsall.th.png (http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/7491/r6a5gt15bvsall.png)

Hondacity

11-16-2010, 09:51 PM

old one was thailand right?

Martinm210

11-17-2010, 06:25 AM

old one was thailand right?

GT15old is the original GT15 from batch one without the frame openings. Do I spy one of the mystery fans you are sending?..:)

Boulard83

11-17-2010, 08:09 AM

One again ..... Great work Martin !

Hondacity

11-17-2010, 09:11 AM

yeah :D

maybe someone will recognize it :D

Vapor

11-17-2010, 09:29 AM

GTs continue to impress....

Great stuff, Martin :)

avddreamr

11-17-2010, 09:59 AM

@martin:
They must of started manufacturing the batches earlier this year, I purchased my fans 2 from hondacity, and another 3 from a forum member on the H in april.

I have samples of both batches. For me the acoustic problems don't start until 1000 rpm or so, but I chucked that up to air turbulence hitting the fan motor. I wonder when the "new" batch was actually made.

I'm debating switching them for ap-14s, since I never run them about 1250.
I'm always amazed when people say they are quiet at full rpm. Makes me think that I either have bad examples, or they have full ears, or possibly they haven't mounted them on anything that has restriction.

Oh, heh, almost forgot. No sleeving on non of the fans.

Church

11-17-2010, 10:52 AM

Vapor: they continue impress, yeah .. but i somehow anticipated a bit more drama at top. GTs been lone undethroned leader for so long, why competitors keep idle with improvements that long? :)

avddreamr: i'm guessing it's their ears. For each acceptable noise levels/definition of quiet are different. But even if AP15 at full rpm being quiet is arguable, i've heard often stated that they are relatively quieter then competitors - as in GTs @1850 are like noiseblockers @1400 and alike ..

somethingclever

11-17-2010, 11:22 AM

I'm most interested in seeing if the battle-hardened GT-15 with 140 adapter can hang with the noiseblocker pk series and x-silent 140's on the SR1.

Somehow I wouldn't be surprised if it wins the 140mm CFM/dB crown as well...

pcaddict

11-17-2010, 12:20 PM

You need to get akasa apache also!

Manicdan

11-17-2010, 12:23 PM

would someone like to risk blowing up one of their own GT AP-15s by overvolting it up to 24v and see what happens at over 3000rpms?

AceBaran

11-17-2010, 12:25 PM

Great :rofl: Glad you like the dutch candy :up:

Utnorris

11-17-2010, 02:59 PM

Hey Martin,
What did you think of the weight of that Pabst fan? Built like a tank isn't it?

Martinm210

11-17-2010, 03:48 PM

Great :rofl: Glad you like the dutch candy :up:

Yes, you win...:D Your fan gets cuts in the testing line...:rofl:

UPDATE11-20-10
Sorry, I meant to test this one this morning, but my 6-32 screws were too short. I'll have to run down to the hardware store and get some threaded rod or longer screws. I hasn't seen the new bench just yet...

@martin:
They must of started manufacturing the batches earlier this year, I purchased my fans 2 from hondacity, and another 3 from a forum member on the H in april.

I have samples of both batches. For me the acoustic problems don't start until 1000 rpm or so, but I chucked that up to air turbulence hitting the fan motor. I wonder when the "new" batch was actually made.

I'm debating switching them for ap-14s, since I never run them about 1250.
I'm always amazed when people say they are quiet at full rpm. Makes me think that I either have bad examples, or they have full ears, or possibly they haven't mounted them on anything that has restriction.

Oh, heh, almost forgot. No sleeving on non of the fans.

I really do think the lower speed models are better if you plan to undervolt the 15. I havn't processed it yet, but I really liked what I subjectively heard when testing the AP-13.

GTs continue to impress....

Great stuff, Martin :)

Thanks for sponsoring, I feel much better about the 15 now that I've had a chance to try some of the new batch. That old batch 15 I had really had some harsh spikes in resonance. While I found some very minor amounts in the new batch, it was really small in comparison.:up:

yeah :D

maybe someone will recognize it :D

I don't have a clue...:confused::D

Hey Martin,
What did you think of the weight of that Pabst fan? Built like a tank isn't it?

No kidding, it is a BEAST...must weight a pound. I'll have to put it on a scale and see:D

Martinm210

11-17-2010, 03:50 PM

FYI,
I got Vapor's Sample B GT15 processed. It was really close to the sample A results and now that I've listened to the audio, I can't really tell the difference. If anything the sample B was perhaps a bit grittier on the bottom end, but was more consistent throughout the voltage sweep. I'll update the GT15 post with this info to keep the data together:

Also notice the bottom end of Sample B. The Arctic Cooling F12 is actually much the same, perhaps better at the 4-5V range. It's just hard to conclude anything when they are that close. My sound meter floor appears to be 31dbA, so it gets to be a bit suspect down that low.

http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/7303/r6a5gt15b.png

COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/7491/r6a5gt15bvsall.th.png (http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/7491/r6a5gt15bvsall.png)

Martinm210

11-17-2010, 08:08 PM

Gentle Typhoon AP-13 (Old Batch?)

Another thanks to Vapor for sponsoring this fan..:clap::clap:

With the 15 and 14 doing well, I figured the 13 would follow suit and it does.

NOISE LEVEL
It falls pretty much in line with the AP-14 in being one the the very lowest noise/CFM levels for it's range, although there was a little bump at 9V.

NOISE QUALITY
It's fairly good like the other GTs, but I think at these really low RPM levels the ball bearings start to become one of the more pronounced noises. Some of the other sleeve or FDB (Sleeve variants) don't have that. It's really quiet and minor, but I think as you approach the 1000RPM and below range some of the other options begin to look more promising. I'll call it average to above average since there isn't any motor tick, but some ball bearing noise. I did find one little resonance bump at 9V, but it's pretty hard to detect other than the sound meter picking it up.

RELATIVE TO THE GT14 & GT15
I think it's roughly the same as the GT14, and a hair better than the GT15 at like performance levels. The GT15 seems to have more problems with resonance bumps than the lower speed family. This could all be sample variation, but what I've seen so far.

OVERALL
Very very good at 12V with a dbA level about 4-5 dbA lower than most fans, but that slowly diminishes as you lower the RPM levels. I think once you get down to about 800RPM, it's no longer doing any better than many other fans if you consider both noise level and noise quality. Some of the other fans have quieter bearings using sleeve, or FDB. With that said, it's still doing a fair amount better than the others at 12V or 1200RPM. It gets fairly competitive below about 800-1000RPM.

I'll give it a thumbs up for really low noise/cfm ratios from 1000-1200RPM.:up:

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ioJCAFARTY

http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/1295/gt13.jpg

http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/8030/gt13front.jpg

http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/5779/r6a5gt13.png

COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/9645/r6a5gt13vsall.th.png (http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/9645/r6a5gt13vsall.png)

Martinm210

11-18-2010, 07:29 PM

NZXT Case Fan

Special thanks to Vapor for sponsoring this fan..:clap::clap:

I always like the higher blade count fans like this.

NOISE LEVEL
Very good, it's a good 1dbA better than the yate medium at slower speeds and about the same at 12V at like performance levels.

NOISE QUALITY
Very good, it has a slightly smoother wind type noise than 7 blade fans and generally performs consistently at all volts with no odd harmonics or motor ticks. Generally a good smooth consistent sound.

I'll give this fan a thumbs up for overall consistently good performance.:up:

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDqcOCCtiXI

http://img713.imageshack.us/img713/7358/nzxt.jpg

http://img713.imageshack.us/img713/626/nzxtfront.jpg

http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/3238/r6a5nzxterrorfound.png

COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img713.imageshack.us/img713/8638/r6a5nzxtvsall.th.png (http://img713.imageshack.us/img713/8638/r6a5nzxtvsall.png)

bing

11-18-2010, 08:00 PM

Hey Martin,
What did you think of the weight of that Pabst fan? Built like a tank isn't it?

No kidding, it is a BEAST...must weight a pound. I'll have to put it on a scale and see:D

If you haven't powered it yet, just fyi you will have to install it backward, it has a reverse air flow than normal fan does, just watch the vertical arrow sign at the frame.

http://i.imgur.com/L2l8Q.jpg

Martinm210

11-18-2010, 09:03 PM

If you haven't powered it yet, just fyi you will have to install it backward, it has a reverse air flow than normal fan does, just watch the vertical arrow sign at the frame.

http://i.imgur.com/L2l8Q.jpg

Thanks for pointing that out, I wouldn't have thought it did that and I'm generally really bad at reading directions..:D

Martinm210

11-18-2010, 09:15 PM

Noctua NF-S12B

Thanks to Vapor for sponsoring:clap:

This fan surprised me. I had been going on the assumption that for a good radiator fan, that you must have high blade count and large dense blades. It "Seemed" to make sense and under those assumptions I completely expected this fan to be only good in an open case type condition....I was WRONG!

NOISE LEVEL
It's good, actually a bit better than the yate medium at slower speeds and continues to do at least as good as the yate medium baseline fan all the way. At 8V it was better than most fans.

NOISE QUALITY
Very good, no odd resonance issues, just good smooth consistent sound at all levels.

OVERALL
It's a good fan, performs better in Noise/CFM than the yate loon medium and has a good smooth consistent sound at all RPM levels.

Still not quite sure how this one does better than the noctua P12 on my test rig...but it did..perhaps the P12s were bad samples..:shrug: Lesson learned, do NOT judge a fan by it's looks, there is no correlation between numbers of blades, density, thickness, bearing type, etc....looks mean nothing at all....

FYI, I noticed my Amperage meter is going whacky here. I had to retest for amperage separately to get the correct wattage. Not sure why, but under a retest the milliamps was reading just fine. I'll have to watch that. Anyhow, don't use the amperage in the video, it's wrong.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyO5vXs13Pc

http://img842.imageshack.us/img842/921/noctuas12b.jpg

http://img842.imageshack.us/img842/8784/noctuas12bfront.jpg

http://img842.imageshack.us/img842/6774/r6a5noctuas12b.png

COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img842.imageshack.us/img842/766/r6a5noctuas12bvsall.th.png (http://img842.imageshack.us/img842/766/r6a5noctuas12bvsall.png)

Vapor

11-18-2010, 09:31 PM

Whoa, didn't expect that.

Vampiyer

11-18-2010, 09:55 PM

That the Noctua doesn't make an offensive sounds is important.

I just got (3) Thermalright TY-140 fans from SVC. They all make a bit of a quiet "liquid" sputtering noise. This is much better than ticking, grinding, or whining, but it's still annoying. Fortunately, this was at the full 12V-RPM, and it's only audible up-close. There is some motor growl, but it's relatively constant, and quiet.

I hope to get them on the voltage controller later and see how they behave, but I'll be on non-stop trips through to mid-december :(

X-bit labs seemed to think these TY-140's were the best of the 140mm fans, but I think the AP-15 (120mm) is of a better design. It's not a huge issue to me because I wanted them as 140mm case fans for my 700D, and for that, they may outperform the 120mm AP-15 anyway.

Looking at them now... they're quite big... and they will not easily mount to either of Martin's radiators (need to use gasket tape). The airflow also isn't as strong as I expected, but it's diffused over a larger area, and the hub is quite small. It's also not as ugly as I expected... I may just paint the frame matte-black and be done. I wouldn't dare paint the blades of any fan and risk affecting performance.

Nice work again, Martin.

Church

11-18-2010, 11:01 PM

Performance of NF-S12B is really surprising seeing it's blade configuration. I wonder though if it will be able to keep up on high FPI rads as well as good, where high pressure should mater more then on low-middle finned MCR.

THOMO

11-19-2010, 04:07 AM

53db for 35cfm??? Why so low?

My generic el-cheapo 120mm fans running on 19v make those sound very loud. The cfm of those are horrificly low.....are you sure you've wired them up properly?

Martinm210

11-19-2010, 05:22 AM

53db for 35cfm??? Why so low?

My generic el-cheapo 120mm fans running on 19v make those sound very loud. The cfm of those are horrificly low.....are you sure you've wired them up properly?

Restriction, radiator plus some restriction in the flow chamber. You really can't compare between two different test setups. I'm using a zoom H1 handy recorder for audio which has really sensitive 90 degree xy stereo mics turned up to 100 percent manual gain in a quiet room in the middle of the night. Very sensitive.

Yes I' sure it's wired ok, fans are just very sensitive to restriction and why I'm intentionally testing through a radiator as opposed to an artificial open air test that has little or no restriction.:up:

While neither one of my meters are calibrated, I am using a fan to ensure all the batches are tested the same, so relative performances should be ok within a resonable amount.

Martinm210

11-19-2010, 05:29 AM

Whoa, didn't expect that.

That the Noctua doesn't make an offensive sounds is important.

I just got (3) Thermalright TY-140 fans from SVC. They all make a bit of a quiet "liquid" sputtering noise. This is much better than ticking, grinding, or whining, but it's still annoying. Fortunately, this was at the full 12V-RPM, and it's only audible up-close. There is some motor growl, but it's relatively constant, and quiet.

I hope to get them on the voltage controller later and see how they behave, but I'll be on non-stop trips through to mid-december :(

X-bit labs seemed to think these TY-140's were the best of the 140mm fans, but I think the AP-15 (120mm) is of a better design. It's not a huge issue to me because I wanted them as 140mm case fans for my 700D, and for that, they may outperform the 120mm AP-15 anyway.

Looking at them now... they're quite big... and they will not easily mount to either of Martin's radiators (need to use gasket tape). The airflow also isn't as strong as I expected, but it's diffused over a larger area, and the hub is quite small. It's also not as ugly as I expected... I may just paint the frame matte-black and be done. I wouldn't dare paint the blades of any fan and risk affecting performance.

Nice work again, Martin.

Performance of NF-S12B is really surprising seeing it's blade configuration. I wonder though if it will be able to keep up on high FPI rads as well as good, where high pressure should mater more then on low-middle finned MCR.

Yeah, it still surprises me, perhaps because of the steep blade pitch. I think my test rig is adding some restriction by itself, so if anything it would favor more pressure oriented.

I give up on trying to guess what works or doesn't in a fan type...just when I think I understand something a fan test pretty well dismisses it.

I might pull out my spare P12 and test it in batch 6. I just don't get how the S12 could do better..?

Church

11-19-2010, 05:51 AM

Martin: at the end probably simplest is to treat fans as some kind of black box with specific airflow/pressure/noise characteristics. Too many variables are at play there that can enhance or destroy performance/noise ratio. Good silent bearing & engine can allow fan to run faster with acceptable noise allowing in return to compensate sub par design of blades, good blade design can push more air with more pressure at lower rpm-s allowing to mask inefficiencies on engine part or thin fan thickness. And inconsistent manufacturing quality can destroy whatever potential both design of blades and engine might have. :)

Martinm210

11-19-2010, 08:40 PM

Martinm210

11-19-2010, 08:48 PM

Scythe K-Flex H

This one was sponsored by Hondacity in my earlier rounds:clap:

I hung onto this one because I thought it did better than I had recorded previously. It was a good thing I trusted my ear more than my old sound level meter, it did really well.

NOISE LEVEL
A bit better than average by a couple of dbA, really pretty good overall.

NOISE QUALITY
Very good, no resonance, motor ticks, or other unwanted motor noises. Generally good.

OVERALL
A very good fan all around. Not quite as low in noise level as the GTs, but it's a good strong fan with good noise quality and very capable at all RPMs with no problems. It also has a bit more top speed performance over the GT15, so a good scalable fan.

I'll give this one a thumbs up for it's large range and very good performance in both noise level and noise quality.:up:

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPW3N6Ti7Aw

http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/6474/kflexh.jpg

http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/2707/kflexhfront.jpg

http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/2616/r6a5kflexh.png

COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/3218/r6a5kflexhvsall.th.png (http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/3218/r6a5kflexhvsall.png)

Martinm210

11-19-2010, 10:18 PM

FYI,
Figured out what was going on with the RadioShack Amperage meter giving weird readings from batch 5 from the NZXT onward.

A case of user error..:yawn:

I accidentally hit the select button somewhere between the AP-13 and the NZXT switching it over from DC amperage to AC amperage. It still gives me numbers, but they are wrong. If you look close enough at the video, you can see a little ~before the milliamp reading, this means AC milliamps mode.

While the amperage is of minimal importance, I need to fix that. I did a quick amperage only retest of the Noctua and KFlex,but I still need to fix the NZXT. Anyhow, disregard the amperage reading in those videos, they are wrong.

Unfortunately it means the 5 video I had completed after that are also no good for amperage....whoops! Everything else is ok from what I can see though.

I will watch that AC mode select button more closely...me and simple DC only meters get along better..:yepp::D

Martinm210

11-20-2010, 08:25 AM

Got a few more done in batch 6, I may just go ahead and retest the last few from batch 5 since I've found that I not only left the video camera in SD, but also messed up the amperage meter settings.

Here is my check in test on batch 6, it looks ok, so I'll start processing these as time permits. Busy weekend though, gotta go out with the cub scouts to collect canned foods today...:up:

Anyhow, this batch should be good...made sure the camera was in high def this time and the amperage meter is DC mode...:D

http://img222.imageshack.us/img222/1755/ra6checkin.png

penguins

11-20-2010, 01:00 PM

need more coffee? i was wondering when i saw that graph, wow that fan is really efficient.. keep up the good work :D

Martinm210

11-20-2010, 02:04 PM

Noise Blocker M12-S3HS

Special thanks to SeeingRed for sponsoring this fan.:clap:

This fan has been on top on some of the open air type fan testing, so I was curious to see how it does on a radiator. It does very well, not quite to GTs in noise level, but really good noise quality.

NOISE LEVEL
Very good, about 1dbA lower than the yate medium across the board, and better than average amongst all fans tested.

NOISE QUALITY
Extremely good. Good smooth sound, no motor ticks, no resonance issues, fairly smooth air sound.

OVERALL
While not at the top for noise level it is very good, and the noise quality is really good regardless of the voltage applied. I'll give it a thumbs up for overall goodness.:up:

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5YfozTMKuc

http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/1064/nblockers3hs.jpg

http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/9899/nblockers3hsfront.jpg

http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/9626/ra6nblockers3hs.png

COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/6488/ra6nblockers3hsvsall.th.png (http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/6488/ra6nblockers3hsvsall.png)

SpuTnicK

11-20-2010, 02:24 PM

@Martin
Nice test results so far. Great job.
When will we see the result of San Ace fans' performance?

Martinm210

11-20-2010, 04:04 PM

@Martin
Nice test results so far. Great job.
When will we see the result of San Ace fans' performance?

Thanks!
I've got the 25mm versions coming up next rendering the 9S1212H4011 now. I tested Vapors 38s in batch 5 but the amperage readings were bad, so I'm going to rest those, probably tomorrow morning. I can comforyably get about 6 fans done per batch. I was trying to test late at night 3-4am, but that was too much. I get up everyday at 5:00 any on the weekdays, so I'm going to keep doing the testing early on weekends. That should give me roughly 12 fans done per week to work on rendering. The actual test is pretty fast, its the video rendering, photos, and extracting of data to the charts that takes the most time.

Anyhow, the two 25mm versions should be up later today, and if testing goes per plan, the 38s later this week.

I really like the industrial qualities you get with these fans, but I'm not seeing anything jaw dropping in terms of sound level. The high speed H model would be the first 2500rpm capable fan that doesn't tick when undervolted though, that's good..:up:

Utnorris

11-20-2010, 04:40 PM

Vampiyer

11-20-2010, 04:52 PM

Having owned several San Ace fans, it's my belief that if any one of them challenges the GT, it'll be the 9S-M model only.

I don't own that one - this is just my prediction based on the other Sanyo Fans I've owned. The Silent series is the only one left to compete, and the M-speed model is the perfect match.

I don't think the undervolted 38mm San Ace fans have great sound quality. They're better than any other fan I've used simply because I cannot hear the tick with the case closed, but they're still not quite up to par with the GT.

When I want more power, however, the 38mm San Ace is king - and that's why I keep them.

Martinm210

11-20-2010, 04:57 PM

I hope you plan on testing the San Ace 38mm fans at 5v. I think that is where they really shine. I am also curious as to how the Pabst does. I tried it out and 7v was the lowest I could go on it, but man did move some air, not very quiet, but I guess that's the trade off.

Edit: Also, anyway to reorganize the list based on best performance either in noise or CFM?

Yeah, I'll work on that in the end. I wasn't quite sure the best way to organize, but I figured at least alphabetically. But since they are just links, I could even create an alphabetical followed by some groups. Go ahead and toss out any ideas you might have...I just figured for now I'd get the testing done, then figure out at the end how to arrange/sort it.:up:

Utnorris

11-20-2010, 04:58 PM

Well, I run 6 of them currently on PA120.3 rads and at 1500-1600 RPM they are barely noticeable, that's around 7v and that's with my case open. I have had the GT's and while they were quiet, the noise they did make bothered me, not sure why, but they did. I am just curious as to what Martin's tests show. I remember when San Ace fans were considered the "Golden" fan to have, but the selection in fans now is absurd, so I doubt that will still be the case.

Martinm210

11-20-2010, 05:00 PM

San Ace 9S1212H4011 25mm High Speed

Special thanks to SeeingRed for sponsoring this fan..:clap:

I've always admired the industrial quality the 38mm fans seem to have, so I was pretty excited to see that packaged in a 25mm version. I have yet to test a 38mm fan that doesn't tick to some degree when undervolted, so could it be possible that this will be an ultra high speed fan with San Ace quality and no motor tick when undervolted? Sure is...:)

NOISE LEVEL
Came in about .5 to 1dbA higher than the yate medium and higher than average compared to the whole pack of fans up to 2000RPM. However in comparison with the previous two 38mm 3000RPM fans the UK3 and PanafloU, it had about the same noise level...about average for an ultra high speed fan.

NOISE QUALITY
Unlike most ultra high speed fans that are typically 38mm in thickness and have annoying motor tick noises when undervolted, this fan is exceptionally smooth for an ultra high speed fan. Overall the noise quality is fairly impressive, you really don't hear any motor noise, it seems the noise all comes from the fan blades themselves in the form of an air/blade/turbulence type noise. I'd say very good noise quality compared to 25mm fans, and exceptional noise quality compared to all other fans capable of 2500RPM. This is the one fan I could see using in ultra high speed 2500RPM and still being happy with the noise quality when undervolted.

OVERALL
While this fan may actually record higher than average noise level numbers, the noise quality is exceptionally good. It would be my first pick so far if looking for a fan with ultra high speed fan performance that needs to undervolt well at the same time. It's sort of a hybrid between your typical 25mm fan and an ultra high speed 38mm fan without the motor tick problems most 38mm fans seem to present.

I give it a thumbs up for being the strongest fan tested so far that has very good noise quality (no motor tick).:up: I'm also going to give it a thumbs up for it's industrial qualities and smooth motor free of any irregularities or resonance issue.:up: I guess I'm just happy to finally have a really strong(2500RPM) fan in the bunch that's smooth down at lower volts.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4IuCb5fLKc

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/2325/sanace9sh4011.jpg

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/975/sanace9sh4011front.jpg

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/9605/ra6sanace9sh.png

COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/3992/ra6sanace9shvsall.th.png (http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/3992/ra6sanace9shvsall.png)

Utnorris

11-20-2010, 05:00 PM

Yeah, I'll work on that in the end. I wasn't quite sure the best way to organize, but I figured at least alphabetically. But since they are just links, I could even create an alphabetical followed by some groups. Go ahead and toss out any ideas you might have...I just figured for now I'd get the testing done, then figure out at the end how to arrange/sort it.:up:

No worries, I just figured this thread will get stickied in the end and it would be nice when doing research to see them in a logical order either based on noise level or performance or both.

Martinm210

11-20-2010, 06:59 PM

San Ace 9S1212M401 25mm Medium Speed

Special thanks to the finisher for sponsoring this fan..:clap:

The is very similar to the 9S1212H4011 except it turns at a lower speeds.

NOISE LEVEL
It's fairly close to the yate medium, very slightly higher at slower speeds and slightly lower at higher speeds. Relative to the rest of the fans tested so far it's about average.

NOISE QUALITY
I think 4,5,6V was about average and 7-12V was very good. Generally has a good smooth sound without any resonance or motor ticks. The lower volts just had a little roughness compared to the higher range is all, but generally a good smooth sound of air/wind/turbulence for the most part and nothing obvious or sharp like a motor tick or resonance.

OVERALL
It's a very well built industrial quality fan with about average noise level and average to better than average noise quality.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulruOtaHy8g

http://img703.imageshack.us/img703/2051/sanace9sm401.jpg

http://img703.imageshack.us/img703/3839/sanace9sm401front.jpg

http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/9498/ra6sanace9sm.png

COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/2796/ra6sanace9smvsall.th.png (http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/2796/ra6sanace9smvsall.png)

Vampiyer

11-20-2010, 08:14 PM

Well then, I suppose I'm happy I never invested in the Sanyo Silent series. It's a good thing I'm cheap :) The performance seems acceptable, but not for that price...

Martinm210

11-20-2010, 09:42 PM

Well then, I suppose I'm happy I never invested in the Sanyo Silent series. It's a good thing I'm cheap :) The performance seems acceptable, but not for that price...

I'm cheap too, and why I ordered the next contender...:D

Martinm210

11-20-2010, 09:43 PM

Yate Loon D12SM12 SWC

This fan was sponsored by RatDog.:toast2: I made the purchase from my fan fund that he graciously provided me.

All my previous yates had been purchases from Petra's Tech Shop from a while back as it was said that they carried the "Better" yates. This sample was ordered from Sidewinderscomputers (SWC) as a quick test sample, to see if there was any difference between my baseline fan and a new sample from a different store. I have seen some variations in the fan from other stores, such as straight vs curved blades, etc, but I personally never dug any deeper than that...I simply made all my yate purchases from PTS.

When OldChap sponsored the Delta fan (yet to be tested), I figured I'd slip in this sample to save a little on shipping.

I felt it would also be good to just revisit where this fan sits amongst the mass of lines that has developed over the previous 40 or so fans tested in this round.

NOISE LEVEL
Every bit as good as the PTS yate medium I have been using as my calibration check fan between batches of tests. This is a brand new sample and my PTS fan has seen a few tests by now, so any difference here could very well be new vs slightly used. For all practical purposes, the same which is good.

Relative to the mass of fans tested so far, it's about average to better than average.

NOISE QUALITY
Very good smooth sound absent of any obvious motor noises such as ticking or whining. Also not a hint of any resonance or other noise other than simply air movement. Noise quality is always somewhat subjective, but when I listen to the fan and think about the cost of this fan, it's downright impressive. Every other fan in a similar price range has had motor ticking noises, but not this one...it competes with fans many times it's cost.

OVERALL
Without a doubt, the best value ($5.99) fan out there along with the yate SL or slow speed. I'd even take it further than that and say it's right there with the best of the best when used in really slow speed applications of 1000RPM or lower. If it takes 3dbA for the human ear for "Barely Perceptible" change in noise level...it puts this fan right there with many much more costly fans..
I'll give this fan (Yate Loons) a thumbs up for holding the best value fan by a long shot.:up:

This is an OEM fan, there are not any sleeved wires, no screws, no gaskets, no fancy colored packaging, not much of anything....
What you get is one very good fan at an exemplary price..:yepp:

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tRKxxt45Bs

http://img254.imageshack.us/img254/4002/yatesmswc.jpg

http://img254.imageshack.us/img254/5161/yatesmswcfront.jpg

http://img254.imageshack.us/img254/6817/ra6yatesmswc.png

COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img254.imageshack.us/img254/2568/ra6yatesmswcvsall.th.png (http://img254.imageshack.us/img254/2568/ra6yatesmswcvsall.png)

Vapor

11-20-2010, 09:53 PM

Great to see Sidewinders using their PTS acquisition and maintaining their YL source. :)

Martinm210

11-21-2010, 11:03 AM

Great to see Sidewinders using their PTS acquisition and maintaining their YL source. :)

I was a bit worried when I saw the different sticker on back and the lack of sticker on the front. I've got the other yates retested last night. I suspect sound levels will be close and the PPCS medium seemed smooth, although I did notice some very small amounts of motor tick coming from the FCPU slow speed. If the check in turned out well, I should be processing those later this week.:up:

Martinm210

11-21-2010, 11:20 AM

Nexus Real Silent D12SL-12

Special thanks to QuietMan for sponsoring this fan..:clap:

I've always been curious if these are any different than regular yate loons, so it was interesting to give them a try.

NOISE LEVEL
Pretty much spot on match to my medium speed yate from PTS, and a hair higher than my slow speed yate from PTS. Compared to the mass of fans tested so far, noise level was about average.

NOISE QUALITY
Very good, no apparent motor noises or resonance, good throughout. Noise consists of air movement only which is good.

RANGE
The fan is a bit limited in range, starting at 7V only gave me a range of 774-1200RPM

COST
Anywhere from $13 to $20 which is average to high.

OVERALL
I like the black on white looks, but besides the improved color scheme, reduce 12V rpm, and a box with some rubber case mounting nipples, they perform very much like yate loons with a smaller and lower RPM range. . It's a good fan as are yate loons, but higher in cost.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKZxYe7ZeyA

http://img821.imageshack.us/img821/4327/nexust.jpg

http://img821.imageshack.us/img821/908/nexusfront.jpg

http://img821.imageshack.us/img821/8909/ra6nexus.png

COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img821.imageshack.us/img821/7097/ra6nexusvsall.th.png (http://img821.imageshack.us/img821/7097/ra6nexusvsall.png)

MagisD

11-21-2010, 11:45 AM

Great going martin pretty soon you fan comparison chatted gona look like the northern lights lol

Sent from my X10a using Tapatalk

Church

11-21-2010, 11:58 AM

Don't know about Nexus Real Silent, but IIRC Nexus Basic were made by Yate Loon.

Martinm210

11-21-2010, 02:38 PM

Antec TriCool LED Fan

Special thanks to QuietMan for sponsoring this fan:clap:

NOISE LEVEL
It was about 1-2dbA higher than the yate loon medium. Relative to the entire collection of results, produced more noise than average on the radiator.

NOISE QUALITY
Good, no motor ticks or resonance, although it's not entirely wind noise. There is some motor noise present.

RANGE
Good range from 770RPM to 1920RPM which is fairly broad.

OVERALL
Higher than average noise level with good noise quality and good RPM range.

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_PHGonBJ9M

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/6549/antec.jpg

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/9575/antecfront.jpg

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/2208/ra6antec.png

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/7468/ra6antecvsall.th.png (http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/7468/ra6antecvsall.png)

Martinm210

11-21-2010, 04:08 PM

FYI,
Batch 7 from last night's testing checked in ok. I got about 9 of the remainder done, a few 25mm thickness fans, then the rest were all 38mm+

Bring on the finger chopper ultra high speeds...:D

http://img507.imageshack.us/img507/7805/ra7checkin.png

Martinm210

11-21-2010, 09:30 PM

Triebwerk TK-122 Mid Speed Fan

Special thanks to AceBaran for sponsoring this fan..:clap:

NOISE LEVEL
Very good, particularly at higher speeds. It was roughly matching the yate medium at it's lowest 4V setting improves to about 2dbA lower than the yate medium at the upper end with the exception of a resonance bump at 9V. Relative to the mass of fans tested so far, the noise level is a fair amount better than average and leading at the 2000RPM level.

NOISE QUALITY
Variable. I think it has good noise quality at higher speeds, but I do hear a little motor noise at lower volts and there is one small resonance bump picked up at 9V on this particular test setup. It is probably the best 38mm or wider fan tested so far. Because this fan has a smaller than typical hub, it seems to sound more like a 25mm fan motor than that of a large hub 38mm fan and has less of an issue with motor tick than most 38mm fans do at lower volts.

FEATURES
This fan was specifically made for water coolers, so it has a fair number of features worthy of note. The rubber mounting system is exceptionally good and completely isolates the fan from hard surfaces including the screw. The noiseblocker S3 was the only other fan to incorporate a system quite this good. The fan also has a built in shroud for pull condition, a special daisy chain feature for connecting more than one fan without all the cable mess, and M3 and M4 screws. My only complaint is no 6-32 screws for radiators like the MCR120. The fan also has a metal wire frame and a cone shaped hub nose which should all help reduce the dead spot on radiators.

RANGE
Very good range, starts up at 4V or 830RPM and runs clear up to 2010RPM, so lots of RPM options.

THICKNESS
This could be good or bad, depending on your needs and preferences. I personally like the looks of the extra thickness for external setup, but this could also be a limiting factor on many internal setups where space is at a premium. At 55mm, it's over double your normal 25mm thickness fan.

VISUAL
I do like the looks of this fan. Probably my favorite looking fan, just because it's so unique and massive.

COST
At $19 each at SWC, they are definitely a high cost fan, although there are several other fans that cost even more.

OVERALL
A very good noise level fan particularly at higher speeds, with a very good 800-2000RPM range, variable noise quality, lots of unique features, and high cost.

I'll give the fan a thumbs up for it's mounting system, daisy chain feature..and it's 2000RPM low noise level/quality..:up:

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SXQ7QPHwU8

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/9594/trieb122.jpg

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/6759/trieb122front.jpg

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/3493/ra7tk122.png

COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/6968/ra7tk122vsall.th.png (http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/6968/ra7tk122vsall.png)

Church

11-21-2010, 10:52 PM

Wonders didn't happen, and myth of triebwerk winning over GT is debunked. Good fan, bet runs similar to pack of others, and GTs still are the only ones that leave rest in dust.

Boulard83

11-21-2010, 11:36 PM

I own both, GTs on my MCR320 and TK122 on my TFC360.

Both fans are very silent and give very good airflow trough radiator. TK122 are really thick but nothing to prevent me from using them :)

Nice review Martin ! Again .. your awesome !

TK122 / 25mm shroud / TFC360
http://www.infodupat.com/MiscPics/Triebwerk_01.jpg

Church

11-22-2010, 01:10 AM

Ouch, already thick as is triebwerks with additional shrouds? I always thought of them like kind of fans with built in srouds. BTW, i suggest you to check performance with and without shrouds, as IIRC optimal height of shroud was 30mm (http://martin.skinneelabs.com/Radiator-Fan-Orientation-And-Shroud-Testing-Review.html) .. in your case it's closer to 40 if you count in fan's own "shroud" part. It might be that you'll get less then expected gains from these shrouds except making rad sandwitch even thicker.

And i never claimed that triebwerks are bad fans (they are among better ones in that "middle" crowd) .. just that GTs are better :). +Even with GTs on push-pull resulting fan-rad sandwich will be less thick then rad with single row of triebwerks.

Manicdan

11-22-2010, 07:20 AM

+Even with GTs on push-pull resulting fan-rad sandwich will be less thick then rad with single row of triebwerks.

this is a good point, even 2x cheep yates at lower fan speeds resulting in more airflow through a rad might prove to be better than this monster. (didnt he test push/pull earlier?)

it does look nice though, too bad the perf is just the same as the rest.

Boulard83

11-22-2010, 08:29 AM

Both are excellent .. trieb and GTs. The Trieb/TF360 was cooling a SLI GTX460 @ 885mhz + a GTS450 @ 965mhz and my delta room/water after several hours of gaming was ~6°c with the trieb at 1100rpm. The setup is very silent.

Im now waiting for the GTX580 blocs and im gona cool these with the Trieb/TFC.

Also, like Martin said, i really like the "monster" look of these fans. They are so thick... Even a 38mm fan look small next to it.

Boulard83

11-22-2010, 08:29 AM

refreshed ... dbl post .. sry !

Church

11-22-2010, 08:41 AM

Boulard83: i've seen just too often asked "which rad is thin enough but not too high finned, i cannot fit full thickness one" type of questions to count 55mm thickness of fan as more of a drawback then advantage. IF triebwerk had managed to pull off better performance or same performance but at lower price then GT, then maybe few flaws could be easier forgiven. I might be wrong, but imho for 2/3 of LC crowd performance might matter more then looks, otherwise you'd see less builds with GTs, more with miscellaneous colored fans with LEDs.

Boulard83

11-22-2010, 08:50 AM

Yes, im FAR from telling that GT's are bad ... loll ... as you can see i have GT's !!! Stop playing the GT fanboy :)

In my particular case, testbed, the thickness of the fan are far from an issue and i was tempted to test the trieb.

+, At the time when i buyed the trieb, they were 50% off and GT's were hard to find ...

This was with the 2xGTX460/1xGTS450
http://www.infodupat.com/MiscPics/2010_10_26_02.jpg

AceBaran

11-22-2010, 09:44 AM

Good job on the triebs Martin :up:

Tnx for doing these tests on so many fans.. Great work

Martinm210

11-22-2010, 03:22 PM

Thanks!
Trying to plow through these 120's as fast as I can, starting to get a bit boring, but I'm looking forward to finishing so I can give the 140's a go. Then I want to maybe look at some pump noise related testing after that.

Martinm210

11-22-2010, 05:37 PM

Sanyo Denki San Ace 120 9G1212H101 38mm

Special thanks to "The Finisher" for sponsoring this fan..:clap:

NOISE LEVEL PER CFM
Relative to the yate medium baseline fan, it's a little worse at lower volts and improves at it ramps up. Relative to the two other 3000RPM 38mm fans, it's better by about 2-3dbA. So noise level is actually very good from a metering standpoint at high RPMs and is now leading the way from about 42CFM to 55CFM.

NOISE QUALITY
This is again where the sound meter fails to report the whole story, noise quality is simply not captured in noise level.

Relative to the yate loon and most 25mm fans, very poor below about 11 volts. It has a very pronounced motor tick that's fairly harsh in comparison with the smoother 25mm fans. I've heard that PWM will make a worthwhile improvement to this problem, but I'm testing voltage control here and the fan is very ticky at lower volts similar to most 38mm fans. Unfortunately I don't have a good 3pin PWM controller that I can operate without a computer, or I would do a comparison for you. At this point in being consistent with the previous fan ratings, I'm simply going to say keep it at 11V or above if you want smooth sound. I would not recommend undervolting much unless you can some how cover up the motor noise to smooth it out somehow.

If I compare the yate loon medium at 8V in one video window and pause it, then load this fan at 6V pause it. The noise level meter and anemometer have them producing roughly the same noise level and air flow performance level. Yet to my ear, the yate loon is far superior in noise quality. With the yate, I hear air movement, with the San Ace I hear a motor. Perhaps some folks prefer the motor sound:shrug:. Regardless, the videos are there for the end user to make their own judgements about noise quality.:up:

INDUSTRIAL QUALITY
I think the industrial build quality is worthy of note, these fans are built like a tank and of very high quality. I suspect that is why many folks seem to like them so much, they do make your typical 25mm fan feel like a cheap piece of plastic and there is something to be said about appreciating something of high industrial quality.

COST
PPCS has these fans for $22.99, so the fan is in the "HIGH COST" category, but similar to many of the industrial grade fans, so not unheard of.

OVERALL
Very good noise level per CFM above 2500RPM, noise quality is poor below 11V but smooths out at higher voltage, cost is high, and build quality is excellent.

I'll give the fan a thumbs up for it's lower noise level at 12V compared to the other two ultra high speed fans.:up:

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0bvShNDT4M

http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/6947/sanace9gh.jpg

http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/5169/sanace9ghfront.jpg

http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/6677/ra7sanace9gh.png

http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/9356/ra7sanace9ghvsall.th.png (http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/9356/ra7sanace9ghvsall.png)

Church

11-22-2010, 06:03 PM

Martin: maybe you should double (or even quadruple?) resolution of united chart and use thinner lines? It's totally blured out in middle that's made up from most of fans :)

Martinm210

11-22-2010, 06:07 PM

Martin: maybe you should double (or even quadruple?) resolution of united chart and use thinner lines? It's totally blured out in middle that's made up from most of fans :)

Yeah, I'll work something up when I'm done. Maybe break it down into batches of 10 or maybe some other logical order such as max CFM level, etc.

Been thinking of some sort of bar chart system to suppliment as well.

In the mean time, you have the individual chart relative to the yate medium as a clean comparison with every fan..:up:

Manicdan

11-22-2010, 06:25 PM

a bar chart at a certain voltage with the names in the bar so we dont have to match lines with labels

edit, how thin can a bar be until it gets called a line? i guess we will find out

prtuc2

11-22-2010, 07:17 PM

Is weird at first when I had the San Ace H101 on my megahalems I undervolt to 7V didn't noticed any ticking sounds. Now recently I test it again the ticking sound is more noticeable (fan by itself) not sure what is the problem.

Martinm210

11-22-2010, 07:36 PM

Sanyo Denki San Ace 109R1212H1011

Special thanks to Vapor for sponsoring this fan:clap:

NOISE LEVEL
Very good, and exceptional at high speeds. From a pure noise level meter numbers standpoint darn right impressive for the range it is covering. This fan also did a bit better than the 9G version by a small amount. It also has a high CFM level.

NOISE QUALITY
I'm going to say poor from 4-6V, average from 7-8V, and good from 9V and higher. Lower volts have that typical 38mm fan tick, but by the time you reach 2000+RPM levels that motor noise pretty well washes away in the air noise.

OVERALL
A very strong noise level fan of industrial quality. Noise quality is a bit poor from 4-6V (motor tick), average around 7-8V, and good 9V and above. I'll give the fan a thumbs up for having the lowest noise level from about 40 to 61CFM of the fans tested so far....:up:

VIDEO LINK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AdL3NcP4AE

http://img543.imageshack.us/img543/4165/sanace109rh.jpg

http://img543.imageshack.us/img543/7779/sanace109rhfront.jpg

http://img543.imageshack.us/img543/9899/ra7sanace109rh.png

http://img543.imageshack.us/img543/1474/ra7sanace109rhvsall.th.png (http://img543.imageshack.us/img543/1474/ra7sanace109rhvsall.png)

Utnorris

11-22-2010, 09:39 PM

Martinm210

11-22-2010, 10:11 PM

So I listened to the video and it's funny, while I hear the tick you are talking about, I have 6 of these running on two PA120.3's (old style) and at 5v I do not hear any tick from them. I have heard it before, but the majority of my San Ace fans that I have do not make that noise. In fact, at 5v it's barely noticeable of any fan noise to the point where I check to make sure they are all running. It will be interesting to see if all three of the San Ace fans you have with the same model number do this, assuming you are going to test all three.

Good to know. Maybe I'm worrying too much about this fan tick or noise quality side of things. It makes sense to me that the more fans you have the less obvious that would be as they would all be sort of blending together.:up:

Perhaps that's the difference or perhaps this H1 microphone and ultra quiet test scenario makes it all seem worse than it really is..?

The only experience I had was some folks convinced me to buy Panaflo Ms a while back when I first started water cooling. I changed out my yate slow speeds for Panaflo Ms. They were too loud for my liking at 12V, so I tried to undervolt them to an acceptable noise level.

Even with 6 of those fans running on two MCR320's...the ticking on those fans drove me nuts. It wasn't much, but it was annoying to me and I much preferred the smoother sound the 25mm yates gave me and eventually pulled the panaflos out and went back to the yates..

Needless to say, I wasn't too happy I just wasted my money on 6 brand new panaflos on what was supposedly the much better fan per the forum recommendations. That's probably also a pretty good indicator that I'm easily annoyed..:D

I will try the others, but it'll be a while. Heading out of town here for the holidays and weekend, so no testing for a bit.

Anyhow, the 109R-H seems to be the lower noise level of all the 38mm fans tested so far, that's a really good indicator..

Martinm210

11-22-2010, 10:38 PM

FYI,
Tried reducing the line weights to 1PT to see if this helps looking at the charts any...not sure it does, but here they are:

First one is all fans at all levels, second is reducing the axis limits to get a better look at the lower speeds:
ALL
http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/9186/testchartfine1.th.png (http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/9186/testchartfine1.png)
All at lower levels only
http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/1630/testchartfine2.th.png (http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/1630/testchartfine2.png)

Lu(ky

11-23-2010, 06:01 AM

Hey Martin great job thank you for taking the time to do this. There are so many new fans out there now this really needed to be done.
Question about the Scythe GentleTyphoon 1850 fan. If this fan was in a 120mmx38mm frame would it push more CFM? Or have better pressure..
Thanks

zalbard

11-23-2010, 06:10 AM

asura

11-23-2010, 06:34 AM

Martin, I personally find the graph with thinner plot lines much easier to read, so that's one person you've helped out at least.

It's interesting the wobble that the GT's have, presumably it's at the same point as the wobble Nidec Servo report in their curves (http://forums.procooling.com/vbb/attachment.php?s=&postid=44918) for the GT's

Lu(ky if it's static pressure we're aiming for, one of these (http://catalog.nidec-servo.com/digital/english/general/pdf/G1238.pdf) should do the trick, twenty six times the static pressure of a GT, for only thirteen times the apparent loudness of course that's a subjective measurement... which just feels dirty

SpuTnicK

11-23-2010, 07:36 AM

@Martin

Sanyo Denki San Ace 109R1212H1011
VIDEO LINK
are those golden screws that hold the fan? fancy looking :)

I was waiting for San Aces. I have about ten of H1011. And have listen to every one at 5V. I could not hear the motor noise so noticeable in your video.
But maybe you are right:

this H1 microphone and ultra quiet test scenario makes it all seem worse than it really is
Anyways, thank for results. Keep up the good work :up:

Church

11-23-2010, 09:12 AM

Martin: how about swapping noise / airflow axis, so that best fans in chart are actually "on top" :), also extend with making airflow axis hmm .. 4-10 times more sparse. Of course it will result in very "high" image - but as it's stretched vertically, it can be easily scrollable up-down. I mean something like 1900x4800 or even 1900x9600? Should fit well width-wise in fullscreen on FullHD screens (leaving 20pt for scrollbar :D)

Martinm210

11-23-2010, 11:27 AM

Thanks for the ideas and thoughts. It seems several people think the videos and audio are more sensitive than their own experiences. I'm not sure what to do about that other than refraining from commenting about noise quality. Personally I thought the audio matches really well to my own when sitting there doing the actual tests...so I' thinking it's simply due to the ambient noise level. If I listen to the fans in a normal room with normal ambient noise levels than the details wash away.

Perhaps testing in complete silence is the wrong idea?

Anyhow, I think I'll give up on trying to give you any of my own perceptions and simply run the recording.

I may even just kill the whole charting idea again...just record the videos and let you decide from that?

What do you all think?

Martinm210

11-23-2010, 11:28 AM

ggdh

11-23-2010, 12:39 PM

Very impressive work:up:

I'm looking forward for 140mm fans :up:

MagisD

11-23-2010, 12:58 PM

Martin keep what your doing the same. Those noises are still there no matter anybodys ambient which is different for ever single user. You method is a level playing feild. And quite frankly nobody can touch you when it comes to acurate consistent fan test.

Great job and keep up the good work.

If somebody wants it done differently let them build a setup collect the fans test them there way and process the work.

Sent from my X10a using Tapatalk

zalbard

11-23-2010, 01:07 PM

Perhaps testing in complete silence is the wrong idea?
No way.
It's the worst case scenario. It is very accurate and easy to reproduce.
Plus it is exactly what I encounter when I go to bed and leave my PC running. :D

Church

11-23-2010, 01:09 PM

To me chart is THE source of results, at least for first rough selection of fans that seem interesting, and only then i'd check recording of those select few. I have no slightest intention to read description for all 20-30 fans while listening to recordings for all of them and then have it all blended in mind by then. My short term memory is inadequate for that :). Line chart imho simply is best & most compact way to represent results for actual choice of fan selection/purchase, though hindered a bit by large number of tested fans. But that shouldn't mean that it needs to be dropped totally because of this minor shortcoming with replacing it with something like videos-only that is usuable for comparing only very small number of fans.

BrokenArrow

11-23-2010, 04:19 PM

Agree with above. Keep the charts.

Martinm210

11-23-2010, 04:41 PM

Alright, I'll keep them, but I want to somehow incorporate the noise quality component.

This is sort of what I was thinking to help separate things out a bit..

The idea is to pick out the dbA numbers off the chart for each CFM bracket, then include some subjective ratings for quality. Noise quality ratings would be something like low/medium/high with an overall rating at the end of some sort.:confused:

Martinm210

11-23-2010, 06:01 PM

Sanyo Denki San Ace 9G1212M101 38mm

Special thanks to the finisher for sponsoring this fan..:clap:

NOISE LEVEL
Relative to the yate medium, it's up to 2dbA louder at the lower end, about the same in the middle, and about 1dbA better at the high end and extends a fair amount beyond reach of the yate. Relative to the other fans tested, it was louder than average from about 4-6V, about average 7-9V, and slightly better than average from 10-12V

NOISE QUALITY
Very much like the 9G high speed, has a fairly pronounce motor noise at lower volts that doesn't really clean up until about 10-11V. While this is very subjective and extreme silence based testing, I have been recording every fan at the same Zoom H1 100% manual, low cut on, 12" distance. This fan has a more pronounced motor noise at lower volts, and I wouldn't recommend running under about 10V, it is really best suited running at 12V if possible. I do think the San Ace motor noise is generally smoother than that of the UK3 or PanoU. The UK3 has much more of a "Tick" where the San Ace is more of a motor bump as it turns. A few folks have expressed their own personal experience as one that they can barely here this noise I'm talking about.... So...take the noise quality notes with a grain of salt and listen to the videos with the understanding that this is worst case scenario testing here (absolute silence with an ultra high sensitive microphone) These types of noises are much less noticeable in a system where there are a multitude of there masking noises or ambient noises. As always, in order to split hairs, the testing sensitivity is turned up a notch. My suggestion is to find a similar fan you have on hand, and set the volume level to match what you are used to hearing, then start playing the videos and listen in..

OVERALL
Variable noise level and noise quality, with top notch build quality. Regardless, I much prefer the 9S, 25mm variety over these 38mm variants. The 9S models have exceptionally good noise quality in comparison. If you happen to be a San Ace fan "Fan", I would highly recommend looking more at the 25mm San Aces. While they did produce a higher noise level, I think their noise quality is far superior. The 9SH model also produced more CFM at 12V than this 9GM model did..

VIDEO LINK
Not yet processed at YT, but this link should work when it's ready:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaH1_qjMU5o

NOTE: I was not able to record RPM data in this test. I recorded what I could.

http://img686.imageshack.us/img686/9702/sanace9gm.jpg

http://img686.imageshack.us/img686/3517/sanace9gmfront.jpg

http://img686.imageshack.us/img686/2788/ra7sanace9gm.png

COMPARED TO ALL FANS TESTED SO FAR
http://img686.imageshack.us/img686/8987/ra7sanace9gmvsall.th.png (http://img686.imageshack.us/img686/8987/ra7sanace9gmvsall.png)