Case Fans - recommendations please

[my87csx481]

So, what do you guys use for case fans these days?

In the past, I've gravitated toward the Scythe S-Flex fans but, I think they're all gone or something. I liked the 100,000+ hours MTBF rating, or maybe it was 120,000 hours.

Looking at the Corsair Air Series fans. Again, what do you guys use these days for new builds?

I'm also looking at water cooling (and finally actually doing it for the first time). So fans would be for case inlet and exhaust, and external radiator (possibly push/pull).

Thanks for any suggestions.

[Sparky]

Yes, Sflex is all gone which makes me a little sad. That's what I have in my computer currently but one (or two) are starting to make noise. Horizontal mounting is hard on bearings I guess.

If you're doing vertical mounting it is still hard to beat the Yate Loons. Cheap and seem to work quite well. Horizontal mounting will kill them pretty quick however (or any sleeve bearing fan for that matter). I think my original set on a horizontal mount on my radiator only lasted like 8 months.

[StitchExperimen]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835553006

This is what I have come to like. It is a 9 blade fan with good pressure and 300,000 hour life.
I have 6 or more 120mm and have no complaints.
I have one 140 mm that I like also.
I use 2 in push pull on an Corsair 80i and the change in sound is night and day. Don't get a Corsair 80i the noise/pitch is terrible.
Good luck.

[Red Maw]

FWIW I used gentle typhoons on my rad and have been happy with them (just avoid horizontal position lol).

Yes, Sflex is all gone which makes me a little sad. That's what I have in my computer currently but one (or two) are starting to make noise. Horizontal mounting is hard on bearings I guess.

If you're doing vertical mounting it is still hard to beat the Yate Loons. Cheap and seem to work quite well. Horizontal mounting will kill them pretty quick however (or any sleeve bearing fan for that matter). I think my original set on a horizontal mount on my radiator only lasted like 8 months.

Dang that explains why my fans started making noise a couple months after a put my rad in horizontal position.

Edit: Or I just unlucky it seems.

[mbreslin]

I was sad to see the s-flex fans discontinued awhile ago, anyone know the reason?

I've had 22 running (vertical) for a couple years now with 0 issues.

[Ivanlabrie]

Gt's can run vertical or horizontal...they aren't sleeve bearing fans.

I'd go for Noctua nf-f12 pwm fans for rads and the new a14 flx fans for 140mm size.
If you don't like the color scheme get Gentle Typhoon ap-15 fans, Swiftech helix pwm, Zalman zf-sf3, Arctic Cooling f12 pwm co, Gelid Silent Wings or Zaward golf fans.

[mbreslin]

I had 22 noctuas (I should sell them I still have them somewhere) I took them out due to wanting black fans. Do you have experience with all the fans you listed? If so which if any are as quiet as s-flex when ran at like half power?

Thanks.

Edit: Actually I wouldn't consider any of those except the Zawards. I need black on black.

[Johnmark]

Gt's can run vertical or horizontal...they aren't sleeve bearing fans.

I'd go for Noctua nf-f12 pwm fans for rads and the new a14 flx fans for 140mm size.
If you don't like the color scheme get Gentle Typhoon ap-15 fans, Swiftech helix pwm, Zalman zf-sf3, Arctic Cooling f12 pwm co, Gelid Silent Wings or Zaward golf fans.

+1 for the GT's if you can find them. Running 5 of them 2.5 years in the horizontal position for rads and they still run like a top.

[Conquistador SW]

Another +1 for GT's. I have tried a lot of fans (other scythe fans/zalman/yate loon/sharkoon/antec) and the GT's are the only ones that don't die or get noisier after a while. I also like how they sound at around 1000rpm compared to other fans, but that is subjective.

[Ivanlabrie]

It's hard finding black on black with those specs...Quiet as s-flex means good hdb bearing and no motor noise. GT's are a good bet, Silent Wings are really quiet but they perform worse than GT's (not too terrible for low fpi rads or case fans), Zaward golf fans can be really quiet at low rpm too and perform on par with the Silent Wings.
Arctic Cooling F12 pwm CO is your best bet in price/performance and it's black (save for the ugly sticker).
I don't have first hand experience with all those models but I've read countless reviews and particularly I've seen testing done by two guys I would trust. If not, Corsair SP silent fans are decent but make a more audible ticking noise compared to the other fans suggested.
Here's one good thread to read and another one for good measure.

[my87csx481]

Thanks all for the suggestions. Much appreciated.

I notice quite a few of these are PWM fans. Really? Do you guys run 120mm PWM fans for your radiators and cases off of motherboard PWM headers?

I've always tried to power the fans off the power supply (sometimes through a potentiometer fan controller), to reduce the extra load on the motherboard....at the sacrifice of not having PWM control fan speed dynamically.

I'll read through those threads when I get some time.

[OldChap]

I still love Deltas for their ball bearings and performance.... BUT ....I think you want quieter than me. I find that the Delta EFB1212SHE 3700rpm runs great in pairs wired in series and I particularly like the tone. It is possible to run 3 in series for extra quiet.

I wire in series to stop any controller induced motor noise.

Delta EFB1212LE 120x38mm Triple Blade is a 2000 rpm version that may undervolt in a similar fashion for quieter still. both are available from sidewinder if you are happy to run 38mm fans

[Ivanlabrie]

I run Nidec beta-v's...38mm thick 120mm fans with pwm control and 220cfm max.
You need a good pwm splitter for multiple fan control via the mobo header. Easy, you can sync all your fans to your cpu temps. I like that, I already ordered a Gelid 1-to-4 pwm splitter cable. Really useful and cheap

[Sparky]

I don't use PWM fans. I have a manual fan controller.

I THINK PWM fans when plugged into a standard 3 pin header (or molex adapter) run at full speed however.

[my87csx481]

Just for the record, the S-Flex fans I have are the SFF21G ones....the highest rpm models of the s-flex line, I believe. Not exactly quiet. For anyone that's spoken on the phone with Dave, with that trade mark buzz of fan noise....my office kinda' sounds like that too but, ever so slightly quieter. The fans are only 75 cfm, not quite the 3000 cfm Deltas that Dave uses.

However, now my goal is to reduce at least some of that noise with the current plan, which is still under construction.

[zalbard]

900rpm Scythe Kama Flow 2 fans are the best I've used. Affordable, too.
Picked them up after reading this review.

[OldChap]

Just to be sure you saw this massive comparison of Martin's... Yep this is on a rad but interesting none the less

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/...diator-Round-6

[Johnmark]

Thanks all for the suggestions. Much appreciated.

I notice quite a few of these are PWM fans. Really? Do you guys run 120mm PWM fans for your radiators and cases off of motherboard PWM headers?

I've always tried to power the fans off the power supply (sometimes through a potentiometer fan controller), to reduce the extra load on the motherboard....at the sacrifice of not having PWM control fan speed dynamically.

I'll read through those threads when I get some time.

On my main rig I use a Lamptron FC5 controller to control 8 fans on four channels, it works great and even looks nice
This particular controller handles more current than a lot of others and shows temps as well as rpm.

[the1320god]

im liking the corsair af120's and af140's. move some good air and not too much sound from them. im also using the lamptron fc5 controller. love it!

[Bun-Bun]

Scythe Gentle Typhoon's are the #1 fan for every application IMO. Quiet, extremely low power draw, ball bearing, undervolt well (I buy the 1800 rpm variant and solder resisters in line with them instead of buying the other variations as they are harder to find), and good static pressure.

I also use Enermax T.B. Silence for case fans (not heatsink/rad)

Those new corsair fans look nice though I haven't personally used any.