80mm fan question and a fan for my Zalman 9500A

[ViviTheMage]

I am stuck between 3 80MM fans for my shuttle unit (the current is rather loud and it needs to get replaced.):

Enermax Marathon Enlobal 80mm Magnetic Bearing

ARCTIC COOLING AF8025PWM 80mm

ARCTIC COOLING ACF8PWM 80mm


I am also not sure what to do with my Zalman 9500A fan, as I have had it unplugged fro the past month or so, because it is just so loud now! I think its just old (I have had it over a year and a half). Is there any way to replace the fan? I mean, I am about 35C at idle 45C at full load on my E8400...but I just feel odd without the heatsink fan, haha. It is a 92MM 2 ball bearing fan.

As well, id like to replace the fan in my PSU, as it seems rather whiny too...Its a shuttle sb61g2 V4 ... i would not mind replacing the southbridge fan either. Which is a smaller 32mm fan I think.

 

[DerwenArtos12]

I don't know that I would trust the specs on that enermax and the two AC fans are PWM, you'll want to be sure that your motherboard supports PWM fans before purchasing them or the fan speed will not be adjustable.

As for your Zalman, they do sell replacement fans for them but, they're rather expensive, I would try cleaning it out very well and lubricating it. Same for your PSU fan.

As for your southbridge fan, is it a standard fan or a proprietary heatsink/fan combo? if so you'll have to replace it as a unit more than likely and you should be able to go passive so long as you've got some airflow through the case.

 

[ViviTheMage]

PWM = power management I assume?

Are there any stock 80mm fans that do under 20dba that push a decent amount of air?

 

[killster1]

you can also mod it and put a 120mm fan on it.. and change all the other fans.. might even find a 80mm to 120mm adapter for one of your case fans.. good luck

 

[ViviTheMage]

I would prefer to not have to cut anything off of it ^_^. 80mm should be fine, but I wonder what 80mm fan would work!

 

[BlueAcolyte]

PWM means pulse width modulation, it's basically an advanced fan speed control system (based on temps)

 

[ViviTheMage]

ahh, thanks BlueAcolyte. Would I check the boards site to see if it does that?


Either way, which of these is the better 80mm fan? Even if they are at full bore, 20dba~~ is not bad! Or a different fan.

 

[RallyMaster]

AC AF8s are good. I run the original as a CPU fan for my AthlonXP. They push enough air to keep my AXP2500+ running at 40C in the middle of the summer.

 

[ViviTheMage]

Originally posted by: RallyMaster
AC AF8s are good. I run the original as a CPU fan for my AthlonXP. They push enough air to keep my AXP2500+ running at 40C in the middle of the summer.

DBA? Could you link me to a site that sells them? I cannot find anything on google!

 

[RallyMaster]

Uhh...24.5 dBA? Not sure on that number though but I know it's not loud enough to warrant complaints even if you put your ear beside it.

EDIT: LINK

 

[Zepper]

If your mobo supports PWM for fan control, the fan headers will have 4 pins (the standard 3: 12V, ground, speed sensor plus the PWM pin) instead of the normal 3. You can also use a normal 3-pin fan and usually still get some level of fan control (maybe one or two steps) just not the broader range of the PWM control.

.bh.

 

[ViviTheMage]

Originally posted by: RallyMaster
Uhh...24.5 dBA? Not sure on that number though but I know it's not loud enough to warrant complaints even if you put your ear beside it.

EDIT: LINK

That is a nice fan! 20DBA is pretty dang quiet.

 

[Zepper]

The open frame AC fan can generally be used only as a case exhaust or possibly CPU fan as it can only mount on the exhaust side the other AC fan with the normal housing can be used as intake, etc. Either should be a nice, low-noise fan but they don't move much air.

re. the Zalman. There are instructions around the web on modding regular fans to use with various Zalman heatsinks, so you don't have to buy a factory replacement fan unless you want to.

http://www.buyextras.com carries lots of small and specialty fans, so you might find one for your other application there. OTOH, most would do fine with a Zalman passive heatsink as long as there is a bit of breeze in that area from some of your other fans. I like to just get rid of small fans wherever possible as they generally don't last long and make noise.

.bh.