Need some help picking out 80 mm fans

Oct 28, 2005
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Ok so I'm going to ask the age old question:

Any suggestions for quiet 80mm case fans?

I've used the search function but only came up with a few results. None of which really help me. I'm currently using 6 case fans (80mm Rifle Bearing Cooler Masters). My CPU fan is a 120 mm Panaflo low speed (very quiet). Coupled with a Seasonic S12 PSU and a quiet 7900gtx.

So . . . the one missing link is a decent fan controller and some 80 mm fans. Problem is I have no idea how my current 80mm Coolermasters compare to the other fans. I've only seen some sites that feature a wave file recording but many don't. Besides the fans they list are many that you guys don't like. So whats teh point?

I would like some suggestions on a new set of quite 80mm case fans.

Any help would be appreciated. To start off i'm leaning toward Panaflow and Delta. But i've heard arguments over one or the other.
 

Operandi

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
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I have four Panaflo L1As in my Lian Li 6070, and it's just about inaudible. The two intakes are running of 5v, while the two exhausts are thermally controlled via Speedfan (60-80%).

Sidewinder also has some very low speed, near silent (1200RPM) NMBs for an excellent price that I've used for several builds. The only downfall vs. the L1As is you are stuck with low CFM dBA while the Panaflo's can be turned up if need be.
 

Pyrokinetic

Senior member
Dec 4, 2005
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In my view, 80mm fans are really not all that quiet. My Cooler Master Stacker 810 came with the 80mm Cooler Master installed in the blowhole, which I replaced with a Nexus 80mm. Neither one moves very much air and both create an annoying "buzz" (most likely due to the unfortunate mounting system Cooler Master used for the case -- a mesh wrap that mounts to the fan and then to the case -- prevents soft-mounting). Anyway, I think the Cooler Master, Nexus, and Panaflo are about as quiet as any 80mm fans you can find, and undervolting them is the only other option. But given the low airflow (compared to a 120mm) undervolting just makes mediocre airflow outright pathetic. I have bought a Yate Loon 120mm and billet grill to replace my 80mm, now I just need to find the time to cut and install...
 

Zepper

Elite Member
May 1, 2001
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What case do you have? Perhaps something can be done (like http://www.techimo.com/photo/showphoto....elds/name/zepper/name/zepper/mcats/all]this[/url]
for example) to eliminate the need for 80mm fans, as the focus these days is on the 120mm or larger size. Sidewindercomputers.com usually has some 3-blade Deltas in stock which are about the quietest 80mm fans that actually can move some air. Sanyos should be decent too and sometimes you can find the 32 or 38mm thick ones that move more air while still being relatively quiet.

.bh.