• We’re currently investigating an issue related to the forum theme and styling that is impacting page layout and visual formatting. The problem has been identified, and we are actively working on a resolution. There is no impact to user data or functionality, this is strictly a front-end display issue. We’ll post an update once the fix has been deployed. Thanks for your patience while we get this sorted.

Quietst/best air mover case fans

D

Dackz

Member
I just recently built a new PC, got some old fans, coupled them together and they are LOUD. I am looking for something that pushes a decent amount of air and is QUIET. Would also prefer it to be something I can purchase from Amazon as I am a prime member and when building my PC, other places lacked on shipping/service compared.

2 120mm fans (1 front, 1 back) and a side fan that can be 120mm, 90mm, 80mm. The side fan, would probably only want an 80mm and it to be really quiet because when I turn that one off, it seems to make quite the difference.

Thanks!!

System specs to give you an info on heat....3.2ghz amd phenom II 955 (not oc'd and probably wont given the performance I am getting, quite happy at stock speed), radeon 5850 gpu, and I think I have some decent cable management. I have all the extra cables from PSU tucked up inside where the 3 extra non-needed expansion slots are, and there isnt much obstruction for the intake except the 3.5" internal slots, but I feel air moving in there so thats a plus.
 
A side fan might not be the best idea, as it can disrupt airflow (speculation), and it might be in the way if you plan to get an aftermarket heatsink. Otherwise Scythe makes some GREAT fans (s-flex, kamaflex, minebea, slipstream, etc.). Apparently the Scythe GT's are the fad, as they push a ton of air for a reasonable db level. If the fans are too loud, you can always get a fan controller. I personally love my ZM-F3's, but I don't see them recommended too much on AT (not enough, imo). Other than being sleeve bearing, they were under 10 bucks each, and push about 75 cfm for ~35db. As long as you spin them facing forward, and not up or down (including storage ?), they should be fine. Cheap. Otherwise, Yate Loon has some cheap and excellent fans.
 
Scythe gentile typhoon fans are great for noose/airflow ratio and they come in 5 different speeds I think. The static air pressure they generate is outstanding for how much noise they make which makes them ideal for most any cooling needs
 
scythe Gentle Typhoons.

I absolutely love mine more then any other fan ive had.
 
I second the S-Flex fans. Personally I usually buy "F" and then undervolt them to meet noise preference. They move a lot of air and have an extremely good bearing design rated for literally years of running (mean time between failure is something like 17 years).
 
Aww, nobody wants to back my Zalmans 🙁. It's ok, the Scythes are a kickass brand anyways. Makes me wish I had GT's in my config...
 
Fallen Kell said:
I second the S-Flex fans. Personally I usually buy "F" and then undervolt them to meet noise preference. They move a lot of air and have an extremely good bearing design rated for literally years of running (mean time between failure is something like 17 years).
Click to expand...
Me too man. I think the S-Flex F models has the best noise vs performance in the S-Flex lineup, and gives you some freedom to tune it to your liking with a fan controller.
​
 
for cheap and decent I like my yate loons, they got 50cfm/70cfm variations depends on how much noise/air you need/tolerate. good fans can't hear them in the case.
 
no the GT's dominate the entire scythe line in noise / cfm output.

The sflex are after that.

Only the Ultra Kaze will probably beat them, but there LOUD fans.
 
For a side vent, I prefer my Scythe Kaze Maru 140mm 500 RPM fan. It's dead quiet, and moves enough air to be worth using. It has mounting holes sized for 120mm fans, so it will go where 120mm fans go. If you want more flow, you can undervolt a higher RPM KM. I have all three, and I love them all.

I have four of the GT's from 800RPM to 1850. In most cases, using the 1850 with a fan controller gets you the same results as the 800 and 1450 RPM GT's. I don't think that would be the case with the 500 RPM GT.

The KM's are sleeve bearings, so you can use them pointing sideways but not up (down is iffy). The GT's can go any direction.

The Noctua NF S12B, P12 and P14 are all fine quiet fans, and can point any direction (the P14 will be my top exhaust) and max out not significantly lower than the GT's and KM's.

The price has gone up on this one. I got mine for $1.99. I was bought it to sacrifice for a shroud, but it's actually a decent fan, of all things. and this five dollar fan has ball bearings, runs at 1500RPM, is not terribly loud and does push some air. It's as good as some of my name brand fans. Go figure.

If all you're doing is fans for your case, the Scythe Slip Streams are reasonably quiet, put out reasonable amounts of air and don't cost as much as the GT's.

Wherever you buy, do a test run with the shopping cart and shipping. Some guys, like Kooler Tek, are fairly reasonable with their shipping. Be sure to compare USPS vs UPS.
 
Last edited:
Thank you all for the replies. I appreciate it. Are there any fans that move a tad less air are a bit more quiet? Say, 15db or less? Looking for quietest as possible. Its in my bedroom and I want to leave it on all night. Right now it has 2 coolermaster fans, both rated at ~20db. Its quiet for whats moving, but I could go a tad quieter. Is that possible or probably not?
 
Dackz said:
Thank you all for the replies. I appreciate it. Are there any fans that move a tad less air are a bit more quiet? Say, 15db or less? Looking for quietest as possible. Its in my bedroom and I want to leave it on all night. Right now it has 2 coolermaster fans, both rated at ~20db. Its quiet for whats moving, but I could go a tad quieter. Is that possible or probably not?
Click to expand...
Take a look at Noctua fans. They aren't cheap, but they are among the best for dB/CFM ratio.

http://noctua.at/main.php?show=produkte&lng=en#fans
 
SergeC said:
Noctua, and it's not even close.
Click to expand...

As a user of both Noctua and the newer Nidec made Gentle Typhoons I'd say the GTs are far better in quality and can push more air in the real world where there are obstructions and things that produce turbulence.

The Noctua fans are also very fragile. If they fall on the floor or the case they are in falls over there is a good chance they will be ruined. The GTs are quite sturdy and I even had one fly across the room and fall about six feet on the floor and it was not fazed at all!

Both are very quiet and costly compared to bargain fans. You get what you pay for though. I wish the Noctuas were sturdier though.
 
Rubycon said:
The GTs are quite sturdy and I even had one fly across the room and fall about six feet on the floor and it was not fazed at all!.
Click to expand...

are u saying incase of a water landing, the GT's can be used as a flotation device?

😀

DigitalJack said:
Has anyone had experience with the SilenX brand of case fans?
I am considering these pair of either these 2 models for a push/pull configuration with my Corsair CWCH501 CPU Cooler
Click to expand...

The worst fan company u can buy.

Vendor has been caught doing shady practices, such as viral marketing with BS data.

In short, unless there fans costed as much as a yate, i would never consider this company period.

My friend learned this first hand the hard way:
http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?p=2122915#post2122915

GT's however are WORTH it.
Trust me guys, i have yet to see 1 person say "OH i wish i got another fan instead of this GT".

Dackz said:
Thank you all for the replies. I appreciate it. Are there any fans that move a tad less air are a bit more quiet? Say, 15db or less? Looking for quietest as possible. Its in my bedroom and I want to leave it on all night. Right now it has 2 coolermaster fans, both rated at ~20db. Its quiet for whats moving, but I could go a tad quieter. Is that possible or probably not?
Click to expand...

Appears to me that u are prepared to spend some money on a fan.
Just get GT's.

Also if u have a chipset fan, chances are that is louder then 15db.
Your PSU fan is also louder then 15db.
So you wont hear the real difference unless your fan is 32db raited or louder.

But people get the 1850GT's and drop them on a controller, and downvolt to the point where ur comfortable with.
 
Last edited:
Well, it is really hard to be able to recommend fans <15db since most SPL meters have a noise floor of 20db. Remember 20db is extremely quiet (a whisper is equivilant to approx 30db, which means it is almost 4x louder than 20db).

Again, the SFlex-F at 7v is less than 20db (the noise floor of my SPL meter).
 
faxon said:
Scythe gentile typhoon fans are great for noose/airflow ratio and they come in 5 different speeds I think. The static air pressure they generate is outstanding for how much noise they make which makes them ideal for most any cooling needs
Click to expand...

Lol gentile typhoons..I want the kosher version for my mashugana build!
 
I like Noctuas but man they are pricey. Another option not yet mentioned is Arctic Cooling. They have a line that has PWM sharing that's pretty cool (you can daisy-chain up to (5) fans and have the M/B control the speeds based temp, etc.)

I just picked up a couple and I like them.

http://www.coolerguys.com/840556091356.html
http://www.coolerguys.com/840556091165.html
yhst-24067115789173_2085_40685688


On a side note, the "Pro" version of the 120mm model is the only fan I've ever used, that I actually hurt myself with. Thing ripped a little chunk out of my thumb while I was moving it around while powered up. :\
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Back
Top