Sleeved or fluid dynamic bearing fans

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

Which are the way to go and why?

I would imagine fluid dynamic bearings are quieter and last longer.

 

[birthdaymonkey]

Fluid dynamic bearings usually last longer. However, they're not necessarily more silent. Some fans renowned for their quiet operation (e.g. Nexus and Scythe Slipstream) use sleeve bearings, while others (e.g. Scythe S-Flex) use FDB.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

Those are the two I was deciding between: the Flex and the Slipstream... :hmm:

 

[birthdaymonkey]

I don't have an S-flex, but I do have a Scythe Kama Flex PWM fan that uses FDB (although perhaps a different one than the S-flex?) and some Slipstreams. The Slipstreams seem to be more cheaply made, but they're also quieter. The FDB fan makes a noticeable buzzing sound (think airplane propeller) at 1100 rpm or above.

What application will the fan be used for?

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

Basically an incrementation of airflow at less noise.

I do have the S-Flex D, and 3 Arctic Cooler 12025L fans. The 56.3 cfm of air from the 12025L is nice and does a good job @ 24.5dBA.... at this point, i'm not sure if I am hearing the air flow or the electrical humming from the components...

 

[birthdaymonkey]

I would say give the Slipstreams a try. At least they're cheaper than the S-Flex, so if you don't like them, you're not out too much. I'm using two of the 1900 rpm models and they undervolt nicely (mine are silent with no ticking noise at low voltage, although some have reported ticking) while giving impressive air flow when dialed up to full blast.

 

[zagood]

What are you going to use them for? The slipstreams specifically are much more effective as intake/exhaust than on a heatsink; you'll hear a lot more noise from them as they try and push against heatsink fins.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

Probably just cooling my HDDs - they are Samsung F3 1Tb drives and i'm surprised to see the one creep up to 29*c and the other to 28*c

Right now I have the Arctic Coolers on them, 1 blowing on it, the other exhausting it and they just seem a little high in temp.

Going to a Slipstream I mentioned above is only a marginal difference :hmm: Maybe those Coolers are not operating at 100%

 

[darkware]

In general, you should avoid using sleeve bearings for fans which are mounted horizontally (that is: blowing up or down).

When mounted horizontally, sleeve bearings have a tendency to get louder and wear faster, due to (I think) settling or poor distribution of the lubricant. For instance, I have a slipstream mounted as a top-panel exhaust fan. After three years, its developed a sort of whirring hiss. I knew it would happen when I put it there, and I'm going to be replacing it shortly.

When picking a fan for a front intake, you've got a vertical mounting any any of the fans would work. Sleeve bearings are generally a little quieter. FDBs generally have longer life.

 

[aigomorla]

scythe GT..

if ur looking for a non cheap fan.. Scythe GT.

If you need a high powered static Fan, my personal favorite is the san ace.

Everyy other fan can be substituted with a Yate variant.

Yeah yates wont last long, but 3 dollars a fan.. u can buy 3 of them, and swap them out as they die.

So my rec goes yate in every application if your on budget.
I probably went though over a 100 myself now... from gutting them out to make shrouds, to using them on multi radiators setup in push/pull.

 

[ElFenix]

Probably just cooling my HDDs - they are Samsung F3 1Tb drives and i'm surprised to see the one creep up to 29*c and the other to 28*c

Right now I have the Arctic Coolers on them, 1 blowing on it, the other exhausting it and they just seem a little high in temp.

Going to a Slipstream I mentioned above is only a marginal difference :hmm: Maybe those Coolers are not operating at 100%

29 c is pretty darn cool. that would barely be above ambient where i live.

i get concerned when my hard drives are at 45 or more. and that's well below operating temp spec for hard drives.

 

[aigomorla]

Probably just cooling my HDDs - they are Samsung F3 1Tb drives and i'm surprised to see the one creep up to 29*c and the other to 28*c

Right now I have the Arctic Coolers on them, 1 blowing on it, the other exhausting it and they just seem a little high in temp.

Going to a Slipstream I mentioned above is only a marginal difference :hmm: Maybe those Coolers are not operating at 100%

ugh i missed this post.

Whats wrong with the AC fans?
You getting a Slipstream probably wont help your HDD temps much at all.

And those AC fans should be very comparable to a S-Flex.
Which are Great fans... i still have a few im using.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

Thank you for gracing me with your post Elfenix


Yeah, I kinda figured on the Artic Coolers.. Getting the slipstreams would only give marginal improvements.... just at one point I was seeing them at 34*C so I kinda started worrying.. the fluctuate to 31-32 sometimes, could be cause of the furnace.

While my North-bridge is actively cooled with the 3rd AC and hovering around 31*C my CPU cores are idling at 40*C at times = this fluctuates too but probably not from the furnace. I know these are ok and not to worry until load temps, but I am just keeping an eye on things for summer as it's right around the corner. The CPU has a Pro Mega on it and its cooled from a 140mm fan that I took from my 800D case.. not sure of the specs on it.. but it does get a little noisy under high rpm speeds. This is all in a ventilated ABS Black Pearl...

 

[fffblackmage]

34C is only 93F... warm, but hardly toasty. As long as there's some airflow across the HDDs, I doubt they'll cook themselves to death.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

These ugly darn fans are expensive!

EDIT: but quiet and blow a lot of Air

 

[Cerb]

...not as good as Scythes. The ACs aren't as quiet for the CFM, either, but having integrated PWM repeaters is nice.

The Slipstreams are best when you have already taken care of keeping things cool, and don't need many or powerful fans for that task. At lower RPMs, Slipstreams are very quiet, while still pushing a decent amount of air. IMO, if you plan to run them at 1k+ RPM, they are wasted, and you should look elsewhere.

Also, yeah, Google's study pretty much confirmed it: start worrying when your hard drives are 60C+, not a measly 30-40C.