The NZXT 200mm 166 CFM Fan

[BonzaiDuck]

Someone had mentioned these in a thread over the last couple weeks.

These suckers are rated at 0.70A, spinning at 1,300 RPM. They are relatively quiet, or can be made to be so.

Unfortunately, they don't fit the holes on CoolerMaster cases for the CM 200mm fans (which are pretty limp).

I could explain the low-tech, kludgey method I use to install them. It follows the principle: "What you don't see, don't matter . . . . " And the method is likely specific to my CoolerMaster HAF case. But . . . some strips of Spire acoustic foam rubber, some wire ties, a tube of Pit Crew auto-sealant-adhesive, some foam art-board . . . .

Now . . . . Does anyone know of a fan that spits out 166 CFM, may create no more than 37 dBA but special measures may reduce it -- with holes to fit CM 200mm fan ports? Lemme know! In the meantime -- this "works for me."

One more point. Someone had complained in customer-reviews about these NZXT's. It was either longevity, the holes, the noise. But I was surprised that the one I used with my system crapped out today. Wouldn't start . . . . would shudder. Disconnected, it doesn't spin like the spare I had stored in the parts locker. Maybe -- something wrong with the bearing -- I can't say.

NZXT should spend some resources on quality control, and design these fans with multiple tabs and fan holes so they fit universally.

That's all I gotta say in this matter. . . .

 

[T_Yamamoto]

The 200mm fan market is a hard one.

NZXT markets a 200mm fan that only fits in their cases (they're around 190mm or something apparently)

Cooler Master makes one for their cases that fit their cases exclusively (or something like that)

So just go with a CM 200mm fan

 

[dragantoe]

go with the cm one, I have a bitfenix 200mm zip tied to the top of my case (haf xb) because I ignorantly assumed that the fittings weren't proprietary...
although the bitfenix one is by far the coolest looking

 

[BonzaiDuck]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...140122224111:s

Customer complaints: Doesn't fit any pre-drilled holes in my case; starts being noisy at middle speed and gets worse, etc.

I got 30 months from my NZXT. somebody already mentioned nylon "Zip-ties" or Wire ties, that somehow this was a drawback.

Here's what I did with the NZXT.

I have some Spire adhesive acoustic foam rubber. I cut about four pieces 3" long and 1/2" wide, then wrapped them around the feet of the NZXT -- the tabs with the mounting holes. The holes are offset 1/8" short of center mount-holes for 200mm port in my HAF case, and there are also vent holes around the HAF mount holes. So I slipped the ties through the two nearest vent holes so they were wrapped up close to the outside of the fan shroud. I zipped the ties at the case inner panel. And I carefully chose black zip ties to match the case.

Some pieces of foam art-board cut to the outer diameter of the fan shroud with rectangular cutouts for the mounting feet can then be placed top and bottom of the fan to block off other case sidepanel vent holes, and secured with a couple dabs of Pit Crew automotive adhesive. These will also assist in muffling vibration.

Since there are places around the fan shroud where there are gaps with the foam art-board, I used more half-inch strips of the Spire foam to make a good seal.

The point of all this: You can hardly see the zip ties on the case-panel exterior; the fan is secured well to the inside of the panel, with no strain put on the fan shroud and frame; there is a good seal with the case so that air only flows in -- not out; and I've significantly reduced the noise on a fan rated to push 166 CFM.

It shouldn't be much trouble, when removing the fan, to clip the old ties and use four new ones.

I believe the NZXT may be marvelously controllable from either a motherboard or an add-on fan-controller. You could run it at 60% and spin it up to its top-end according to a thermal profile. But it's really not very noisy at its top-end.

Still, I don't remember having a fan go south in only 30 months. But then -- I always buy a spare, so I'm golden . . . for now. ONe could only speculate that thermal control to reduce the time run at full-bore might add to longevity.

 

[chris89]

I upgraded my custom lian li pc-v354 with that 166cfm nzxt from an antec big boy.

The nzxt is twice as loud as the antec but cools my gpu's in sli about 5C cooler than the antec.

The antec is better as an exhaust because it gulps up a higher volume of air at less velocity, perfect for exhaust.

The nzxt bolts right up to the 200mm mount that the antec 200mm worked on no issue at all. The nzxt moves lesser volume of air but that lesser volume appears to be moving twice as much velocity.

Good Luck! The fan has a slightly annoying tick to the bearing but who cares when ur more stable than ever!

Antec is a better fan in terms of noise and good solid performance.

Nzxt is for maximum velocity which comes in handy as an air inlet blowing directly on the gpu's/ motherboard.

Cya

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I upgraded my custom lian li pc-v354 with that 166cfm nzxt from an antec big boy.

The nzxt is twice as loud as the antec but cools my gpu's in sli about 5C cooler than the antec.

The antec is better as an exhaust because it gulps up a higher volume of air at less velocity, perfect for exhaust.

The nzxt bolts right up to the 200mm mount that the antec 200mm worked on no issue at all. The nzxt moves lesser volume of air but that lesser volume appears to be moving twice as much velocity.

Good Luck! The fan has a slightly annoying tick to the bearing but who cares when ur more stable than ever!

Antec is a better fan in terms of noise and good solid performance.

Nzxt is for maximum velocity which comes in handy as an air inlet blowing directly on the gpu's/ motherboard.

Cya

I have the 166CFM NZXT in the side panel of my HAF 922. It's thermally controlled -- I think the top-end is about 1,300 RPM. What you may notice more, I notice less -- but not because I'm hard of hearing.

The damn thing didn't fit the fan-mount holes in my HAF side-panel. I didn't feel like drilling holes that were maybe 1/4" off center of the original ones. Instead, I did this.

I got some strips of SPIRE acoustic foam-rubber and wrapped them around the little NZXT "feet" with the mounting holes. Then I took some black wire ties, looped them through the nearest pair of holes for each "foot" and around the rubber padding so that the "zip-buckles" were on the inside of the case panel. I also blocked off the extra vent holes of the side-panel with foam-art-board, and added a layer of the SPIRE: I believe in pressurized cases.

After that, it seemed like a fairly quiet fan, although there is some air-turbulence white-noise at the top end. You may have a fan that gives a "clicking" noise. I was luckier.

Also -- I made a few extra improvements. I cut some SPIRE circles to fit the circular part of the fan frame that holds the motor, and stuck them on there. This got rid of another noise-increment, or so I think.

I'm eventually planning to replace the NZXT (white) fan with a green-LED BitFenix. I had a red one and tested it briefly. I can work with any noise it creates (if any), and they're supposed to push something like 144CFM.

GEEZ! I wrote all this, and in this dated thread -- I'd already said it all! Sorry!

 

[Zardnok]

I am curious to how the acoustic foam works on the fan itself. I was always worried about creating an imbalance of material that would throw the fan off kilter and burn out the fan faster.

My case is lined totally with "Ultra Hush Mat" and I keep my fans set to "Silent" so I do not hear them. I have de-lidded my CPU and have been playing with the CPU overclock. I am up to 4.8 stable now and can do 4.9 at 76C if I increase my offset and fan speed. No dice on hitting 5.0 yet, but have been scared to boost voltages too much across the board. If I was able to quiet down my AP-15s even more by loading them with Hush Mat on the center hub, perhaps I could turn them up without hearing them. I am likely up against a hard wall though and should just leave it where it is. I am glad I did the De-Lid though as it dropped my loaded temps by 20C.

Twenty years ago I didn't care how loud my system was and just wanted max performance/overclock. My case was loaded with Delta 80mm fans that sounded like a Vacuum Cleaner, but now I am old and fickle and don't want to be distracted! The trade-offs we make for performance vs acoustics...

 

[Rinaun]

go with the cm one, I have a bitfenix 200mm zip tied to the top of my case (haf xb) because I ignorantly assumed that the fittings weren't proprietary...
although the bitfenix one is by far the coolest looking

Zip-ties are a godsend; I typically mount fans with them in replacement of screws because of how awesome they are. Pro tip: Cut one ziptie's tail off completely, and use the remaining locking head that is left as a "nut". Grab a fresh zip tie to use with it and bam, now you have a ziptie nut and bolt!

 

[BonzaiDuck]

Zip-ties are a godsend; I typically mount fans with them in replacement of screws because of how awesome they are. Pro tip: Cut one ziptie's tail off completely, and use the remaining locking head that is left as a "nut". Grab a fresh zip tie to use with it and bam, now you have a ziptie nut and bolt!

Yeah -- I do that all the time. But there's still more vibration transmitted even through the zip-tie plastic. Second time around, the SPIRE foam isolates the case panel from any part of the fan. And if the holes are off center for the problem we'd discussed about different makes of fans and cases, it may put stress on the fan frame. In my situation, the NZXT crapped out after 2.5 years. But whether that was caused by twisting the frame or not, doesn't matter: the fan is much better isolated from any metal.

On the matter of the fan motor-hub. Don't put any acoustic material directly on the spinning hub or fins. The fan motor is secured to the opposite frame which has a round center. Put the foam rubber there.

It's then you're choice if you wish to stack a few acoustic foam-rubber circles on the outside center of the fan vent covering the spinning hub. It's not aesthetically noticeable -- someone might even think it "looks cool," I dunno.

In general about SPIRE or similar acoustic materials: The best way to attack the noise is at the source. IN my project, I had built a foam art-board duct of precision dimensions which ports my D14 fins to the intake side of my AP-30 exhaust fan. So I have layered the various sides of the duct-box with SPIRE rectangles. Of course you can apply the adhesive pads to the outside of the fan frame, but they can become a sticky mess to get off -- a lot of trouble. So you cut the pads and layer together a square "collar" that slips over the fan.

There are probably some other tricks that would further isolate the fan from case-metal and improve over rubber fan rivets.