Best Quiet LED fans 120mm?

ConfusedDolphin · January 4, 2013

Was looking into getting some LED fans for my Corsair C70 to go in the front and the top. The thing is the case is quiet now and i don't want it to get any louder for the sake of some pretty lights.

Leading contenders at the moment are the BitFenix Spectre Pro LEDs would like to hear the thoughts of any owners of these particular fans. Open to suggestions of any other fans that fit the requirements of being quiet LED fans.

Thank you :)

Ymac · January 5, 2013

the spectre pros are good, there is not a whole lot of quiet - high performance fans with LEDs on the market.

you can mod fans without LEDs, but it include drilling and wiring of the LED.

ConfusedDolphin · January 5, 2013

Will probably just go with the Spectre Pros then, new to the PC building scene and not at the modding stage yet. Don't really need high performance in terms of static pressure or airflow, these fans will mostly be for aesthetic purposes which is why i want to see them and not hear them.

Thanks

Makol · January 5, 2013

I would recommend either the BitFenix Spectre Pro fans or any LED Enermax fan.

Computer Steroids · January 5, 2013

I prefer antec tricools, not because of their increased performance, but because I know they have beautiful blue lighting, better than most LED fans I've seen so far ( however this is personal preference ), and they can be switched between low, medium and high. Low being the same speed as a spectre pro, I believe. (1200 RPM?) Antec tricools are decent casefans. Rubbish for anything else though.

Though I have everything hooked up to a fan controller anyway because I just want them to be really quiet.

Alex · January 5, 2013

In my case i have 8 BitFenix Spectre Pros and my rig is running silent, been using for over 6 month and sound hasnt changed at all.

Also if you do buy the BitFinix Spectre's i do suggest buying a Hydra for a spare PCI slot, its a good LED controller.

ConfusedDolphin · January 5, 2013

dav1257 · January 6, 2013

I have the spectre pros but i wouldnt say they were silent.

At low rpm they r perfectly fine but when u crank the rpm up in games i actually find them quite noisy. Headset on at this point so doesnt matter to me but i thought i would mention it.

Fan controller has made things a lot quiter

Mizulicious · January 6, 2013

It's so funny, I went into the PC store and they gave me coolermaster fans.

You guys remember the talk about fans during the livestream? I agree have to agree with Slick, when you are busy doing things and have headphones/earphones in, you don't really pay attention to the fan noise. I do want ones which are a little quieter as well :P

Final conclusion is don't get Coolermaster fans :P

Toby · January 6, 2013

Antec TrueQuiet 120mm LED?

Jmjam · January 28, 2013

I hear people saying Silverstone Air Penetrators are great for quiet fans. How are they compared to Bitfenix Spectre Pro?

R4STABAN · January 28, 2013

The quietest 120mm fans I have ever used are noiseblockers. They don't shift a lot of air though.

Don't think they do LED versions..

Toby · January 28, 2013

Spectre Pros are pretty loud. I hadn't heard much about them last time I posted in this (I lurked mainly at SPCR), but since then I've seen at least 3 tests that put them in a distinctly unimpressive light. There was some mighty bad advice being doled out in this thread.

Christicles · January 28, 2013

Really? Cause I'm running 2 Spectre Pros in my desktop and at 7 volts there is barely a peep out of them.

ericlee30 · January 28, 2013

LOL I agree with Christicles. I have 6 Spectro blue LED fans, 5 are 120mm fans at 12 volts and they are super silent. Toby, I was just wondering, but do you own any? Cause I'd hate to know that someone who doesn't won any would give out advice, when they distinctively are saying that others are giving bad advice. In my opinion 3 tests (or around 3 test) isn't enough to prove something isn't well built, or that it's not impressive. Seeing how I own 6, and have no problem with any of them and that they are almost dead silent, I feel I should defending what I think is a good product while also adding my advice and opinion on them. There could also be the possibility that some people got a bad fan, it happens in the mechanical world.

ericlee30 · January 29, 2013

LOL I agree with Christicles. I have 6 Spectro blue LED fans, 5 are 120mm fans at 12 volts and they are super silent. Toby, I was just wondering, but do you own any? Cause I'd hate to know that someone who doesn't own any would give out advice, when they distinctively are saying that others are giving bad advice. In my opinion 3 tests (or around 3 test) isn't enough to prove something isn't well built, or that it's not impressive. Seeing how I own 6, and have no problem with any of them and that they are almost dead silent, I feel I should defending what I think is a good product while also adding my advice and opinion on them. There could also be the possibility that some people got a bad fan, it happens in the mechanical world.

Here is 5 out of the 6 I own, The sixth one is a 140mm

Toby · January 29, 2013

http://linustechtips.com/main/forum/...1426#post51426

http://www.hardware.fr/articles/874-...-a-vs-cfm.html (click on names to add/remove them to and from the chart)

I own none. What other fans do you own? I typically find owners' anecdotal evidence to be the least reliable, because they lack context. If you own multiple alternatives, then that's nullified somewhat, but I've long lost count of the number of people who say "I own this and it's awesome!".

Initially you say they're "super silent", so not just noiseless, but more than noiseless. Perhaps they create a noise vacuum, even? Then you say "they are almost dead silent"...Oh. Well, I tend to find "dead silent" is pretty much the same as just plain "silent", but then if they're "almost silent", they're "not silent", which is a world away from "super silent". It's things like this that make recommending fans ever so hard...

Now, here's the thing that ensured this snarky response - you started "defending" something you own. All I said was that they weren't quiet and yet in your head you seem to have heard "weren't well built". I never commented on the build quality. You "LOL", you use hyperbole, you imply a lack of ownership would invalidate my comment, you get sarcastic and then you start defending it against claims that haven't been made. You even feel the need to post pictures, proving you own them. It all rather reeks of reactionary owners-bias, rather than logical disagreement.

If you think Spectre Pros are better than I give them credit for, give me evidence. I'd love to find out that they're better than I've been lead to believe, but simply saying "I OWN THEM AND THEY'RE AMAZING" isn't going to achieve that.

nillas12 · January 29, 2013

How about just getting some led-strips and mount them where you want the lights. Will give you a much greater range of fans to choose from. That is what I would do, since I don't find that LED fans are worth it compared to normal fans. Also a lot of LED fans will begin flickering if you turn down the voltage.

ericlee30 · January 29, 2013

I own alot of fans, I own 2 CoolerMaster sickleflow 120mm fans, I own 7 Cougar Vortex pwm fans 4 120mm and 3 140mm fans that are in my wifes PC, 2 Nactua NF-F12, 2 Gelid slim 120mm fans, 4 Corsair sp120mm fans, 3 SilentX fans 2 120mm red led fans and 1 80X15mm fan, i own 2 Rosewell 120mm fans( which are the worst fans I own by the way). What I mean by dead silent is in order to hear even the wind that pushes through them at full RPMs, you have to stick your ear up to the case of the fan in order to hear it, to me that is dead on silent as much as a fan can be silent. I did defend something I own and to be honest with you it wasn't a snarky response. What I hate the most in this world is when people try to help people and someone comes along and feels that they need to put there 2 cents into stuff just because they think they can, It's like if I seen a thread that say's ( NEED HELP PICKING MOTHERBOARD) and when I open the thread I see the person is asking about 2 boards I have never used or messed with, Tell me how would I know which one is better or not? I wouldn't know so why would I put my 2 cent's into the thread, Giving advice is one thing, giving advice about something that you don't know nothing about or messed with is something completely different, The whole point of forums like this is to help the OP as best as we can, not give him advice on something we only read about, that is not logical in any way. Just so you know I never said they were "AMAZIING" fans but I can stand up and say they are very beautiful fans and they are very silent ( to a whisper) at 12 volts. Now Im going to tell you, Don't bow out your chest because someone speaks the truth and you don't like it.This is not a (debate) Next time do not put and I quote "Spectre Pros are pretty loud" if you have never heard them or own them( That makes you miss leading to the OP) on so many different levels, it will help so debates like this do not get started in the future.

Don't get me wrong I know you were just trying to help the OP, It's just not feasible if all you did was read stuff on the internet about the fan then give an opinion that is really not helping the OP make the right decision on the fans he is looking for.

Toby · January 29, 2013

"Spectre Pros are pretty loud". I can say what I like until someone with more authority than you tells me otherwise. That said, I retract my initial comment, because you're right that the sound samples aren't matching up with the testimonies. I stated a conclusion without sufficient data and as it is, it might have been anomalous. It's a mistake I rarely make, but it happens.

With that out of the way, everything else you said is so, so wrong. 1. I didn't say you made a snarky response, I said mine was. 2. People putting their 2 cents in is definitely not what you hate most in the world. That would be stupid. 3. How would you know which motherboard is better? Maybe because you can tell which features are useful to him or not, maybe because you know one has a reputation for blowing up, maybe because one insulted his mother. The sheer number of ways you might be able to tell which motherboard is better for that person without owning it is countless. I could spend an entire day just coming up with ways. 4. The idea that you can't know about things you don't personally own is what's "not logical in any way". If someone reads the opinions of 10 ASRock Extreme4 owners who all say they OC to 4.XGHz and repeats that opinion, then one person who owns it comes along and says it can only go as far as 3.6GHz, who's more likely to be correct? The person who owns it or the person who's read the opinions of 10 other people who own it? 5. I have absolutely no issue with you speaking the truth, it's all the drivel that came with it that I have an issue with. 6. If "Spectre Pros are pretty loud" is an incorrect statement (and I'm entirely willing to believe it is), then that does not make it misleading on so many different levels. It makes it misleading on a single level - the sound of the fan.

Christicles · January 29, 2013

We'll, if I have learned anything from Linus about fans for cooling there are 2 distinct types :

1. Air Flow fans.

2. Static Pressure fans.

Air flow fans are generally meant to be used for the case/chassis as intake/exhaust, where as Static Pressure fans are meant to be used with rads and heatsinks. Looking at that guys results, it looks like all these fans where tested in the premise, for rad or heatsink cooling which is just always going to give a set of skewed results. The Spectre Pros aren't static pressure fans so there's just no real point looking at numbers for push/pulls and temps with coolers.

Now I'm not saying you're wrong Toby, to not believe somebody's word, but the evidence you're giving doesn't really 100% back up what you're saying. If anything that list of fan results should be reduced to just SP type fans with another list for AF type fans based only on their noise to rpm ( or airflow maybe if there is a reliable way to test that), but definitely not based on temps.

ericlee30 · January 29, 2013

Really Toby? I'm just going to let you gloat in your own stupidity on your first sentence there. 1) I really do hate the fact that people always have to put there 2 cents into products they just read on the net and do not have hands on with the product them self's. 2) What if both motherboards have the same features, I see that alot and people that have never messed with the 2 boards that the OP suggested, most people are going off the fact that I had that brand before,so it must be good,that is not always the truth, That is very misleading to people that really need the help finding the product that is best for them. What most OP's are looking for are people that really do have the products they are deciding on, not internet readers.

It's nothing against you personally Toby, I just see it alot, day after day after day, It's just not fair or in the best interest for the OP to get false info on products from people that just read stuff on the net. In my opinion if you don't own it (don't comment on it) it does more harm then good for people that spend there hard earned money on items

Toby · January 30, 2013

Really Eric? You have to bring out the personal insults at this late stage? It's been good fun up 'till now.

"Really Toby? I'm just going to let you gloat in your own stupidity on your first sentence there."

Then you didn't read the second. If that's stupidity, then what is trying to tell people what to do on the internet?

I notice you completely evaded my forth point, so I'll make it even easier for you. If I see someone on another forum ask about Spectre Pros and I tell them exactly what you told me - that they're nearly silent and that they probably couldn't even hear the wind wooshing through them without sticking their ear to the opening in the case, would I be wrong because I hadn't used them?

In response to your two points...1. Tough. If people only gave opinions on things they owned, tech forums would crumble and burn. I doubt the number of people with enough disposable income to test even the majority of popular *component here*s reach double digits in this forum and even then, merely being able to get "hands on" doesn't mean they have the first idea how to evaluate it accurately. One owner giving their opinion and results is inferior to a non-owner giving an aggregate of 10 other owners' opinions and results. It just is. 2. If two motherboards have extremely similar or identical features, you look at the components used, you look at the overclocks people can reach, you look at how good the UEFI BIOS is, you look at whether the boards in question are known to have any common issues, you look at the warranties, you look at the bundle they come with...Shall I continue? As for the rest, that's called a strawman argument. I've never recommended a motherboard I knew nothing about based purely on brand. In fact, I've never recommended anything I knew nothing about, period.

I get it, you think that someone who doesn't own something can't know anything about it, but what you've still failed to do is explain why.

ericlee30 · January 30, 2013

Here I will make this very easy for you to understand, You asked me and I quote "(Toby) I get it, you think that someone who doesn't own something can't know anything about it, but what you've still failed to do is explain why". ( I will explain why, actually you already did explain why. You said in your own words and I quote again) "(Toby) I retract my initial comment, because you're right that the sound samples aren't matching up with the testimonies. I stated a conclusion without sufficient data and as it is, it might have been anomalous".

That's why, if you would of owned a Bitfenix Spectre Pro fan, you would of not had to retract your statement. Honestly it does not get any clearer then that as to why people that don't own the product should not comment about the product. If someone read this thread with out me saying anything to you, They would of took your first statement as good advice and would not try the fans for them selfs and I quote once again "(Toby) Spectre Pros are pretty loud. I hadn't heard much about them last time I posted in this (I lurked mainly at SPCR), but since then I've seen at least 3 tests that put them in a distinctly unimpressive light. There was some mighty bad advice being doled out in this thread" (This was bad advice and it was because you read something on the "internet" but really did not have any hands on experience with the fan's them self's but if you would of owned them you might have had a different out look on the fans.)

Like I said before it's nothing personal Toby ( It just would be nice if you got all your facts strait before you post on a product) it just helps the community a little bit better and you know that you are 100% telling the OP the truth with pride(not guessing)

BTW i did not skip over what you said I just summed it down for you.

I really don't know what else to say to you we are just going in circle here (what's the point)

Toby · January 30, 2013

No, that doesn't explain why someone *can't* know about something they don't own, that's merely an example of someone who *didn't* know about something they didn't own. You just so happened to come across one instance in which I - admittedly - spoke too soon. That's an annual event at best. You even quoted me, "I stated a conclusion *without sufficient data*. That's the key point.

Put it this way. The fact that you owned it and I didn't, clearly wasn't an issue for me. I argued with you regardless...So why did I change my mind? If it's impossible to know about something without owning it, why did I decide I might have been wrong?

Edit: And yeah, you kind of did dodge what I said. I still want to know who you think is more likely to be correct - Me telling someone they can get above 4.0GHz having read 10 owners on another forum say they've gotten 4.XGHz overclocks, or a person who owns it saying that 4.0GHz is impossible?.

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