Define R5 Fans

[CzechsMix]

I want to get more fans, but not sure if I should replace the default fans with the R5, or keep them alongside the new fans.

 

Also, what manufacturers or specific fans would be good?

[manikyath]

what i did with my R5 is put the two default fans in the front, and put another fractal fan in the back.

 

but it kinda comes down to budget, i just got one extra fan because it was only €15.

if you have a higher budget, getting 3 fractal venturi's will basicly turn your case into a very silent windtunnel (the venturi's are basicly quiet beyond the sound of moving air, in fact they come a close second to the noctua ones, difference being the noctuas move less air)

 

not to mention venturi's will work all the way down to 1-2 volts, and still move a decent enough amount of air for an idle system.

[Curufinwe_wins]

The stock fans (Fractal GP-14) that come with the R5 are widely held to be some of the best budget 140mm fans in existence.

 

In fact, in a recent test at 7V (which admittedly is arbitrary and imho still a bit on the fast side) out of 71!!! fans tested (including noctua, venturi, ek, noiseblockers etc) it was the very BEST at airflow through a simulated radiator, and was within 2 dBA for lowest noise doing so.

 

http://us.hardware.info/reviews/6622/6/tested-71-case-fans-of-140-mm-round-up-big-fans-test-results-the-mostnsilentncasefans

 

http://www.overclockers.com/15-case-fans-tested-ultimate-140-mm-roundup/

 

[manikyath]

8 minutes ago, Curufinwe_wins said:

The stock fans (Fractal GP-14) that come with the R5 are widely held to be some of the best budget 140mm fans in existence.

 

In fact, in a recent test at 7V (which admittedly is arbitrary and imho still a bit on the fast side) out of 71!!! fans tested (including noctua, venturi, ek, noiseblockers etc) it was the very BEST at airflow through a simulated radiator, and was within 2 dBA for lowest noise doing so.

 

http://us.hardware.info/reviews/6622/6/tested-71-case-fans-of-140-mm-round-up-big-fans-test-results-the-mostnsilentncasefans

 

http://www.overclockers.com/15-case-fans-tested-ultimate-140-mm-roundup/

 

its strange how low the airflow is on the venturi HP one, since my venturi AF beats my GP-14's on pushing air trough an industrial grade filter.

EDIT: also kinda puzzles me why they went for a PWM model where venturi's are also available in a 3-pin model, and the test is conducted using DC control.

[WoodenMarker]

What would you be getting more fans for?

[Curufinwe_wins]

1 hour ago, manikyath said:

its strange how low the airflow is on the venturi HP one, since my venturi AF beats my GP-14's on pushing air trough an industrial grade filter.

EDIT: also kinda puzzles me why they went for a PWM model where venturi's are also available in a 3-pin model, and the test is conducted using DC control.

The venturi 3-pin model is a different fan config not designed for rads (although I have 3 of them on my 420 rad atm).

 

That said, it is only at one particular voltage and who knows how the venturi would have done on pwm at say 20 dBA target (which is much more useful imho than the 30 dBA version they did...)

 

Additionally, the second link I posted from overclockers.com had some really interesting results from the GP-14 as well (it drew MORE air with a fan filter in front of it than unobstructed...)

[manikyath]

3 minutes ago, Curufinwe_wins said:

The venturi 3-pin model is a different fan config not designed for rads (although I have 3 of them on my 420 rad atm).

decided to look it up, and you're actually more or less right.

 

they currently have 4 venturi models, in the following forms:

- airflow optimized fan, DC controlled, 120mm

- airflow optimized fan, DC controlled, 140mm

- static pressure optimized fan, PWM, 120mm

- static pressure optimized fan, PWM, 140mm

 

mine is an airflow 140mm, but comparing the CFM ratings i truly question their numbers. i feel like they may be (purposely or not) introducing more resistance than they think/intend, or the venturi PWMs just are really bad at DC-controlling properly (or what'd be my guess is they purposely make them scale between 6 and 12 volts, where others scale from a lower voltage.)

 

truth of the matter is this test is potentially flawed, since that "7 volts" may have very different effects on different fans. for example one of my AVC pwm fans runs at max RPM all the way down to 5-ish volts, where my 40mm fractal GP barely even manages to spin up at that voltage. the fact they seem to have glossed over 12 volt without a rad, but provided a without rad test on 7 votls doesnt raise less suspicion either.

 

i'm not saying it *is* flawed with or without purpose, i'm just saying it looks like mistakes were made, as does my personal experience.

[Curufinwe_wins]

43 minutes ago, manikyath said:

snip

I have 3 of each 140mm version, so yea I better know these things. I couldn't qualify the difference between them to you honestly, as I run both extremely slow (sub 600 rpm at 100% load).

 

The HF-14 (airflow DC):

 

, and the HP-14 (static pressure pwm).

 

The GP-14 is kinda in the middle, but is clearly closer to the HP-14 than the HF-14:

 

Yea I agree the test isn't perfect, but SPCR doesn't do shit much anymore and hasn't touched 140mm fans in years (larger fans is a continuous process in the industry). My personal guess is the DC control is bad.

 

It definitely is the most cross-sectional study out there for 140s though. The next best one is an older 7 fan study and they didn't even TRY to standardize the fan speed/volume.