Max RPM of a PWM fan

[goof doofus]

For my build plan at http://pcpartpicker.com/list/kcntpb I'm thinking of getting Noctua NF-P14s redux-1500 PWM 78.7 CFM 140mm case fans. Is a 1500 max RPM overkill, or will this fan be efficient at lower speeds? Also, what is the fineness of automatic control due to PWM? And with PWM, do I need the case's fan controller?

[W-L]

4 minutes ago, goof doofus said:

For my build plan at http://pcpartpicker.com/list/kcntpb I'm thinking of getting Noctua NF-P14s redux-1500 PWM 78.7 CFM 140mm case fans. Is a 1500 max RPM overkill, or will this fan be efficient at lower speeds? Also, what is the fineness of automatic control due to PWM? And with PWM, do I need the case's fan controller?

PWM will allow you to vary the fan speed and lower it all the way to 450RPM as for how to hook it up you will need to wire it to your motherboard and configure the fan headers for PWM based control.

 

http://noctua.at/en/nf-p14s-redux-1500-pwm/specification

[goof doofus]

3 minutes ago, W-L said:

PWM will allow you to vary the fan speed and lower it all the way to 450RPM as for how to hook it up you will need to wire it to your motherboard and configure the fan headers for PWM based control.

 

http://noctua.at/en/nf-p14s-redux-1500-pwm/specification

How low should a case fan be able to go in terms of RPM usually?

[Katsunaka]

That's your call based on your cooling needs. 

 

Everyone's PC is in a different enviroment from everyone elses. You'll have to figure out what fan setting works for you.

 

Whether it balances sound performance with cooling capacity, or you can deal with a little noise to have better cooling. Youll have to play around to figure it out. 

[W-L]

3 minutes ago, goof doofus said:

How low should a case fan be able to go in terms of RPM usually?

The case's fan controller is only capable to DC voltage control so it will not be able to go as low as 450RPM, from a look at this as they are using DC voltage control it's lowest RPM is around 730RPM:

 

[WoodenMarker]

17 hours ago, W-L said:

PWM will allow you to vary the fan speed and lower it all the way to 450RPM as for how to hook it up you will need to wire it to your motherboard and configure the fan headers for PWM based control.

http://noctua.at/en/nf-p14s-redux-1500-pwm/specification

I've been able to consistently lower them to ~300rpm so the 450 they list seems conservative.

17 hours ago, goof doofus said:

How low should a case fan be able to go in terms of RPM usually?

Depends on the case fan. I find most can go down to 5v which is ~40%.

 

For the most reliable pwm signal, use your cpu_fan header. I think the built-in fan controller on the case is meant for DC control as opposed to PWM.