Quiet Fans

[EunSoo]

Hello! I need some quieter case fans from this crap I picked out of a scrap bin. I'd like it to be as quiet as possible as my PC is near me and my mic, unfortunately, picks up everything. I need three fans, one for a radiator, and two case fans. I'm fine paying whatever for good fans that will last longer than my PC. Thanks!

[Ordinarily_Greater]

Noctua fans (something that uses the same fan design for the LTT edition noctua fans) are great at silent operation

[W-L]

1 minute ago, SCGazelle said:

Hello! I need some quieter case fans from this crap I picked out of a scrap bin. I'd like it to be as quiet as possible as my PC is near me and my mic, unfortunately, picks up everything. I need three fans, one for a radiator, and two case fans. I'm fine paying whatever for good fans that will last longer than my PC. Thanks!

There are lots of options but to name some, Noctua's NF-F12, Gentle Typhoons, Fractal Design Venturi's are all quiet fans. 

[MegaLukey]

6 minutes ago, SCGazelle said:

Hello! I need some quieter case fans from this crap I picked out of a scrap bin. I'd like it to be as quiet as possible as my PC is near me and my mic, unfortunately, picks up everything. I need three fans, one for a radiator, and two case fans. I'm fine paying whatever for good fans that will last longer than my PC. Thanks!

I would say noctua fans, but since they are quite expensive (if I can recall correctly) you can find cheeper fans, and then use a onboard controller to turn down the speed, and make them quieter

[EunSoo]

6 minutes ago, Ordinarily_Greater said:

Noctua fans (something that uses the same fan design for the LTT edition noctua fans) are great at silent operation

 

6 minutes ago, W-L said:

There are lots of options but to name some, Noctua's NF-F12, Gentle Typhoons, Fractal Design Venturi's are all quiet fans. 

 

1 minute ago, MegaLukey said:

I would say noctua fans, but since they are quite expensive (if I can recall correctly) you can find cheeper fans, and then use a onboard controller to turn down the speed, and make them quieter

these look fine? They seem cheaper than what I was expecting.

[Deli]

Gentle Typhoon if you need 120mm fans.

 

18 hours ago, SCGazelle said:

these look fine? They seem cheaper than what I was expecting.

The Noctua Redux NF-S12B isn't that good. The NF-F12 is what you need if you want to go the Noctua route.

[EunSoo]

Just now, Deli said:

The Noctua Redux NF-S12B isn't that good. The NF-F12 is what you need if you want to go the Noctua route.

gotcha. I looked up gentle typhoon and found these:

https://www.amazon.com/Nidec-Servo-GentleTyphoon-120mm-D1225C12B6ZPA-64/dp/B017UX9DRA/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1514085496&sr=1-2&keywords=gentle+typhoon+120mm

that look good? Would this one be just as good?

https://www.amazon.com/Nidec-Servo-GentleTyphoon-120mm-D1225C12B4AP-52/dp/B01KU99NTO/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1514085496&sr=1-3&keywords=gentle+typhoon+120mm

[W-L]

2 minutes ago, SCGazelle said:

these look fine? They seem cheaper than what I was expecting.

They're the lower cost or value series of the Noctua fans, I would however suggest to get pressure optimized fans for rads and places with restrictions such as fan filters and such.

 

Theses would be a better fit:

https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NF-F12-PWM-Cooling-Fan/dp/B00650P2ZC/ref=pd_sim_147_5?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00650P2ZC&pd_rd_r=Y8FZ6R6JK1RMG5C4RE6S&pd_rd_w=zboTM&pd_rd_wg=75rEa&psc=1&refRID=Y8FZ6R6JK1RMG5C4RE6S 

[Ordinarily_Greater]

4 minutes ago, SCGazelle said:

 

 

these look fine? They seem cheaper than what I was expecting.

oh yeah the redux fans, they are great. but if i remember those fans runs at low rpm so silence should be there (see linus' reviewing it)

[EunSoo]

Just now, W-L said:

They're the lower cost or value series of the Noctua fans, I would however suggest to get pressure optimized fans for rads and places with restrictions such as fan filters and such.

 

Theses would be a better fit:

https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NF-F12-PWM-Cooling-Fan/dp/B00650P2ZC/ref=pd_sim_147_5?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00650P2ZC&pd_rd_r=Y8FZ6R6JK1RMG5C4RE6S&pd_rd_w=zboTM&pd_rd_wg=75rEa&psc=1&refRID=Y8FZ6R6JK1RMG5C4RE6S 

okay. Should I get that or the Gentle Typhoon ones? Or maybe I'll get two of one and one of the other to get some variety.

[W-L]

Just now, SCGazelle said:

okay. Should I get that or the Gentle Typhoon ones? Or maybe I'll get two of one and one of the other to get some variety.

Either is excellent it's mainly up to you, for the GT's if your looking for silence go for the 1450RPM version. 

[EunSoo]

1 minute ago, W-L said:

Either is excellent it's mainly up to you, for the GT's if your looking for silence go for the 1450RPM version. 

so this one?

https://www.amazon.com/Nidec-Servo-GentleTyphoon-120mm-D1225C12B4AP-52/dp/B01KU99NTO/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1514085496&sr=1-3&keywords=gentle typhoon 120mm&tag=linus21-20

 

thanks! this one is 3pin and slower so will it be locked at full speed but still quiet? 

[W-L]

Just now, SCGazelle said:

so this one?

https://www.amazon.com/Nidec-Servo-GentleTyphoon-120mm-D1225C12B4AP-52/dp/B01KU99NTO/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1514085496&sr=1-3&keywords=gentle typhoon 120mm&tag=linus21-20

 

thanks! this one is 3pin and slower so will it be locked at full speed but still quiet? 

With 3 pin fans you control them via DC voltage control if you want to vary the speed of the fan. 

[Deli]

18 hours ago, SCGazelle said:

gotcha. I looked up gentle typhoon and found these:

https://www.amazon.com/Nidec-Servo-GentleTyphoon-120mm-D1225C12B6ZPA-64/dp/B017UX9DRA/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1514085496&sr=1-2&keywords=gentle+typhoon+120mm

that look good? Would this one be just as good?

https://www.amazon.com/Nidec-Servo-GentleTyphoon-120mm-D1225C12B4AP-52/dp/B01KU99NTO/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1514085496&sr=1-3&keywords=gentle+typhoon+120mm

For case fans It's ok to get the 3 pin version. For radiator, you better get the PWM 4 pin fan. The one you link is 2150rpm. I generally advice against such high speed fan, because if you want quietness, you will need to run it no more than 1200 rpm or so, and 600-700 rpm for low load operation. Your mobo may not allow the fans to run such low PWM %. Better get some slower version, like 1450rpm.

 

18 hours ago, Ordinarily_Greater said:

oh yeah the redux fans, they are great. but if i remember those fans runs at low rpm so silence should be there (see linus' reviewing it)

The Redux NF-S12B is ok for exhaust fan, but not for intake(with dust filter) and radiator. Other Redux fans like the NF-P14s and the NF-B9 are great.

[EunSoo]

56 minutes ago, Deli said:

For case fans It's ok to get the 3 pin version. For radiator, you better get the PWM 4 pin fan. The one you link is 2150rpm. I generally advice against such high speed fan, because if you want quietness, you will need to run it no more than 1200 rpm or so, and 600-700 rpm for low load operation. Your mobo may not allow the fans to run such low PWM %. Better get some slower version, like 1450rpm.

Should I get a nf f12 for the radiator?

[W-L]

4 minutes ago, SCGazelle said:

Should I get a nf f12 for the radiator?

Yes the NF-F12 is pressure optimized which is good for the radiator. Similarly the GT's are also a pressure designed fan which will work well in those situations. 

 

1 hour ago, Deli said:

For case fans It's ok to get the 3 pin version. For radiator, you better get the PWM 4 pin fan. The one you link is 2150rpm. I generally advice against such high speed fan, because if you want quietness, you will need to run it no more than 1200 rpm or so, and 600-700 rpm for low load operation. Your mobo may not allow the fans to run such low PWM %. Better get some slower version, like 1450rpm.

PWM and DC voltage control are just different control types not necessarly specific to use cases in pressure or airflow optimized situation. 

[Deli]

1 minute ago, W-L said:

Yes the NF-F12 is pressure optimized which is good for the radiator. Similarly the GT's are also a pressure designed fan which will work well in those situations. 

 

PWM and DC voltage control are just different control types not necessarly specific to use cases in pressure or airflow optimized situation. 

I suppose the fan for his radiator is likely to cool the CPU. That's why I advice a PWM fan. Yeah, you can use PWM fans for case fans, no problem.

[Bcat00]

If silence is what you are looking for then stay away from the NF-F12. That fan is very close to being as loud as the cheap fans you find out there.

 

The model you want is the NF-P12 which is more balanced in terms of pressure and noise ratio. Or if you want a 140mm, you can get the NF-A15/14 which is the bigger sized version of the NF-P12.

 

As for gentle typhoon, they aren't the same as back in the day since they changed suppliers for their motors so its best to stay away from them because they do cost higher than anything i've seen nowadays.

 

Third option you have is Bequiet, but i personally don't have experience with those fans.

 

 

[WoodenMarker]

1 hour ago, Bcat00 said:

If silence is what you are looking for then stay away from the NF-F12. That fan is very close to being as loud as the cheap fans you find out there.

It's certainly noisy at high rpm but it's usually unnecessary to run the fan at such high speeds. The NF-F12 is very quiet at low rpm and delivers decent performance while doing so.

Whether the NF-F12 or NF-P12 is more appropriate does depend on where the fan is being used though. 

[EunSoo]

@W-L @WoodenMarker @Bcat00 @Deli @Ordinarily_Greater thanks for your advice! I just want to ask one more question and straighten a few things out.

 

So I am thinking about getting a dark rock pro 3 to replace the no name 120mm liquid cooler I have rn. Can I keep the stock silent wings pwm fans or should I replace them with nf f12?

 

And about the gentle typhoons. Should I stick with them for case fans or go for a noctua or other option? Thanks

[W-L]

6 minutes ago, SCGazelle said:

@W-L @WoodenMarker @Bcat00 @Deli @Ordinarily_Greater thanks for your advice! I just want to ask one more question and straighten a few things out.

 

So I am thinking about getting a dark rock pro 3 to replace the no name 120mm liquid cooler I have rn. Can I keep the stock silent wings pwm fans or should I replace them with nf f12?

 

And about the gentle typhoons. Should I stick with them for case fans or go for a noctua or other option? Thanks

The Silent wings from the Dark rock pro 3 are very good quiet fans so I would say save the money and keep them. For case fans it's up to you to choose between the two both options work very well if you have areas of restriction either as intake or exhaust. If you want to have everything to match in the case the Be-quiet fans such as the Silent Wings 3 are also very good.

[Ordinarily_Greater]

4 hours ago, SCGazelle said:

@W-L @WoodenMarker @Bcat00 @Deli @Ordinarily_Greater thanks for your advice! I just want to ask one more question and straighten a few things out.

 

So I am thinking about getting a dark rock pro 3 to replace the no name 120mm liquid cooler I have rn. Can I keep the stock silent wings pwm fans or should I replace them with nf f12?

 

And about the gentle typhoons. Should I stick with them for case fans or go for a noctua or other option? Thanks

ok so if you want the silent wings 3 fans i got to say it is almost on par with the Noctua Redux fans, and maybe you like the silent wings more because the aesthetics is better than the Noctua ones