Reality vs. specifications
The long break is over, back to fans. BeQuiet! recently updated its entry-level line – Pure Wings – and at least the slower 140-millimeter models have to be on your radar. The Pure Wings 3 fans in the BL108 variant represent an extremely efficient low-cost option for some situations, while not suffering from the common shortcomings of their price class. What’s quiet here is not only the aerodynamic component, but also the motor one.
Reality vs. specifications
Explanatory note: For a quick overview of how manufacturers “spice up” specifications, we have a sort of “truthfulness” coefficient. We calculate this by putting our measured values in proportion to those given in the specifications by the fan manufacturers. A result of “1.00” means that the claimed parameters match the values we have recorded. After such a finding, we can conclude that the manufacturer has done his job honestly and the way he presents the fan agrees. The more the coefficient number is different from 1.00, the less accurate the claimed specifications are. Of course, the better case for the user is if the coefficient is higher than 1.00 (and it is, for example, 1.20), then the real parameters exceed the paper ones. Conversely, if the coefficient starts with zero, then the fan does not reach the parameters on paper. For example, a value of 0.80 means that the real airflow or static pressure is 20 % lower than the manufacturer claims. If a value is missing from the chart, it is because the fan manufacturer does not specify the airflow or static pressure.
- Contents
- BeQuiet! Pure Wings 3 (BL108) in detail
- Overview of manufacturer specifications
- Basis of the methodology, the wind tunnel
- Mounting and vibration measurement
- Initial warm-up and speed recording
- Base 6 equal noise levels…
- ... and sound color (frequency characteristic)
- Static pressure measurement…
- … and airflow
- Everything changes with obstacles
- How we measure power draw and motor power
- Measuring the intensity (and power draw) of lighting
- Results: Speed
- Results: Airlow w/o obstacles
- Results: Airflow through a nylon filter
- Results: Airflow through a plastic filter
- Results: Airflow through a hexagonal grille
- Results: Airflow through a thinner radiator
- Results: Airflow through a thicker radiator
- Results: Static pressure w/o obstacles
- Results: Static pressure through a nylon filter
- Results: Static pressure through a plastic filter
- Results: Static pressure through a hexagonal grille
- Results: Static pressure through a thinner radiator
- Results: Static pressure through a thicker radiator
- Results: Static pressure, efficiency by orientation
- Reality vs. specifications
- Results: Frequency response of sound w/o obstacles
- Results: Frequency response of sound with a dust filter
- Results: Frequency response of sound with a hexagonal grill
- Results: Frequency response of sound with a radiator
- Results: Vibration, in total (3D vector length)
- Results: Vibration, X-axis
- Results: Vibration, Y-axis
- Results: Vibration, Z-axis
- Results: Power draw (and motor power)
- Results: Cooling performance per watt, airflow
- Results: Cooling performance per watt, static pressure
- Airflow per euro
- Static pressure per euro
- Results: Lighting – LED luminance and power draw
- Results: LED to motor power draw ratio
- Evaluation
Yay, I have been starving for HWcooling fan reviews for a while now.
The links are broken in the last page. It’s spelled bl-108 in the last page but the url of the article itself is spelled bl108.
Fixed. Thanks! 🙂
Thanks for that enormous quantity of information, now, being compared the Pure Wings 2 140mm vs Pure Wings 3 140mm which would be best ? and it would be reasonable to replace PW2 with PW3 ?
We have not tested the older Pure Wings (2) fan in 140 mm format. Some correlations and better estimates can be made after the results of the 120 mm PW3 are completed (there will be a comparison with the 120 mm PW2). Although, of course, it will not be completely accurate. With the size of the blades the character of the noise and the colour of the sound changes. And also across formats it is not just a matter of making the impeller in the 1.00:1.16 scale ratio.
Well, the results of the 140-millimeter Pure Wings 2 might be added eventually, but it’s not a big priority.