Clockwise rotation fans are quite a rarity, you don’t normally come across them. However, Scythe, for example, makes such models and for good reason. Why not take it the other way around? In terms of standalone operation, of course, it doesn’t matter. In series, in the position of the second fan, it is possible to achieve higher cooling performance on CPU coolers compared to using fans with the same direction of rotation. Read more “Scythe Kaze Flex II 120: Wild ride in reverse”
You might be saying that you know the rotor of this fan and that Valkyrie was inspired by the Gentle Typhoon D1225C a little too much. But that’s okay. Mainly the positives were taken from said template and the biggest negative – high vibrations – was avoided. And although some things could still be worked on, in the context of ARGB LED models the X12 fan fares quite well. Read more “Valkyrie X12: Impressive rotor, a bit undermined by the motor”
“Modifying” a cooler by replacing the fan with a relatively more efficient model may not always lead to the desired result. Sometimes you will get significantly less improvement than you would expect, other times you may even be worse off. This means that at equal noise levels, you will achieve lower cooling performance, and it doesn’t really matter what fan you use. Sometimes the design of the heatsink has the final say. Read more “Psychoacoustic optimization of coolers… A gag? Physics”
An older, even old, but still relevant fan. The selection among cheaper, 140mm models is quite small and when you look at the design of the Silent R3, it looks quite good at first glance, even technically. Moreover, it is a slower-speed fan, which doesn’t automatically mean that it avoids resonant frequencies, but it does promise to run rather quietly. And at those lower noise levels, also an attractive price/cooling performance ratio. Read more “Fractal Design Silent R3 140 mm: Low speed, “no” vibration”
The biggest shortcoming of Arctic’s original P-series fans is the rumbling sound profile. The manufacturer realized this and decided to do something about it. Sensibly, by implementing a hoop to eliminate the critical vibrations that are the source of the annoying acoustic profile. The implementation turned out well, and already the P12 A-RGB shows how much quieter it is compared to the older P12 model. And the list of improvements doesn’t end there. Read more “Arctic P12 PWM PST A-RGB: Hoop? Anti-rumble rescue”
Low-profile fans are a special category, but sometimes they are unavoidable in more confined spaces. For technical reasons, it’s always about compromises compared to more respectable fans of normal thickness, but their weight can vary. If the Arctic P12 Slim and Alphacool SL-15 don’t fit your needs, the Scythe Kaze Flex II 120 Slim may be the closest thing to what you’re looking for. Read more “Scythe Kaze Flex II 120 Slim: Well balanced SFF fan”
The design details here not only look fascinating, they really are. That is, except for one “little thing” that makes the MagFlow 1225 PWM unable to play an equal game with the top 120mm fans, even though it seemingly has all the prerequisites to do so. But at least the Seasonic fan has the added value of a very convenient installation: magnet here, magnet there, no cables in sight. Read more “Seasonic MagFlow 1225 PWM, the “King of Controversy””
Here and there we come across the opinion that it is advisable to test fans in real life conditions, which we can easily refute. At the same time, we understand that a layman can best identify with the differences in component temperatures that arise precisely due to different fan airflows. To help you see the correlations of such tests with results from “unnatural” environments, here’s something we remembered. Read more “In vivo fan tests: 14 models in system positions”
There are a lot of droning or downright rumbling fans out there, but none have been as popularized by this sound profile as the Arctic P12. Probably also because this acoustic deficiency is really pronounced here and has pushed the manufacturer to make design changes in newer models that are aimed at suppressing critical tonal peaks. But even so, the base model P12 PWM PST is a remarkable fan and is unbeatable in its price range. Read more “Arctic P12 PWM PST: The most famous rumbling fan”
With the Mobius 120 OC fan, Cooler Master could prove that it has worked on and avoided the rookie mistakes of older models. Partly yes, it removed some flaws, but it added (or strengthened) others in the process. Still, the current most expensive 120 mm CM fan has one ace up its sleeve, for which it will be extremely attractive in some use cases. Again, though, this is… how to put it… a somewhat “peculiar” execution. Read more “Cooler Master Mobius 120 OC: High airflow above all”
We consider the Corsair AF120 Elite to be one of the most pleasant surprises of last year when it comes to fans. There wasn’t much to complain about with the simple but effective design… Someone may have missed the lighting though. The “RGB” model added this after some time. However, this is not the only change, there are more and these include, for example, higher speeds. However, the wide range (with low minimum speeds) remains. Read more “Corsair AF120 RGB Elite: The lighted variety of a successful fan”
Apart from the all-white design, which is rare in itself, this fan also stands out from the competition in other ways. Some of these need a cautionary finger raised, others deserve praise. Often for trying to differentiate themselves and even in a rather elegant, useful way. In the mix of everything about the SquA RGB fan, one can state its unique identity, for which it may win you over. But it also doesn’t have to. Read more “Enermax SquA RGB White: In many ways… unusual”
A fan does not have to be expensive to achieve high airflow at reasonable noise levels. A good example of this is the 140mm Fluctus, which is very high on the price/performance charts. It is outperformed virtually only by fans with more significant shortcomings in some aspects. The Fluctus 140 PWM is not flawless either, but it is still a hot favourite in its price range for many scenarios. Read more “Endorfy Fluctus 140 PWM: High efficiency “cheaply”, but…”
The first Fluctus 120 PWM fans marked a great qualitative progress in SilentiumPC production (now Endorfy). Nevertheless, they had their flaws, which the developers are gradually eliminating and, based on the measurement results, the newer 140 mm Fluctus can be said to be a clear improvement. The Fluctus 140 PWM ARGB stands out nicely from other fans in its price category. Read more “Endorfy Fluctus 140 PWM ARGB works, looks come second”
Low-profile fans are often seen as compromise solutions that will not achieve the efficiency of thicker models. This may or may not be true. In practice, the Arctic P12 Slim beats a number of full-size fans. Sure, Arctic’s 15mm fan has many shortcomings, but these are vindicated by the very low price. In the 120mm format, it is one of the cheapest, but definitely not the “weakest” slim fans. Read more “Top price/performance in 15 mm – Arctic P12 Slim PWM PST”
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