Evaluation
A concept in which an LCP impeller and ARGB LEDs meet is particularly rare. But it has enormous potential for achieving top-notch results. That is, as long as everything fits together optimally and there are no weak spots somewhere that increase the noise level. There are still a few things to tweak with the MagFlow ARGB fan, but already now, in its current form, it is a premium fan, and not only among lighted models.
Evaluation
If we focus solely on lighted fans, the MagFlow ARGB is one of the most efficient models. This means that it excels in great airflow per unit of noise. Compared to competing models, however, it is significantly different in many respects.
Also due to the sturdy LCP impeller design, the Seasonic MagFlow ARGB is exceptionally quiet at lower sound frequencies. Many other ARGB LED fans are noisier and more or less rumble in this band. The MagFlow ARGB also has some tonal peaks in this sound band, but always very thin, faint ones. Compared to the previous MagFlow (1225 PWM), this one (ARGB) is already quiet even at frequencies around 1 kHz. Still, there’s still a bit more noise in the motor and bearing areas than with, say, the exemplary Noctua NF-A12x25 (PWM) fan.
The relatively higher vibration at certain speeds suggests that there may still be some minor imprecision in the impeller seating. Not only at top speed, but also at medium speed (around 1200 rpm). The tips of the blades will probably be innocent in this, they are excessively stiff and we don’t expect any measurable vibration to be transmitted from them to the frame.
Perhaps the biggest shortcoming that we have come across concerns voltage regulation. With pulse control, the fan responds inaccurately and slowly. There seems to be a misreading of the signal at the PWM controller level (inside the fan). In addition to the Noctua NA-FC1 controller, we also tested this through the connectors on the motherboard and with our own pulse generator. The DC regulation works correctly, flexibly from about 3.2 V. Don’t count with very low speed though. The latter is stable starting at about 750 rpm.
From the performance results, it can be stated that the MagFlow ARGB achieves peak efficiency on a grille and then is at the head of the peloton on radiators as well (it usually trails just behind the Valkyrie X12). At these obstacles, the Seasonic fan, with its </a href=”https://www.hwcooling.net/en/seasonic-magflow-argb-lighting-with-lcp-the-right-way-review/28/”>more pleasant (less rumbly) acoustic profile, achieves comparable airflow to the DeepCool FC120 with its significantly larger impeller. The latter (DeepCool FC120) clearly dominates when operating in free space, where the MagFlow ARGB is not well suited (the ratio of price to performance, or rather to airflow is poor in such conditions). This is because of the relatively smaller impeller, with which higher speeds are required to achieve comparable airflow, which are then associated with higher noise levels in the aerodynamic band (300–400 Hz).
On selected obstacles (grilles, radiators), where the MagFlow ARGB can benefit from exceedingly high static pressure, it outperforms many competing fans in efficiency. Weaker, below-average results appear when combined with a plastic filter, this is not the optimal terrain for the MagFlow ARGB.
Overall, the MagFlow ARGB is the most attractive fan for use on radiators, also with regard to very convenient installation. Seasonic prides itself on this. For connecting multiple fans in a row, connectors and magnets in frames are applied here. Multiple fans can be connected to the motherboard (or to the hub) via a single header. You don’t even have to worry about overloading (the connector). The power draw, or the current load, is low enough that you can operate through a single header even at the maximum speed of three fans or at maximum brightness.
The ambient luminosity is quite low, but the lighted lines are distinctive. They won’t burn your eyes though, they’re dim enough.What is also impressive is the lighting of part of the blades from the stator tunnel. You can’t see the light source as is often the case with other designs, and the subtle diffusion has a certain appeal to it.Among ARGB fans, the Seasonic fan stands out in a number of ways, and although there are a few things that could perhaps use a little more tweaking, the positives far outweigh the negatives.
English translation and edit by Jozef Dudáš
| Seasonic MagFlow ARGB |
| + Suitable for every use |
| + Cooling efficiency (airflow/pressure per unit of noise) at a very high level |
| + Achieves a great amount of airflow and static pressure even through an obstacle... |
| + ... among ARGB fans, it belongs to the best |
| + Very clever magnetic mounting for convenient chaining of multiple fans |
| + Wide speed range |
| + Really powerful motor |
| + Extra robust design... |
| + ... and high build quality with a strong emphasis on "cosmetics" as well |
| + ARGB LED lighting (and highly original) |
| - Unreliable PWM control |
| - Higher minimum speeds (stable from approx. 750 rpm)... |
| - ... without passive mode support at low PWM duty cycle |
| - Higher vibration at some speeds for an LCP fan |
| - Weaker price/performance ratio |
| Approximate retail price: 34 EUR |
- Contents
- Seasonic MagFlow ARGB 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)
- Measurement of static pressure…
- … and of 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 depending on 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 grille
- 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
Hmm, that’s worse than I thought for an LCP fan with Gentle Typhoon-like rotor, only trading blows with the much cheaper Arctic P12 ARGB. Perhaps the impeller footprint is the main culprit here, alongside the motor and bearing.
Comparison with the Grand Tornado would be interesting, as they represent two extremes of impeller footprint while having similar blade geometry.
Yes. Thank you for the heads-up, we have added one more negative to the +/- table, namely that the vibrations at some speeds are higher than they could be for the standards of LCP fans. There is probably some imperfection at the level of the bearings, for which this happens in combination with this impeller.
I have no doubt that the impeller itself will be well aligned and the fault will be elsewhere. At the same time, it won’t be some random thing, as these fans behave identically across different samples. It’s hard to say where exactly the weak point is, but maybe it could be suppressed or compensated for in some way. For example with balancing inserts, like the Phanteks T30. And maybe they wouldn’t help at all, there’s probably no point in speculating here and you just have to accept the fact that the vibrations can sometimes be higher for an LCP fan than one would expect.
Still, this is only Seasonic’s second fan and I have no doubt that with each new one more and more flaws will be removed and eventually the result will be very positive. We gave them a tip for an “Arctic P12 with an LCP impeller”. Personally, I would be very interested to see how such a design, with a very precise build, would stand up to, for example, the NF-A2x25 or the T30. I guess it might not be a bad thing, since even the P12, with its noisier low frequencies, which could be significantly suppressed after blade stiffening, ends up at the top of the performance charts. The question is whether with a significantly heavier impeller the small hub could be retained, as it could probably cause some instability.