Antec P182 - alternative 120mm case fans

Is it worth changing the three 120mm TriCool fans on the Antec P182 case? They are all set to low on my case and my system just emits a very slight hum even at full tilt. I'm guessing that the PSU and graphics card fans are probably louder than anything else in the system.

However, i'm still seeking a silent PC and I would like to use the 3-pin fan headers on my motherboard (Abit IP35 Pro) so that the speed of the case fans can be managed by the motherboard. The three 120mm TriCool fans on the case use standard 4-pin molex connectors so they plug straight into the PSU. I guess on the low setting they are near silent but i'm still wondering whether replacing them with alternative 120mm fans will make them even more silent?

If your graphics card has the stock cooler change that first. The GT is noisey.

I use the tri cools in my silent build with a passive graphics card and your PSU (520W version) and you cannot hear them for trying.

Well it does depend on the background sound levels as to if you can hear the fans.
Build a generator in the corner of the room out of a V8 to power you pc and I'll bet you wouldn't hear the fans at high speed :P

I'd check carefully, it's probably you garphics card or cpu cooler which are the loud ones.

the Scythe S-FLEX 800rpm is the quitest fan I've ever not heard however it hardely moves any air.

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Originally Posted by Pob255

Well it does depend on the background sound levels as to if you can hear the fans.
Build a generator in the corner of the room out of a V8 to power you pc and I'll bet you wouldn't hear the fans at high speed :P

I'd check carefully, it's probably you garphics card or cpu cooler which are the loud ones.

the Scythe S-FLEX 800rpm is the quitest fan I've ever not heard however it hardely moves any air.

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Good point about background noise.

I was thinking of trying out the S-Flex 800 to cool a fanless Enermax Noisetaker in the bottom chamber of a P180. Do you think it would be able to handle the task?

Taz - I've changed the fans in my P180. I didn't test the Tricools, just went ahead and changed them - this is one of my weak points, not testing things to see if they're any good.

I'm using a Nexus 120mm on the back as an exhaust, a Sharkoon Silent Eagle 120mm 1000 on the top as an intake :), and a NorthQ NCB 120mm in the lower chamber to cool the fanless Noisetaker. All fans are undervolted to make them very quiet (staffsMike - I can still hear one or two of the fans :))

Well I must be deaf because I can't hear them.

I've done two builds with the P182. The First is my passive gfx machine which in inaudiable in my quiet study.

The second was with an 8800GTS which hummed and the GTS is quieter than the GT which is why it will never be silent with one of them in there unless you change the cooler.

I'll be finally getting around to changing the fans on my P182 over the next couple of weeks. For anyone who has already done this, are they easy to change for a system that has already been built? I don't really want to remove any of the installed components. If it's too much hassle then i'll leave the stock Tri-Cools in there.

Also, any update on recommended 120mm case fans? I'm already using a 120mm Scythe S-FLEX SFF21F Fan 1600 RPM on my CPU heatsink and this seems quite good.

My shortlist is as follows:

- 120mm Scythe S-FLEX SFF21F Fan 1600 RPM

- 120mm Noctua NF-P12 Vortex-Control Quiet Case Fan (Using Vortex-Control Notches)

- 120mm Noctua NF-S12 1200 RPM

- 120mm Sharkoon 1000 "Golf Ball" Quiet 19 dB(A) Case Fan

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Originally Posted by Taz

I'll be finally getting around to changing the fans on my P182 over the next couple of weeks. For anyone who has already done this, are they easy to change for a system that has already been built? I don't really want to remove any of the installed components. If it's too much hassle then i'll leave the stock Tri-Cools in there.

Also, any update on recommended 120mm case fans? I'm already using a 120mm Scythe S-FLEX SFF21F Fan 1600 RPM on my CPU heatsink and this seems quite good.

My shortlist is as follows:

- 120mm Scythe S-FLEX SFF21F Fan 1600 RPM

- 120mm Noctua NF-P12 Vortex-Control Quiet Case Fan (Using Vortex-Control Notches)

- 120mm Noctua NF-S12 1200 RPM

- 120mm Sharkoon 1000 "Golf Ball" Quiet 19 dB(A) Case Fan

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I used some Noctua NF-S12 1200's on a friends and they are very quiet, you can also use the undervolt thing supplied with it but apparantly if you are to do that then the 800 version are better for sound:airflow ratio, but that is only if u undervolt the 1200. They come with nice rubber mounts aswell to stop any vibrational noises going through the case.

Does anyone here have and recommendations for fans with the 4 pin headers?
I am also planning on replacing the tricool fans on my P182 but I also need a 4 pin 120mm fan for the CPS cooler. The Asus P5k-E WiFi/AP motherboard does not support varying the speed of 3 pin fans for the CPU but it does for case fans :rolleyes:
I'm hoping to keep my machine running at 3 GHz overclocked from 2.4 but I want it to be quiet when its not being used for gaming and faffing around with those tiny switches is a pain.

Scythe do the Kama PWM (model number DFS122512L-PWM for the 1200rpm model) which fared well in Silent PC Reviews recent Scythe fan comparisons.

Can be found here

Chilled PC - Watercooling made easy, Over 400 products in stock

Have you tried using anti-vibration mounts on the tri-cools?? I use 3 of them on my wc rad and teh loudest thing is my other case fans when they are on low.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Taz

I'll be finally getting around to changing the fans on my P182 over the next couple of weeks. For anyone who has already done this, are they easy to change for a system that has already been built? I don't really want to remove any of the installed components. If it's too much hassle then i'll leave the stock Tri-Cools in there.

Also, any update on recommended 120mm case fans? I'm already using a 120mm Scythe S-FLEX SFF21F Fan 1600 RPM on my CPU heatsink and this seems quite good.

My shortlist is as follows:

- 120mm Scythe S-FLEX SFF21F Fan 1600 RPM

- 120mm Noctua NF-P12 Vortex-Control Quiet Case Fan (Using Vortex-Control Notches)

- 120mm Noctua NF-S12 1200 RPM

- 120mm Sharkoon 1000 "Golf Ball" Quiet 19 dB(A) Case Fan

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i think the scythe s-flex is the best out of the 4 :)

I replaced the Tri-Cools with 120mm Noctua NF-S12 1200 RPM fans. Very pleased with them. I wanted to try the Scythe's but couldn't get them at the time, but I doubt there is much in it tbh.

I have an Abit IP-35 Pro motherboard, which as the uGuru chip, allowing MB control of fan voltages against case or cpu temp - you can set up temperature profiles to vary voltage. This works very well I've found.

I also have an 8800GTS, which is pretty quiet. I used RivaTuner to create fan profiles for this, so that when not under load, the fan spins more slowly than normal, which makes a difference. I also installed one of the Tri-cools on "low" (for the hot weather) in the middle drive bay to cool the GPU. This also has the added advantage of cooling the RAM and the sound card.

CPU cooler is an Arctic Cooling FP7, which is also very quiet, and controlled by the uGuru chip.

I'm using Scythe Gentle Typhoons (1850) in the front and the bottom HDD compartment of my P180.

Very happy with them all round.

Well done, the Scythe Gentle typhoon didn't exist when this thread started :rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by Pob255

Well done, the Scythe Gentle typhoon didn't exist when this thread started :rolleyes:

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So I made a mistake.

Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit.