Fans and filters

[Phage]

I recently built my new system in an Antec 300. With the upcoming DX11 cards I will be moving to a Crossfire or SLI setup and will therefore need to fit some further fans and filters. And yes there will be my much loved 4890 vapor-x on the market to help pay !
I did post in the Antec forum, but I was a little underwhelmed by the response as I do not want an LED fan, and I'll need a filter for the side vent.

Sooooo, how about one of these for the side.
http://www.chilledpc.co.uk/shop/prod...roducts_id=260

At the front I'm hoping that you guys can recommend me two 120mm case fans that have to pull through the wire mesh at the front, but do not light up ?
There's the Noctua P12 http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=787802
and the Akasa Apache http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/120mm...nd-Rubber-Pins
Or the Scythe ? http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/120mm...pm-Cooling-Fan

What's the best and quietest ? Thanks.

[circuitmonkey]

Have a look at this page over at quietpc.com

I like the way they present Airflow and Noise data and you can sort depending on which is more important to you

[Phage]

Thanks, will do.

[Phage]

That's a great table. Very useful and leads me to suspoect that the Noctua's continue to be the best. Given that the fans are oulling through a wire mesh, should I go for the P12 or the S12 ? Will the S12 have enough static pressure ?

[Temi_D]

wow, those are really expensive fans Id say got for the akasa apache

[Pob255]

Nocturns are one of the best, not "the" best.
There are many factors that effect fans some of which are very personal and will differ between individual.
Which is why there is no "best" fan

here's some good fan round ups
http://www.madshrimps.be/?action=getarticle&articID=421
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article695-page1.html
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article689-page1.html
If you have the money for nocturns or scythe S-FLEX fans I'd say go with them.
Things to remember
1000rpm or lower = slient but lowest air flow.
1200ish rpm = low noise, ok air flow
1600rpm or higher = very good air flow but noise to go with it.

Motor noise, esp when under volting/reduceing speed, slowing down a fan is often when you'll get motor buzz, how much and how loud depends on the fan.

Get all the same make&model, this can be good and bad, every fan tends to have a slightly different sound pitch, pitch is very important as it can make a fan sound louder/quieter to the human ear (depending on the person lissening)
Having different fans with different pitches can make one stick out more than the others.
However multiple fans of the same pitch can re-enforce the sound of each other making the end result more noisy.

Cone angle, a more narrow cone will feel like it's pushing out more air when it may be the same as a fan with a wider air flow cone.
For spot cooling a narrow cone is best. (ie blowing air onto a paticular component)

Never fully trust manufactors specs.

[Pob255]

wow, those are really expensive fans Id say got for the akasa apache

the apache are not cheap ether, nor are they very quiet, simply because of their relatively high rpm's.
If you have 4pin PWM connectors for your fans with accoated temp control (ie like a cpu but for case fans as well) then the Apache is a great fan
It's probably the best PWM fan you can get, and works well on a CPU cooler (I've not found a better one yet )

For good low cost, Yate-Loon

Given that the fans are oulling through a wire mesh, should I go for the P12 or the S12 ?

A good Hex mesh fan grill will not effect pressure much, esp on the draw side.
But I suspect you mean that metal mesh dust filter?
The low pressure nocturns may have issues there (I can never remember which is which)
I'd consider Scythe S-FLEX or the new ThermalRight fans
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Therm...at-max-1000RPM
If you have have some form of fan control then you may want to get slightly faster ones so you can get the additional air flow when needed at the cost of noise.

[Phage]

Aye nothing wrong with the Akasa. But at this sort of price level I feel the £5 saved isn't worth it for a quieter machine.

[Pob255]

Aye nothing wrong with the Akasa. But at this sort of price level I feel the £5 saved isn't worth it for a quieter machine.

Nothing wrong with the apache but high standard rpm, knock it down to 900rpm and it's great
It's very close to the Scythe S-Flex series in terms of noise and performance.

But no matter the fan RPM is king in both air flow and noise (at the same diameter)

Actually I would be a good idea to fit 140mm fans if you can

[Phage]

deleted - answered above

[Phage]

I don't think there's room for a 140mm at the front but I'll check it out. Thanks Pob !