Silent 120mm fan reccomendation? Possibly LED ...

azibux1

azibux1

azibux1

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Hi all,

I am in the process of making my computer (near enough) silent. I have recently changed the stock gfx card cooler to an Arctic Cooling Twin Turbo II and this has made a difference. Now if I unplug my intake fan (stock one that came with my Cooler Master Elite 430) the PC is near enough silent, so what I want to do is change this fan for another 120mm Blue LED fan that is quiet.

So I was just wondering if someone could suggest a 120mm Blue LED fan, with good airflow and it has to be as close to silent as possible.

At the moment the current fan is just connected using a 3 pin to molex adaptor straight into the PSU, so I think a similar connection would be good? I preferably want something that is quiet at full speed, so I can leave it at full speed and not risk having flickering LED's if I try to turn the fan speed down

If anybody wants to know more about the current fan, here is something written on it:

A12025-12CB-3BN-F1

DF1202512SELN

If I google that first part I find these specs:

120x120x25mm
1200 rpm, 44.03 CFM, 19,8 dB
Sleeve Bearing
3 Pin
Click to expand...

And the picture shows a black fan, but mine is a clear fan with blue LED's

Anyway, so has anybody got/used a good 120mm blue LED silent fan they can recommend?

Hope you can help, :D

EDIT: I was thinking possibly the Cooler Master Sickle Flow Blue LED fan? Anybody used one? They seem reasonably priced and push more air than my Apache Black exhaust fan does. The Sickle Flow is 3 decibels louder though and if my Apache Black is running at full speed you can hear it which I don't really want. So does anyone know if I get a Sickle Flow, can I use a Zalman fanmate to turn it down a bit without the LED's going out or flickering?

Hmm actually just seen some reviews and people say they push a lot of air but are VERY loud at full speed
 
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The Bitfenix Spectres I bought have been quiet enough. The ones which are rubber pin mounted (Bought separately) are silent but any that are in direct contact with the case become audible at higher speeds.

Mine are on an analogue Lamptron 5 channel controller and the LEDs to dim/turn off with RPM changes.
 
Most LED fans will dim if you reduce the voltage going to them. I'm not sure if there are exceptions to this as the LEDs would need their own separate +12v source to not react to the voltage changes sent to the fan and would thus require 2 connectors.

If you grab a 1200RPM fan I can't see it being all that different from your existing fan though. Perhaps something in the region of 1000RPM with LED would only require minimal adjustment to make it quiet enough for use, and therefore not dim too much.

LEDs shouldn't really flicker if provided with a constant voltage, although I suppose if the PCB on the fan is poorly designed then they could get feedback from the rotation of the fan.
 
Sin_Chase said:
The Bitfenix Spectres I bought have been quiet enough. The ones which are rubber pin mounted (Bought separately) are silent but any that are in direct contact with the case become audible at higher speeds.

Mine are on an analogue Lamptron 5 channel controller and the LEDs to dim/turn off with RPM changes.
Click to expand...

Hmmm are they Bitfenix Spectres? Or Spectre Pro's?

Do you run them at full speed or not?

Tealc said:
Most LED fans will dim if you reduce the voltage going to them. I'm not sure if there are exceptions to this as the LEDs would need their own separate +12v source to not react to the voltage changes sent to the fan and would thus require 2 connectors.

If you grab a 1200RPM fan I can't see it being all that different from your existing fan though. Perhaps something in the region of 1000RPM with LED would only require minimal adjustment to make it quiet enough for use, and therefore not dim too much.

LEDs shouldn't really flicker if provided with a constant voltage, although I suppose if the PCB on the fan is poorly designed then they could get feedback from the rotation of the fan.
Click to expand...

Aha alright, I see :) My current one dims if I reduce the voltage to it, I tried it using a friends Zalman Fanmate but the fan was not in my PC at the time, so I can't remember if it was quiet enough for my liking.

About the 1200RPM speed fan not being much quieter, do you think I should just get a Zalman Fanmate 2, use it on my current fan and see how much I have to turn it down and if it is quiet enough. Then if it is and the LED's are not too dim, I will leave it, and if it isn't then I can do some more research and get a 1000RPM fan and I will still need the Zalman Fanmate so it wouldn't be wasted.

Think that is a good idea?

I did consider just now getting a fan controller but I don't think that is really worth it for 3 fans, when two of them are already 4 pin PWM fans connected straight to the mobo

I'm not sure about the flickering, I just read it somewhere I think :)
tamzzy said:
YOUR BASKET
1 x Silverstone SST-AP121-BL Blue LED Air Penetrator 120mm FAN 1500rpm £13.99
Total : £16.97 (includes shipping : £2.48).

Click to expand...

That one is louder than my current fan
 
coolermaster is well known to underspec their noise levels and overspec their rated cfm, i'd take their specs with a pinch of salt
 
tamzzy said:
coolermaster is well known to underspec their noise levels and overspec their rated cfm, i'd take their specs with a pinch of salt
Click to expand...

tamzzy said:
your cm fan: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lslr19x75Pw
ap 121: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cec_HlQK4IQ
Click to expand...

I see what you're saying, but the camera is a lot closer in that first video so it is going to be louder

Hmmmm don't know what to do lol

What do you think of my idea in the above post? With the fanmate? Sound like a good plan to me
 
just reduce the youtube volume until the background hiss is barely audible, that should give a reasonable comparison
 
tamzzy said:
just reduce the youtube volume until the background hiss is barely audible, that should give a reasonable comparison
Click to expand...

This isn't a very accurate test haha. I think I will get a Zalman fanmate then see how much I need to turn this fan down by and if the LED's are still lit reasonably, then like I said change the fan if I have to and use the fanmate with the new fan
 
Well the fan mate 2 is installed and having the fan connected directly to the motherboard seems to supply more power than having it connected through the fan mate (even when it is on the highest setting) so it has turned the speed down slightly while having the fan mate on full still and it seems okay

I will see how it goes but I think it is quiet enough and I can turn the fan mate down just over half and it gets even quieter and the LED's just dim a little bit
 
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