Ek 140mm fan quality issues

passey89 · 25 Aug 2015 at 08:40

Any 1 had the email below about the new ek 140mm vardar fans?

Dear EK customer! Unfortunately, we must inform you, that we have detected quality issues with the following products: EK-Vardar F2-140 EK-Vardar F3-140ER EK-Furious Vardar FF4-140 Since you bought at least one of the products above please be aware of the following. Some of those fans produce metallic sound when running at low speeds. F2-140 and F3-140ER, when they operate at lower RPM, a metal noise can be heard, something similar to two metal parts rubbing against each other, probably a faulty bearing. With FF4-140, a strange noise can be heard (either at low or high RPM) in the motor area and the cause is currently unknown. If you don't hear any noise and have no issues with the fans, you have received flawless fans and you can delete this mail. If you are detecting any issues, please chose one of the following options: 1. Complete refund. 2. Replacement when the new batch arrives (1-2 months waiting time, currently unclear). Please do not hesitate and contact us immediately if you need any further help regarding this issue. We are sincerely sorry for the unpleasant situation and apologize for the inconvenience caused. Sincerely, your EK team

Cyanide · 25 Aug 2015 at 09:10

One of my F4-120ER's has just started screeching, waiting to hear if I can RMA it as I painted it for my build log

passey89 · 25 Aug 2015 at 09:15

Cyanide said:
One of my F4-120ER's has just started screeching, waiting to hear if I can RMA it as I painted it for my build log

Since i swapped mine over to the pwm mobo controls at low speed can hear what sounds like bearings. Cant tell at full speed due to them makin 48db of sound themselves anyway.

Cyanide · 25 Aug 2015 at 09:20

passey89 said:
Since i swapped mine over to the pwm mobo controls at low speed can hear what sounds like bearings. Cant tell at full speed due to them makin 48db of sound themselves anyway.

Mine worked fine for about a week and then developed a screeching/grinding noise at low RPM (25-40%). When it's spinning faster it goes away but then I'm faced with the noise of it shifting a lot of air and I want it silent when I'm not gaming.

I've noticed it only does it when it's in contact with a solid surface - if I remove it from the case and hold it then it goes away but the instant I touch it against the case/floor/wall etc it starts screaming again almost like it's a resonance issue :confused:

passey89 · 25 Aug 2015 at 09:47

Cyanide said:
Mine worked fine for about a week and then developed a screeching/grinding noise at low RPM (25-40%). When it's spinning faster it goes away but then I'm faced with the noise of it shifting a lot of air and I want it silent when I'm not gaming.

I've noticed it only does it when it's in contact with a solid surface - if I remove it from the case and hold it then it goes away but the instant I touch it against the case/floor/wall etc it starts screaming again almost like it's a resonance issue

Yeh if im gaming inhave headphones on so its not really an issue its when u want it silent when watching a film ot browsing web uts an issue

Combat Fighter · 25 Aug 2015 at 17:34

I have had a RMA discussion that is still ongoing with EK as I reported that something was wrong with the EK-Vardar F3-140ER (2000rpm) fans the day after I received them.

I did also order 8x EK-Vardar F4-120ER (2200rpm) at the same time which seemed ok at first but they are now making the the same annoying noise I have been explaining to them. I did upload some videos as well to them as it's was quite obvious in that.

I might be uploading another video showing the 120mm versions now!

At least they have acknowledged there is a problem, but I want them to realise also that it's not just the 140mm versions that have the problem, the 120mm also suffer the same annoying noise.

:mad:

MrMD · 25 Aug 2015 at 17:53

Its nice to see a company be proactive and inform their customers if their are known issues and offer no fuss solutions.Good stuff

doyll · 25 Aug 2015 at 21:51

This issue is pretty well known now. Here is what is elsewhere about what to do and how EKWB is dealing with it.

OCN user EK CEO posted

Product recall for EK-Vardar 140 (F2, F3, FF4)

EAN# Name
3831109867570 EK-Vardar F2-140
3831109867587 EK-Vardar F3-140ER
3831109867594 EK-Furious Vardar FF4-140

and has now also stated

I suggest you try yours out, maybe they will be ok. Run them at 40% speed and listen. if they work normally they will be fine also in the future. If not, you could still use them and get replacement ones once we get them again. They function normally, just not as silent as we would want.

http://www.overclock.net/t/1546649/...ion-vardar-radiator-fans/340_20#post_24337946
and

You can use the recalled fans, we will not ask you to send them back to us.

http://www.overclock.net/t/1546649/...ion-vardar-radiator-fans/340_20#post_24337946
and

We will refund our resellers for total amount of Vardars 140 that they bought from us, so they should be open to find best option for customers. Please contact your local vendor for settlement. We cannot directly influence on this level what they do as there are multiple people and organizations involved. Since we cannot know if you got your replacement locally already we cannot do that directly for you. I hope you understand why is so. Sorry.

http://www.overclock.net/t/1546649/...ion-vardar-radiator-fans/340_20#post_24338205

EK is doing a stellar job of handling this problem.

Combat Fighter · 25 Aug 2015 at 22:14

Just need EK to realise this problem also effects the 120mm fans as well now.

passey89 · 26 Aug 2015 at 06:24

Yeh cant fault them talked to a guy last night and they have refunded me for the 2 fans.
Lookily my 120's arent making any noise atm.

Performance was amazing but just not as quiet as expected. But brilliant service

Cyanide · 26 Aug 2015 at 08:55

This is what mine's doing, are the other faults similar?

Evidently painting them for a project was a bad idea, now I've gotta fork out for a new one. I might wait a couple of months for some replacement stock to come in first though!

doyll · 26 Aug 2015 at 09:50

Cyanide said:
This is what mine's doing, are the other faults similar?

Evidently painting them for a project was a bad idea, now I've gotta fork out for a new one. I might wait a couple of months for some replacement stock to come in first though!

Assuming your Vardar EAN number is on the recall list your supplier should honor their recall. EKWB is refunding them for the recalled models so it is only fiar they refund you.
If not I would be talking to consumer rights agency and/or advocate.

Cyanide · 26 Aug 2015 at 09:56

doyll said:
Assuming your Vardar EAN number is on the recall list your supplier should honor their recall. EKWB is refunding them for the recalled models so it is only fiar they refund you.
If not I would be talking to consumer rights agency and/or advocate.

It's not on the list, it's a 120. It's from OCUK who've already said they can't do anything as I painted it which is fair enough - I knew the risk when I got the spray can out!

I've contacted EK directly though, just to see if there's anything they'll do. If not I'll replace them both with ELoops so I won't need to paint them. Just a shame I won't have the 25% PWM option!

doyll · 26 Aug 2015 at 10:00

Cyanide said:
This is what mine's doing, are the other faults similar?

Evidently painting them for a project was a bad idea, now I've gotta fork out for a new one. I might wait a couple of months for some replacement stock to come in first though!

Cyanide said:
It's not on the list, it's a 120. It's from OCUK who've already said they can't do anything as I painted it which is fair enough - I knew the risk when I got the spray can out!

I've contacted EK directly though, just to see if there's anything they'll do. If not I'll replace them both with ELoops so I won't need to paint them. Just a shame I won't have the 25% PWM option!

Yeah,not being on recall list makes all the difference.

It's not hard to damage a fan when masking and painting.

Cyanide · 27 Aug 2015 at 10:39

doyll said:
Yeah,not being on recall list makes all the difference.
It's not hard to damage a fan when masking and painting.

To be fair a couple of microns of paint shouldn't affect it, it's been running fine for a fortnight before it developed but I think the other one's going now too.

EK won't do anything either because of the paint so they're both going in the bin and I'll have to get replacements - I'll make sure they're the right colour out the box this time though!

doyll · 27 Aug 2015 at 13:10

Cyanide said:
To be fair a couple of microns of paint shouldn't affect it, it's been running fine for a fortnight before it developed but I think the other one's going now too.

EK won't do anything either because of the paint so they're both going in the bin and I'll have to get replacements - I'll make sure they're the right colour out the box this time though!

I agree. When done properly masking and painting a fan has no effect beyond a different colour. But I can also understand how it voids the warranty. There are valid reasons on both sides.

If you are going to bin them, I would love to dissect the to see the internal design and build. If you would be so kind as to box and post them to me I would gladly pay the costs. If not, I understand.

Cyanide · 27 Aug 2015 at 13:27

doyll said:
I agree. When done properly masking and painting a fan has no effect beyond a different colour. But I can also understand how it voids the warranty. There are valid reasons on both sides.

If you are going to bin them, I would love to dissect the to see the internal design and build. If you would be so kind as to box and post them to me I would gladly pay the costs. If not, I understand.

I've actually just had a bash at it myself. Whipped the blades off (not easy - the locking washer is on TIGHT!), cleaned everything up, re-oiled it all and put it back together. Seems to be ok now as long as I run them over 35% *fingers crossed*

It did look like there was a slight bend in the spindle (and I do mean very slight) so this could have been the issue. I'll run them another week and see how I get on.

They're damned fine fans in terms of noise to performance levels, it's just a shame that I've seen quite a few posts around the internet with bearing issues

doyll · 27 Aug 2015 at 14:01

Cyanide said:
I've actually just had a bash at it myself. Whipped the blades off (not easy - the locking washer is on TIGHT!), cleaned everything up, re-oiled it all and put it back together. Seems to be ok now as long as I run them over 35% *fingers crossed*

It did look like there was a slight bend in the spindle (and I do mean very slight) so this could have been the issue. I'll run them another week and see how I get on.

They're damned fine fans in terms of noise to performance levels, it's just a shame that I've seen quite a few posts around the internet with bearing issues

Good news!

I agree it is too bad about the bearing problems. But teething issues like this while no common are not uncommon in first production runs of products. It may be bad bearing or it may be something in the assembly technique that is damaging them. Either way the next run will be watching this very closely to avoid the problem happening again.

traveyb · 27 Aug 2015 at 20:50

Was going to order the 120mm versions of these today, kinda glad I didn't now (unless they have released an updated version)

passey89 · 27 Aug 2015 at 20:56

traveyb said:
Was going to order the 120mm versions of these today, kinda glad I didn't now (unless they have released an updated version)

ive got the 120's in mine as well as the 140's and there perfectly fine in mine