Coolermaster ATC 110 case fans advice

Thanks for all the advice chaps! :)

When it comes to fans blowing in and out is it just a question of reversing/turning the fan over to suite? Or will I have to buy a specific fan for the job.

Going to kit my case out in January with new fans and will need 2x in and 2x out. Still a little confused on which ones to go for... =)

Thanks

S!ap
 
Yep just flip em over to reverse the airflow direction.

Get the zalman 80mm ones and use the supplied resistor. They are cheap and almost as quiet as the nexus ones, plus you have the option of putting them on a fan controller and removing the resistors to get more airflow if thats what you want.
 
Joe42 said:
Yep just flip em over to reverse the airflow direction.

Get the zalman 80mm ones and use the supplied resistor. They are cheap and almost as quiet as the nexus ones, plus you have the option of putting them on a fan controller and removing the resistors to get more airflow if thats what you want.
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Thanks Joe

Someone pointed me towards the "Sharkoon Silent Eagle 2000" fans which have this golf ball type of dimples on the blades that is supposed to reduce the air resistance and turbulence resulting in quiet operation while maximizing the airflow volume; a review on them here:
http://www.mvktech.net/content/view/2314/39/1/2/

After a little more research I have 3 contenders on my list so far:

AcoustiFan DustProof Quiet: 15.6 dB/19.9cfm/1600rpm (very expensive!dust proof jacket protecting the motor, plenty of connection capabilities which includes a 3-Speed Fan Cable, )

Sharkoon 80mm Silent Eagle 2000: 17.8 dB/22.7cfm/2000rpm (good airflow/connectivity and good price)

Nexus 80mm Real Silent case fan: 17.6 dB/20.2cfm/1500rpm
(Good airflowRPM ratio,good connectivity options)

Man, it's quite in-depth choosing a case fan with so many variables to consider (RPMs, dBAs, Cfm, bearings/sleave, connection types, 12/7.5/5Volt possibilities and outputs and fan lifecycles and warranties...not to mention the difference between manufacturers specs and user/ internet testing site ones...

I am starting to acquire a serious twitch but getting there :)

Thanks again

S!ap *twitch*
 
out of those 3 i would personally go for the nexus, DB ratings can be very subjective imo - and tbh @ 1500rpm with 20cfm it reckon it pushes a good amount of air and will be very near silent. just my 2 pence :)
 
As i said, i've sat down with a nexus and a zalman in a quiet environment and i have to say the zalman was surprisingly close with the resistor.

Obviously if you have the money the nexus ones are the best, but for the price i think the zalman ones are very good, very similar to the nexus at least to my ears.

I think the acoustifan dustproof ones are a bit of a gimmick imo, i've yet to see a fan killed by dust.
When i was comparing the zalman and nexus i also had an acoustifan c series and i found it was not as good as the zalman or the nexus, particularly when strapped to a case. If the dustproof ones are the same they aren't worth having.

Never tried a sharkoon one so i can't comment on that.
 
Thanks again chaps.
I went for the 3x Nexus RSCFs (got a really good price one them) for the front/back and one AcoustiFan Dustproof for the top along with some Accoustic Product Anti-vibration gaskets.
As I was in mouse clicking mode, I splashed out on a Thermalright SI-128 Cooler and Akasa Ultra Quiet 120mm Amber fan(seemed to have pretty high CFM and low noise output) to replace my rattling noisy dying Freezer 64 Pro.

Look forwards to setting it all up and listening :)

S!ap
 
Yes, perhaps you can give us a comparison and say which you think is the best. Particularly interested to see how the amber fares vs the nexus.
 
Ok got it all set up and initially I would say that the Amber is the quietest one by a hair, it is the bigger 120mm fan, looks great as well.
Noisiest one out of the three is defo the AcoustiFan Dustproof but it does seem to be shifting the most air.
I have my case on floor by the side of my desk about a foot and a half away from where I sit and my system has now gone sounding like a a jet engine to being comfortably quite(all fans are are running at 12V), not totally silent as there is still the slight sound/hum of fans.

Heatsink: the Thermalright SI-128 Cooler is a beast of a heatsink and is made very well. Installation on my mobo (asus a8v deluxe) was fine with no compatibility issues and fitted perfectly. Very pleased with the SI-128/Amber combo

Sitting in a warm room at the moment and temps are:
mobo: 20C
CPU (idle): 35C
A couple of centigrade down on my original Freezer Pro 64 Heatsink/fan but I am hoping it should drop a tad more when the thermal compound settles in. I will run some stress tests and see how it performs under load.

Hard to compare the Amber and Nexus (different sizes), but on the whole, the Nexus fans get my vote for good quality quite case fans of the 80mm ball bearing flavour. But please bear in mind this is only my initial non-scientific "ear and hand over fan" testing methodology :D; I'll report back when I have time to be a little more thorough.
 
Ran a 3D2001 and 2006, CPU hitting 42C max under load. I'm running an Opteron 146 (2 gig default speed) overclocked to 2.65 gigs a 1.425 Vcore
So the heatsink/fan combo seem to coping well under stress.
 
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