Good Silent CPU Fan?

vipergrm · 22 Mar 2007 at 02:08

I am looking to purchase a good CPU fan that is extremely quiet. I am currently using an Arctic Freezer, which is just a little noisy as it whirls at 2,500 RPM

I have a Corsair PSU which I can't even here because the CPU fan is so loud. Thanks!

Buffalo2102 · 22 Mar 2007 at 08:11

Try the Scythe Ninja.

If you have good airflow in your case you can probably run it passively. I only noticed about a 1 or 2 degree difference between running it with a fan and without.

If you need to run it with a fan then you can basically use any 120mm fan you can find due to the fan mounting system. The Scythe fan supplied is pretty quiet but you can swap it for a quieter fan if you want to.

simonnance · 22 Mar 2007 at 09:59

Ultra-120 with a quiet fan...... or no fan at all for that matter (not recomended for overclocking without a fan though)!

masslac · 22 Mar 2007 at 12:17

Scythe Ninja.

Toyota_Mr2 · 22 Mar 2007 at 13:09

Zalman 9700 Aero

masslac · 22 Mar 2007 at 13:10

Toyota_Mr2 said:
Zalman 9700 Aero

Inferior.

Toyota_Mr2 · 22 Mar 2007 at 14:04

hell no.

Its extremely quiet. And produces very good results.

And you get a fan controller to change the rpm.

Recommended.

masslac · 22 Mar 2007 at 14:05

Ninja is silent at stock.

simonnance · 22 Mar 2007 at 14:19

Toyota_Mr2 said:
hell no.

Its extremely quiet. And produces very good results.

And you get a fan controller to change the rpm.

Recommended.

that's because its loud enough at normal speeds to NEED one.

The 9500 USED to be one of the best..... but that was pre-TT120, Ultra-120, Ninja Rev B, ect ect. 9700 just isnt enough of an upgrade on the performance on the 9500 to catch up .

Anandtech said:
If you are looking for value - the best performance and noise control for your dollar - then there are much better choices in the market than the Zalman 9500 and 9700. The top Tuniq Tower 120 and Cooler Master Hyper 6+ perform better, are just as silent, and cost less. The Thermalright MST-6775 and Scythe Katana perform about the same, but are much lighter and less than half the price of either Zalman. It gets even worse looking at the high end of coolers tested so far. The innovative TEC/air $89 Vigor Monsoon II Lite is only $14 more than the 9700, and it performs significantly better. Zalman may have started the quiet, high-performance cooling rage, but the 9500 and 9700 are not leaders by any measurement.

vipergrm · 22 Mar 2007 at 18:45

The Ultra 120's do look good in terms of Temperatures, but are they REALLY silent? It's the noise that I'm interested in most. I'm not that bothered about having it a couple of degrees celsius hotter. The Scythe Ninja sounds a good bet although I hear the 120mm fan that comes with it is rather noisy

squiffy · 22 Mar 2007 at 18:51

vipergrm said:
The Scythe Ninja sounds a good bet although I hear the 120mm fan that comes with it is rather noisy

lol. Have you got hearing of a Ferengi?

masslac · 22 Mar 2007 at 18:59

vipergrm said:
The Ultra 120's do look good in terms of Temperatures, but are they REALLY silent? It's the noise that I'm interested in most. I'm not that bothered about having it a couple of degrees celsius hotter. The Scythe Ninja sounds a good bet although I hear the 120mm fan that comes with it is rather noisy

Run it fanless if you're that bothered. It's really not a loud fan, though.

mdixson · 22 Mar 2007 at 19:03

latest custom pc have a nice round-up if your interested; seem to think the freezer 7 pro was best for intel and the Scythe Infinity for Amd...

Chris Beard · 22 Mar 2007 at 19:08

Sonic tower + 3 v.quiet fans.

cobxx · 22 Mar 2007 at 19:21

mdixson said:
latest custom pc have a nice round-up if your interested; seem to think the freezer 7 pro was best for intel and the Scythe Infinity for Amd...

The AF7's really aren't all that they are cracked up to be when you compare them to other fans. Ok, they are acceptable when you crank them down, but the performance then takes a big hit. At something spinning at 2500 rpm, it ain't gonna be quiet.

You need a 120mm fan. Period. Your best bet would be something like an ultra 120 as you can then grab your own fan (something like a yate loon, nexus, or even a noctua). With any of these, they will still be audible at 12V, but drop them down a bit and they will be almost silent

. The ninja is a perfectly good cooler, but due to it's mounting problems with 775 boards I think it's not worth considering. The noctua NH-UH12F seems to be a very good stock solution if you don't want to bother getting HSF and fan seperatly.

vipergrm · 22 Mar 2007 at 19:42

Does the fan mount on top of the Ultra 120mm or at the side?

Thanks

simonnance · 22 Mar 2007 at 21:56

vipergrm said:
Does the fan mount on top of the Ultra 120mm or at the side?

Thanks

Its a tower, so it mounts on the side (either, the mointing mechanism works either way around)

If SILENCE is your thing, the Ultra-120 is as loud as you make it, you have to buy a fan anyway, so buying a quiet Noctua or S-Flex will be as expensive as buying a louder one. Personaly i'd recomend a Sharkoon Silent Eagle 1000, as the Noctua's seem to dislike backpresure (and the Ultra-120's fins are pretty closely packed), but even passively it will do wonders:

vipergrm · 22 Mar 2007 at 22:09

Thanks mate, I just had a look at the Sharkoon Silent Eagle 1000 and it looks really good. Is it the 120mm one I''m going for? Will it mount OK on the Ultra 120?

Thanks!

Big.Wayne · 22 Mar 2007 at 22:32

simonnance · 22 Mar 2007 at 23:13

dude, you have MY kit..... short the case and mobo! X1950PRO HIS, ULtra-120 /w Sharkoon Silent Eagle, and the all conquering Crucial 10th Aniv ram (i have 4GB though

)

i have 6 Silent Eagle 2000s in my case, though they are normaly undervolted to 5V-1000RPM (Silent Eagle 1000 stock speed).

Cool, quiet, and damn good. Not sure if the "golf ball" stuff is BS or not, but they are one of the best fan around regardless, and cost 1/2 the Scythe S-Flex/Noctua/Akasa Ambers