If your talking about 80MM and 120MM Case fans. Antec makes great case fans, with a 3 speed controler on them "just a little switch not a huge blue plasic thing". They run pretty silent on high, even their 80MM! and the joy is you can set them to the speed they need to be at! I have 2 120MM at the back of my PC and 3 80MM in the front and get nothing but cold air out that bad boy.... and the tower is very silent!
I AM the best computer fan Yaaaaaay!!! Go computers!!!!11
Seriously it all depends upon what you define as best, really quiet: a bit of airflow is better than none, bling makes me sing: LED fans or UV reactive fans for teh win!!, can you hear me now?: super high CFM fans that sound like a herd of very angry bees or worse or the median crowd: Fans that move a medium amount of air balancing performance with noise.
What's "best" for you might not be "best" for me...I hope you see my point.
The Tornados are really noisy and have this sort of Viperish way of making you want to stick apendages in them...
For a good blend of sound to airflow look into the Antec fans that sledge pointed out or the Thermaltake Smartfan II's. I used the older dual ball versions and the bearings ticked really bad but the newer 1ball 1 sleeve versions are really quiet at lower RPMs and they now come in LED versions to add a bit of bling to your case.
Be forwarned though, they're a wee bit pricey.
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LeonardoWake up and smell the glaciersEagle River, AlaskaIcrontian
edited January 2006
I will second Sledge's recommendation on the Antec Tricool fans. On the first two settings, they are barely audible, yet the CFM (cubic feet per minute) volume is decent. The third setting provides good ventilation yet reasonable sound volume. You may not need as much air volume as you think. Arrange the cables in your case so that airflow obstruction is minimized. Airflow pattern - where the air is directed, is just as important as volume. Please let us know about the application for the fans you want: what case (name and model), what components inside, case placement, what PSU... It all makes a difference.
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Mt_GoatHead Cheezy KnobPflugerville (north of Austin)Icrontian
edited January 2006
Some very good overlooked fans are made by Silverstone. They have a few models that get great flow with an acceptable noise level. Enermax adjustable fans are also a great fan as are Panaflows.
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LeonardoWake up and smell the glaciersEagle River, AlaskaIcrontian
edited January 2006
I've not tried the Silverstone fans. But if you give them a recommendation, I'm sure they are fine indeed. I used to put Panaflos at the head of the line. I have them in all sizes. I really have become quite happy with the Antec Tricool fans. The three-speed switch is really very convenient. Of course, SpeedFan can control fan speeds if the the fans are on a three prong connector, if the fan has a third (signal) wire, and if the motherboard supports fan monitoring.
SilenX fans are THE best. They have the best CFM/DBa ratio than any other brand hands down! They're expensive (120mm for $20) but they're worth the cost. I know because I have a couple of them myself.
I'll second mtgoat's panaflow recommendation. They have been my fan of choice for the last two years. Very dependable, built very well, and high flow without roaring delta/tornado sound.
I know alot of people tend to not like them, but I really like my sunbeam anodized fans. They have a shiney chrome like appearance, and have fairly bright green LED's, but you can also get them in white, blue, or red. They're very quiet, and keep my pc decently cool. Idle its around 97*F, full load around 110-115. Its warmer than some people would like to have it, but for how quiet and nice they look (almost like mirrors), I could care less. I have an amd 64 3200+ newcastle, and 3 of those fans. Because they dont move as much air as alot of other fans, I have one thats a bit more powerful on the heatsink.
I've run all kinds of fans and as madmat has already said, your criteria on what constitutes a good compromise between noise/dB ratio might not jive with my definition. I'm a big fan of Panaflo fans for a single speed fan, with them providing good air movement for the noise they make. I've also used the Thermaltake SmartFan2 and Enermax adjustable fans and the beauty of those is that you can adjust the speed/noise of the fan to suit your needs. The Delta focused flow and Vantec Tornado fans are a great choice to use on a heatsink, but they are definitely very noisy (except for the Delta FFB0812HHE) and you will need to use them on a fan controller to keep from annoying yourself to death with their whine. They do move great quantities of air though and they have focusing vanes that help direct and straighten airflow into a heatsink.
I ordered a Silverstone 80mm Dual Ball Bearing Fan with Speed Control (Along with a new fan for the Arkua heatpipe.. but I digress..) and it should be in tomorrow.
Rated speed: ATO 5500 rpm 10%
Max Airflow: 72.91CFM
Noise Level:
- 17 dBA at 1300RPM
- 48 dBA at 5500RPM
It has a nifty speed control I'll attach to the front panel (The back panel is no joy, due to the weight/position of my desk) and not a day too soon. I recently discovered the QMD flag and these things are very intense. My CPU is at 50c/125f and mobo is 41c/105f. I won't mind the noise, it already has 8 fans in it.
I installed the SilverStone FM84XW (What it says on the box) and well, it didn't make much difference in temps, maybe 2-3 degrees Celsius lower. What did make the difference was changing out the generic silicon paste (I removed the AS5 during a cleanup - saved the fur/dust mats and my mom is knitting me a scarf as I type this) for Ocz Ultra 5+ & replacing the Arkua heatpipe 60mm fan with a higher RPM model. All told, a 9C drop on the CPU and a 4C drop on the Motherboard. It's now folding that same QMD from last night at a cool 41C/105F CPU - 37C/98F Mobo. The only thing is the SilverStone does whine, even at 3/4 speed. All told, I'm very happy.
I just replaced 4 of my case and PSU fans with the Vantec Stealth fans. I'm not sure how much air they move but my case is ALOT cooler and almost as important, its almost in-audible. I have the Silverstone Zeus PSU and the fan that came with it sounds like my 4-stroke diesel Jetta, it's loud. I replaced THAT fan with the Stealth fan and its whisper quiet so i replaced the 3 case fans. They aren't flashy, might not move the most air but by far the quietest fan i've heard yet.
Comments
Seriously it all depends upon what you define as best, really quiet: a bit of airflow is better than none, bling makes me sing: LED fans or UV reactive fans for teh win!!, can you hear me now?: super high CFM fans that sound like a herd of very angry bees or worse or the median crowd: Fans that move a medium amount of air balancing performance with noise.
What's "best" for you might not be "best" for me...I hope you see my point.
Are there any fans like the vornado fans? They have blades that really scoop the air.
For a good blend of sound to airflow look into the Antec fans that sledge pointed out or the Thermaltake Smartfan II's. I used the older dual ball versions and the bearings ticked really bad but the newer 1ball 1 sleeve versions are really quiet at lower RPMs and they now come in LED versions to add a bit of bling to your case.
Be forwarned though, they're a wee bit pricey.
Across or diagonally?
Rated speed: ATO 5500 rpm 10%
Max Airflow: 72.91CFM
Noise Level:
- 17 dBA at 1300RPM
- 48 dBA at 5500RPM
It has a nifty speed control I'll attach to the front panel (The back panel is no joy, due to the weight/position of my desk) and not a day too soon. I recently discovered the QMD flag and these things are very intense. My CPU is at 50c/125f and mobo is 41c/105f. I won't mind the noise, it already has 8 fans in it.
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