Question Best static and airflow fans?

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needhelp111111

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May 3, 2018
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I'm going to be building a new computer as soon as the Ryzen 9 drops. Along with the 3900X, I'll be using my R9 380 for the time being, six to eight drives, and likely a Gen 4 M.2 SSD in my Define R5 case. I'm starting to look around for parts now, but I'm still kind of a n00b when it comes to certain things, so I have a few questions:

.... 1. Regarding high airflow versus static pressure types, does it matter whether or not the fan will be intake or output?
.... 2. What levels of CFM are considered awful, mediocre, and great?
.... 3. If only the mobo supports PWM, do I always have to go into BIOS to change the power or speed of the fans?

I don't expect many people to know the answer to this next question, and honestly I probably should, but this whole PWM thing is completely new to me.

.... 4. Does the Define R5 support PWM?
.... 5. Are non-PWM fans compatible with PWM sets of pins?

I want to keep it as cool as possible inside the case for the sake of prolonging my hardware, and also because a couple of the drives are running fairly warm already, possibly due to a few of my fans being highly restricted. Therefore, I'm looking to buy at least five 140mm fans. Three of those should be high static pressure, whereas the other two high airflow.

.... 6. Does anybody have recommendations?
 
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You would be hard pressed, or in fact impossible, to find any other fans that have equivalent or higher static pressure and CFM at an equivalent low decibel level as these.

These are about the best low noise, high static pressure 140mm air movers you can get. Clearly there are higher CFM fans at the cost of increased noise levels like the iPPC industrial 2000rpm PWM version of these fans, but there are no other fans I know of with this level of performance at any given sound pressure level.

https://noctua.at/en/nf-a14-pwm-chromax-black-swap

PCPartPicker Part List

Case Fan: Noctua - NF-A14 PWM chromax.black.swap 82.52 CFM 140 mm Fan ($24.90 @ Amazon)
Total: $24.90
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-05-30 02:30 EDT-0400


If you REALLY want to crank up the airflow and static pressure, these have more than double the static pressure and about 25CFM higher airflow than the standard NF-A14 PWM, but they are also significantly louder once they go past 1500rpm. I have all these fans, probably five of each, along with a number of other Noctua fans and it's just damn hard to find something better if not outright impossible.

PCPartPicker Part List

Case Fan: Noctua - NF-A14 industrialPPC-2000 107.42 CFM 140 mm Fan ($22.95 @ Amazon)
Total: $22.95
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-05-30 02:35 EDT-0400
 
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Darkbreeze said:
You would be hard pressed, or in fact impossible, to find any other fans that have equivalent or higher static pressure and CFM at an equivalent low decibel level as these.

These are about the best low noise, high static pressure 140mm air movers you can get. Clearly there are higher CFM fans at the cost of increased noise levels like the iPPC industrial 2000rpm PWM version of these fans, but there are no other fans I know of with this level of performance at any given sound pressure level.

https://noctua.at/en/nf-a14-pwm-chromax-black-swap

PCPartPicker Part List

Case Fan: Noctua - NF-A14 PWM chromax.black.swap 82.52 CFM 140 mm Fan ($24.90 @ Amazon)
Total: $24.90
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-05-30 02:30 EDT-0400


If you REALLY want to crank up the airflow and static pressure, these have more than double the static pressure and about 25CFM higher airflow than the standard NF-A14 PWM, but they are also significantly louder once they go past 1500rpm. I have all these fans, probably five of each, along with a number of other Noctua fans and it's just damn hard to find something better if not outright impossible.

PCPartPicker Part List

Case Fan: Noctua - NF-A14 industrialPPC-2000 107.42 CFM 140 mm Fan ($22.95 @ Amazon)
Total: $22.95
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-05-30 02:35 EDT-0400
Click to expand...


Thanks for taking the time to respond. Really appreciate it.

It's funny because that's the one fan I was looking at. It was also recommended by some users on reddit where I also posted the question. Here are their recommendations:
  • User A: If silence doesn't matter, Noctua IPPC series. If it does, Corsair ML140s.
  • User B: NF-A14 PWM for the best all-rounder. BeQuiet Silentwings 3 140mm if you value low noise over performance.
If you've ever had the chance to use them, what are your thoughts about the Corsair ML140s and the BeQuiet Silentwings 3 140mm?

Noctua and BeQuiet seem to be the two major brands that keep popping up.

I read that static fans tend to spin slower. Is the only difference between static and non-static the speed at which the fan spins?
 
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" 4. Does the Define R5 support PWM?"

If you ask if the preinstalled fans support PWM. They are 3 pin fans, so they don't support PWM.
If you ask about the preinstalled fan regulator/fan hub. It is powered directly from the PSU via a SATA power cable, and is not connected to the motherboard, so it doesn't support PWM.
 
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The fan hub on the R5 is a static three speed controller. It does not support variable DC fan controls nor does it support PWM controls. You will want to obtain an aftermarket fan controller if you plan to run more fans that what your motherboard can support based on the number of onboard chassis fan headers it has.

I would recommend this, which can be used with BOTH PWM and DC 3 pin fans.

https://www.amazon.com/Phanteks-Universal-Fan-Controller-PH-PWHUB_02/dp/B07NHQRCRM
 
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Nigel Spike said:
" 4. Does the Define R5 support PWM?"

If you ask if the preinstalled fans support PWM. They are 3 pin fans, so they don't support PWM.
If you ask about the preinstalled fan regulator/fan hub. It is powered directly from the PSU via a SATA power cable, and is not connected to the motherboard, so it doesn't support PWM.
Click to expand...

Thanks. Really appreciate it.
 
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Darkbreeze said:
The fan hub on the R5 is a static three speed controller. It does not support variable DC fan controls nor does it support PWM controls. You will want to obtain an aftermarket fan controller if you plan to run more fans that what your motherboard can support based on the number of onboard chassis fan headers it has.

I would recommend this, which can be used with BOTH PWM and DC 3 pin fans.

https://www.amazon.com/Phanteks-Universal-Fan-Controller-PH-PWHUB_02/dp/B07NHQRCRM
Click to expand...

Awesome.

I'm in Canada, and the closest thing I can find on Amazon.ca is this. What do you make of it? I believe it's V1 of the one that you linked.

Really appreciate it man!
 
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V1 does not do both PWM and DC simultaneously.

Newegg Canada has it, but it's not cheap.

https://www.newegg.ca/p/pl?d=PH-PWHUB_02&N=-1&isNodeId=1&Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH


There is also this option, which can do both PWM and DC controlled fans as well.

https://www.nzxt.com/products/grid-plus-v3


But if you plan to use ONLY PWM fans, it makes the choice much simpler and less expensive. So if you know you'll be using all PWM fans, then this would work fine.

And 3 pin fans CAN be used with it, but they will run at full speed.

https://www.amazon.ca/DEEPCOOL-FH-1...s=PWM+fan+hub&qid=1559257572&s=gateway&sr=8-4
 
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Darkbreeze said:
V1 does not do both PWM and DC simultaneously.

Newegg Canada has it, but it's not cheap.

https://www.newegg.ca/p/pl?d=PH-PWHUB_02&N=-1&isNodeId=1&Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH


There is also this option, which can do both PWM and DC controlled fans as well.

https://www.nzxt.com/products/grid-plus-v3


But if you plan to use ONLY PWM fans, it makes the choice much simpler and less expensive. So if you know you'll be using all PWM fans, then this would work fine.

And 3 pin fans CAN be used with it, but they will run at full speed.

https://www.amazon.ca/DEEPCOOL-FH-1...s=PWM+fan+hub&qid=1559257572&s=gateway&sr=8-4
Click to expand...

So I've chosen to go with the Fractal Design Venturi HF-14 for all of my exhaust fans. Apparently there is no PWM for them. Likewise, I imagine I'll be using the case connector to run the front two fans, which I don't believe is PWM either, although I could be wrong??

I could just use the DEEPCOOL mobo header that you linked since I'll be using 8 fans in total?
 
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Static or cfm, doesn't matter, same motors just different blade designs. The fastest fans used in pc's/servers are high static Deltas that can run over 8k rpm. It all depends on who makes it, which model as to whether its higher cfm or higher static and what speeds.
 
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