Is a 32 decibel case fan loud?

[Rameez_2]

Hey guys I am building a new pc and was looking a case fan with sound level of 32 decibels. i am planning to install three of these in my case. so I wanted to know whether it would be quiet enough?

 

[Isokolon]

YES. you don't want a case fan that goes louder than 20dba.
also dba is not a linear scale but an exponential.

what fan are you looking at?

 

[Rameez_2]

YES. you don't want a case fan that goes louder than 20dba.
also dba is not a linear scale but an exponential.

what fan are you looking at?

I am looking at Deepcool iceblade 120mm fans.

 

[Isokolon]

do they come as case fans? only know Deebcool Ice Blade as a CPU cooler.

for case fans I suggest you look at Noctua, Cougar or Noiseblocker for 120mm fans

 

[Rameez_2]

do they come as case fans? only know Deebcool Ice Blade as a CPU cooler.

for case fans I suggest you look at Noctua, Cougar or Noiseblocker for 120mm fans

Yes they come as case fans. I also looked corsair air series af120. Will those be good?

 

[Isokolon]

not a fan of Corsair AF120. they move little air at high noise levels.

go with Noctua, Cougar or Noiseblocker
BeQuiet, Corsair ML, Phanteks are good as well or some Enermax if you can't find any others.
if there are no Enermax, the AF120is your best bet.

 

[scout_03]

check on the cougar high cfm and low db noise at full speed .

 

[turbopixel]

Isokolon did some good brand suggestions and I would follow him. I searched the web for very quiet fans, which are still powerful enough and found NoiseBlocker fans. Noctua and NoiseBlocker seems to be the best and BeQuiet have some very good parts too. What case do you have and cpu and gpu? 32 dBA is very loud. My case fans are Noiseblocker NB-eLoop B12-1 and B12-2 and I can recommend them. I use them at slower speeds set in Bios. They operate with a loudness of about 12 dBA or so and can go up to 15 dBA, if you want them on highest speed and performance. I think every 3 dBA its double louder than before. So 32 dBA will be like a plane!

By the way, in most times you can't compare dBA from one site or brand with the dBA from another, because the measurement of them are different. Look at sites for comparing actual parts to see which are better, like I did with below links. Some are loud and very inefficient, other are quiet and will work better even with big air movement or pressure. And it highly depends on the case. Also it depends on motherboard connections, if you have PWM connections with 4 pins or 3 pins for automatic speed or fixed speed.

> http://www.silentpcreview.com/article1342-page7.html
> http://www.silentpcreview.com/article1342-page9.html

The following site tested a high speed model of these, the B12-4. Mine are slower and much more quiet, B12-1 and B12-2.
"
Pros: High Performance, Quiet, Great Accessories, Extremely Visually Appealing

Cons: Cost?
The NB-eLoop B12 is definitely the highest quality fan I have ever seen. It looks to good to be allowed.
"
> http://www.overclock.net/products/noiseblocker-nb-eloop-b12-4-120mmx25mm-ultra-silent-bionic-blade-2400rpm/reviews/5920
He further says:
"
In conclusion, this is the best fan I have ever reviewed.
"
Look at this site for good prices:
> http://pcpartpicker.com/search/?cc=de&q=Noiseblocker+b12