What are the best 120mm fans in regards to

[WinnieThePwn]

Performance:
Noise:
Both:

[mimart7]

What are you planning to use the fans for case cooling or cpu cooling? Scythe Slip Stream have the best of both worlds but they are expensive, about $20 a pop on the egg. You can get 800, 1200, 1600, and 1900 rpm versions.

[WinnieThePwn]

Both. Ideally I'd like two best-of-the-best for the CPU. And several good yet not-so-expensive for the case. I'd like the case ones to be quieter too.

[OldMold]

I think Cooler Master R4 fans fit your case fan needs. They are very quiet (19 dBA), push a good amount of air (69 CFM), and are fairly cheap (between $8-$13).

They also come in Red, Blue, and Green LEDS if you are into that.

[IcyLynx]

CM excaliburs are nice,

• RPM: 600 - 2000 RPM±10%
• Air Flow: 26.4 - 85.6 CFM±10%
• Noise Level: 13 - 30 dBA
• 18 bucks

. But i also like the r4

• RPM: 2000 RPM
• Air Flow: 69CFM (maximum RPM)
• Noise Level: 19 dBA
• 10 bucks, plus leds

[ug0tserved]

Me i went with Ultra kaze scythe 3000Rpm! ther loud at full 3000rpm but with fan
controller, im all set and satisfy with it!

[Sephious]

Originally Posted by mimart7

What are you planning to use the fans for case cooling or cpu cooling? Scythe Slip Stream have the best of both worlds but they are expensive, about $20 a pop on the egg. You can get 800, 1200, 1600, and 1900 rpm versions.

There's also a Slipstream PWM model. It can run up to 1300RPM with 74.25CFM and 26.50dB. It's what comes with my CPU cooler, and at full tilt it is inaudible over my case fans. 120mm Slipstreams seem to have some of the best "real" CFM to dB ratios in the business. I say "real" because a lot of fan manufacturers like to bluff on their specs (I'm looking at you Cooler Master and SilenX). They even seem to have equivalent CFM to dB ratios as their best 140mm fans (The Kazu Maru 2, which they don't seem to list on their site for some reason).

Also, for comparison purposes: From my limited testing, the Scythe Slipstream PWM at full tilt cools my CPU 2 degrees better than my Noctua NF-P12. While the Slipstream has about 20 more CFM, the Noctua has much better static pressure, and with a heatsink like mine where the fins are so close together, static pressure is more important than CFM.

[dolshina]

Originally Posted by OldMold

I think Cooler Master R4 fans fit your case fan needs. They are very quiet (19 dBA), push a good amount of air (69 CFM), and are fairly cheap (between $8-$13).

They also come in Red, Blue, and Green LEDS if you are into that.

+1 ^ Here! http://www.directron.com/r4c2r20acgp.html

I've used a lot of these fans as you can see...move a lot of air, quiet, inexpensive, what more could you want?

[Namtaro]

Psh, just get delta fans and you're done!

[overclockerx]

You could get the cheapest 120mm case fans at Dealextreme I believe 3 dollar with led I thought.

[IcyLynx]

I really thought about the Deltas as well, seen a video of one hovering across the desk but at 60+dbs, a fan controller would be a necessity, plus they look

After playing with my fans, i woulda been happy with a little quieter operation, but didnt want the leds, maybe excaliburs for cpu and r4s for case?

[WinnieThePwn]

How are silverstone's fans? Didn't even know they made them.

[xoggyux]

Money no issue:
performance = synthe s-flex
noise = synthe slipstream model with the "L" at the end of the model number.

Money DOES matter:
Yate loon: very well balanced.
I took a shot at Rosewills blue LED and that thing is really really loud... they do push a lot of air, in fact out of 20+ fans I own (some in the $20-$30 pricerange) those blue led rosewill (can't remember model atm) are the ones that most air push... they are by far the loudest though .

I think is funny that so many people post fan specs when they are completely unrliable. I haven't seen a single manufacturer posting a reliable CFM rating nor a noise rating.

[sysigy]

Noctua NF-P14 FLX, 140mm fan that fits in 120mm space!

Great airflow, quiet but a little pricey.

[mimart7]

Scythe S Flex, good but the will cost you. The Noctua's, same thing. Yates will give you great bang for the buck. So long as everything is h/u to a fan controller, the problem of noise can easily be addressed. Delta's just are too noisy, even with a controller.

[Mr.Scott]

Originally Posted by WinnieThePwn

How are silverstone's fans? Didn't even know they made them.

Decent. I use a few. 110 CFM, fairly quiet.

[prudhomb]

We need a 120mm fan sticky, this is the same question twice a week. Its almost like there are too many choices, and fans unlike CPUs dont seem to have a good sight where they are benchmarked for air flow and noise.

[bravotsx]

enermax marathons w/ enlobal bearings are a sweet fan

http://www.directron.com/uc12eb.html

it's a magnetic bearing and super reliable...i've used dozens of these in customer rigs, friends, etc. they're cheap, quiet, and move a good amount of air.

17 dB @ 44 cfm

[xoggyux]

Originally Posted by sysigy

Noctua NF-P14 FLX, 140mm fan that fits in 120mm space!

Great airflow, quiet but a little pricey.

I've got a similar fan from synthe. its got a 140mm blade size but the mounting holes are 120mm spaced. it sucks though. It does not fit 140mm holes, and it does not fit many of the 120mm mountings. for instance, it might not work with your favorite tower cooler, it might not work as a front fan if your front fans mount inside a cage (as it happens in popular cases such as the antec 300) and it might not work in the rear position of many other cages since there are often indentations that prohibit it (as is the case of the antec 300 as well.) Most enthusiast cases that can fit a 140mm fan will have the mounting holes (in fact is fairly common to see both 120mm holes and 140mm holes at a given position.) IMO it is not worth expending that much money in a fan that will not work in every setting.

I just got myself for first time a couple of PWM regulated fans, and I have to admit I am very happy with them because 90% of time my PC is dead silent, nothing is heard (with the right config on the bios offcourse) and the fans are running at a quiet 500rpm. However if they are needed they crank up, the thing however is that with modern CPUs that rarely go 100% for long the PC stays quiet most of the time... You might wan't to give it a shot. My experience so far is with a Cooler Master and a Corsair PWM regulated fan, I will get a couple of Arctic cooler fans in a couple of days and I will let you know how it goes.

I do think however you should still give it a try to those yateloons, for $5 on fleabay they are worth the shot, and those are really fantastic value for money certainly will give a run for its money to $15-$20 noctuas or synthe.

[prudhomb]

Originally Posted by xoggyux

I've got a similar fan from synthe. its got a 140mm blade size but the mounting holes are 120mm spaced. it sucks though. It does not fit 140mm holes, and it does not fit many of the 120mm mountings. for instance, it might not work with your favorite tower cooler, it might not work as a front fan if your front fans mount inside a cage (as it happens in popular cases such as the antec 300) and it might not work in the rear position of many other cages since there are often indentations that prohibit it (as is the case of the antec 300 as well.) Most enthusiast cases that can fit a 140mm fan will have the mounting holes (in fact is fairly common to see both 120mm holes and 140mm holes at a given position.) IMO it is not worth expending that much money in a fan that will not work in every setting.

I just got myself for first time a couple of PWM regulated fans, and I have to admit I am very happy with them because 90% of time my PC is dead silent, nothing is heard (with the right config on the bios offcourse) and the fans are running at a quiet 500rpm. However if they are needed they crank up, the thing however is that with modern CPUs that rarely go 100% for long the PC stays quiet most of the time... You might wan't to give it a shot. My experience so far is with a Cooler Master and a Corsair PWM regulated fan, I will get a couple of Arctic cooler fans in a couple of days and I will let you know how it goes.

Ive got two Coolermaster PWM 90cfm fans for my hyper 212+ It works well because like you said, cant hear it unless cpu is at 100% load.

I found the PWM fans did not work well as case fans, they were only spinning at 50% during stress testing. Im not sure how hot the case needed to get before they turned up, so I got 3 pin fans an a controller for the case.