Case Fan Noise Levels

crpm1589 · 10-09-2007, 04:50 PM

I just built my own PC, and was thinking of adding more fans to it, but not sure of the rating system for noise levels. Does anyone know the dBA of an average case fan? Also, this may seem like a stupid question but i really don't know, does the fan get louder or quieter the higher it's dBA is?

**pharoah** · 10-09-2007, 05:14 PM

the higher the db level is the louder they are.

GDkitty · 10-11-2007, 09:55 AM

Only things i can sujest.. cheap fans normaly wont run as well, and over time will wear down and start to make more noise.. better quality ones will cost you more money, but will work better in the end. Look for ones that say that they are quiet.

Other thing i have found, is if your case supports it, go with the 120mm fans, the larger ones. With the larger size, they can move slower and move the same volume of air, so they do tend to be quieter.

**TheMatt** · 10-13-2007, 06:30 PM

When you are browsing fans, avoid fans with sleeve bearings as these will fail first and have a lower lifetime.

Fluid dynamic bearing fans are the most quiet, however they are not high performance. The highest performance fans are ball bearing and dual ball bearing fans.

dBa is the measure of amplitude or noise. It is usually proportional to the fan speed or RPM but it also depends on the bearing.

RPM is the measure of fan speed. With the same bearing, a faster fan will produce more noise.

CFM is the measure of airflow. Factors that affect it include fan speed, fan size, and blade design.

minster9 · 10-15-2007, 01:40 AM

generally speaking,larger slow(er) 120mm fans move the same amount of air. Buy a temp monitor for your hardware. Nobody likes little whiners or baby turbo jets.

Low front & side intake(smashing air right against your mobo,particularily the vidio card)fans would probably help. Top rear exhaust fan (s) are a necessity. You can get by w/side fan,but you need top rear exhaust also. Put rubber o-rings between fans & sheet metal. Sheet metal can **** up acoustics if not damped. Capiche?

ebackhus · 10-17-2007, 01:04 PM

Another way to combat noise is to use acoustic dampeners. They comes in sizes that fit 80mm fans, ATX PSUs and often include small rubber rings for odd-size fans.

DenverTheVirus · 10-18-2007, 08:38 AM

Get a water-cooling system

10-09-2007, 04:50 PM	#1 (permalink)
crpm1589 Registered User Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 5 OS: WinXP	Case Fan Noise Levels I just built my own PC, and was thinking of adding more fans to it, but not sure of the rating system for noise levels. Does anyone know the dBA of an average case fan? Also, this may seem like a stupid question but i really don't know, does the fan get louder or quieter the higher it's dBA is?

10-09-2007, 05:14 PM	#2 (permalink)
pharoah TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 5,188 OS: vista business edition My System	Re: Case Fan Noise Levels the higher the db level is the louder they are. __________________ Follow These Steps First Power Supply Selection Posting System Specs Oblivion Tweak Guide Video Drivers& Information TSF folding at home team 85015

10-11-2007, 09:55 AM	#3 (permalink)
GDkitty Registered User Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Toronto Posts: 76 OS: XP/Vista My System	Re: Case Fan Noise Levels Only things i can sujest.. cheap fans normaly wont run as well, and over time will wear down and start to make more noise.. better quality ones will cost you more money, but will work better in the end. Look for ones that say that they are quiet. Other thing i have found, is if your case supports it, go with the 120mm fans, the larger ones. With the larger size, they can move slower and move the same volume of air, so they do tend to be quieter. __________________ ~Mitch "GDkitty" Sgt. Johnson: "Now listen up! Back in my day, we didn't have fancy tanks! We had sticks. Two stick and a rock for the entire platoon! And we had to share the rock! You should consider yourself very lucky marines!" (Halo 2)

10-13-2007, 06:30 PM	#4 (permalink)
TheMatt TSF Enthusiast Join Date: May 2006 Location: Boston Posts: 13,701 OS: Win 3.1, 98, NT 4.0, XP Debian 4.0, Kubuntu 6.06 My System Blog Entries: 3	Re: Case Fan Noise Levels When you are browsing fans, avoid fans with sleeve bearings as these will fail first and have a lower lifetime. Fluid dynamic bearing fans are the most quiet, however they are not high performance. The highest performance fans are ball bearing and dual ball bearing fans. dBa is the measure of amplitude or noise. It is usually proportional to the fan speed or RPM but it also depends on the bearing. RPM is the measure of fan speed. With the same bearing, a faster fan will produce more noise. CFM is the measure of airflow. Factors that affect it include fan speed, fan size, and blade design. __________________ - Matt M - KB1OSC - Folding@Home 85015 [url="http://www.techsupportforum.com/hardware-support/"] If TSF has helped you, please consider donating. If I have stopped responding to a thread, feel free to send me a PM with a link to the thread. It is advisable to subscribe to threads so you will receive updates when replies are posted. You can subscribe to threads from the "Thread Tools" Menu. »Memtest86 »Prime95 »UBCD »SpeedFan »NHC Personal »Everest »Sandra »PC Wizard »RivaTuner »ATi Tool Click here for Useful Articles and Guides

10-15-2007, 01:40 AM	#5 (permalink)
minster9 Registered User Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 176 OS: windows 2000	Re: Case Fan Noise Levels generally speaking,larger slow(er) 120mm fans move the same amount of air. Buy a temp monitor for your hardware. Nobody likes little whiners or baby turbo jets. Low front & side intake(smashing air right against your mobo,particularily the vidio card)fans would probably help. Top rear exhaust fan (s) are a necessity. You can get by w/side fan,but you need top rear exhaust also. Put rubber o-rings between fans & sheet metal. Sheet metal can **** up acoustics if not damped. Capiche?

10-17-2007, 01:04 PM	#6 (permalink)
ebackhus Manager, Design Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: SATX Posts: 14,275 OS: WinXP Pro SP3/Windows 7 RTM My System Blog Entries: 28	Re: Case Fan Noise Levels Another way to combat noise is to use acoustic dampeners. They comes in sizes that fit 80mm fans, ATX PSUs and often include small rubber rings for odd-size fans. __________________ ----------------------------- There are no dumb questions, unless a customer is asking them. Help in the fight against cancer and other serious illnesses.

10-18-2007, 08:38 AM	#7 (permalink)
DenverTheVirus Registered User Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Portadown Posts: 10 OS: Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 2	Re: Case Fan Noise Levels Get a water-cooling system