Can you recommend Scythe "Minebea" fan line?

I

IronChefMorimoto

Limp Gawd
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Apr 14, 2002
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I just did a mid-grade -- took parts from a Socket 754 Shuttle XPC SFF and put them into a mini-tower running a microATX Socket 754 motherboard supporting PCI-E. I'm using a Coolermaster Centurion 541 microATX mini-tower, and I'm loving it, except that it didn't come with fans. I need 2 80mm exhaust fans and 1 120mm intake fan.

Right now, I'm using:
  • 120mm Vantec Stealth (not as stealthy as you might think)
  • 80mm Panaflo (x2)

The Panaflos are left over from a pre-XPC computer build. They weren't all that quiet then -- I think they run about 2600rpm. The Vantec, as noted above, is louder than expected -- possibly due to turbulence at the front of the Centurion case.

ANYWAY - can anyone recommend the Scythe "Minebea" line of fans? I'm thinking about returning this Vantec Stealth that I just bought and getting lower RPM 120mm and 80mm fans for the case, and Scythe seems to have more options in terms of RPM selection (without having to use fan controllers).

Chime in if you've used them. Otherwise, I'll tolerate the Vantec and get two more to replace the Panaflos in back.

Thanks,
IronChefMorimoto
 
I just ordered 2 of the 80mm, the 2150 rpm "Middle" model (24.7 CFM, 22 dBA). I'm installing them later tonight and I'll report back with my opinion.

I also ordered an S-FLEX 120mm, the SFF21E (also the middle model - 1200 rpm, 49 CFM, 20 dBA) - and it's excellent. It moves a lot of air and is extremely quiet.
 
They're good fans, but their DBA ratings are substantially underrated...

The mid-speed (1200rpm) s-Flexes operate at around 25dba open air from 1 foot. 26 dba mounted to the case (with a silicone 120mm fan grommet) with a stamped grill, and 24dba with the case closed. Both from 1 foot.

I like Yate Loons for my 120mm fans. 1 dba louder but around 300% cheaper.

I do like the Scythe 80mm fans though, they're the closest to "silent" that I've ever heard.
 
Psoriac said:
I just ordered 2 of the 80mm, the 2150 rpm "Middle" model (24.7 CFM, 22 dBA). I'm installing them later tonight and I'll report back with my opinion.

I also ordered an S-FLEX 120mm, the SFF21E (also the middle model - 1200 rpm, 49 CFM, 20 dBA) - and it's excellent. It moves a lot of air and is extremely quiet.
Click to expand...

This is exactly the setup I was looking for -- please let me know your experience with the 80mm fans. This Vantec Stealth is a disappointment, honestly. I'd heard so many good things about them. And, with Newegg.com shipping, the price for the Scythe 120mm you mentioned is about the same as what I paid for in a pinch/quick purchase for the Vantec at Fry's.

Thanks,
IronChefMorimoto
 
Arcygenical said:
They're good fans, but their DBA ratings are substantially underrated...

The mid-speed (1200rpm) s-Flexes operate at around 25dba open air from 1 foot. 26 dba mounted to the case (with a silicone 120mm fan grommet) with a stamped grill, and 24dba with the case closed. Both from 1 foot.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the information -- I get the impression that a lot of these fans are "underrated" in terms of dB. :) Sounds like the 120mm you have will be slightly quieter than this Vantec, which is what I'm going for.

Arcygenical said:
I do like the Scythe 80mm fans though, they're the closest to "silent" that I've ever heard.
Click to expand...

Are you using the middle tier 80mm as the other user mentioned above?

Thanks guys -- good information, as usual, from [H] folks. Looking forward to hearing back from you.

IronChefMorimoto
 
Arcygenical said:
I do like the Scythe 80mm fans though, they're the closest to "silent" that I've ever heard.
Click to expand...

IronChefMorimoto said:
Are you using the middle tier 80mm as the other user mentioned above?
Click to expand...

Well I'm back with my report. The 80mm Scythe Minebea "Medium" fans are louder than I would like, and definitely not anywhere near "silent". While they are not that loud from a dBA measurement, their pitch is fairly high so you can hear them clearly over the other fans in my system (see my sig for details). Installing them into my Lian Li case, I set the fan speed controller to "2" (out of 3) for them to not bother me.
 
Well I'm back with my report. The 80mm Scythe Minebea "Medium" fans are louder than I would like, and definitely not anywhere near "silent". While they are not that loud from a dBA measurement, their pitch is fairly high so you can hear them clearly over the other fans in my system (see my sig for details). Installing them into my Lian Li case, I set the fan speed controller to "2" (out of 3) for them to not bother me.
Click to expand...

Oops. Would you classify yourself as a "freak" about silent computing? 'cause I'm not at what I would think "freak" level would be -- so your "noisy" might be my "near silent." I'll get the 120mm and see if that helps (along with Zalman 7700 to replace the stock CPU cooler I had to use while the 7700 was out of stock on Newegg.com during this build).

One thing -- do they move plenty of air? The 80mm 2150rpm model? I wonder if the lower speed 80mm would suffice instead. It didn't look to be a good model for a warmer system, though.

Thanks again!

IronChefMorimoto
 
Yes, the 3110KL-04W-B19-EB1 are practically silent, and measure (from 1 foot, open air) at about 20dba.

Be warned, though, that they don't push THAT much air.

Your username makes me lol every time I read it btw.
 
IronChefMorimoto said:
Oops. Would you classify yourself as a "freak" about silent computing? 'cause I'm not at what I would think "freak" level would be -- so your "noisy" might be my "near silent." I'll get the 120mm and see if that helps (along with Zalman 7700 to replace the stock CPU cooler I had to use while the 7700 was out of stock on Newegg.com during this build).

One thing -- do they move plenty of air? The 80mm 2150rpm model? I wonder if the lower speed 80mm would suffice instead. It didn't look to be a good model for a warmer system, though.

Thanks again!

IronChefMorimoto
Click to expand...

No, I don't think I'm a freak about silent computing. My previous system (P4C 2.8 @ 3.36, Zalman copper cooler, with a BFGTech 6800 GT OC) was about 3 times as loud as this new one, and I put up with it for over 2 years. :D

Now that I think about it, the medium speed fans would probably not be noticable in my old system, which also included an 80mm Vantec Stealth (quite loud, again due to being a higher pitch than the other fans). It's only because the other fans in my new setup are so quiet that the Minebeas really stand out, and because of their higher pitch - almost a whine.

They move what I consider to be a "good" amount of air - they're definitely no slouch there.
 
I bought the middle tier 120mm Scythe fluid dynamic bearing model fan (see the link I posted above for models) on Newegg.com for about $19 shipped. Stupid rates on Newegg.com are going up and up.

Anyway -- it only slightly quieter than the Vantec. The Vantec had a "hum" going on that was more noticeable when screwed into my Centurion 541 mATX case. I kept the Scythe as the lesser of two evils. Relatively speaking, though, I think it's a quieter fan -- just not as quiet as I expected.

I'm holding off on getting 80mm Minebeas for the back of the case. Returned the Vantec Stealth and got a Vantec 3.5" drive bay fan controller (my 5.25" wouldn't fit in the tool-less case that I have) to manage the noise from my high-speed Panaflos in the back of my case.

Can I plug in my Zalman CNPS7700 120mm fan to the Vantec controller? Or will the motherboard freak when it doesn't detect any RPMs on the CPU fan?

Thanks,
IronChefMorimoto
 
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