Recommendation: Slim fans for AIO?

1

1_rick

Supreme [H]ardness
Joined
Feb 7, 2017
Messages
5,392
I bought a Corsair Obsidian 250D and an NZXT Kraken X52 this weekend, and it turns out that the radiator+fans are too wide for the case. I like the cooler, though, and I saw some pictures of people with really small cases like the ncase m1 who used slim fans, so I was wondering if anyone has recommendations for fans that would fit in the case, provide adequate static pressure/airflow, and still be quiet.
 
No question - Noctua NF-A12x15PWM.

There are several slim fans with satisfactory to good ratings for pressure and airflow. However - they're all fairly similar in that for a given RPM, they can only generate a certain amount of static pressure.
Personally, I've used Silverstone FW121 which are fine, but not particularly great in terms of noise. It would be a stretch to say they're noisy but they're nothing special.

Some others you might want to have a look at:
Rosewill / Akasa - These are the same fan as far as I can tell.
Scythe Slipstream - This comes in several versions as far as RPM
Prolimatech Ultra sleek vortex - There is also a 140mm version that has 120mm mounting holes if you can fit it in.
Raijintek Aeolus Beta - I've seen these used in an M1 build before
Gelid Slim fan - Either in UV or non UV with PWM control

Potentially a better solution is the Deepcool Gamerstorm which has a 20mm thickness.

But personally I can only rave about the Noctua NF-A12x15PWM. I'm not even a Noctua fanboy but they were a huge improvement over the Silverstone fans. In terms of RPM they are far more stable and they are quieter at all RPM's. I don't have a scientific way to measure their static pressure but subjectively they seem to push more air at lower rpms. Given the price, I'd go for the Deepcool Gamerstorm if you have the room - you can't beat a physically deeper fan blade section after all. But if not, then the Noctua is by far the best slim fan.
 
As an Amazon Associate, HardForum may earn from qualifying purchases.
Thanks! I'll see if I can measure the width available to see if the Gamerstorms will fit, but I'm not sure--regular 25mm fans are about 2mm too narrow, and that's not counting the space taken up by the screws, which are pretty much even with the motherboard, and are another 2-3mm deep.

Looks like that Noctua might be fun to get in the US--Amazon doesn't seem to have a listing for it, nor does Newegg.
 
The Kraken is set up to run long screws through both mounting holes of each fan. Upon reflection, I bet if I used short screws I could trim off enough of the housing to make the mobo fit. I've even got a cheap spare 120mm I could sacrifice to the cause.

If the noctuas are better/quiet than what the kraken came with it might be worth buying the better fans and trimming them down, too.
 
The Noctua fans are available directly from them from their ebay store. They use DHl so their shipping is nice and quick.

As for whether the slim fans can compare - it's not very likely. Unfortunately, even the best slim fan can't compete with a full thickness fan for pressure.
 
Chapeau said:
whether the slim fans can compare
Click to expand...

Oh, my bad, I kinda mixed two concepts there. Probably will go for the 15mm Noctuas. But if 25mm fans, cut down, would fit, Noctua ones maybe would be better than the ones that came with the Kraken. Since the computer's running right now I can't check to see what they are.

Looks like the Noctuas on ebay are about $20, with $9 shipping, which isn't bad, so I'll probably just try that. Thanks again.
 
I hear good things about Thermaltake Luna 12. (I don't have any experience with them myself)
You can buy them off of amazon.

But, all in all, I would go for the noctuas.
 
I'll just reiterate in case something got lost in translation.... The Gamerstorm fans are 20mm, not 25mm. So you might be able to get away with them instead of cutting up your fans. Pressure will be better than the slim fans although I can't say I've seen many reviews about these. They're such a niche product....

Will be nice to see your completed build though! (y)
 
20171026_223041.jpg
Well, here's the externally-mounted radiator fans, for your delectation. I didn't do anything with the cables, as they're only there temporarily.
 
I love the Kraken. It works great. But the mirror is so fragile that wiping the glue residue from the clear plastic protector scratched it, and I just used a regular washcloth.
 
Ok, I went with the Prolimatech fans, because the eBay store for Noctua only had one in stock.

I had to take the waterblock out to rotate it, as the cable will block the new fans where it is now. Here's a link to an imgur album showing the TIM. (Posting on mobile and don't feel like figuring out the right way to post inline.) Does this application look too thin?

https://imgur.com/gallery/XD2pU
 
Great, now, what about that TIM application. Should I have used more?
 
Guh. Anyone know the measurements of the screws the Kraken uses? The kit supplies 5mm-length screws for mounting the radiator to your case, and 30mm-length screws for mounting the included fans. Those are too long for the replacement fans--I guess I need a 20mm version.

I guess I could take one to Loew's or something tomorrow and see if they can match it. They're the same thread pitch, or whatever you call it, as motherboard standoffs, because the 30mm screws will screw nicely into a standoff.

Edit: case screws are #6-32 x about 1/4 inch. Should be able to pick up 20mm versions at a hardware store.
 
Dremel is your friend - I've cut down so many radiator screws for my thick and slim rads I don't want to imagine what a PIA it would have been to try and source all those individual lengths.
Also some heavy duty cable cutters / stripper can also manage most screws for computer case sized diameters.
 
Turns out #6-32 × 3/4 inch are nearly perfect, and Lowe's was only a ten-minute drive.

Pictures!
20171118_191157.jpg


Look at all that clearance!
20171118_213816.jpg
 
Most stuff back in place. The excess cables are mostly put away in the drive bay area, and what won't fit is as neatly placed down lie in the bottom as I can get it.
20171118_230623.jpg
20171118_230659.jpg
 
The new fan mounting screws are brass. I'm assuming the radiator frame is aluminum, iron, or steel. Will galvanic corrosion be likely to be a problem?

Also, the first minute or two I put power back on, there seemed to be bubbling sort of noises coming out of the pump or maybe the hoses. I'm assuming that's from all the moving around. It quieted down quickly--that should be OK, right?

7 minutes of Prime95 blend test, 57°C tDie so far. Before that it was idling for a minute or two at around 24°C--ambient is 21°. This is at stock speeds, so 6 cores at 3700MHz. It seems to be fairly stable at 4GHz at 1.35V, but now that I have the case put back together I can do a longer stress test.
 
are you running water threw the screws? if not then corrosion shouldn't be an issue. :)
yeah the water noise should get better as the air settles into the top of the rad. aios always have a tiny bit of air in them.
sound good on temps. last time I looked at the new thin fans the were all very very close to the output of full sided so the difference should be negligible.
 
4GHz @1.375 + 2666 RAM, average temp is around 66 after 45 minutes in Prime95; high was 72.5 (so far).
 
4 1/2 hours, it never went above 73.5; HWInfo64 reported an average temp over the time period of 68.
 
You ain't gonna see those temps on a regular basis, so you're good. Nicely done!
 
I saw those but I was looking for the PWM version because the AIO came with PWM fans.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top