Drin

Glad to hear that you've decided on the Mugen 2! To be honest, I have had no experience with the mugen, and thats why I did not mention it in my previous list. I do believe however that you can mount it either horizontally or vertically out of the box, going by the pictures I've seen. And its a pretty darn good cooler from what I've heard as well, just make sure to get the Mugen 2 and not 1!

And many of the stats on fans are made up, and sometimes even outrageously false - I learned this the hard way. Trust me, I just bought another $170 USD of fans after having already invested probably $100 USD on fans (check out the For Sale section). After having used many a different type of fan, and having read up extensively on the subject here's what I've found:



Scythe Slipstreams are ok, and they move a decent amount of air for the noise volume that they output. Keep in mind however that they lack static pressure as they are only 120x25x25 (thick) fans, where you really want 120x25x38 (thick) fans for instances that require static pressure such as a cpu cooler. Slipstreams may also die quicker if you leave them in a horizontal position in the case, due to their bearing type.

Scythe S-flex fans have a better, fluid type bearing which makes them quite durable and very quiet. A good choice if you are looking for low-noise cooling options, however they provide lower CFM than other alternatives out there. Still 120x25x25, so once again they are not very effective as cpu coolers.

Scythe Ultra Kazes are 120x25x38, and offer good static pressure for the price. They cool pretty darn well, and are widely available. However the 3000 rpm version has a dBA of ~46 when spinning at full speed, and many people have a problem with this level of noise. You can always hook them up to a fan controller, however many people find that they whine/make ticking noises when done so. Mine have not so far, and I know of at least one other person who does not have a under-volting issue, yet most do. The 2000 rpm version does not having under-volting issues as far as I know. Good cpu cooler fans, they are a popular choice for heatsinks as they are widely available and reasonably priced.

Noctua fans are similar to the S-flex fans in that they offer excellent performance for a near whisper quiet level of noise. However the actual amount of air they push is limited as a result of being so quiet, and are aimed towards people who really want quiet setups. If you need performance, you'll have to look for higher cfm/dBA options.

Xigmatek fans, while usable as case fans, have made up stats and move less air than rated. 120x25x25.

Antec TriCools are decent, and widely available at most stores/countries. The TriCools have the ability to be set at three different speeds out of the box with a little switch attached to the fan, and this is desirable for some. This allows the fan to be set at low/medium/high speeds. Also come in a variety of LEDS options if that suits your fancy. Quite pricey for the amount of air they move however, and not really cost effective for most - better options are usually available in terms of performance for the cost. 120x25x25. Some people find they are too loud when set at high speed, but most do not have a problem with this (and you can always set it to medium/low anyway).

Yate Loons from Petra's tech shop or Jab-tech.com offer the best bang for buck fans available. Cost effective, yet they perform well and quite often there are discounts for buying them in bulk. Be warned however that some Yate Loons are of high quality, while some are considered to be 'fake' yate loons, depending on where they are made and subsequently the store that sells them. Petra's tech shop is considered to have the best YL's available, and people say that JAB-tech sell good YL's as well. Some come with LEDS as well, if you are going for that route.

Panaflo fans are of higher quality, and definitely one of the highest quality brand fans available. Harder to find than Ultra-Kazes and more expensive, they generally have more accurate stats and greater static pressure. They also do not have under-volting issues for most, so there will not be any whining/ticking noise while connected to a fan controller. At 120x25x38 dimensions, they offer great static pressure and are awesome cpu coolers.

San Ace 1011 fans are generally considered to be the best fans available by many, short of Deltas. At 120x25x38 they are once again great cpu cooling options, and its interesting to note that many actually report their stats to be underrated - they actually move roughly ~110 cfm of air instead of their rated 103. They can be very expensive however, and can be very difficult to find. They do not whine or tick when under-volted, and typically have very long life expectancy. I just purchased 8 of these in one go from CyberDruid because they are hard to obtain, and near impossible in my country. He still has some for sale if you are quick, however they are probably too noisy for your needs unless you have a fan controller (same goes with the ultra kaze, and panaflos)

Delta fans are the extreme cooling options available for the enthusiast community, and generally not useable for practical applications for the vast majority of people. CFM and static pressure are king here, as deltas are generally used for server type configurations, and not for the home PC. Some delta models have a dBA of roughly ~60 - that’s as loud as a vacuum cleaner next to you, 24/7. 3000 rpm kazes can draw blood/hurt you if you stick a finger in them while moving, but generally you'll be just fine. The very extreme Deltas however can actually lop off fingers or come close to it, so you have to be very careful there. 120x120x38 models are the ones people generally look for, however you can get models that are 120x120x50mm or even thicker (I believe) for the most extreme air cooling there is.

120mm SilenX fans are generally regarded to be complete garbage by most on this site, although I have had no personal experience with them (avoided them). They do definitely have made-up stats.

And the last thing to consider when looking for fans for your cpu cooler, is to consider push/pull configurations and shrouds. This is when you have two fans on your cpu cooler working in combination, with one fan pushing air onto the cpu cooler, and one fan pulling air off the cpu cooler. Best done with 120x25x38mm fans, although it'll help with 120x25x25mm fans as well. Keep in mind however that you wont see a huge decrease in temps, depending on the cpu cooler and type of fans used. That is to say that adding a second fan for push/pull setups will not be twice as effective; in reality its only a few degrees at most, ~5 in the most extreme of circumstances and even thats unlikely.

Shrouding is the process of gutting another fan to help add more static pressure to 120x25x25 or 120x25x38mm fans, while also eliminating the spot of 'dead air' that exists behind a fans motor.

Here's a picture of the setup I have, which may help explain visually what I mean:



The clear fans behind the black 120x25x38 fans I have on the cpu cooler are shrouds, and the fans are in a p+p configuration.


In terms of cases, both the antec 300 and 900 are good cooling options. The 900 will cool a bit better, however also be slightly dustier. Also note that if you buy an antec 900, that you should buy the 900 version 2 (sometimes called the Antec 902). It has holes for cable management, which many cite as the biggest flaw of the antec 900 revision 1.

While a case upgrade will lower temps for your overall system, keep in mind that the most effective way to lower your cpu temps would be to invest in better quality fans, in addition to better quality fans for your case.

Also, high-end quality air setups will actually beat out low to mid-range water cooling setups. The setup I have going actually beats out a few WC setups that my friends have. The high-end water cooling setups will beat out high-end air setups, however note that it will also cost a lot, lot more. And while most water setups are quieter, the extreme water cooling options still require high RPM/dBA fans for the Rads, which will still be loud. IMO, and this is opinion it is not really worth investing into a WC system unless you are going the whole mile - they are more difficult, require more effort, cost a lot more, and can be dangerous when upgrading if you do not know what you are doing. That said, the high-end WC setups offer incredible cooling when done right!


Phew! Hope this helps, this post took a while to type! Good luck once again with dropping your temps/getting a good OC, remember if you have any advice you can always ask us here! There's some great oc guides/advice in the AMD section for your cpu OC as well!

edited with the fix on push/pull from bob, was tired and I didn't type it out right - cheers! That is how I actually have it setup as you can see in the picture, I just had a silly moment and typed it up wrong.

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redalert

Drin's fan summary is very accurate.

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Simca

Wow. That's a great and length post! Thanks for taking your time to tell me all about it. ~Breathes in~

So...

Now I'm at crossroads.. I'm looking at the Antec 900 Two..

It is quite pricey really..but I suppose my concern is how future proof is it? I'm pretty sure it's good at cooling (I won't need to replace the stock case fans on it right?)

The 300 is nice and cheap, but not many are fond of it according to reviews. Also not all that flashy and cooling isn't great..don't really wanna' spend money for something cheap and crappy again.

I also don't want to spend 170 for an Antec 1200..

Ebay doesn't have good deals neither..in fact newegg pretty much destroys all ebay prices (double u tee eff (wouldn't let me abreviate?) is ebay for nowadays? they don't have deals!)

Wish I could find the 900 two for cheaper than 120/30 or whatever..

Still unsure about the whole thing..the options would be to either 1)Change fans on current RaidMAX Tornado (POS) case for better cooling or to upgrade to an Antec 900 two. What's more worth it? Money is a factor in the decision, but cooling quality is also important.

I'm looking to OC to 3.9ghz or so.

(Also that cpu cooler is ENORMOUS!!!!!!!! I don't think I want aaaaaanything like that!)

skugpezz

like this?

redalert

Upgrading the fans in your current case isnt worth it since it has 1 120mm fan and 2 80mm to get any decent airflow in it your gonna have to put some really powerful fans in it. Upgrading to a better case would be a better option with alot less noise.

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Drin

Thats a good point which I forgot to mention, cases can only house a certain number of fans/fan sizes depending on the model and manufacturer. The only way around this as stated by Redalert would be to either buy a new case, or to mod your case if you feel comfortable doing it.

Myself, I have no problems with taking a drill to my case, so I prefer to upgrade fans over buying a new case - as long as your fans stay alive, you can always move them to a newer case should you feel like upgrading later!

However, looking at your case, Redalert's advice is spot on. If you are not going to mod your case, you would get better performance from buying a new one, as the amount of air that you are moving through it would be limited.

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Simca

LOL! Is that rubber bands around your cpu cooler!? That's so ghetto! I love it.

Thanks for opinion on the case, btw. I guess I'll shove out another 130 bucks for the Antec 900 Two.

Now...what to do with this POS case... Maybe I'll go to a playground and throw it off the top of a tall slide.

Could toss it out of my sunroof while speeding down the high way...

warcloudff

They are right. Another good case is the coolmaster Haf 932 case which has a lot more to offer than the 900 or 900 II. Which isn't much more. But for a case upgrade should really ask yourself what you really want in a build as in final or temp upgrade. And what type of hardware you wanting to use.

The Haf 932 case is around 129 to 159 bucks features tool less / tool designs and can have water cooling. The fan setup is top 230mm fan, side 230mm fan, front 230mm fan, and 140mm fan rear. Has good cable management. + hole on the mobo tray for heatsink brackets. All fans are red LEDs but the side / top fans can be replace with 120's which is up to the user.

But you really need to ask yourself what you want out of your computer. To figure out the best case or anything for your computer.

Simca

I just want my temps to be cool really. Having it look flashy is nice too. I haaaaaaaaaaaate refrigerator looking computer cases btw. I would also prefer a window on the side of my case, but it's not really all that important.

If I could keep my idle temps in 30s with my cpu overclocked to 3.9ghz I'd be happy as pie...or whatever.

Oh yeah, and for it to be pretty quiet. I don't want a vacuum next to my ear.

redalert

make sure to record that nothing better than watching stuff get destroyed

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