Anartik.com’s Blog

This, for the most part, will be a living document that will periodically receive updates. Visit Anartik’s fan section for a wide variety of 12V computer fans. If you have any questions feel free to contact me through anartik.com. I’m not just a store owner peddling wares… I’m an enthusiast who builds systems and games.

Connection/Fan Types
2 pin micro: We sell a couple 40mm fans from Scythe that feature a 2 pin connector. These fans were designed to replace fans on some motherboard and video card chipsets and the plug may not fit all applications. These fans also come with a 2-3 pin adapter for flexibility.

3 pin Molex: These fans have a 3 pin Molex connector for connection to (typically) motherboard headers or fan controllers. The 3rd wire may be an RPM signal, rotor lock sensor or not be present. Wires 1 & 2 are power and are always present. We sell a few non-RPM fans that are wired with 3 pin Molex connectors. The rotor lock is compatible with all 3 pin connectors but is not really used in computer products.

4 pin Molex: The 4 pin Molex is a standard connector on power supplies. A fan using this connector has no RPM signal and is designed to run directly off the power supply. Often high wattage fans will use a 4 pin Molex (too much power for 3 pin motherboard header or most controllers) and may include a separate 3 pin connector with just the RPM signal(i.e. Delta 120×38mm AFB1212SHE). These fans may be referred to as 4+3 pin.

3+4: These fans come with a 3 pin and a 4 pin on the same harness.

4+1: These fans have a 4 pin Molex connector with a separate wire and 3 pin connector for RPM monitoring.

4 Pin PWM: This is a fairly new type of connector that you will find on most Intel LGA1366 motherboards (some may only have one for CPU + maybe one for chipset fan). It is also backwards compatible with 3 pin fan headers (with loss of PWM control). PWM stands for pulse width modulation and allows the motherboard or controller to automatically control the fan speed. This connector has 2 pins for power, 1 RPM and 1 PWM. You may also use a 3-4 pin adapter but you would need the non-hooded version. We currently sell a 120 and 92 model from Scythe. The new Scythe Mugen 2 also features a 120mm PWM fan. With the use of PWM Y cables you can chain up to 5 fans off one port. Fan controllers and PWM hubs are just starting to appear on the market.

Thermistor: This is not a connection type but rather a fan type. It means the fan has a small temperature sensor (thermistor) that adjusts the speed of the fan based on temperature and some predefined speed parameters.

Note: All of our fans come prewired but we also sell a full line of electrical connectors and adapters. We do not currently have any PWM connector products other than a couple Scythe fans in 92 and 120mm. I expect to stock some wiring products for PWM in the very near future.

Typical Fan Specs

MTBF: Is the mean time before failure which is the expected hours of operation before failure. This may be stated in terms of temperature i.e. the GentleTyphoon is MTBF 100,000hrs at 35°C or 60,000 hours at 60°C.

Anti-Shock Ability: The fan is somewhat durable and able to withstand some shock i.e. being dropped.

Connector: 3 pin, 4 pin or PWM

Cable Length: Length of the power cable

Dimension: Size of the fan. Computer fans are square but the dimension is usually noted as i.e. 120×120x25mm. The last number is the thickness which is usually 10/15/20/25/38.

Speed: How fast the fan spins (RPM). Usually stated at 12v DC but some fan manufacturers may stretch that number using something in the 13V range. Some thermistor or PWM fans may express RPM as a range i.e. 200-2000RPM. There is almost always a variance of ± 10% and fan sizes are stated in metric millimeters.

Air Flow: The amount of air the fan will move at full speed i.e. 110CFM (cubic feet per minute). This is one area that is not metric although many manufacturers also state air flow in terms of liters per minute or hour.

Noise Level: This is the amount of noise generated in decibels i.e. 28.0 dBA. This is a very controversial measurement because some manufacturers cheat or just plain lie. There is a standard way of measurement but many deviate. While a good indicator of noise it does not tell the whole picture. Different brand fans tend to have their own characteristic sounds from motor and blade design which may or may not be palatable to your ears.

Current: This may be stated as Amps (A), Watts (W) or both at 12V DC. A power supply will handle any 12V fan but what’s important is whether or not the fan headers on your motherboard or fan controller will without burning out the header (refer to motherboard or controller documentation for maximum wattage). If you need both numbers they are computed as follows.
Wattage: 12(volts) * amperage = watts. i.e. a fan labeled 1.1A = 12 * 1.1 = 13.2 watts.
Amperage: watts / volts = amps. i.e. fan labeled 13.2 watts = 13.2 / 12 = 1.1A

Bearing Type: There was a time when no self respecting enthusiast shop would sell a fan that was not ball bearing but the times have changed. Basically fans are either ball bearing or sleeve. There is room for deception with “ball bearing” and a true ball bearing fan is often referred to as two ball or double ball. This means both sides of the motor use ball bearings. A single ball usually means only a ball thrust bearing has been used and the other side is sleeve. Traditionally double ball fans offer longer life spans and better performance with more noise. Sleeve fans used to be the cheaper fans with less performance and lower life spans because the sleeve wears out. Panasonic (Panaflo) was the first back around 1999-2000 to sell a performance fan with reduced noise that used a sleeve bearing. They accomplished that by floating the sleeve in an oil bath which pretty much eliminated wear and reduced noise by eliminating ball bearings. They have continued to evolve and Panaflo is now made by NMB and of course Scythe became popular selling fans with the similar SONY Fluid Dynamic Bearing technology. These quality fans offer better performance to noise ratios and long life spans. In the Scythe S-Flex series they have carried it several steps further integrating a suction magnet that optimizes the magnetic force balance within the rotor to achieve silence and linear drive IC for reducing electromagnetic noise. The Nidec Servo GentleTyphoon uses double ball with a special motor and rotor design for reduced noise.

Fan Blades: Blades are made of a variety of plastics and vary in the number of blades from 3-13+ and vary in design. While any blade can be broken I would comment on Panaflo’s. Panaflo’s use a very high density, very hard and very fragile blade. When the fan is running ANY contact with the blade is nearly for certain to break or shatter blades. They are very good fans with that weakness.

Green: This phrase carries well intentioned meaning in energy conservation but has been misused and become just another marketing buzz word. Some companies try and ride the hype and sell green fans which, for the most part, are just low performance fans which use less power. Show me a performance fan with reduced power consumption and we can talk. You can make this comparison yourself… divide the CFM of the fan by the wattage or amperage and see how much CFM you get per watt or amp.

Aluminum: We carry Evercool fans which feature a solid aluminum frame. The struts for the motor are plastic and the blades are chromed plastic. They are certainly not the classic all aluminum Panaflo’s from back in the 80-90’s but they are a good mainstream fan. You pay a little more for the aluminum frame which is really more about bling than anything else.

LED: These are designer fans that vary with 3-6 colored LED’s (depending on size). To accent the LED’s the frames are usually clear or colored plastic. The plastic may also be UV reactive (glows under black light).

UV: These are designer fans that are made from UV reactive materials (glow under black light). Colors are usually red, blue, green and some purple, orange etc. These fans may also feature colored or UV LED’s. Red has always been a problem and there are few real reds. Many fans advertised as UV Red vary from looking hot pink to orange under UV. Without UV the fan color may vary from the same hot pink to orange.

Noise Reduction: Fans can vibrate and/or noise can be amplified by case contact or poor mounting. We offer silicone gaskets for fans and power supplies that isolate your fans from direct contact with the case. Doing so can eliminate vibration and dampen noise. Cases with thin or poorly constructed panels (particularly thin aluminum) are more prone to vibration issues.

Fan guard/filter: We sell chromed wire fan guards and fan filters. The guards protect your fingers and the fan from breakage. The filters provide the same with the added benefit of dust filtration. We sell a 3 piece model which has an easily cleaned foam filter and we have the wire mesh type. The wire mesh type is more attractive but requires removal from the fan to fully clean (or you could vacuum or blast it on the fan). These all attach with 4 standard fan screws.

Fan mounting: Case fans usually mount using four fan screws. There are also rubber screws that pull through the fan, locking push pins (both coming soon) and other means dreamed up by case manufacturers. In the case of a CPU cooler the mounting is usually by screw, wire clip or fan holder. Rubber gaskets may be placed between the fan and case to reduce any vibration that may occur.

Conclusion: On a subject I will talk about in more editorial detail later… Don’t fall prey to all the deceptive marketing going on these days. For Anartik.com as a whole I try and follow a simple rule of not selling anything I would not use myself. Some simple math will give you an educated view of what you are buying. Divide the CFM by dBA to see just how much flow you get per unit of noise or CFM by wattage to see efficiency. Sticking with well known established brands like Scythe, Nidec, Sunon, Delta, Panaflo, Noctua, NMB etc. will generally provide you with quality and reasonably reliable specs. Don’t get sucked in like the scandal going on over at the Egg place with grossly overpriced SilenX fans that were marketed with unbelievable dBA specs that appear to have been grossly and deliberately understated, by the manufacturer, with poor quality to boot.

Jim Phillips
anartik.com
Copyright Anartik.com 2009