SPCR

Is there a significant difference in noise level between the Antec Tri-cool (running on Low) and the Nexus 120mm?

I got a new Antec Solo case, and my computer is fairly quiet, but the thing producing the most noise in this system I believe is the Antec Tri-cool mounted at the back of the case.

This antec tri-cool on Low is fairly quiet, but not super quiet, and I've heard the Nexus 120mm fans are the quietest, but I would like to know if there would be a big difference compared to my tri-cool and if it would be worth the extra cost.

In my SLK3000B I've compared Nexus 120 at 12V, Antec TriCool on low, Scythe S-Flex SFF21D, AC AF 12.
At 12V Scythe is the winner (at least for my ears ), but if you undervolt Nexus, AC or even Antec TriCool you're on par with Scythe at 12V noise wise.

Greetings,

These fans have been directly compared in the SPCR Fan Roundup #2. You can compare the recordings for yourself, and weight this along with what the author has to say about them.

I have both fans, and would say the nexus is the same sound as a tricool on low, but produces about the same airflow as a tricool on medium, making it a much more efficient fan.

doogiehowser wrote:Is there a significant difference in noise level between the Antec Tri-cool (running on Low) and the Nexus 120mm?

I got a new Antec Solo case, and my computer is fairly quiet, but the thing producing the most noise in this system I believe is the Antec Tri-cool mounted at the back of the case.

This antec tri-cool on Low is fairly quiet, but not super quiet, and I've heard the Nexus 120mm fans are the quietest, but I would like to know if there would be a big difference compared to my tri-cool and if it would be worth the extra cost.

I bought three Nexus 120mm fans thinking they'd be quieter than the Antec Tricools that came with my P180B, which were already pretty quiet, and I found I'd have to undervolt the Nexus fans to make them quieter than the Tricools on low speed.

question for you guys....what If you got a fanmate or any other fan controller, set it to 7 or 9v, and then set the tri cool on med ? would that make it work at like 3v ? would it work ? just a thought.

tima wrote:I bought three Nexus 120mm fans thinking they'd be quieter than the Antec Tricools that came with my P180B, which were already pretty quiet, and I found I'd have to undervolt the Nexus fans to make them quieter than the Tricools on low speed.

I agree with you. I also bought a Nexus thinking it would be quieter than TriCool. But TriCool is actually more silent at low setting than Nexus at 12V. According to SPCR measurements, TriCool is producing 30 CFM airflow at low setting and Nexus 47 CFM, so Nexus has clearly some advantage in that but with slight cost.

http://www.silentpcreview.com/article69 ... html#nexus
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article69 ... ml#tricool

I tried to put Nexus at 5V but it didn't start. Also, it would only blow 16 CFM (if it would start), that's too little.

So now I have put the TriCool back there, and I'm happy with that. Occasionally the TriCool is making some faint clicking sound though. Just this morning I thought I could still try the 7 volt trick for Nexus. It would blow 27 CFM (according to SPCR measurements) being totally silent.

My Nexus 120mm would not start at 5v. either. I put the Antec Tricool back in until I can find something else that will work. I am running a Zalman ZM-MFC1 and want to make sure that they all start at the minimum just in case my little helper (4yr old) helps by turning some knobs for me.

I did the 7 volt trick for Nexus and it became virtually silent. The airflow dropped too, now the mainboard idle temps are at 40-41 C degrees. But I guess it's not a problem.