4 x Brand New Yate Loon D12-SL12 - all "Clicking"

blackworx · Post by **blackworx** » Mon Mar 31, 2008 1:31 pm

As the title suggests, I just bought 4 D12-SL12's brand new and they all exhibit what I consider to be a nasty clicking noise. It gets quieter at low Volts but never fully goes away as long as each fan is turning.

I'm planning on getting replacements, but just wondered if anyone else has experienced this? They were from chilledpc.co.uk and came in a bubblewrap bag - could such clicking be caused by the package being roughly handled/dropped in the post?

Post by **NeilBlanchard** » Mon Mar 31, 2008 2:50 pm

Hello,

Is your controller a PWM (pulse width modulation)? these cause many fans to click; not just Yate Loons. Try them with straight 5v (from a Molex plug). If they are quiet, then you may want to use a Zalman FanMate 2 instead of your current controller.

blackworx · Post by **blackworx** » Tue Apr 01, 2008 12:55 am

This is with a Sunbeam Fanbus, so the problem exists with pure DC

Das_Saunamies · Post by **Das_Saunamies** » Tue Apr 01, 2008 5:03 am

All four could've been dropped as a package, sure, but I'd still try a second controller just to verify compatibility - or just run the fans off mobo headers for a change. The odds are just too low for all four to have an identical fault.

Did you orient the fans horizontally or vertically, individually or all together? In theory sleeve bearings should be oriented only vertically. If all exhibit symptoms in the same exact spot, there might a loose wire there, either hitting against a case panel or the fan blades themselves; I once had a rattle that turned out to be a loose molex drumming on my side panel.

jhhoffma · Post by **jhhoffma** » Tue Apr 01, 2008 6:29 am

I have a bunch of Y/L 80mm medium speed fans that I bought for an old case (80mm intakes and exhausts). After dumping the case I tried reusing the fans in other situations, running at 5v, both blowing up. Of the 4 fans I had, only one was completely devoid of any clicking, which I put in my htpc. One was minimal (went on a VF700), and the other two were unusable in a quiet system.

yamahaSHO · Post by **yamahaSHO** » Tue Apr 01, 2008 8:59 am

My YL's started to develop a click, so I traded them out for some 1,200 RPM Slip Streams and I am happy with the change from just about aspects (except they are more expensive, although still very reasonable).

blackworx · Post by **blackworx** » Tue Apr 01, 2008 9:12 am

Thanks for replies folks

Das_Saunamies wrote:Did you orient the fans horizontally or vertically, individually or all together? In theory sleeve bearings should be oriented only vertically

Vertically, and with a few different voltage sources - Fanbus, mobo, direct connection to PSU and even a plain 12V transformer borrowed from an old scanner. I just tested them one by one sitting on my desk and also holding in my hand, so no chance of wires/plugs etc. rattling. One of them is slightly worse than the others. The clicking is definitely the fans and is coming from the rotor hub. Very strange. I suppose it must be transit damage or even a dodgy batch, since Yate Loons have such a good reputation, but this is my first time buying them so I wasn't sure if it was a known issue with some batches.

yamahaSHO wrote:My YL's started to develop a click, so I traded them out for some 1,200 RPM Slip Streams

I was thinking of going the same way - possibly getting S-Flexes. I would get Noctuas but the colour scheme really doesn't agree with me or my build

yamahaSHO · Post by **yamahaSHO** » Tue Apr 01, 2008 11:14 am

In my experiences with the newer Noctua's, you don't get what you pay for.

blackworx · Post by **blackworx** » Tue Apr 01, 2008 11:51 am

yamahaSHO wrote:In my experiencs with the newer Noctua's, you don't get what you pay for.

I've heard that elsewhere too. I also know that a good proportion of the price we pay goes towards for the oh-so-smooth sales pitch, marketing and packaging. I'd personally rather that money went on making an even better fan.

Austrian Institute of Heat Transmission and Fan Technology indeed... Funny, I can't find any website or info for this supposed institute that has no reference to Noctua

Das_Saunamies · Post by **Das_Saunamies** » Fri Apr 04, 2008 5:19 am

In light of this I'm aboard the S-Flex train for my next build. Good info!

jhhoffma · Post by **jhhoffma** » Fri Apr 04, 2008 6:50 am

blackworx wrote:Austrian Institute of Heat Transmission and Fan Technology indeed... Funny, I can't find any website or info for this supposed institute that has no reference to Noctua

Yeah, I think it's one of those creative "institutes" that consist of people from both Kolink and Rascom talking about creating quiet fans. Two groups of people studying the same principles? Must be an institute...

morpheus · Post by **morpheus** » Fri Apr 04, 2008 7:49 am

Are your fans the same as those tested by SPCR? I got 2 D12SL-12s in Greece which have different blade design (see pic) than the YLs and Nexus pictured here and both make a clicking noise. The fans have closed flanges.

http://amorgos.csl.mech.ntua.gr/YateLoon.jpg

blackworx · Post by **blackworx** » Sat Apr 05, 2008 3:20 am

Yes mine had that blade design.

I now have the S-Flexes. After some reading of reviews and forum posts here and elsewhere I went for 1,200rpm over 800 - apparently the 800's are not very consistent. The 1,200's are very nice indeed - a bit "wooshy" at 12V (nothing obnoxious) but at 6/7V they are nice and quiet.