Corsair ML120 PRO LED Fans Review

Testing
Plugging the fans into a 6 channel controller, we found that all six start right up and all the LEDs work right away as well.

Corsair ML120 PRO LED Fans Corsair ML120 PRO LED Fans

Speaking of the LEDs, while they do a pretty good job of illuminating the rotors, this lighting system never seems to be very vivid. The effect is decent, but don’t buy these thinking they will work as your solel source of illumination, at least not if you want any level of clarity inside the case. This could be for a number of reasons, but partly it’s because the light just doesn’t travel out into the blades well. Mostly it stays trapped in the center of the rotor.

Corsair ML120 PRO LED Fans

Now having said that, they do indeed have a nice color and work well as lighted accent pieces.

Corsair ML120 PRO LED Fans

And no doubt they mount up easy and so long as your rig matches one of the three colors, look great sandwiching your favorite radiator.

Corsair ML120 PRO LED Fans Corsair ML120 PRO LED Fans Corsair ML120 PRO LED Fans

Initially we ran these fans off a standard six channel fan controller. While we were easily able to control their speed we found that they were a bit noisy. It turns out it is due that the fact that not only are these fans four pin PWM, but they actually require a PWM power source. The design of the motor, using magnets to levitate the rotor, means that the fan needs a constant 12V power source. Standard fan controllers lower the input voltage to control speed while PWM does not. So it’s very important to note, you MUST use a PWM connection to power these fans. Keep that in mind when you are considering how many fans you will need and where you will get power for them.

As for performance we did a little practical testing that you should take with a grain of salt. Using a custom ThermalTake water loop we ran Intel Burn Test with the processor locked at the stock speeds for ten runs on the Very High setting. For comparison we first tested the Tt Riing fans included with the kit at their performance setting; here are the results:

Ambient temps: 22.22°C/72°F
IBT temps one pass Very High memory: 67°C/152.6°F core average

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We then repeated the test with the three ML120 PRO LED fans set to their lowest setting:

Ambient temps: 22.22°C/72°F
IBT temps one pass Very High memory: 70°C/158°F core average

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And again for their highest setting:

Ambient temps: 22.22°C/72°F
IBT temps one pass Very High memory: 67.75°C/53.95°F core average

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Within our very small test group you can see that the temperatures are all very close, but unfortunately the Thermaltake fans are did just slightly better. The good news is that the Tt fans are excellent and with results so close you can’t really choose one over the other based on .75°C.

In addition to the small fan shootout, we also shot a couple of short clips demonstrating the change in volume and pitch of the ML120 PRO LEDs through it’s whole speed range. While this is not as specific as using a decibel meter there are a couple of things to note. Overall this a very pleasant sounding fan. The gentle whooshing is more pleasant and smooth than harsh and electrical. Meanwhile at the top end they really are quite noisy and we have believe Corsair’s claims about pressure and volume are at least close to accurate. Pointedly, they move a lot of air. Certainly while they are set to max they are pretty loud. At this setting even with PWM power we found that one of the fans exhibited a persistent tick. When set at a more balanced fan speed they behave quite nicely. We absolutely give them 10/10 for noise!