So you’re putting together your all out custom build. You’ve got the best processor, motherboard, memory, GPU, and case you can buy. Now is the time you’re going to have to start thinking about fans and cooling. Whether it be air or water, you will need fans. This is often forgotten till the end, and this item is crucial to bringing all those bits together and helping them to perform to their fullest. While there are many options when it comes to choosing fans, it is very important to be selective in order to get the right fan for your configuration as well as a good quality fan. Today we are going to be taking a look at a broad selection of 9 fans from one of the most lauded fan manufacturers, Noctua.
Special thanks to Noctua for providing the fans for today’s review.
Features
Although we are looking at 9 different fans, they are all very similar in their design. The variations between them being their intended uses.
Notable differences and similarities include:
– The PWM fans are all equipped with Noctua’s NE-FD1 PWM IC which integrates their Smooth Commutation Drive technology found on all the other fans. What this means is that even in a PWM situation where the motherboard is automatically adjusting fan speed when needed, there is a controller in the fan itself that controls the inputs and reduces noise from switching inconsistencies. While the Smooth Commutation Drive technology on all of the fans regulates and reduces torque variations and switching noise
– All fans feature either Flow Acceleration Channels, or Anti Stall Knobs. Both of these work to ensure that the air is flowing smoothly over and off the blades.
– All fans feature the AAO frame.
– All fans feature the improved SS02 bearing and most feature a metal bearing shell as well.
– All come with a 6 year manufacturer warranty.
– All fans have integrated anti vibration pads.
– All fans come with 3 or 4 pin extensions most come with adapters from their proprietary adapter to molex for directly connecting to a power supply.
Some fan specific features include:
– OmniJoin Adapter Set on the 40mm fan allowing it to be attached directly to the proprietary fan headers.
– The ULN (ultra low noise) fans all come with adapters to change the fan speed to 800 or 600 rpm without a controller.
Packaging
Each fan comes in a roughly standard sized fan box. They feature a double flip panel. one on front the other on the back. These panels include all the product features as well as some diagrams explaining the technology employed. The front of each box has a silver sticker denoting the fans best use in most cases.
The sides of the boxes are simply white with the Noctua names on top and a band of purple with the fan category printed there.
The very back also features the technical specifications of the fan within. Pulling the fans from the box they are held in formed plastic trays. They are a two piece design with the bottom tray having sections that hold the accessories and a top piece that goes over the whole bottom tray to hold everything in place.