Lither Posted June 1, 2016 Share Posted June 1, 2016 Hi all, I'm building a mATX 5820k system inside the Fractal Design Define Mini case but not sure whether to use SP or AF fans for front intake as the case has a door on the front of the fan which I think the airflow will be reduced a little bit? Also, should I use SP or AF fans for bottom intake which has a dust filter? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c-attack Posted June 1, 2016 Share Posted June 1, 2016 Assuming you intend to remove the middle deck of drive bays, either AF or SP style blade will work. As a general rule, you always want the AF fan unless something forces you to use SP. AF style blades will move substantially more air at the same RPM with less noise. The inlet door style is usually better suited for AF style blades, since they pull air in from the sides of the fan anyway. However, that mesh door "cover" is throwing me a little. I can't tell from photos if it is very restrictive. If it looks like the other front panel inlets when closed, then a SP fan might be more appropriate. The stock fan, like most 120mm fans, is something of a hybrid between the two blade types and offers a compromise. An SP fan does better with direct active cooling or when you need to run a low speed fan with some level of resistance. A SP style fan would be better in the lower deck if you intend to put drives in that spot or want to keep the speed low. Rather than maximizing air flow, you want a slow stream of air to displace the heat around the drive. This isn't a fan you ramp up to high speed. If you use a side door fan, it again could be either, depending on purpose. If you need to directly cool something on the other side (hot GPU, PCI-E device, etc), a SP fan will focus the air on that spot. If you wish to increase your intake air supply of air, an AF will do more with less noise. Something like an M.2 drive responds dramatically to direct cooling. I don't which x99 mini you intend to use, but if there is an M.2 drive in the plans, you will want an SP fan blowing air across it from either the front intake, side, or bottom, depending on board mount. It can be as much as a 10C difference in normal operating temperature. Top fans (if intended) are almost always better as AF style. The goals is to move a lot of air quietly. The same goes for the rear exhaust, although there are some unique situations with a X99 where a more focused fan will aid in cooling some of the left side board components (heat sink, memory). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lither Posted June 1, 2016 Author Share Posted June 1, 2016 (edited) Assuming you intend to remove the middle deck of drive bays, either AF or SP style blade will work. As a general rule, you always want the AF fan unless something forces you to use SP. AF style blades will move substantially more air at the same RPM with less noise. The inlet door style is usually better suited for AF style blades, since they pull air in from the sides of the fan anyway. However, that mesh door "cover" is throwing me a little. I can't tell from photos if it is very restrictive. If it looks like the other front panel inlets when closed, then a SP fan might be more appropriate. The stock fan, like most 120mm fans, is something of a hybrid between the two blade types and offers a compromise. An SP fan does better with direct active cooling or when you need to run a low speed fan with some level of resistance. A SP style fan would be better in the lower deck if you intend to put drives in that spot or want to keep the speed low. Rather than maximizing air flow, you want a slow stream of air to displace the heat around the drive. This isn't a fan you ramp up to high speed. If you use a side door fan, it again could be either, depending on purpose. If you need to directly cool something on the other side (hot GPU, PCI-E device, etc), a SP fan will focus the air on that spot. If you wish to increase your intake air supply of air, an AF will do more with less noise. Something like an M.2 drive responds dramatically to direct cooling. I don't which x99 mini you intend to use, but if there is an M.2 drive in the plans, you will want an SP fan blowing air across it from either the front intake, side, or bottom, depending on board mount. It can be as much as a 10C difference in normal operating temperature. Top fans (if intended) are almost always better as AF style. The goals is to move a lot of air quietly. The same goes for the rear exhaust, although there are some unique situations with a X99 where a more focused fan will aid in cooling some of the left side board components (heat sink, memory). Thanks, I will use SP fans for front intake however what about bottom intake which has a dust filter? I don't plan on using a M.2 drive as I prefer SSD drive. Edited June 1, 2016 by Lither Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c-attack Posted June 1, 2016 Share Posted June 1, 2016 Choose the fan for the bottom slot based on your need for air supply. 1) If you are going to fill those bottom racks with HDDs, get an SP fan. SSD's typically do not require any active cooling unless you are a heavy file sharer and you could choose either. 2) If the drive area is not blocked, you can use an AF120. This will move more air with less noise into the case, however at the lowest possible RPMs the SP fan would just slightly more because of the filter. The filter restricts the airflow for both fans, but it only really matters if you are trying to actively cool something on the other side. No one likes loud, noisy fans, but if you are a strict minimalist and go to great lengths to make sure your fans are at the lowest speed possible at all times, the SP might be the better choice in most places. In that situation, you are giving up total airflow for a smaller, more focused flow in specific areas. One way to think about these two fans is compare them to house fans. The AF is your ceiling fan. It moves a lot of air across a wide area. If you stand below it at low speed, you get a gentle breeze. If you're hot, you need to crank it up to feel cooled. The SP fan is your desk fan. It moves less air than the ceiling fan, but when you are hot, all you need to do is put in front of your face you feel instantly cooled, even when it is at a lower speed. However, it won't do much for moving air about the room. I would recommend the SP120 Quiet Edition for use as a case fan. Anything more than 1500 on an SP is going to be loud and the QE will give you an even lower possible speed than the Perf. Ed. for quiet desk work. The only exception to this would be on a radiator. I imagine you are going with liquid cooling, since stuffing a larger air tower in a mini can be borderline impossible. Whatever you buy should have it's own pressure optimized fans, similar to an SP120. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alise Posted December 18, 2019 Share Posted December 18, 2019 My sister bought AF fans and she is satisfied with the purchase :) ordered here http://www.partzstop.com/ She said that this fan is gorgeous cooling tower! SHe has been dreaming of if for years. It is whisper-quiet and unobtrusive, while pushing out a lot of airflow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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