iCUE H115i ELITE CAPELLIX Liquid CPU Cooler Fans run slow

[DustyBlue]

I recently purchased the iCUE H115i ELITE CAPELLIX Liquid CPU Cooler, and the fans are supposed to run at 2000 RPM max.  But I can only get them to run ~ 1750 RPM max.
I don't expect them to run at 2000 RPM, but maybe +/- 10% at the worst.  And I find it hard to believe, both of the fans that came with the cooler bad... 
Can someone please set my expectations on these fans?

Thanks!  

[c-attack]

It’s the resistance of the radiator and case paneling that causes the lower max speed. 2000 +-10% is the free air measurement. 1750 is a touch lower than I would expect, but they may be related to the case. Where are they mounted?  Top exhaust under the radiator?  Front intake?  Glass or mesh case paneling?

 

You can make a rough guess as to impact by removing either the front or top panel and see what it does to speed. 

[DustyBlue]

The radiator is at the top of a 4000x case used as the exhaust.  I will run it again without the magnetic mesh as I don't remember taking note of the specific speeds when I had it off while installing it.

🤔

I may also remove one of the two fans and run it standalone to see how much the max RPM changes without all the resistance...  

Thanks.

[c-attack]

Dust filter + glass will do it. My recommendation is to remove the filter if you are running as exhaust. Not so much for the max speed, but that level of resistance also means you move less air at your normal run speeds and you take a big hit at low speeds.