Choosing the Best 120mm Radiator Fan: Testing Eight Fans with Corsair's H80
by Dustin Sklavos on August 23, 2012 12:01 AM ESTTest Results
Before we get into the performance results, a refresher: all eight fans on one chart for comparison. Note that if we're not taking noise into account, the highest static pressure fan should theoretically be the best performer. Our H80's fan settings are also only active with the stock fan; all others run at the full twelve volts.
| Fan | Airflow (in CFM) | Static Pressure (in mm/H2O) | RPM | Rated dBA |
| H80 Stock | 46-92 | 1.6-7.7 | 1300-2500 | 22-39 |
| SP120 Quiet |
37.85 |
1.29 | 1450 | 23 |
| SP120 High Performance | 62.74 | 3.1 | 2350 | 35 |
| SilverStone AP121 | 35.36 | 1.71 | 1500 | 22.4 |
| BitFenix Spectre Pro | 56.22 | 1.24 | 1200 | 18.9 |
| Nexus Real Silent D12SL-12 | 36.87 | 1.2 | 1000 | 18 |
| CoolerMaster SickleFlow 120 | 69.69 | 2.94 | 2000 | 19 |
| NZXT Performance | 47.27 | 0.95 | 1300 | 25.35 |
As far as static pressure goes, most of these fans are hanging out in about the same neighborhood. Acoustically, only Corsair's SP120 High Performance and stock H80 fan are even rated to go above the noise floor of our sound meter, though it's clear the stock fan is designed to move heat as fast as humanly possible. Let's see how all of these theoreticals worked out in practice, though.
Ambient temperatures ranged between 24C and 26C, and the margin for error in results is roughly 1C.
Thermally, if we ignore the H80's stock fan, the SickleFlow should've eaten the competition alive, but as it turns out CoolerMaster's specifications were more than just a little optimistic, as it was hands down the worst radiator fan we tested by a wide margin. If we organize the fans by rated static air pressure, they'd rank from best to worst: SP120 High Performance, SickleFlow 120, SilverStone AP121, SP120 Quiet, BitFenix Spectre Pro, Nexus Real Silent, and dead last, the NZXT Performance. As it turns out, though, only the SP120 High Performance really performs in line with its specifications; the rest just bunch up while the SickleFlow 120 is clearly the worst.
So how about acoustic performance?
Well, at least CoolerMaster's fan is quiet while it cooks your processor. To get that great thermal performance from the SP120 and H80 stock fan, though, you're going to have to put up with some noise. Note that these are load noise readings; the H80 stock fan idles at or below our sound meter's 30dB threshold at Low and Medium settings while sitting at 34.3 dB at High.
Interestingly enough, despite having among the worst rated specs, NZXT's Performance fan seems to find the best balance between thermal performance and acoustics; Corsair's SP120 Quiet does little to justify itself over the stock H80 fan. Corsair's engineers also turned out to be mostly right on the money: the H80 stock fan by and large seems to be the best choice, at least for the H80 itself. Its Low setting is competitive with the other fans both thermally and acoustically, while its Medium setting is competitive with the SP120 High Performance fan. The High setting is essentially unnecessary.
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softdrinkviking - Friday, August 24, 2012 - link
Sanyo Ace has wide range of fans, some of which are optimized for noise.w w w . sanyo-denki.com/sanace.aspx
mantikos - Sunday, August 26, 2012 - link
Sanyo Denki has fans that are damn near silent to leaf blowers...and in either category they are the best. Although a little hard to find.I have a Sanyo Denki hooked up to my radiator and I can tell you this thing is awesome!
Beenthere - Thursday, August 23, 2012 - link
...this type of testing doesn't provide much useful data as the results are only applicable to the hardware tested, i.e. the exact PC case, CPU/cooler, and peripherals as installed in this particular PC case.The advertised airflow and static pressure mean absolutely NOTHING unless tested under the exact same industry standards by one source, on the same test equipment all at the same time. In addition how these fans actually perform in real use can be completely different than the advertised performance specs as the case/cooler/peripherals ALL influence the fans performance.
The reality is the only way to determine how any fan will actual perform in your PC is to test it. Chances are you won't find much difference between the top 5-10 fans that operate at approx. the same speed and with similar airflow, so you might as well just pick the one that makes you happy and forget it unless you want to test for entertainment purposes.
prophet001 - Thursday, August 23, 2012 - link
Akasa Viper PWM fans is the best one I've used.Noctua is good but they don't have the ability to output high CFM when necessary.
Narg - Thursday, August 23, 2012 - link
I love that case, other than it's only ITX. Does anyone know if there is something similar in a Micro ATX or any ATX for that matter?C'DaleRider - Thursday, August 23, 2012 - link
Go to Xtremesystems, liquid cooling sub-forum, then the testing sticky. Inside you'll find Martin210's test of over 50 fans tested on a Swiftech MCR-120 rad. Further testing on higher density finned rads are also there, conducted by Vapor.Sad this site tried to do with 8 fans what has been done with 50 fans, and counting.
SantaAna12 - Thursday, August 23, 2012 - link
Nice! I was ready for something straight ahead. I would like to see the Noctua included too. I own some, and found that them to be noisy. Coolermaster slapped down! Hardly a big surprise there....you get what you pay for....mostly. I ended up using Nexus....but would like to see a better cfm flow option that is truly quiet. Good review!996GT2 - Thursday, August 23, 2012 - link
Why was the Gentle Typhoon line (especially the AP-15) not tested?The AP-15 is one of the go-to fans for radiators. Not only does it have good static pressure, but it has a very acoustically pleasing noise characteristic.
maximumGPU - Friday, August 24, 2012 - link
I got an GT-AP after after all the praise they got, and i was underwhelmed. They push a good amount of air but i certainly didn't find their noise "acoustically pleasing".I hoped for better.
Of all the fans i tried, the best so far has been the TY-140 from thermalright.. But they're 140mm and look hideous.
996GT2 - Friday, August 24, 2012 - link
In my own testing the AP-15 @ about 1800 RPM sounded like my FDB bearing Scythe S-Flexes at about 14-1500 RPM. The AP-15 is inaudible to me at ~1000 RPM from a normal distance.