X-bit labs

Roundup: 11 Fans for Two Super-Coolers and One System Case (page 7)

Category: Coolers

by Sergey Lepilov

[ 04/07/2008 | 07:35 PM ]

SilverStone FM121

We have already tested liquid-cooling systems and air coolers from SilverStone. Now it is time to meet some of their fans. We would like to introduce to you three pairs of fans out of four manufactured under this brand name. The first model we will talk about is FM121, which is in fact a second reincarnation of the good old GlacialTech Silent Blade I series that many of you might still remember.

The fans are shipped in a large box of thick cardboard, with a cut-out window in the front panel reveling part of the fan to the user’s eye:

The detailed specifications of the fan are listed on the reverse side of the box. There are also its key features described in several languages. The fan comes with the following accessories:

Fan rotation speed controller, retention screws and wire grid protecting overclockers and their little ones from sharp fan blades. Stepless controller is designed as a panel that fits into the 3.5-inch system case slot:

We got our hands on a black panel, although the silver panel is also available.

Now let’s take a closer look at the fan. The frame and the fan blades are made of white plastic that is why these fans stand out among the competitors’ solutions:

The fans measure 120 x 120 x 25mm. I would like to specifically draw your attention to very aggressively curved nine blades:

…and to the fact that the fans are actually manufactured by EverFlow, according to the spindle sticker:

The original fan model is marked as R121225BU. The rotation speed of SilverStone FM121 fan can be adjusted from 800 (±80) RPM to 2400 (±240) RPM creating an airflow from 36.68CFm to 110.03CFM. The level of generated noise lies between 17 and 39.5dBA. The results of our in-house acoustic measurements are available in the corresponding section of this roundup. However, here I would like to point out that up to ~1400RPM the fan is subjectively very quiet (when the blades rotate at 1150RPM or less you cannot hear it at all). However, once the rotation speed rises beyond 1400RPM, the motor starts roaring, which then dissipates in the airflow noise at ~1600RPM or higher. I would also like to point out that the fan rotation speed controller is of pretty low sensitivity, because sometimes the fan rotation speed will not change at all even when the knob is turned.

It was a little discouraging to see that there are bushes in the retention holes:

In other words, you will not be able to use the retention clips of Thermalright or Noctua coolers to catch to the internal retention holes of these fans, while with Scythe coolers there should be no problem: the clips catch to the external holes there.

The fans are built with two frictionless bearings with specified MTBF of 50,000 hours at 25ºC ambient temperature. The cable with the fan rotation speed controller extension measures the record-breaking 900mm. SilverStone FM121 is priced at $14.99.