omg!!! just installed my blowholes in preparation for watercooling. The 92mm vantec stealth fans which claim to be 20db are blatantly not!!! they are 25db at the very least!!! Closer to 30db if you ask me. I didn't expect them to be super quiet but the noise they emit just takes the p***. Just glad I paid peanuts for these fans. I am super pissed off, avoid vantec stealths unless you intend on undervolting them.!!
I agree. Even when not touching anything, they're off balance and relatively loud. As soon as they hit a case without a rubber dampener, just plain loud.
Best to check out http://www.dorothybradbury.co.uk/ or http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=130261 For really 'Silent' fans (however the 92mm and 120mm need a little undervolting) When it comes to silent fans you do need to undervolt for true silence unless you are going to spend £9-18 per fan (depending on whether its a 80mm or 120mm). Panaflo fans do not click or whine at low voltages and they have a great silence/airflow/price ration better value than any other fan you can buy.
I wholey agree with Awoken: Dorothy = wonderful for panaflo fannage. Id highly recommend her site. She posted on here for a short while too iirc.
Forgot I made this post, may not have been entirely sober Have a panaflo on my heatsink which is very quiet at 8V. Was just quite surprised that the stealths are the loudest thing in my machine, even when at 7V. They won't be staying in for long
/concurs My vantec stealth lasted about 10hours before it got whipped out. Tried various 80mm "quiet" fans in my shuttle, and the best I've found thus far is a chepo ys-tech "silent" jobby. Even the expensive noiseblocker s3 made an annoying hum which resonated around the shuttle cover.
I agree I bought a generic 120mm led fan to replace the 120mm "stealth fan" at lower speeds its quieter Xo
This is the problem, advertising is not entirely honest/accuratee inthe realm of silent computing. Moral of the story - Check out SPCR www.silentpcreview.com especially their forums, they'll give you the skinny on any products that you might be thinking of buying for their silent qualities