# How loud is too loud for fans?



## SmokinWaffle

Voted.


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## badatgames18

anything over a medium hum is too loud for me..


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## CorsairGeorge

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *badatgames18;13049632*
> anything over a medium hum is too loud for me..


This is tough, because what you define as "medium hum" and what I define as "medium hum" could be completely different.


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## Sir Amik Vase

Why is there not an option for "Nothing is too loud."


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## Cryptedvick

anything that's louder than a kaze at 2200RPM is too loud already.


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## Jen

sounds are different from each fan , its hard to say what rpm is to loud. as one fan at one rpm is more quiet than another fan at same rpm.

Jen


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## caraboose

It depends greatly on the application of the fan...
I know for servers I used to deal with at work, they were quite loud, but it was an acceptable, and homey hum/whine... And my home server, the fans are quite loud too, but that's acceptable since it's a server, and servers aren't supposed to be quiet.

HTPC's on the other hand, should be quite quiet..

I'd really just love to have a fan that moves a mega ass-ton of air, while being quiet, and cheap (much like the Zalman F3's, but quieter, and more air)


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## Woned

Other - My fan is currently at 3200rpm and it doesnt bother me although I do hear it a bit. Id say 3500rpm


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## frizo

It naturally varies from fan to fan and application to application, but 1700rpm or so is about the maximum I personally find tolerable for daily use.


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## taintedmind

2000+ rpm tends to sound awful.

Funny thing, the fans that came with my H70 doesn't sound so bad, even though everyone says they're horrible. :/
My cooler master 2000 rpm fan however... oh my god, like an engine, yuck!


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## AblueXKRS

Depends on the size, orientation, location, and use of the fan.

A 180mm fan at 2000 RPM would be incredibly more loud than a 120mm fan at the same speed.


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## BababooeyHTJ

I could live with my 1250rpm Yate Loons but given the choice I even turn those down. I like my computer as close to silent as possible.


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## Traches

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *caraboose;13051712*
> I'd really just love to have a fan that moves a mega ass-ton of air, while being quiet, and cheap (much like the Zalman F3's, but quieter, and more air)


I want a v10 Lambo that gets 40mpg... And I don't wanna pay more than $30k for it.


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## XiCynx

In my opinion, no fan is to loud for me. I have headphones and a noise cancelling mic. If i am playing something then good, I can't hear the fans anyways. When I go to sleep computer in the same room), the fans keep a nice hum to fall a sleep to, if I had quiet fans it would be hard to sleep.







In saying that I have 4 Scythe Gentle Typhoons AP-31 5400rpm's going full 12v 24/7.


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## cavallino

My 120 mm 3000 rpm scythe kaze ultras are just about as loud as I am willing to go.


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## GlockZoR IV

Loud enough to hear it when I'm wearing headphones.

Seriously, I use deltas, I don't care about noise, as long as it doesn't disrupt the use of headphones, its cool, my friend uses a Modular 1200W PSU, and 300W of that powers his 5K+ Deltas, If you turned his Beats all the way up, with the sound deadening mode on, you can still hear his PC, it's audible over his 2X z-550's.

That's when loud is too loud.


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## Willanhanyard

Anything over about 30Db is too much for me.


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## kyle7412

When my computer makes a low 'hum' noise. For example when I'm by myself in a quiet room, I can hear it. But when I'm with friends and talking, I don't hear it. That's how my computer is and thats how I like it.







The only fan I cannot hear at all is my PSU fan, so good job on that corsair.

I would have to say anything above 1600-1700rpm is too loud.


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## Alex132

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *AdmiralThrawn;13051816*
> Depends on the size, orientation, location, and use of the fan.
> 
> A 180mm fan at 2000 RPM would be incredibly more loud than a 120mm fan at the same speed.


Come now read the OP, he said 120mm fans you silly pony xD









I think that with all the 120mm fans I have owned 2000rpm with resistance is really loud (ie a fan-grill or HSF in front of it).
Lowering it to about 1500-1700rpm seems to be a sweet spot with noise/performance, but still need to get my fan controller to do it properly








(using speedfan currently to do that)

I would say the fan on its own 1700rpm for 120mm would be perfect. But then going to 140mm and getting 1500rpm is not only quieter but also pushes more air. This could only really be done in cases though.

Also like the guy said above me I have to put my ear right against my PSU before I can even hear it


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## jach11

i dont think anything is "TOO FAST". As long as it does the job needed im fine with it. I dont care about Db.


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## goshawn

As a person who wants the best cooling-noise ratio - here's my recommendation for a baseline to measure against.
For Radiator Fans, a Gentle Typhoon Ap-14/15 against a rad, 1400RPM is perfect, and anything over 1850RMP is too much.
For a non-rad case fan, using the scythe SFLEX S-FDB 1200rpm is perfect and above 1600RPM is too much.


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## the_beast

Noise levels are dependent on what your doing - if my PSU (which I assume this is about, unless Corsair are gonna produce fans too) makes any noise at idle then it annoys me. But if I need more power (either gaming, computation, etc) then I don't mind more noise.

Also I'm not sure what fans you've been testing, but I notice a MASSIVE difference between different fans at the same speeds, so speed is definitely not the only variable you should consider.


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## SpeedNuggeT

Depends on the noise.

For example.

AMD stock cooler makes a a sort of high pitched noise that punctures through my headphones.

My 6870 at 100% fanspeed is LOUD, but it makes a deep rumbling.

I can tolerate that.

Corsair, depends on the noise. on non bearing i'd say 1200rpm. my 1800rpm GT15s are near on silent. But my 1200RPM stock antec fans are terribly loud and don't push nearly as much air.

Imo you should also look at static pressure rather than RPM.

Also corsair if you make a full tower revision of the 800D, with a front 200mm fan and 200mm fan at the top, i'll buy it.

you can call it the 850D


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## AyeYo

This kind of stuff is way too subjective. There are lots of people here that think 1850rpm AP15's are loud, but I find them to be nearly silent.

Personally, I think over 2000rpm is the where 120mm fans start to get a little loud. Coolermaster R4's are around 2100-2200rpm and they're definitely audible from outside the room. Slowing them to ~1800rpm quiets them up significantly.

Noise is also heavily affected by airflow obstacles. A 2000rpm, 120mm fan in open air makes a gentle and easily tolerable whooosh noise. Put the same fan pulling through the slats on the side panel of the case and the noise becomes much higher pitched, louder, and thus very obnoxious.


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## Kahbrohn

There is no way to answer that question unless you actually listen to the fan(s) in action and the conditions under which certain fans are used. I recommend to everyone to "listen" to Martin's fan review thread. Place your system volume between 25-50% (depending on sound cards and speaker system) and you should have a fairly good representation on how each fan sounds.

I have 6 Yate Loon High Speed's on my radiator. Most people say that's too loud. I find them to be perfect. Granted, they are not spinning at 100%. I have them on a duty cycle between 50-60% depending on CPU temp. That translates into maybe 1100-1500 rpm. I find this quiet as can be. I can hear them but to me it's quiet. My wife on the other hand said to me the other day that when I had them on 70% that that was very quiet. I couldn't stand them at 70% and therefore concluded she must be hard of hearing and that explains why she never listens to me. Now, I'd love to have 6 GT-15's on my radiator but two things prevent me from that... money ($16 avg. per fan vs. $3.60 per YL fan) and availability. They are simply not available right now.

You base the poll on RPM. That's hardly fair of a comparison for the poor little fans. Blade construction is a big factor in noise. Motor's and (maybe even more importantly) bearings used as well. Last but not least... fan size also makes a difference. Just as a side note... I have heard fans at 2000 rpm that are quiet as can be and I have owned fans that at 1600 are noisey buggers. A 120mm x 120mm x 20mm Yate loon medium speed fan makes more noise than a 120mm x 120mm x 25mm medium speed Yate Loon if I set them up to obtain the same rpm.


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## Amann

well a 60mm fan at lets say 60dbl is gonna be much more annoying than a 120mm fan at 60dbl thats for sure, Im usually only worried about the pitch of the hum/noise the fan makes... if its too "hair dryer" like its annoying, but if its like a big window fan its completely tollerable







my take on it...


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## MrTOOSHORT

I voted 1300rpm and up, although if there was an option for 1450rpm and up, then I'd choose that.


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## Letmekilluplz

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Amann;13060075*
> well a 60mm fan at lets say 60dbl is gonna be much more annoying than a 120mm fan at 60dbl thats for sure, Im usually only worried about the pitch of the hum/noise the fan makes... if its too "hair dryer" like its annoying, but if its like a big window fan its completely tollerable
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> my take on it...


I agree with this guy. I don't mind hearing my fans as long as they are a nice soft sound. If the start sounding like a jet engine or start whining. then thats where the problem is


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## PCSarge

if corsair makes some nice rad fans and sells them seperate ill gladly buy them

i sleep 3 feet from my pc, if i have my R4s over 1450 rps at night, its too noisy, but during the day, -1560 ish rpms are tolerable (this is for the two fans on my rad, my case fans are all silent 1000rpm 200mms


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## badatgames18

Quote:



Originally Posted by *CorsairGeorge*


This is tough, because what you define as "medium hum" and what I define as "medium hum" could be completely different.


if it's louder than this:

woooooooooooooooooooooosh

then it's too loud.

Ex. if it sounds like this:

vroooooooooooooooooooooom

it's too loud.


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## PCSarge

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *badatgames18;13060154*
> if it's louder than this:
> 
> woooooooooooooooooooooosh
> 
> then it's too loud.
> 
> Ex. if it sounds like this:
> 
> vroooooooooooooooooooooom
> 
> it's too loud.


i lol'd so hard


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## Concorde105

I run the fan on my GPU at 100% all day and the fans on my laptop at 6K RPM, so as long as I can cover it up with the sound of my radio when falling asleep, I'm fine


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## windfire

My personal preference is around 1500-1700rpm. 
So, I voted 1700rpm.


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## Thogar

i would rather have more cooling performance/airflow than being annoyed by a woosh tbh.
besides my computer is not 2 inches from my head


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## Rommel

This is sort of a silly question. Ive got a fan in the front of my case that has like ten fins and spins at 900rpm, and it pushes roughly the same amount of air as my back exhaust fan that has 4-5 and spins at 2000, theyre both almost identical in noise output, the only difference is the ten-fin is a deeper hum.

I see a closer correlation between CFM and noise output than RPMs and noise personally.


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## crazyap7

I think it's going to be difficult for you to get an answer based on RPM. For example, my only experience has been GentleTyphoon AP-15s, which run at 1800RPM very, very quietly.


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## Zap

Quoted these two:

Quote:



Originally Posted by *CorsairGeorge*


This is tough, because what you define as "medium hum" and what I define as "medium hum" could be completely different.



Quote:



Originally Posted by *AdmiralThrawn*


Depends on the size, orientation, location, and use of the fan.


That's the exact thing. It varies from person to person, and also from fan to fan, and location to location, etc.

Heck, it can also vary with the same person! Me, for instance! Couple years ago I was working on my Master's degree and I needed my system to be really quiet. Thus, I kept 120mm fans at around 800RPM or less. Since then, I'm fine with 120mm fans at 1200RPM since I don't need the silence anymore.


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## Bandrew

I would have said 1200RPM was a decent level before but now that I'm trying to silence my computer I would have to say 1000RPMs or less. I'm going to a very quiet machine. If it wasn't for a quiet machine then I would say around 1400-1500RPM would be a good range.


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## SpeedNuggeT

I have a idea corsair.

Make your fanspeeds variable on the fly.

Then you can keep everyone happy


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## Tralala

I dunno, my tower sounds like a jet engine,
I accept that loud noise is the price I pay for mega oc performance

besides, who cares when youre gaming loud anyways?


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## SpeedNuggeT

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Tralala;13066157*
> I dunno, my tower sounds like a jet engine,
> I accept that loud noise is the price I pay for mega oc performance
> 
> besides, who cares when youre gaming loud anyways?


I do.


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## AyeYo

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Tralala;13066157*
> besides, who cares when youre gaming loud anyways?


Seeing as how this is the _silent_ computing section... lots of people.


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## 4.178343

I'm a silence fanatic... my Antec Tri-cools running at 1200 rpm really annoy me.


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## PCSarge

corsair should make a kit, with 3k rpm fans that are high quality, along with a nice corsair fan controller to accent it (something that looks like the kaze master pro) that way everyone gets what they want 4 fans, and thier own choice of speeds


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## the_beast

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *PCSarge;13068804*
> corsair should make a kit, with 3k rpm fans that are high quality, along with a nice corsair fan controller to accent it (something that looks like the kaze master pro) that way everyone gets what they want 4 fans, and thier own choice of speeds


and their own choice of frying their equipment if they turn their PSU fans down too low as they don't understand what they're doing...


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## purpleannex

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Woned;13051763*
> Other - My fan is currently at 3200rpm and it doesnt bother me although I do hear it a bit. Id say 3500rpm


What?! Are you deaf?
Quote:


> Originally Posted by *goshawn;13052194*
> As a person who wants the best cooling-noise ratio - here's my recommendation for a baseline to measure against.
> For Radiator Fans, a Gentle Typhoon Ap-14/15 against a rad, 1400RPM is perfect, and anything over 1850RMP is too much.
> For a non-rad case fan, using the scythe SFLEX S-FDB 1200rpm is perfect and above 1600RPM is too much.


Er no. My 850rpm single fan cools my cpu to run at exactly the same overclock as when I run it at 2500 rpm.
Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Thogar;13060282*
> i would rather have more cooling performance/airflow than being annoyed by a woosh tbh.
> besides my computer is not 2 inches from my head


See above, why do you "need" all this cool air? Maybe you need a better case?
Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Rommel;13060449*
> This is sort of a silly question. Ive got a fan in the front of my case that has like ten fins and spins at 900rpm, and it pushes roughly the same amount of air as my back exhaust fan that has 4-5 and spins at 2000, theyre both almost identical in noise output, the only difference is the ten-fin is a deeper hum.
> 
> I see a closer correlation between CFM and noise output than RPMs and noise personally.


This. If you have a fan that doesn't push much air then you'll have to crank it up more.
Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Tralala;13066157*
> I dunno, my tower sounds like a jet engine,
> I accept that loud noise is the price I pay for mega oc performance
> 
> besides, who cares when youre gaming loud anyways?


Mega overclock performance?

PMSL!!!!!!!!!









Your signiture says 3.8Ghz...

I don't know how anyone can stand fan noise above the audible range, as others have said, the tone of the fan is paramount to this.


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## evermooingcow

Depends on application.

For movies and music 1000 RPM is bordering too loud. I would say 800 RPM is the sweet spot.


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## B!0HaZard

Idle ~600 RPM
Games, music ~1500 RPM


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## Alex132

I run the top 3 fans in my 800D at 50% (1200rpm) and then the stock Corsair fans always at 100% (900rpm, dead quiet so no point in under-volting) My 2 Push/Pull CPU fans are the worst, my entire build is so quiet, the Artic Xtreme is *dead* silent but then the dual CoolerMaster Excaliburs make like 35Db and ruin it all








I would say in future Corsair should provide a fan controller with all their cases, its not that much money but it can make all the difference.


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## BlackHoleSon

I have a 2500RPM fan on my heatsink and a 2000+ RPM fan on my side panel. No big deal.

I'd say 3000+ RPM, but it depends on the fan and its quality.


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## Behemoth777

Personally, anything over 20dba is too loud. But my computer is in my room and I don't like to hear it when I sleep. If it was in a different room, I could probably do like 30dba.


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## Thogar

Quote:



Originally Posted by *purpleannex*


See above, why do you "need" all this cool air? Maybe you need a better case?


I have a HAF 932, it's just that... the fans don't seem to really push anything and it makes me feel like it could of been better.
but seeing how the case itself has ventilation everywhere i guess it doesn't matter


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## Trogdor

Anything over 1600 RPM is too loud for me to keep running at that speed. I currently have mine running at 1100 RPM.


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## djsi38t

My machine is loud when I am stress testing,but it doesn't bother me at all.I would say at least 2500rpm 120mm before I consider it too loud.I actually find the whoosh of air kind of soothing.Wow whoosh is a word...lol.


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## B3RGY

depends, theres fans that are 2500 rpm+ and are only 30-35 dBa


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## Mr Bear

Keeping your pc cooled is what is really important. Stock fans from a TT Big Typhoon work great for case fans. I have a couple in my server. And depending on the fan the flow/dba will vary. Not all fans are created equal, higher flow/lower rpm fan will be you best bet. If you had a fanless cpu/gfx card setup, the BT fans wold be your best bet for flow/db.


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## 102014

IMO, if i can hear it from more than 1m or 2m away its too loud.


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## Serephucus

Assuming the fan is of reasonable quality - enough that the motor is basically silent from a foot or more away, and all we're talking about is air movement - then anything above 700RPM is too much for me. I can put up with more, but if I were building a silent rig (which I will be next month) I wouldn't go above 700RPM.


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## 3dfxvoodoo

it can never be to fast
if I had to pick 6000


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## alwang17

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *3dfxvoodoo;13329142*
> it can never be to fast
> if I had to pick 6000


Delta fans?


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## Smoblikat

My blademaster is a 120mm 2k RPM fan and its WAYYY quiter than my 1700RPM fans, so i say 35DBA+ is too loud.


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## 3dfxvoodoo

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *alwang17;13329148*
> Delta fans?


yup


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## BlackOmega

I think basing it on RPM is a bad way of gauging it. Some fans even at 3500 RPM will be quieter than others at 2500RPM. My old Tornado 80mm fan would be a perfect example. At 3500 RPM it barely got louder than 30dB. However my 120mm deltas @ 3500 rpm get to about 40+ dB. Although, that Tornado @ 6500 RPM got to 60 dB. Which is WAY too loud.

At any rate, I voted other. Anything over 35-40dB is too loud. Ideally, a fan should at or below 30 dB to be tolerable.


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## B NEGATIVE

its too loud when the fan comes with an afterburner....


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## pez

I voted 1700, because 1600 RPM is a sweet spot for me.


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## HAVO

i lol at all of you guys who say nothing its too loud, love delta fans, games with cans at max volume, etc..

enjoy the loss of hearing overtime.. =)


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## hick

Quote:



Originally Posted by *HAVO*


i lol at all of you guys who say nothing its too loud, love delta fans, games with cans at max volume, etc..

enjoy the loss of hearing overtime.. =)


They are the people that do not know how to tell which subforum they are looking in obviously snce this is "Silent Computing".
But if I can hear it more than 3 feet away it is too loud for me.


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## Crouch

Honestly i don't care whether the fans are loud or not, i just care about keeping my PC cool & game all night


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## spaceballsrules

I have my S-Flex and Noctua fans all on 7V restrictors, so they run at 1000-1100 rpm, and I think that they are still too noisy, so I voted for 1000 rpm.


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## 222Panther222

For me it's about 2000rpm, but also when you have many fans that can create a "resonating frequency" this i can't stand.. I already had 3 kaze3000 at full rpm in my case no fan controller and i'm sleeping very close to my pc, i successfully sleep 2 nights but it was so freaking loud that i had to put it to sleep, but normally i can sleep very well with an antec tri-cool(that replace the kaze now) at medium..


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## 3dfxvoodoo

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Crouch;13332218*
> Honestly i don't care whether the fans are loud or not, i just care about keeping my PC cool & game all night


delta sounds right for you


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## Scrappy

@CorsairGeorge The 120mm fans for the H70 are to loud, I dropped on some cooler master fans and the noise drop was considerable.


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## nawon72

40Db+ is too loud for normal use.
Less than 30Db is good enough.
30-40Db only when gaming, or doing something else that blocks out the noise.
All the above is assuming i just hear wind noise.
Quote:


> Originally Posted by *3dfxvoodoo;13337215*
> delta sounds right for you


If he can afford it. They aint cheap.


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## Lostintyme

For a power supply which I can't control, I think 30dba would be my max. Coolers I think also 30DBA and cases 20DBA.


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## TheLombax

1700RPM for me. I hate the whiney noises of little fans and hate lots of airflow noise too. It kinda gets on my nerves. :/


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## Coldnapalm

The cooler the better i dont care how loud it is since 2004 ive been keeping my tower in the hallway and running the wires under the carpet into my room to my monitor, keep my room cool to !


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## unimatrixzero

When the Neighbors start complaining about the Jets going over the house ... That is usually the time that they are too loud.


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