Performance Testing

Please refer to the dedicated test setup page here as it applies to this review as well and I did not want to go over it separately again.


Given the fan has two different RPM modes, the first thing to do was to map them out to see what differences there are. We know that P mode has an RPM range of 500-2000 RPM, and here, we see that the fan had a PWM control range of 488-1954 RPM, which is well within the 10% standard deviation I allow. The PWM duty cycle here was 30%-100%, which is fine and ended up being the exact same for the fan in Q mode as well, where the RPM range of control was 464-1178 RPM, which too falls within allowed error margins. With a sample size of one, it is also not prudent to draw any conclusions for the fan's entire RPM range. However, based on the lower minimum RPM, it does seem likely that an in-line resistor is being used to reduce the RPM range. The linear RPM response for both modes is also nice to see.

The fan was then set to P mode, and then to the specific RPM values below to record fan noise and airflow through the radiator. Context is needed to talk more about the fan's performance and noise, so I have below comparison charts for some fans tested so far at set RPM values (or as near as they can get to those).


I have included fans in charts where the rated RPM is within 50 RPM of the chart's cutoff point, which means that some fans are in specific charts only if their rated speed is over 50 RPM off from a threshold value (Corsair SP120 RGB, for example) or they simply do not slow down enough (NB-eLoop B12-4, for example). Similarly, the specific RPM values chosen reflect usage scenarios most popular with watercooling, even though some fans (this very FHP141, for instance) go higher. The charts are to be considered for a comparison within this result set only and are not to be compared with results from another test elsewhere owing to different testing conditions.

I had an expectation about where this fan would lie in both the relative noise and airflow charts, and it ended up not surprising. This is a one-off addition to these charts simply because a 38 mm thick 140 mm fan just pushes everything else aside like a powerhouse by being in a different class of fans altogether. This fan pushes a lot more air through the radiator than any other 25 mm thick 120 mm fan (pretty much everything else tested so far), which comes with more airflow noise as well. The relatively better airflow is higher than the noise increment, so overall, this shows that no matter how good the fan bearings or rotor/frame design, physics and brute force via increased dimensions will trump both easily.