Sorry, didn’t mean to make a post out of this, was just trying to upload a photo with my iphone. Anyhow, since it posted, I may as well share and give an update since it’s been a while.
I’ve been busy moving the last 10 months or so for a new job and finally getting my garage back in order to start building again. Basically, got a new job, had to finish the old house remodel, sell most everything, rent out the old house, move to a temporary apartment while house hunting, and just finally bought a second home and moved in about a month ago. Moved to Bend, OR which is about 3 hours north of the old homestead and now living the life of my dream job. Still settling in, but finally feeling like I have some time to play again.
This is my custom framed two seater, 17″ of travel in front and 18″ in the rear. Motor is a GSXR600, Fox 2.0 air shocks. Designed and modeled the frame myself. Only 55″ wide (trail friendly), I wanted it to be capable of running through most trails at the dunes and also super light weight. Frame alone is only about 150lb, hoping the total buggy weight is under 7-800lb. Been building it for about two years now, little by little.
Here are some older build in progress pictures:
Full suspension compressed:
Of coarse I can’t just start building without a little science. Here is some of the earlier FEM analysis when designing the frame:
Chain drive rear allows more suspension travel for the narrow width. Modeled it after some truggy designs with the live jackshaft through the trailing arms.
And here are a couple of pics of the kids buggy I built before, still a bit of a work in progress but a cool toy for the kids to drive around. It has a 16hp 420cc industrial motor with a comet 500 CVT.
My better half and daughter testing out the kids buggy at CoosBay dunes.
Anyhow, nothing new on the liquidlabs front, but I am finally all moved and finished with remodeling my old house/renting it out. Time to start playing yet again.
Figured I’d start some tinkering on the buggies first then maybe do some more PC stuff this winter when the garage gets too cold. We’ll see..but that’s what I’ve been up to…moving…now playing with buggies.
When I stop to think about watercooling for a bit, I see two basic performance reasons why I like it . One reason is the performance of it, I can overclock higher than with air. The second and probably more critical to me is the performance per noise level. Perhaps I’m getting more noise critical in my old age, but listening to a vacuum cleaner in the background is not at all acceptable or what water cooling is really about.
I can test performance and log RPMs, but that’s really not apples to apples either. Some fans have stronger PQ curves at like RPM levels and there is also a large variety of noise quality differences. How a fan interacts with neighboring fans can be both good and bad and box specs simply do a poor job at measuring noise levels in an actual case/radiator condition. IMHO, a review of performance without a measurement of noise is no different than testing one radiator with 1800RPM and the other with 2700RPM and calling it a review. You can compare like RPM levels as a quick and dirty test, but that too is generally a poor measure since fan performance can vary by as much as 400RPM producing the same air flow. To do a review and comparison correctly, you really need to measure and compare noise vs dT or noise vs Core temp or some sort of constant. That’s what I’m attempting to do with this first noise testing phase. I am also retesting in a top case mount condition so all kits get a equal and fair condition.
I started this kit testing using the bottom mounting location on my Switch 810 however I encountered a problem when trying to install the H100i….the hoses are about 2″ too short. I’ve done enough testing to know you can NOT change the condition, no matter how small between tests. A simple thing like placing the case on carpet vs a hard surface is enough to throw results out by 2C, same goes for noise measurements.
So in an attempt to get a true apples to apples noise vs DeltaT, I first need to compare noise vs RPM and then in Delta T testing I can convert the logged RPM average to noise level.
Unfortunately, Corsair Link is not compatible with Windows 8, so my only means to control the unit at all was to use the PWM fans and control speed via speed fan. Corsair Link simply does not monitor or control anything H100i related if you are running windows 8 as of this testing which was a bit of a surprise to me. I believe Win8 has been out since last October so a good 5 months later, still no Win8 support. Oh well, it really didn’t bother me since the new kit fans do have 4pin PWM control. At least I could control fan speeds using the motherboard and speed fan, I just needed to use a PWM splitter.
Corsair H100i VIDEO
Swiftech H220 VIDEO
That is what I have so far, I will let your ears do the talking… As a place holder you may start and stop both videos to match up RPMs if you would like and simply play one, stop, then play the other back to back.
Corsair H100i Chart
Swiftech H220 Chart
RPM Comprarison
dBA Chart
For reference use this to compare to similar daily noise types:
Sound sources (noise)
Examples with distance
Sound pressure
Level Lp dB SPL
Jet aircraft, 50 m away
140
Threshold of pain
130
Threshold of discomfort
120
Chainsaw, 1 m distance
110
Disco, 1 m from speaker
100
Diesel truck, 10 m away
90
Kerbside of busy road, 5 m
80
Vacuum cleaner, distance 1 m
70
Conversational speech, 1 m
60
Average home
50
Quiet library
40
Quiet bedroom at night
30
Background in TV studio
20
Rustling leaves in the distance
10
Hearing threshold
0
Using the following chart for perceived noise level differences:
Perceptions of Increases in Decibel Level
Imperceptible Change
1dB
Barely Perceptible Change
3dB
Clearly Noticeable Change
5dB
About Twice as Loud
10dB
About Four Times as Loud
20dB
Top Mount Noise vs Core Comparison
While I only have the H100i for comparison at this point, this is how that combination of noise testing and thermal testing lays out. This is the meat and potatoes results as it pulls out all the variables such as fan performance vs RPM differences and compares a direct apples to apples noise vs performance.
And that plots out like this:
I’ve conducted a few different fan polls in the past before moving forward with radiator testing and typically the majority of watercooling users out there were using fans at about 1350RPM with a distribution that predominantly covers the 1000-1800RPM range. There are a few people that run higher speeds, but the vast majority are more in the 1000-1800RPM range. That makes sense as those speeds are only producing noise levels in the lower 40s dBA which is acceptable by most.
With that “Silence” preference in mind, the Swiftech H220 did outperform the Corsair H100i by roughly 2dBA at the 1350RPM mark, and about 3-4dBA better at the 1800RPM mark. The H100i does have higher speed capabilities, but at 60dBA you are approaching vacuum cleaner noise levels (70dBA). There are some users that don’t care about noise though, so I’ll leave it to you on what’s important.
For me personally, minimum noise level, dynamically throttling the noise and performance, and a smooth noise is priority. I find the H100i fans (like most high speed fans) to produce quite a bit of motor noise and there was quite a bit of harmonics between the two fan RPMs that generally produces a poor noise quality. The H220 helix fans are for the most part fairly smooth and the sound quality blended in well with my other fans. That’s not to say you couldn’t replace the kit fans with something better, but in spirit of testing kit vs kit, the H220 is king of silence (minimum noise level) and better at like performance levels by 1-4 dBA over the H100i.
Ever since doing pump top testing for the DDC series pumps, there was always some thought that gains from the DDC tops was larger in part (vs D5 tops) due to the sharp and small elbow at the pump inlet in the factory top that is removed. In addition, past testing of aftermarket tops with alternate inlets also showed some rather large losses when using those alternate elbow inlets. Which brings me to this fairly simple test of a single DDC pump + top using Bitspower 90 degree elbows and straight barbs as the variable.
While I didn’t request a sponsor specifically for this test, I did use some parts sponsored from a long time ago. The top was provide by XSPC many years ago. This is the king of DDC pump tops that I tested back here in 2008. I have tested other newer tops and have yet to find one that outperforms it on a like DDC motor. It has a fairly typical thicker top with a reduced inlet opening so I figured it represents the DDC tops out there fairly well.
Bitspower also sent me the elbows many moons ago when these handy little swivel elbows first came to market. They have the same quality barb and have a larger 10mm or so. The internal transition is not quite a smooth radius, but it’s a fairly large diameter which makes a big difference. These elbows are exceptionally nice and easy to use with the swivel feature.
So, the mission of this test, do modern 90 degree elbows like the larger 10mm ID bistpower swivel 90s create a significant loss on pumps when installed directly on the pump top itself?
We shall see…
Test Setup
The obligatory test setup picture, below is during the straight in and straight out configuration:
I am using:
Mastech HY3005D DC power supply to regulate voltage
Cen-tech P98674 Digital multimeter to read molex plug voltage
Crystalfontz CFA-633 + WinTest B1.9 to monitor and smooth RPM
Dwyer 477-5 Digital Manometer to read Pressure Differential across the pump
King 7520 (Valved) to measure flow rate and adjust restriction
The large reservoir bleeds out the loop almost instantly, I simply swapped out the barbs for elbows in the other conditions.
Detailed Test Results
Straight In and Straight Out
Elbow In and Straight Out
Straight In & Elbow Out
Comparison
That’s not quite what I expected. I had expected the inlet side to be the bigger loss than the outlet AND I expected the losses to be much larger than that. While you can see upwards of a 30-40% pressure loss at 1.5GPM using aftermarket pump top alternate inlets with their tiny little drilled passageways and close proximity to the impeller, the larger ID bitspower 90 degree elbows and more distant proximity is not affecting pump performance very much at all on this particular pump top. I think the reduced diameter inlet built into the top probably straightens out the flow pretty well and we are mostly just measuring restriction added. Some of the DDC tops such as the MCP35X likely have more impact, but there isn’t much showing when the inlet has a step down diameter after the elbow.
In an earlier elbow testing experiment here on blocks, I found this same elbow to have roughly .15PSI loss at 1.5GPM and in this test I’m getting around .1-.2PSI loss depeding on the location, so pretty close.
That data is fairly good for this discussion as well, so for those that like speaking in “Degrees”, adding an elbow to your pump inlet or outlet is about equivalent to a 0.05C temperature loss. Probably not something to worry about much.
So, that’s that. While I used to be a skeptic about installation of elbows on pumps, I’m not so worried about it now. At least with your typical DDC top with reduced inlet opening, the larger ID Bitspower elbows do not seem to cause much more than a little restriction which is not going to add up to more than a tenth of a degree and really not worth worrying about.
In the continued pursuit of the ultimate radiator fan, I bring you round #10. This round was brought to you buy “cpachris” from overclock.net. He sponsored 5 never tested before fans including the new Bitfenix Spectra Pro Black, Noctua NF-F12 PWM, Silenx Effizio, Noise Blocker M12-S2, and Phobya Naon-G12. I put these up to the test against the previous undefeated Gentle Typhoon AP-15. While many fans are good in case fan applications, few seem to rival the low noise output of the GTs once mounted to a radiator. Unfortunately the GTs are not perfect either, they are a rather boring grey/black color scheme, they do have some resonance issues at specific RPMs, and they are often out of stock and suspect to overpricing due to their high demand and inadequate production.
With that, let’s bring it!
TEST CONDITION NOTES
For the test rig, I’ve built an exhaust collection chamber that’s basically a long piece of 8″ PVC with insulation, a bunch of flow spreader tubes, and an MCR120 radiator mounted to the face of it. The anemometer hot wire sensor is then mounted to the back of this to measure air speed through a smaller port. The chamber’s purpose is to collect the fan exhaust, straighten it out, and provide a consistent means to measure it in a fixed spot without creating additional noise.
I am using an Extech Hotwire anemometer that is set to zero at the start of the round left alone the duration of the test. For control and check, I test the first fan again after all other testing to be sure the hotwire didn’t go out of calibration. I have found in the past that it can happen, so this extra test is to ensure data is good relative to the fans tested in this round only. It’s a good meter, but I still don’t trust it without doing the checks. It is however a hotwire meter which more importantly doesn’t have a vane probe to warm up or create noise. The only drawback is dust and temperature changes can cause calibration issues. For noise level I am using a basic noise meter measure A-weighted dbA. The radiator is a Swiftech MCR120 as shown below:
The video is via Canon T2i and audio via Zoom H1. Not shown in the photo, but I place the Zoom on a tripod in line with the fan at a 12″ distance and the zoom has a foam wind protection sock on it. The lens used this round was the kit 18-55 as opposed to the Tokina shown below, but you get the idea good HD video and good HD stereo audio are at the heart of the tools.
I combine the video and audio in Sony Vegas 9, add the text notes, and export to an 8MB/sec wmv before uploading to youtube. During this combining effort, I set the T2i audio to mute and turn on the Zoom H1 audio. I use a double finger snap to create a wavform mark so I can line the two up. Then I trim the whole thing to start/end of the test done.
Alright, enough of the testing setup, let’s get to the results
Summary
Here is a summary of what the video meters produced. Sorry about the lack of RPM data on the Silenx, but something was odd with the Hz readings, so I pulled the data off. The Gentle Typhoon AP-15 results are still the strongest of the bunch in terms of CFM per dBA, however I would as usual encourage you to evaluate the noise characteristics in addition to noise level for a more complete picture. I have received messages by some readers indicating that they can’t stand the noise type of the GTs and I would agree that they do produce a different type of noise that may or may not be what you are willing to put up with. The GT’s also do have a habit of resonating as specific RPMs as can be seen by the bump in the noise chart below. The GTs just have a special fan blade that seems to bury nearly all air type noises into the radiator which is good, but it also tends to have a little bit of bearing whine and the motor noise is present perhaps a bit more than other fans. I think the noise quality of some of the other fans is superior, but the GT-15 remains dominant in noise level.
The noiseblocker actually has good noise ber RPM, but isn’t pushing as much air per RPM. The Noctua has a very good CFM/RPM similar to the GT15 leaving some of the others as much as 200RPM behind. Regarding looks, I liked the noiseblocker, Phobya, and Bitfenix better than either the Noctua or GT. As far as build quality goes, the GT probably gets my vote as it has a larger hub with metal bearing casing and dual ball bearing construction. The Noctua probably provides the most accessories giving you several resistor options to reduce fan speeds if you didn’t have a fan controller. Finally, there is PWM control which is only provided by the Noctua in this bunch. You could however control the others via software tools like a Sunbeam Rheosmart without much extra cost. So there you have it, another round of 120mm fans and the GT-15 is still king of noise level, however there are other factors to consider that may sway you toward other options.
A special thanks goes out to “cpachris” from OCN for sponsoring these fans and my many supporters for sponsoring the tools, equipment, and website.
Ever wondered if we would see plating on radiators as opposed to the normal black paint standards? The folks over at Coolgate asked if I would be interested in reviewing a few of thier radiators, and I said sure. They mentioned something about copper plating and when they arrived, sure enough…lots of shiny copper plating covering the entire radiator. I haven’t seen much posted on this plating feature, so I wanted to share a quick preview.
I also wanted to say thanks to everyone who donated their support for the site. I now have the web hosting covered for another year and enough to cover some additional reviews.
Here are a couple of preview picture teasers…:)
These are going on my test bench next, so stay tuned for some performance numbers to go with all that copper bling!
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