Cases with 140mm fan mounts

[Kenrou]

So I was looking for a budget case for a friend, and like me he likes 140mm fans (silence truly is golden). I must have looked at over 60 mini/midi-atx cases from 5 different companies and I started to wonder why nearly every one has 120mm fan mounts (front and top) as opposed to 140mm. Some were definitely space issues but most have plenty and seemingly don’t like to use it efficiently. Doesn’t seem to be a cost issue as they are roughly the same price bracket. What gives, why are the noisy 120mm still “standard” ?

BTW he ended up choosing a Fractal Define S

 

[EarthDog]

I dont find 120mm noisey...depends on the fan, really. The same fan at 140mm does cost more though.. id imagine by the thousands its a matter of 10s of cents.

As to why, youd have to ask the mfg. Seems easy to drill 4 more holes 20mm away though, i agree.

 

[trents]

140mm fans are not by nature quieter than 120mm fans. In moving the same amount of air the 140mm fan will be rotating at lower rpm than the 120mm fan, all other things being equal. And all other things being equal a 140mm fan rotating at the same rpm will make more noise than a 120mm fan. But the "all other things" can make a huge difference and includes things like bearing type and design. A large fan moving the same amount of air as a small fan will also make a different kind of noise, a different pitch. One make make an obnoxious "woosh" sound and the other an obnoxious "whine." Different people will find a wine more objectionable than a woosh and visa versa. "Noisy" is a very personal thing.

 

[Kenrou]

So far in my experience more speed = more noise, and 120mm are typically faster (and the pitch is definitely more "whiny" on smaller fans). Well like you say depends on the brand/quality. it's been nagging me enough to actually think about sending an email to a big company like Corsair or Fractal (to which i expect no reply) and ask why 120mm and not 140mm...

 

[knoober]

There is likely some sort of marketing/sales info that makes it this way. For instance : I read a lot of build logs for small form factor machines. It stands to reason that sff cases will not accommodate 140mm fans as readily as their smaller cousins. So if a lot of folks want sff builds then a lot of folks use 120mm fans because they have to.... Then corsair will build and market to the folks that are spending money, and in this example they are spending money on sff cases and 120mm fans.

This is just a guess. My only basis is seeing a lot of sff builds in the works

 

[Kenrou]

I could get behind that but the bulk of cases built or even for sale are still mid-towers (regular consumer, not enterprises) ? like i said some lack the space but the majority of what i saw had plenty to spare. Unless they get something out of only selling (or mainly selling) 120mm fans ? It's just odd that's all

 

[||Console||]

So far in my experience more speed = more noise, and 120mm are typically faster (and the pitch is definitely more "whiny" on smaller fans). Well like you say depends on the brand/quality. it's been nagging me enough to actually think about sending an email to a big company like Corsair or Fractal (to which i expect no reply) and ask why 120mm and not 140mm...

fractal will say We do support 140mm fans , my case has 8 spots for 140/120 mm fans

 

[Kenrou]

NoNo, my query was “why do the MAJORITY of the cases only support 120mm and below”. My last 3 builds all have Fractal exactly because all slots are 140mm (and they’re amazing to work with).

 

[EarthDog]

Id say most of the cases ive worked in had mounts for both... its not as rare as you feel.

 

[baris_]

Check out the Phanteks Eclipse P300 or P400. They have mounts for both.