I want to get 120mm Antec Tricool Blue LED fans to go with my Silverstone Temjin TJ09-BW case, cause the fans that come it with don't move much air. I like the Tricool 3 speed concept, this way i can adjust fan speed as needed. However, i've read a review that said that these fans work well only in Antec cases, i'm not sure what that means because that is all that was said on the subject. I'm curious ito know whether folks here tried these fans in non-Antec cases and how did they work out.

hi FP,

the case should not affect the operation of a case fan (unless the holes in the case are too small to allow adequate air flow, which would not allow any fan to perform well). the tricool fan should work well in many cases, not just an antec case. where did you read that review?

I see, my case has very nice airflow, 3 vents (1 top, 2 side), though it doesn't have an intake fan, the front fan is used to cool the hard drive area, so from what you are telling me there shouldn't be a problem. I read that review at newegg, one of the reviewers for Antec Tricool mentioned that but didn't go to any detail so that's why i was worried that this fan would not be good for my case.

As long as the case has enough area for air to come in, that fan should perform as well as any other fan.

lol, that explains it. with a few exceptions, Newegg user reviews are completely worthless.

most reviewers are either 1.) fanboys that say the product is the best thing since sliced bread, 2.) have no clue what they're saying, or 3.) say the product is bad or has problems, when the actual problem has nothing to do with the item being reviewed.

in the future, don't even bother to read them.

There is some truth to what you say about newegg reviews, all of the abovementioned things do apply to them. However, there are some who do know what they are talking about, i just like to use them as a general guide. I picked up all of my system components in part with the help of those reviews and everything is working out quite well so far. In this particular case, i thought it would be better to ask first instead of just going ahead and buying the fans just to learn the guy was right, i think it is better to be safe than sorry, wouldn't you say?

And thanks for your help!

The only problem you might run into, (and this is with any adjustable fan), if you attach it to a motherboard with fan control,you need to run the fan on high to allow the mobo to vary the voltage. If you turn the fan down the voltage from the board may be insufficient to start it. The Thermaltake 120mm "Smart Fans" are nice too, and come with a controller that mounts in a case expansion slot.

My motherboard controls only 3 fans, that's why i plan to get a fan controller to manage the other 2 fans. Also i want to confirm something, after attaching the fan to mobo do i have to run it on high all the time, or only at the beginning?

I also looked into Thermaltake smart fans, however i keep hearing that they are louder than Antec, is that so? Would you recomend them instead?

I believe that the Thermaltake fans move a bunch more air than the Antecs. (Or so they're claiming). Generally more air would equate to more noise. I recommended the "Smart Fans" because they are supplied with a decent fan controller which, as I said, mounts in the case, nothing else to buy.

If you're going to use your mobo to control fan speed, any fan you use must be set to high, permanently.

I had trouble with my Thermaltake "surging", from the board so I installed the controller, then set it where I wanted it.

Here's the product page on the TT 120. Remember only the 120mms have the nice add in controller. The smaller TTs have a in case control, just like the Antecs. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811999145

Here's a link to one of the Antec "Tri Cool" fans: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835209013

The TT fans don't have LEDs, you got me on that one.

As to the reviews on Newegg, probably more are good than bad, but you gotta be careful which ones you believe.

Well, basically i'm looking for a fan that would move a decent amount of air, yet i want it be reasonably quiet, that's why i thought Antec would be perfect since i can raise and lower speed and the noise level would change with the speed as well, but i guess that is true of any multispeed fan. I'm glad you told me that the fan must be set to high at all times when controlled by the mobo, this is news to me, i thought that i could swith speeds when its controlled by the board. I'm getting 5 fans for my case and like i said earlier my plan was to use both the mobo and fan controller, i was planning to get a Silverstone multi-function display panel with a fan controller that ca manage 3 fans. I guees i'll have to scrap that plan and do something else. I did some research into Thermaltake 120mm fans and it looks like the fan controller which comes with the fan goes into a PCI slot. I won't hae any free PCI slots after i get a second 8800GTS, i'm not even sure if i can use my sound card sfter i get that card. I think that if i get a Thermaltake fan i'll be able to use an aftermarket fan controller to swith speeds on all fans.

I certainly agree that you should take the course of action that best suits your needs. I only offer suggestions to permit choice via information.

That is all i can ask for. I appreciate your help a great deal, thanks!