Subjective Tests
Subjective Tests
These are the main tests I do on any aftermarket part that I am planning on using in a build. If they don’t sound or feel "right" I bin them and use alternatives. Whether that means a completely different brand or just another one from a different batch greatly depends on the priorities of the build (i.e. noise vs. performance vs. longevity vs. style vs. cost).
Finger Spin Test:
Just as the name suggests I give the unplugged fan a quick spin with my right hand index finger while holding it vertically in my left. This is done to see how much friction a fan produces (via the length of time it takes to stop and perceived speed at which it rotates); but mainly it is done to feel how well balanced the fan is. If the fan feels unstable then it is most likely unbalanced. This fan may have a drastically reduced life expectancy and may catastrophically fail taking other computer parts with it.
The Falcon 92-CU fan produces a fairly muted whirring/clicking sound that is common for a ball bearing fan. This noise is not very pronounced but it was certainly present. However, it did not have any wobble or make any loud obvious noises that signify an unbalanced or poorly made fan. While this EverCool sounded better than a lot of EverCool’s I have heard in the past it was not anywhere near as good as their “enter bearing” (AKA Fluid Dynamic Bearing) fan either. Overall it felt well balanced, and fairly smooth.
Noise and Vibration:
While holding the heatsink and fan in my left hand, I plug in the fan into a 3 to 4 pin molex adapter (in this case letting the 4 pin “hang over”) and then turn on the computer. This way the fan is running at full speed and I can easily feel for any vibration it creates and listen for any noise. I do this while holding the heatsink in the orientation that it will be when installed. In this instance, I held it horizontally (both “up” and then “down”).
Considering that I was unable to increase its speed, even by plugging it in to a molex adapter the speed at which this fan runs does make it quiet. However even at 1400rpm (via the help of a bic lighter) it did create vibrations that can be felt all the way to the very base of the unit.
This fan is not loud, but it does make a lot more ball bearing whirring/humming noise than their claimed rating suggests. Even in its pristine “factory” state this Evercool’s whirring sound can still be heard over Scythe E fans. This makes the “…lowest noise possible” quote nothing more than PR spin and should be taken with a big grain of salt.
Please note: After shorting out the thermistor I did go back and check its vibration and noise levels. At full speed it this fan sounds a lot like a buzz saw and produces a large amount of vibration. One does have to wonder what accumulative effect these vibrations will have on integrity of the unit in the long term. On the positive side at least there is some truth in advertising, and it is called a “falcon” for a reason.
Tap Test:
While holding the heatsink and fan in my left had I gently “tap” both the heatsink and then the fan. In the case of the heatsink it allows you to hear and feel how well made it is.
In this instance the unit felt like a big copper brick. The Falcon 92-CU felt like if it was dropped on the floor, the floor would be the worse for it. Of course this is misleading as like any heatsink its copper fins are actually fairly fragile, but it does feel reassuringly solid in ones hand.
The fan had a lot of shaft “slop” or forwards and backwards motion to the fan blade assembly and this does help explain the amount of vibrations felt. However, the fan was very tight when pushed off center and displayed very little angular slop. This combination makes for a fan that while putting out a fair amount of vibrations will rarely become off balance to the point of damaging itself (i.e. it can “bounce” up and down but not off balance).
Overall it felt and acted like most Everflow double ball bearing fans I have examined and used in the past. As long as loose, “hanging down” wires are not an issue I am sure that the fan is durable enough for its intended purpose. The blades of the fan did however exhibit a lot of flex when tapped and overall felt and looked cheap. This too was expected as they need to be designed in such a way as to maximize light transmission from the embedded LEDS. Durability and “bling-ability” usually work at cross-purposes and this was the case here.
There was a surprisingly small amount of flex when the copper fins were tapped. This lack of flexing was of course the result of their bottoms resting on the top of the aluminum fins. However, when tapped on the bottom in an upwards motion there was a lot of flexing. So while I truly doubt that it would break from being lifted into place, or used to rotate the TIM in place, I wouldn’t completely trust it to not break either.
Overall, there were a few minor issues with the Falcon 92-CU but the positives certainly outweighed the negatives. Or to put it bluntly it appears the CoolJag engineers got it more right than wrong and made one seemingly durable product.
Weight and Construction:
This test consists mainly on how it "feels" in your hands.
The Falcon 92-CU has a nearly unique and striking to look to it. With its green LEDs it is flashy and is a unique enough design that it will look very good in a windowed case. The base of the unit has some of the best and largest fins I have seen on a down draft cooler and the copper fins themselves are also done on a massive scale. The only concerns I have with its construction is the placement of the two center heatpipes. These two heatpipes are positioned in such a way that a good portion of them are directly under the fan engine housing. Basically, portions of both heatpipes are in the fans dead spot or “shadow” and can not be cooled by the fan directly above them. This means that these heatpipes will not be as efficient as the other two and will contribute to a lowered maximum thermal load. By simply moving these two heatpipes apart by a centimeter or two this problem could have been eliminated.
Overall it felt and looked like a CPU cooler that the engineers spent a lot of time making it good and solid, but a few of the basics got “lost in the shuffle”.