Hi all.

 

Just took delivery of a new server, now I expected it to be a little noisy but the Norco units are quite alot louder then I thought they would be. I have seen (from the Greenleaf blog) that they are not easy to replace but I am going to have to do it.

 

Any advice or people that have done it before?

 

Thanks all!

Hi all.

 

Just took delivery of a new server, now I expected it to be a little noisy but the Norco units are quite alot louder then I thought they would be. I have seen (from the Greenleaf blog) that they are not easy to replace but I am going to have to do it.

 

Any advice or people that have done it before?

 

Thanks all!

Yeah, go slow

 

Just unscrew the back, unscrew the fans that are in there, then use a small screw driver to slowly push the fan off the posts.  Work in a circle to get the old fan off and just take it a little bit at a time, you don't want to put to much stress on the posts as they may snap.

I purchased the SWiF2-800 Fan, http://www.coolink-europe.com/downloads/pdf/coolink_swif_2_80_en.pdf for my cages when I originally set it up.  I should have purchased the 801s as they move more airflow.  During the summer months now that I have loaded up the case, the drives can get to over 50C.  I recently purchased three of the Vantec TF8025.  The amount of air they move at their base speed is approximately the same as the 801 fans above.  I noticed Coolink plays games with their specs.  Every one else measures the fan velocity in CFM.  They rate the 801 fans as 39.7 (m³/h).  That works out to be 23.37 CFM.  Most people see the high number and think it is better.  The Vantecs are rated at 23.8-41.6 CFM.  I wanted a variable speed fan that was not dependent on an external controller.  These have a sensor that hangs in the airstream an should speed the fans up as the drives heat up.  At least that is my hope.

 

At idle, they do not appear to be any nosier that the Coolinks from my ears perspective.  Their specs show them louder, but I could not tell they were running over my case and power supply fan.  I even purchased a copy of SPLnFFT Noise Meter, https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/splnfft-noise-meter/id355396114?mt=8 for my phone.  Ambient noise was mid 40s dba.  When I powered up the fans outside the server, I didn't see any change in the noise floor.  I will do a before and after check when I do change out the fans.

 

I have not installed them yet.  I still have to modify the power cable to work with the Norco 5in3 cages.  You need to cut the molex connector off and replace it with a 3 pin connector.  I purchased some fan extension cables, basically these http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812119146, that I will use.    It has also been cold, so there was no rush to tear my server apart.

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811999616

Vantec Thermoflow 80mm Double Ball Bearing Temperature Controlled Case Fan - Model TF8025L

 

RPM              1950-3400 RPM

Air Flow        23.8-41.6 CFM

Noise Level    25.5-37.5 dBA

 

Vantec TF8025 case fan is a powerful cooling solution for today's desktop computers. The temperature control sensor adjusts the fan speed automatically, keeping the noise level at the lowest by changing the speed. With durable 80mm blades, the fan minimizes power consumptions and maximizes cooling performances. In addition, the double ball bearing fan ensures extended fan life. Whether you’re arming one desktop or several workstations, equipping this first-rate cooling fan will ensure you solid protection and superior value.

Thanks guys, appreciate the input so far. Glad to hear that there is a chance I can reduce the noise on this sucker. I unplugged the 4 Norco units from the power and it became SO QUIET.

The brands mentioned so far are not really available in Australia as far as I can see.

 

Is there potential for one of these to do the job?

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=9_508

 

This one looks good so far:

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=9_508&products_id=6248

Based on the pictures from the Greenleaf blog. Quiet, famous brand, correct size and correct connector.

Let me know how this works out for you. I have 3 of these Norco trays and the noise is driving me a bit crazy. I'm debating between swapping fans or just getting a new case and going from there without them.

 

As far as fans, the Noctua are super quite and have great airflow to noise. I have some of their 120mm running on my gaming machine and they are almost silent.

 

 

This one looks good so far:

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=9_508&products_id=6248

Based on the pictures from the Greenleaf blog. Quiet, famous brand, correct size and correct connector.

 

The Noctua NF-R8 80mm Fan at 1800 rpm, it is moving 31.19 CFM at a very low noise level which is good.  I would not hesitate to go with it.

I have 3 norco ss-500s, 2 x v1s and a v2. I replaced the fan in all 3 with the noctura suggested above. The fans a quieter than the drives. First drives were all WD blacks,and they got a bit warmer then I had hoped during a parity check, but now I have reds, I rarely see 40 degrees.

 

Easily fix and makes the server close to silent.

Easily fix and makes the server close to silent.

 

That line makes me happy, thank you. I cannot believe how loud the stock fans are, crazy.

 

Any tips on the replacement?

As an example of of what switching out the fans can do we have a video of the difference that you can find

 

For what it is worth we use these fans

Thanks everyone for their help, I have ordered the Noctua fans.

Thanks everyone for their help, I have ordered the Noctua fans.

 

Please let us know how it works out. If it's a huge diffrence (which I think it will be) I'll be doing the same thing as you!

Thanks everyone for their help, I have ordered the Noctua fans.

I also recently switched the fans on my Norco ss-500. Just watch the video posted above by prostuff to hear the difference.

 

Please let us know how it works out. If it's a huge diffrence (which I think it will be) I'll be doing the same thing as you!

prostuff1 I notice in your builds you have the handle edge (the blue clip) closet to the bottom (facing down) does the orientation matter?

Thanks everyone for their help, I have ordered the Noctua fans.

I also recently switched the fans on my Norco ss-500. Just watch the video posted above by prostuff to hear the difference.

 

Please let us know how it works out. If it's a huge diffrence (which I think it will be) I'll be doing the same thing as you!

 

Different fans. I want to see how the Noctua work out.

 

Edit: I guess without a decibel reader you won't really be able to tell the difference.

prostuff1 I notice in your builds you have the handle edge (the blue clip) closet to the bottom (facing down) does the orientation matter?

Not really, I prefer to have the tabs facing up, while Raj has a tendency to face them down.  Maybe not great from a consistency standpoint but it really makes no difference from what we have found.

prostuff1 I notice in your builds you have the handle edge (the blue clip) closet to the bottom (facing down) does the orientation matter?

Not really, I prefer to have the tabs facing up, while Raj has a tendency to face them down.  Maybe not great from a consistency standpoint but it really makes no difference from what we have found.

 

Thanks for the help. Sometimes I wish I lived in the US, I would have just ordered from you and been done with it.

Thanks for the help. Sometimes I wish I lived in the US, I would have just ordered from you and been done with it.

Appreciate the comment.

 

We wish it was easier to get stuff over seas.  Between shipping, insurance, and customs fees it can get expensive.  We do ship over seas but as I said the buyer really has to not want to mess with building it himself/herself.

So installation is complete. Now I have to source a VGA cable to work out why the server isn't booting (not even IPMI) but for the record it wasn't working before.

 

To anyone else looking to do this, two comments:

I used needle nose pliers to slowly pull the fan out by tugging a little on each edge.

The Noctua fans have a long cable that cannot be removed, this was slightly annoying but I ended up bundling the cable in the side of the fan housing and this sorted it but a shorter cable would be ideal.

 

For comparison I took a quick video of of the server turning on before and after installation (only one unit) and they are below. Please note though I was using an iPhone 5S and they were quick videos so there is no quality to them at all but they will get the point across.

 

Stock Fan:

https://mediacru.sh/or6XlH3YM9TJ

Noctua Fan:

https://mediacru.sh/Kb9zXaTRqdZW

 

So installation is complete. Now I have to source a VGA cable to work out why the server isn't booting (not even IPMI) but for the record it wasn't working before.

 

To anyone else looking to do this, two comments:

I used needle nose pliers to slowly pull the fan out by tugging a little on each edge.

The Noctua fans have a long cable that cannot be removed, this was slightly annoying but I ended up bundling the cable in the side of the fan housing and this sorted it but a shorter cable would be ideal.

 

For comparison I took a quick video of of the server turning on before and after installation (only one unit) and they are below. Please note though I was using an iPhone 5S and they were quick videos so there is no quality to them at all but they will get the point across.

 

https://www.dropbox.com/s/i9fe8nvi89856u5/Norco%20SS-500%20Stock%20Fan.MOV

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ec69ae69s2hq48d/Norco%20SS-500%20Noctua%20Fan.MOV

 

Thanks so much for posting! I can't even hear the fans anymore! Glad to see it was such a huge difference. Looks like I'm going this route very shortly!

Little disappointed with the temps on the drives in these caddies. They are between 42 and 48 Celsius.

Is that with all the drives spun up.  How many drives.  What is ambient temperature.

Is that with all the drives spun up.  How many drives.  What is ambient temperature.

 

Right now two drives are spun up and they are 47c and 43c. Forgive but I am not 100% sure what ambient manes, I'm assuming thats room temperature? I have no way of measuring it currently but it would easily be the hottest room in the house (the office containing the PCs will do that) If I had to guess though I would say 25-30c

 

I want one day to move everything but my desktop machine out of here but we are currently renting and options are limited.

That's weird. I have those cages and my drives very very rarely reach over 32C. Right now I have 1 spun up and it's at 28C.

 

Ambient temperature is the temperature that the room is/air around the computer.

That's weird. I have those cages and my drives very very rarely reach over 32C. Right now I have 1 spun up and it's at 28C.

 

Ambient temperature is the temperature that the room is/air around the computer.

 

I am going to get something so I can measure the ambient temperature. With that in mind I am going to try and move the server to another room in the meantime.