Would love to see assemblies like the cheater run both with and without their accessories. Would be curious to see how much of it is really just airflow efficiency mods vs fan design.

I'd love to see a redo of the Noctic with the centrifugal spreading issue fixed

The cheater was labeled as “Notic” in the bottom left during the smoke test

Next season there should be two categories, fans that fit well within the Noctua body, and an “open class” where anything goes. That way we get the best of both worlds and the best of the best can rise up in each individual classification

Should we allow it? Yes, absolutely, stifling ingenuity helps no one, also, it looks cool.

I like impractical cheater fan designs. It's like old Formula 1 when teams tested out crazy designs, like the fan car.

Maybe break it into two categories? Standard where everything printed has to fit inside the fan and a Free For All where anything goes.

I'm thinking the fan showdown should start breaking out into categories. Multi-part fans, "flat" fans that fit in the fan housing, tall bois, etc.

The Noctic has an incredible pedigree, have the designer rework and resubmit. I think he's on to something.

Waiting for the Fan Showdown where the airflow is so high, "We had to strap the test bed to the bench and still the bench was creeping across the floor. "

I think you just need to have a separate ranking including only fan designs that fit within the original form factor. It is really cool to see these all out designs, but most of the big ones aren't practical for actual use, where some of the ones that fit in a regular form factor could be something people actual want to use for the cool factor.

I think all the ones that have extra parts should be tested both with and without their parts. Will help extrapolate the benefits of the additions. Imagine the OBB with those parts!

Any word on a market timeframe for the one that got licensed by a manufacturer? Edit: I don't think it's cheating, it's just another category. You've got your practical fan replacements that could go into a PC, and then you've got the big ol' crazy ones. :-)

The cheater is not cheating. It fits within your dimension constraints. It just shifts the goal posts by making the flow behind the fan just as important as through it. The race now is for better diffusers, better intakes and better fans that work with the best intakes and diffusers. Thi is game changing. Being top without even having an optimised fan is game changing.

Would love to see how the cheater's velocity stack and outlet accessories perform with the base noctua fan.

How about either: A) two different classes of fan, based on whether they fit within the bounds of the case or not - kinda like boxing classes. B) change to efficiency, based on cooling per gram of plastic - which might lead to people making some very lightweight designs!

Camera upgrades look great for your talking head shots. On the smoke test it looks like the ISO was cranked super high. What camera did you upgrade to?

I think that there should be 2 categories: fans and other. Fans would be all fans that fit normally into the fan shroud, without sticking out or any additional accessories. Other would contain everything else. I think this is fair because this doesn't give a unfair advantage to fans that wouldn't be usable in real life.

I will never get tired of this series. The creativity is just amazing.

The notic needs a 1mm by 1mm retention ring at the leading edge/point to prevent expansion at speed.

The OBB legit would look like something sell worthy. Look unique, and perform 👍

Something I would love to see is an individual fan video on the Notic that provides it the structural support it needs, such as a full ring along the circumference of the fan

With a little development, smoothing and balancing the Cheater could be amazing - that NEEDS to get noticed and made

The "difuser" is actually an static axial flow compressor. It constrains the flow so that only the flow from the fins is unconstrained so it greatly reduses backflow, hence increases static pressure.

I'm sure you've heard of the new phanteks fan it out performs the a12x25 for rads. Might be something to bench mark also, just to see where it lies in the charts.

I am all for big complicated multi-part fans. I just want to see what the absolute limit of cooling performance looks like, with no holds barred.

I certainly like the idea of there being two separate categories: Practical - where the entire fan design would fit inside a normal shroud and could be used in your average build. Freeform - where anything goes as long as it fits on the testing rig. This way we get to see both raw aerodynamics engineering and complete over-engineering setups, alongside the more aesthetic-focused builds.

Power comparison between them all would be interesting especially when it comes to heavier and lighter fans. That thin fan probably used half the watts of the rest due to the slower rpm and less mass

I'm quite curious to see if we're going to experience "cheater" refinements over time, maybe there are design ways to reduce the footprint while keeping significant aerodynamic properties.

I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure the main purpose of a velocity stack isn't to "smooth the airflow" its to increase the velocity using bernoulli's principle. Not an engineer just a mechanic.

So this is where the Cheater Reign started! I recently came across this channel and found this series, even tho i know nothing about the math behind how the fans work, i still enjoy this a lot! very enternaining! The fist video i saw as about the cheater and so i had to go back and binge this series from the start to see where it has begun lol.

Man, your production quality _and_ testing methodology continue to improve by leaps and bounds! Keep it going! A few ideas: * Are there simple treatments that can improve strength or rigidity of a 3d printed part? (Baking, chemical treatments, etc) and can fan makers also suggest using those post-print? * Add tests for static pressure ? * Test at a base rpm value (e.g. 800, flow, noise) * Test at the maker's suggested rpm (flow, noise, actual cooling performance, if RPM is achievable) * Test at maximum RPM while noise is below some given Db range (flow, maybe cooling performance?) And also possibly where (air_flow/power_draw) is at a maximum This should allow you to characterize fans for a range of computer uses and not for just CPU cooling optimized for a specific CPU cooler.

Id like to see the a12x25 used with the intake and exhaust housings in place and see how they improve the flow of the fan. Try it with just the intake then just the exhaust then both and compare how all 4 setups performed

3:45 I can’t 😂

This is absolutely my favorite series on KZfaq right now. Keep up the awesome work! Also loving the resolution boost

This is a stellar channel, IMO. There isn't too much that needs to change or be improved! B-roll and editing are always on point, always a great lineup of fans, and it's always topped off with some silky smooth commentary. TBH, I wouldn't necessarily "upgrade" anything unless you were replacing something defective or it made shooting and editing easier. That being said, you really checked all the boxes in this episode, so if you are intending to grow the channel, you are doing it well good Sir.

I feel like there's room in my pc case for a Cheater.

I liked the older camera you used for the smoke test better than this one. It was more clear and didn’t look grainy.

I think breaking it into categories, so you have one class that fits and another with no limits. This was entertaining! Love this series

9:19 The Cheater cheated so hard, it impersonated a completely different fan!

I think there should be 2 categories, with accessories and without accessories. Obviously adding shrouds will give it a leg up over designs without shrouds, so not really fair to the other fans. At the same time I really enjoy clever solutions like these, and want to see more. Maybe we can encourage more outside the fanbox designs and rank them separately, then it would be interesting to run the seasons fans within those solutions and see how much we can get good standalone design working in an expanded platform. Like the new camera quality and the videos are awesome as always.

Yes totally allowed, love the hard work, engineering, and creativity! He deserves to be #1 to push everyone else to make something even better! Plus it's great content watching :)

like the upgrades. but I think the light setup of the smoke test was better in the previous one. And it made me feel happy that your videos are finally getting sponsored aside from getting 3d printing stuffs. I have been following major hardware since you made the air-water cooler. that was really interesting. its been like being a part of the show. Thanks for the wonderful videos.

Nice man, definitely looking good in 4k on my tv lol I always enjoy these episodes so much and love to see what crazy things people come up with, I'm here for it all

Obligatory I'm a huge fan joke.

I like the added components, but I think you should also test without the velocity stacks to see how well they do on their own.

Love the ingenuity I keep seeing here. The Cheater is just an amazing design. I hope to see more like that one!

I love that the simplest stuff delights you. Makes this show really worth watching.

I would say it is perfectly fine, I like the additions that optimize flow.

I already sent 2 fans. working on a 3rd…(plane wing)

So I will admit: I was not a subscriber but anytime I saw your videos in the infinite recommended scroll, I would watch them! Excellent content. Oh, now your upping your videos to a resolution that actually works in my 4K life? Subscribed. Your videos always look great, but now they are on a whole new level!

"Satisfaction is guaranteed... Performance is not." That should be the series' catchphrase 😂

I think most of the performance advantage of the cheater was from the velocity stack. I don't think the huge rear shrouding helped too much and just made the entire package extra bulky

Can you test the velocity stack and "diffuser" to see what they do with other fan designs? Seems like they would artificially improve any fan blade design.

This show is the only reason I subscribed to this channel. Keep em coming man. Keep em coming. 👍😁

My 1440p 144hz monitor (and I) love your choice of upgrade, Thank you. I love this show & I've seen every ep and I hope to enjoy every one to come.

Given that one blade was limited to a specific RPM it would have been interesting to see the performance of the other fans limited to the same RPM for comparison sake.

How does this already have a dislike. These vids rock.

Also just wanna say, another EPIC video, one of your best. Loving the new GoPro, gives really good shots. Still the best (and most underrated) series on YT!!! I do plan on submitting a design… one day 😂😂

I'm glad you started showing the pictures of the fans on the bottom left corner during the smoke tests because I never remember the names of the fans, so just having the names like before was confusing to me.

I'm surprised that the Fan Showdown has gone on this long. In a good way! I'm impressed with the creativity of everyone keeping this interesting. Awesome job everyone! That said, I think the Fan Showdown really needs to have two categories now. We've proven that intake cowls help. Now we've got exhaust too. Well, duh, right? Make a fan bigger than the limitations of the fan housing and it performs better. When done right. But, of course, would it FIT everywhere it could be used? NO! Of course not. So I think, to be fair to the fan designers, two categories: a. fit and b. chonkers. That way fan designers get fair comparisons and competition.

What's the music you use for the smoke tests? Might be a good thing to add to the description

Somehow this became my summer KZfaq show to watch !! I don't even own a computer !!! But I tune in for every episode. Great series out of nowhere !!!!!!!

Love the speed up of smoke tests - usually I skip them because they are so slow but speedup helped.

Its not. A fan is a fan.

Its not cheating if you make the rules ( ;

James, I like seeing the different camera speeds and the upgraded camera equipment is nice!

Love the new camera work, great footage.

I'm not a fan of the assemblies, I think it's out of the scope of the contest. Just about every fan would perform better with a shroud assembly, it's a no brainer. you may as well test every fan with and w/o a shroud.

The cheater is legit as can be man! (From a bending rules to win perspective, no idea yet how it performed but I’m all for it!)

I got to thank you, because I got a 3D printer just because I was following your original Fan Showdown. Gotta Say I love it, I love designing my own parts and I'm on my 5th 1KG spool of PLA

@Major Hardware - Since you've made some appearance upgrades, I've got a suggestion for the smoke demonstration - Get a windowed case with a good front mess vented panel. Install the fan so that it blows air out the front of the case, and pump in some smoke from the rear. Let the case fill up with smoke, then turn the fan on and maybe timelapse how long it takes the fan designs to (mostly) clear out the case of the smoke you pumped in. (suggestion - Corsair 4/5000D Airflow) this way it's a bit more real-world application-esque... our fans don't sit out in the open when they're running, they pull air into a chamber and then they push it out. Love the series

We have a new king! The printing of this batch of fans is very nice, good job!

Had a thought about your db levels. I think it would be cool to also see an audio spectrogram to see where some frequencies peak. I noticed some of the fans have a specific whine to them that even though the db levels were lower, the whine was annoying. I would much prefer a "white noise" fan with a higher db over a lower db with a noticeable whine to it. Love your channel, keep up the great work.

I'd love to see the Notic with a small ring around the outside to prevent the flexing issue. Great video! btw: just finished your the NH-AAS :D works like a charm!

These videos get better and better everytime I watch them!!

Great designs Great video as always 👍 Thanks for sharing your experience withallof us 👍😀

First off, camera upgrades are on point! Love the 4k smoothness. I have a couple recommendations all centering around the smoke test. Issue: In each of the three tests, decibel rating, smoke test, and temperature control, the smoke test is the only test without a data analysis metric attached to it. Discussion: While it is fully understood this test isn't directed at being lab-quality, a third definable metric would help better collect data associated with a fan's characteristics, such as slope, pitch, shape, etc, to help the community better design and develop fans to potentially maximize all three areas of performance. Recommendations: 1) Use a container with a known volume to pump the smoke into so that we can get a better idea of its ability to evacuate a known area of smoke within a specific timeframe. 2) If that container idea isn't up to par, potentially add a clear length of tube behind the fan to act as a shroud so we can better visualize the speed & density of the smoke getting pulled through. 3) The easiest route, add an anemometer behind the fan so we can get a wind speed reading Love the show, love the channel! I love lamp?

New camera looks great! Slow mo needs a little work, but your channel has come a long way in quality, so keep it up!

Just wow the camera upgrade is amazing great work 💯💯

The visual upgrade looks great!! Hope Cooper is well, Im loving the fan show down, little did any of us know how good this idea would be. You should sell t-shirts saying "Im a fan of fans" or something. Anyways keep up the good work.

Camera setup looks amazing, I can make out so much detail in the background now!

Production quality is definately up, good stuff. Im not the most tech minded guy, but these are super cool

I have to correct the velocity stack thing. Its not to smooth it down to laminar flow. The point of them is to remove the sharp edges gradually so there is no discontinuity that causes a "contraction" of the flow. Its known as the Vena Contractor effect. Which make an orifice, such as the fan opening, give you less actual area of air flow than the area of the opening

The "A12x25" still looks like the best one to me because we have to vector in the dBA (decibel level). I would love to see a compilation episode of the top ten fans you made eventually. Thanks for this amazing presentation and keep up the great work :-)

i really love fanshowdown and the slowmos are very nice to watch!! and there is no cheating only clever engineering !

Begs the questions > Add the velocity stack and try with and without that rear diffuser but with the stock Noctua fan. I think it's gone to show that the velocity stack really helps. LOVE the new camera and amazing job, as usual :D

Love these videos! Minor correction - on the smoke test the Cheater is labeled the Notic.

In your smoke sequence you labeled the Cheater as the Notice. ;) No big deal, just pointing it out so you could add a annotation to fix it. Love the vids and the new camera quality is awesome! Lighting looks much better aswell.

New camera and more quality is always appreciated but I think the color on this one is a bit on the warm side and I enjoyed the colder aesthetic from previous videos. I know you'll figure it out, though. Keep it up!

Tbh, I did not expect that obb to be so effective. Great job 👍

The lighting in the smoketest shots was super dope. And the high frame rate really benefited the shots And i think the noctic should be printed again a little smaller so it can spin faster without touching the housing

Jsyk... your label in the smoke test for the cheater was wrong. Didn't ruin the video at all. Great episode!

I think I derive a lot of joy of watching this from watching the smoke tests and trying to guess which fans rank where. So far, I tend to be pretty spot on, so I think the smoke tests are really indicative of the effective performance of the fans--which is probably why we've been using those visualizations for so long in fluid dynamics.

It's been brought up previously but maybe 2 classes? A "within the dimensions of the Nocuta" and an unlimited class? Amazing work as always.

Liking the new setup, the quality is amazing! Just a quick tip about cinematography, you generally want to have the camera at or above your eye line as this makes the shot look more flattering as you aren't looking up at the person on screen

Seems like you could fit other fans inside the Chester's peripherals and / or test just the fan by itself...

I made a post on your Reddit sub a while back about "the Industrial Revolution of 3D printing" where I suggested using a standardized central hub with interchangeable fan blades. Im glad to see that the "Cheater" used the same concept, although using glue makes the set up a little less useful imo. A major pro of this process is that the layer direction of the blades is smoother. Another is that you could quickly test blades of different pitch/thickness/sweep/etc without printing a whole new fan. You just need to have a set of standard hubs for each of the standard blade counts, and printing new blades will take less time.

camera upgrade looks good, love the "cheater" it takes it to a new level that we need in the Fan Showdown

NOTIC full speed retest with a slim ring around the fins to keep them from spreading