Corsair ML140 PRO
Levitation, you say?
Magnetic FANS ARE TRICKY. To most people, as long as they spin and keep air flowing, they mean very little. To others, they’re a statement. They’re about gaining every inch of ground possible in the cooling or silence battle. They’re about accenting your build, adding an element of movement in an otherwise lifeless and solid-state system. And we’ve come a long way in the last 10 years—from air towers and 82mm fans spinning at 3,000rpm, to super-quiet, specialized fan blades designed to spin at lower and lower revolutions per minute, while still pumping out the same amount of air and pressure.
Alongside Noctua, Corsair has been at the forefront of cooling technology for some time. Although often slightly behind the legendary Noctua NF-F12 in terms of overall performance, it’s hard to deny how popular Corsair’s line of SP series fans is. But the battle for noise control is ongoing, and as enthusiasts who favor water cooling and other specialist pursuits hunt for ever-quieter fans, something has to give. After all, although the SP120 performed admirably in contrast to its beige brothers, it just couldn’t compete when it came to noise versus performance. Take the SP120 versus the NF-F12. On a full 12V, the high static pressure edition could pump out an impressive 3.1mmH O at 35dBA and 2,350rpm. Compare that to Noctua’s NF- F12, and it’s 3.94mmH O at 29.7dBA and 2,000rpm. A sizable difference—but, at twice the cost, that’s what you would expect from the less colorful competitor. WHO NEEDS BALL BEARINGS? Corsair’s response was to work on the motor itself. Instead of using a traditional three-phase, ball-bearing design, the engineers have developed, in secret, a master motor. It uses a technology that, for trademark purposes, we’ve been informed we can’t call maglev, but, in reality, it’s maglev. Or magnetic levitation. In short, by applying enough voltage to an electro magnet, it’s possible to make the motor levitate and spin the fan blades without touching the motor housing at all, or relying on lubricant or a ball bearing to create that motion. In theory, this should reduce noise and improve the fan’s lifetime, as there’s little friction involved, apart from a fractional amount of air resistance.
The biggest advantage over the previous SP series comes down to how slowly these magnetically levitating fans can spin. In our testing, we found that to be around 387rpm. That’s 600rpm slower than some of the leading brands. Why is it so important? Think of it this way: you’re not rendering, gaming, or 3D modeling 100 percent of the time—we spend an astronomical amount of time just sitting on the desktop or browsing the web. During those periods, you don’t need your fans to be spinning at full bore, trying to move heat out of your chassis. And if they are spinning that rapidly, it can be distracting. One solution is to use a dedicated fan controller to switch off your fans. However, when your CPU does start to heat up a fraction, you may notice that, for your fans to switch on properly, your controller pulses them back into action, usually resulting in a 1,400rpm quick burst, before they settle down to their preset speed. So, by having fans that spin so slowly, you can maintain a constant speed and cooling, at levels that are almost inaudible to the human ear.
As far as cooling goes, you’re not likely to see much difference between any of the static pressure optimized fans. However, for those looking for a silent PC operating environment, both when gaming and when delving around in the depths of the Internet, Corsair’s new ML PRO series fans are exceptional. Pricey? Yes. Quiet? Damn straight. –ZAK STOREY