You are going to think this is FAKE, IT IS NOT! - Fan Showdown S2E15

What happens when someone spends over a month and more than 30 iterations of a fan design, slowly tweaking and tuning it to be the best it can be? MAGIC is what happens, I’m pretty sure Zuxx has broken the laws of physics with this design.
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[@andreasglasser]

I designed TheSuperFan. First of all, it was so great to have my fan on the show. :) I love your videos!! But the fan was designed to be mounted in the other direction :) It would be fun to see if it performs better in the other direction. Thanks again for giving it a shot //Andreas

[@DaRip74]

I agree retest on the fan since it was backwards

[@tjarsun]

I knew it looked wrong when mounted! I bet James will retest it for next episode

[@nobushi]

Up to see it retested.

[@ivyisle]

Bump retest it

[@wrOngplan3t]

So it was backwards! It did look very odd that way. Another bump for retest :)

[@Zuxxkij]

Woooooooo! My numbers weren't lying to me, I'm so relived. Thanks again for the opportunity to be on the show, really puts a smile on my face :)

[@jttech44]

Does the stack have to be that large? or would it be possible to shrink it and maintain a similar performance?

[@Zuxxkij]

@@jttech44 I haven't done that much testing on the shroud and differing lengths, it's hard to say just how much I could shrink it without tests, but the long length gives the air time to accelerate in the optimal direction which decreases the angle of the output flow. So there would be some equilibrium between the mass of the air being accelerated prior to hitting the fan and the rpm and torque of the fan. I'd assume you couldn't shrink it too much, maybe and inch or two. I'd be willing to test it though. Considering the fan roughly rotates at 1800 rpm with this design there is a good chance that shrinking it may actually increase performance.

[@jttech44]

@@Zuxxkij There's certainly a point where a stack is hurting you, especially with FDM printing that's not completely smooth.

[@phildavis1723]

I've never wanted to ask, so I have no idea, but do stl's ever get shared of these things? Or are they kept close to the chest in case they end up commercialized?

[@barrettabney]

@@Zuxxkij I wonder how it would perform if the shroud were 5% wider at the mouth compared to the base? A slight funnel shape? Velocity would be required to increase due to compression, right?

[@Goodgu3963]

Why is nobody talking about the wingfork! It beat the noctua, AND fit in the housing! thats really impressive!

[@Nauctshea]

This. Without the shroud, the Wingfork beats the Slug Mk2 and fits in the housing. Hands down winner.

[@daftbence]

True winner in my book as well.

[@Strength10hurts]

That's what i came to say here as well. Did you see the line of airflow in that thing? That looks like superb static pressure.

[@HazewinDog]

@@Nauctshea I disagree, I think both are absolute winners! Especially the slug IMO, as it was quite a bit quieter and had a more favorable sound to it

[@MauricioRPP1]

Wingfork would make a great commercial design fan too, just like the other one from season 1. For commercial fans fitting in the housing and having a friendly production design are important factors. I would buy one!

[@Meta-Drew]

I feel bad for the Wingfork getting overshadowed, the fan absolutely rips, beats every fan previously tested and is a normal form factor.

[@orlock20]

While it might be overshadowed in this contest, the design is more commercially practical for a computer fan. However the other fan seems more like it could be reversed and become a propeller. for boats and hovercraft or to pump hot air out of an attic.

[@CobaltSpace]

Now my question is how many fans improve with the shroud.

[@ajd660]

I’m curious what the wing fan would do with a shroud now and it if would beat out the slug

[@petitjeangilles]

@@Khandrake it's... in the video

[@brwainer]

@@petitjeangilles no - the new question is how much *other* fans would improve with that shroud. Even playing field.

[@Gergel70]

That was going to be my question exactly. Put a shroud on the wing fork and I bet it wins.

[@NatVirgo]

@@brwainer I think the only reason that shroud worked for that fan was because it created a vacuum.

[@t_c5266]

I saw the superfan, was like "well that's clearly the wrong direction" Scroll to the comments and sure enough, the designer is there and it's definitely the wrong direction

[@neo1231]

Seems like a slight misunderstanding the fan was either designed backwards or designed to pull air instead of push; like his test bench is set up to do.

[@ndexer]

@@neo1231 Designed backwards? Dude he just needs to rotate it and fit it the right way.

[@neo1231]

@@ndexer lol yeah I noticed that 🤣🤐😇

[@SCComega]

Wingfork actually is the winner here, to me, as it not only beats the Slug mk2, it does so within the normal fan profile size, which is amazing. Now I want to see it further optimized and made a production fan, cause it's both quiet, looks cool, and fits the standard profile for a computer fan.

[@mademedothis424]

Yeah, right? I mean, having a new winner is a big deal, but that thing is doing better than stock while being kinda quiet? I... kinda want one now.

[@riba2233]

Just take into account that these are not noise normalized

[@peetiegonzalez1845]

I'd be interested in printing one to use myself, replacing the Noctua blades for better performance. Imagine a better quality print or somehow injection moulding a lighter, thinner version!

[@SCComega]

@@peetiegonzalez1845 I mean, print one out on an MSLA printer out of a lightweight functional to engineering grade resin, and you've got yourself an amazing fan.

[@jibbily]

@@peetiegonzalez1845 3d print a mold for a carbon fibre part?

[@NafrytiNosferatu]

Looks like we need to add a "Flow Direction" to the desings. At least a "Front/back" label.

[@ghomerhust]

yep, totally backwards. i bet it performs REALLY well once he flips it

[@nickpheonixify]

or just cap them so they can only be installed one way.

[@GodmanchesterGoblin]

Flow direction is not changed by the reverse mounting, but the efficiency absolutely is. Flow direction is changed when the rotation direction is changed or the attack angle of the blades is flipped (which does not happen with reverse mounting).

[@wilwynddoesnotcomply7436]

Try the superfan again but flip it. The rotund base/hub looks like a velocity stack, but it wouldn't work because it was positioned incorrectly.

[@The_Keeper]

Yeah, in the smoke test you could see it throwing a lot of smoke/air out the sides, thus losing a lot of air-pressure.

[@Clydes.Shop78]

Retest

[@user--PM]

retest with shroud even

[@kittyztigerz]

it wont fit if u flip it over because hole dont fit on hub size 2nd fan blade is larger then housing

[@pvic6959]

yup the designer commented that it was mounted backwards

[@JamesSmith-dn8lb]

You need a separate fan class for just those that fit within the frame. The shroud works and all, but you can't mount that in most cases.

[@robertt9342]

Stock and modified classes.

[@ikitclaw7146]

my passive heat sink is bigger than that, and my case isnt so big, the 980 ti looks huge in there and only just fits but still room for that shroud on top of a traditional heat sink, maybe need to modify the side of the case to allow good flow, a drill and a few holes will fix that lol.

[@ikitclaw7146]

@Swim Fan Kinda missing the point of this aint ya?

[@ikitclaw7146]

@Swim Fan wow missing the point once again.

[@ikitclaw7146]

@Swim Fan you would prolly miss your mouth trying to swallow them if how much you miss the point is anything to go by.

[@tjarsun]

TBH I'm most impressed by the Wingfork, given it isn't bigger than the frame and performs that well. I would love to see the Slug mk2 with a smaller tube, ending right at the level of the fan itself.

[@hovant6666]

Right? It's the winner here by not exceeding the fan frame

[@TheWeaponshold]

Right? But sometimes it frustrates me I cannot find the STLs for some of the best performing fans but many of these take a lot of work which is why maybe they should post it to something like Cults3D for like 3-5$ so other people can buy the file to print.

[@ahayesm]

Yeah, If I had space for a fan that long I would rather spend that space on a thicker rad and push-pull.

[@Randomii666]

Ultimate flex when you claim to beat everyone by a mile and still underestimate the results

[@PyroVulpes]

Ok, now mount the superfan properly to give it a fighting chance. There's no way it was meant to fit like that.

[@snintendog]

i want to see as well if 1. the shroud is 100% a upgrade to all fans designs now 2. how short we can make it without loss 3. is there diminishing effects with other shrouds+fans near it sucking up air the other fans otherwise would have got if so what is min/max IE 3x3 grid of 120mm fans to a 1x2 row of120mm fans

[@gameknight.thump1]

9:29 Major Hardware: 'I don't think there is much improvement to be had' Zuxx: Yeah, so, about that

[@chio987]

I'd be curious to see if the shroud improves the 2nd and 3rd place fans. I assume it would but by how much?

[@outcast170]

I would like to see that as well. Specially since without the shroud it would have placed 2nd, would it give as much of a boost to the 2nd place fan as well? Resulting in an even higher score for 1st? Not sure if 3rd place would benefit near as much, but that would make the testing of it even more interesting.

[@perforongo9078]

Considering how much testing the guy did, I'm guessing the fan was designed with the shroud in mind. Without the shroud, I think he would have designed it differently.

[@-NGC-6302-]

Yeah, if the wingfork had the shroud but not the slug mk2 would their places switch?

[@mariestarlight]

This is exactly what I wanted to comment. Try the shroud on the other best fans.

[@peterkiss1204]

@@-NGC-6302- I guess the wingfork's side panels has a similar purpose to the shroud, to prevent the compressed air from escaping in radial directions. The shroud may improve the performance slightly further, but I don't think it would reach 1,4 °C as it did with the slug.

[@xtremefurrycat]

that slug was so satisfying to watch with the fog machine blowing in to it, you can really tell that it was just sucking up that air.

[@TheLetter2wo]

I love these videos. Literally no one makes any content like this

[@outcast170]

Yeah, its a rare gem buried in the trash that is KZbin.

[@jhenry48809]

Project Farm makes similar content, he doesn't produce viewer "products" but tests company products.

[@-NGC-6302-]

Oh yeah that guy. He’s got nice content, though not as exciting as the fan showdown

[@sienile]

@@jhenry48809 - Back when PF started I would tease him about how he "must've had a steel rod up his butt" and when he finally cracked a smile in a video I was like "Finally you got that rod out." Still pretty dry content, but he's loosened up a bit over the years, as evidenced by the Farmabego.

[@bobnine]

you might also like makers muse's videos about RC car wheels

[@curvingfyre6810]

the wingfoil with a shroud would, theoretically, be equally awesome. I demand that it be tested with said shroud, to determine a tiebreaker. keep in mind that the foil is normal ff.

[@RobinHilton22367]

Would be interesting to see what the minimum height of shroud needed for Slug Mk2 to function to same level without being too long.

[@Lecherous_Rex]

you could just make it seal with the case vent and skip out on the fan at the back of the case, pipe fresh air from outside the box through the tower and suck it out the front with another case fan

[@tshepotsotetsi1067]

Im also curious too.

[@TheStigma]

Exactly! A shroud makes sense as soon as the thickness of the fan is deeper than the frame, but the shroud here seems much deeper than that. I suspect you'd get very similar results with a shortened shroud that is only as deep as the fan - which would make it a lot more practical to use.

[@piercer4882]

I wouldn't be surprised if that was at least 1 of the 13 iterations..

[@corgano6068]

You could do lots of testing with little waste by printing one long shroud and then trimming it back by about 10 mills between tests

[@christianguzman8228]

Slug takes advantage of a simple principle of cooling. More surface area (Increase to Volume of air) on the fan blade and a higher velocity. This increases the convection coefficient. That's what these fans are meant to function for. Otherwise in, Q=hA(T-Tsys), the only other modifiable factor to increase cooling energy is surface area of the fins, which has less to do with the fans. In the calculation of h, Re has to be taken into account which is pVL/u, considering u and p are non-modifiable factors. I'm finally glad to see somebody take these principles into account instead of merely copying what they have seen other engineers do.

[@SheepHairOG]

These fans just keep getting better and better… Seriously, this series is creating innovations that we’ll probably see on the market eventually lol

[@cpufreak101]

I remember in another episode he noted some fan manufacturers have actually reached out to some of these creators, so it's quite likely!

[@Dimondminer11]

honestly yeah

[@dannybeckett01]

I thought this too

[@ghomerhust]

@@cpufreak101 yep, i remember that. it was a fan that the blades were sorta shaped like lightning bolts. and it performed pretty well. looked fantastic...... pun intended

[@tomc.5704]

What's truly amazing is how little it cost him -- he crowdsourced the development process to interested volunteers. I firmly believe that companies can and should do more stuff like this. For example, the pokemon company has been struggling to create animations for all 898 pokemon --- but do you realize how many people would jump at the opportunity to contribute an animation? If they asked their fans to help them out, they would be swamped by submissions. Within a month they would have to hire someone to help sift through the pile. Same thing goes for new game mechanics. People would design and playtest for them. But instead, they shut down fan games. They reuse animations from the 3DS. They disappoint fans by not even adding a simple difficulty option at the start of the game. For a more relatable example -- every single company has people working on the ground level with good ideas. How hard is it to ask them to pitch the ideas to their boss, who then passes it up the chain. Ask people to submit their ideas, and then use your bloated bureaucracy of middle management to filter for the best ones. Voila! The CEO ends up with 20 decent ideas on his desk, and gets to pick whichever ones he likes. Look at these fan designs. It works. And Major Hardware is just one guy, who decided to run a small project on the side. The fan design company would have the resources to hire someone to test many more designs, and then show us the most interesting ones. There's so much untapped potential. It kills me to watch business majors and CEOs not even try to innovate. So yeah. I'm a huge believer in crowdsourcing. Give your users an opportunity to pitch in. In exchange, the final product can be sold for less and reach a wider audience, which leads to even more opportunity for crowdsourcing funding, ideas, and development.

[@cinnabunsm4137]

when the music started, felt like i was going on a journey... across japan

[@paco3447]

With Rick Astley

[@theboat9311]

I get the feeling the superfan was on backwards... it just looks like its wrong

[@filipdahlberg4420]

It would blow and not suck if it was on wrong way…so,it was on right as it was sucking

[@DinkelBrot99]

I would love to see it with the shrowd

[@wehooper4]

I was just about to comment this. The superfan design even had an area intended for helping the air flow into the hub area of the blades, which makes zero sence pointed at the back of the fan.

[@paualdinicola]

Superfan in a mirror with a shroud

[@Blender3DProjects]

@@filipdahlberg4420 not true, if you flip a fan it still moves air in the same direction, but not as efficiently as the design intended. (The profile in inverted, but so is the rotational direction so it will still blow the same way)

[@RaderGH]

This show is like seeing fan evolution, trying out all possibilities and seeing which sticks.

[@LazorVideosDestruction]

Should have tried the shroud idea with the other fans. I think it's safe to say that from now on, everyone is gonna include a shroud with their fan now...

[@fordrollhaus9086]

To me, extending the shroud feels a bit like cheating. You’re effectively making the size of the fan much bigger than before, which makes it unusable in a lot of applications. But the wingfork is really impressive. The fact that a 3D printed fan can outperform the stock one by that much in the same fan profile is super impressive, it’d be cool to see it as a commercial product

[@ghomerhust]

and as far as sound, it was pretty quiet too. the tip shape helped reduce the popping you get from a normal blade design, so the actual tone of the sound wasnt that intrusive either

[@SaiakuNaSenshu]

Soon people are going to be requesting noctua sell just The Fan Hub so other people can just print their own fans

[@ghomerhust]

i'd buy a whole box. cuz then i could print "theme fan blades" for my custom builds for customers

[@skydragonfire93]

Nah, Noctua is eventually ONLY going to sell the fan hub and say "Print it your self loser."

[@DigitalJedi]

I love how this show is basically crowd sourcing new innovation from viewers by having a fun competition. I could see shrouds getting implemented into cases where it goes from a cooler to the front panel and the Wingfork is just a cool design, but it also works very well.

[@dexorne9753]

Interest is more powerful than financial gain

[@sebbes333]

*@Slug Mk2 Maker* 5:34 I would have flared out the shroud at the top, so the air inlet flow isn't limited (as much) by the shroud. Kind of some variation of a cooling tower on a nuclear plant kind of shape.

[@LyK0sa]

What you're referring to is a velocity stack, often fitted to carburettors and throttle bodies. And yeah, I'm surprised he didn't go that route, even if it doesn't offer a performance advantage it looks cool.

[@The_Keeper]

@@LyK0sa It may be a bit more difficult to print..?

[@Zuxxkij]

it is flared out very slightly at the top, maybe i'll try it with a more aggressive curve soon. :)

[@jttech44]

@@Zuxxkij It's not as important with low velocity air, as there isn't much chance for flow separation. Probably marginal gains to be had.

[@pepperthekobold]

I used to have a CPU cooler with a duct-tower like that about 10 years ago that went to a hole in the side panel of the case. A real pig for dust but clearly the theory works.

[@ghomerhust]

google "air filter dyno test engine masters" and look for a video where they test several air cleaners and stacks for true performance gains. the velocity stack, similar to the shroud here, performed extremely well

[@pepperthekobold]

@@ghomerhust HA! I actually have already seen the exact video you're talking about. The one that ends with a salad bowl. But yeah, you're right.

[@geoffstrickler]

Re: slug mk2. I’ll bet he could cut the shroud down significantly with little change in performance. If memory serves me correctly, the Slug mk2 and the Wingfork also turned in two of the quietest performances you’ve had, and yet sit in the top two spots. Well done, congrats to their designers. Finally, watching the airflow of the super fan in the smoke test, I’ll bet it’s performance would improve notably with a shroud. Update, the fan designer says it was mounted backwards. I vote for a retest.

[@TheRealKoyKO]

I second his vote for a retest!

[@jadesprite]

I feel like we need this episode again, but ammended with the shroud tested on everything, plus the superfan turned around. These absolute beasts deserve it and I!! NEED!! TO KNOW!! IF THE SHROUD IS THE SOLUTION!!

[@BigInjun05]

Try the shroud on 2nd place winner.

[@brutus6574]

That shroud needs to have a gentle radius opening up like a bell. The opening should be about 1.25 times diameter at the fan blades and you could reduce the height of the scoop by 50% to achieve the same or better laminar flow. It's common with automotive air intakes. Will reduce the choke point at the shroud inlet and make the tips of your fan blades work more effectively. He's definitely on the right track with the shroud and fan design

[@lookaquarter]

The superfan with it's 'calculated' blade shape looks exactly like the highly efficient industrial compressor impellers, but upsidedown with no hub. Very interesting design (typing this before seeing how it does c: )

[@LyK0sa]

Imo it desperately needs a shroud or velocity stack, the blades overhang too much, so the stock frame can't channel the airflow properly. At least that's my guess, as an uneducated pleb with no real knowledge of aerodynamics.

[@lookaquarter]

​@@LyK0sa I believe you're right, there is too much loss from the overhang to the base of the fan. It makes me wonder how an impeller shaped fan, with a shroud that hugs the blade profile for increased efficiency would do. In a scenario with contained airflow through pipes this would do well, but I wonder if the benefits of an efficient shroud would be negated by the airflow restriction, and low RPM.

[@andreasglasser]

That was my fan. The fan was unfortunately mounted in the wrong direction in the video and I hoped it would have performed better in the other direction :) But great fun to be selected :)

[@NainKaigo]

@@andreasglasser would be nice if we could push this to the top so you could get a fair shake. I know high performance quadcopter blades are designed the same way and they are quite a bit better in certain scenarios.

[@andreasglasser]

@@NainKaigo Yeah that would be so great :) Thanks

[@Yellowhound1]

Major Hardware: not much more improvements can occur I think. Slug Mk2: hold my beer

[@My_initials_are_O.G.cuz_I_am]

Zuxx's only mistake was that they underestimated their fan by 0.5°C in both estimates.

[@official_commanderhale965]

The best thing to do is underestimate the performance. It makes for a pleasant surprise every time.🤣

[@CsykKrit]

@@official_commanderhale965 every american car manufacturer in the the 70's. 427 big block "280hp" my ass lol

[@rafaelmarkos4489]

@@CsykKrit American engine designs prioritize torque over horsepower. The power measures are accurate, they just don't give you the whole picture. Given that the popular American excuse for competitive car racing is NASCAR, I'm not surprised.

[@crimmy838]

@@rafaelmarkos4489 nascar makes some cool motors and that's it

[@davido9208]

I believe if the shroud was designed like velocity stack on engines it would do even better. Maybe even one designed to spin the air before it reaches the fan providing faster air speed. However I'm far from what one would call an engineer.

[@ghomerhust]

yeah i could see where youre going with that. a vortex will increase speed, so having little jets formed into the walls to encourage a spin may speed it up

[@zichithefox4781]

Shroud: the future of fan cooling.

[@grelgen]

it's funny you say that, I had a pc case that came with a cooling shroud back in 2001.

[@zichithefox4781]

@@grelgen Some things don't catch on or trend that should, I think. Sometimes something super useful comes out that just becomes a hidden gem.

[@CsykKrit]

@@grelgen same

[@Sully948]

Not going to lie, out of the like 300 people I'm subscribed to, I always click yours the fastest. Keep up with the awesome videos man

[@waitandhope]

How are you subbed to so many they've removed the ability to group?

[@austinhart2558]

Season 3 retesting old fans and new fans, with a fan shroud.

[@tin2001]

I'm particularly interested in seeing the Dr Evil Rocket fan retested with the shroud... 😂

[@zachwilliams2597]

"i don't think there can be much more improvement to be had" zuxx: "hold my beer"

[@caincha]

When I seen the smoke test one thing caught my eye most of anything: how the 'slug' fan actually made the air come out in the back like a mini tornado. I don't think I've ever seen any fan do that! Awesome!!

[@tomc.5704]

Someone else posted this comment, thought you might find it interesting: Not all fans would benefit from the shroud. The shroud makes a big difference if a fan has a shallow angle air intake or a sharp angle air intake. The Slug Mk2 grabs air from both shallow and sharp angles, however since the air flow is the fastest at the edges of the fan, the shroud allows for backflow of air, creating a vortex point, speeding up the center pillar of air, which due to convection causes more air to be pulled in. Fans like the noctua don't have as much of a surface area to process the additional air with, so the increase in effect would be marginal at best.

[@gregs_music_corner]

I've been waiting for this one, I'm always fascinated by the designs.. .But that slug thing? Commercialize it!

[@natsumi3058]

same reason we see shrouds on car radiators, they work to direct air through the heatsink/radiator. nice job Zuxx!

[@Dalorian1]

@0:40 those winglets might stabilize the blade spin initially, but the blades will still flex at high speed, and im thinking that possibly if the curves he has designed into the main fins are bent specifically correctly, and the winglets are set to the correct angle for the fan rotation speed, it might just create a perfect vortex :-D

[@TestarossaF110]

BONUS Episode with "The Shroud" being tested on the rest of the Top 5? :D

[@hariman7727]

On EVERYTHING, alongside tests of shroud designs that are more open at the receiving end.

[@tomc.5704]

YES PLEASE!

[@MRMIKE276]

Better yet get the actual "shroud" to come over and test the fan with him. I love that he's a fan of CSGO.

[@TestarossaF110]

@@MRMIKE276 :P would be amazing!

[@hearmerant]

To test airflow you should build a container with a wall in the middle. Fan goes in the wall. Fill one side with smoke and turn on the fan. Then you'll see how long it takes to clear the smoke out. This'll give you a better view of how effective they are at moving a volume of air, rather than only air that is right in front of them, such as the shrouded fan here. Love these videos, keep making great content

[@ezrarichardson279]

Man! That slug fan is ridiculous! Love it!

[@Sir_Ninonino]

The moment I saw the smoke test of the fork I knew we were onto something. Those wings really help direct the air to the center and let none go to the edges.

[@LyK0sa]

I feel like the massive overhang on the superfan means it would really need a small shroud or velocity stack to perform well. Kinda surprised that the slug V2's shroud didn't use a velocity stack design too. Would it have performed better? Or maybe worse? Who knows. It would have looked pretty slick though.

[@welldoneworker]

Indeed, I like to se the superfan retested. I mean it hurt my eyes that such a well thaught out design could obviously not perform with that gab between the fan and the Noctua frame. So I suggest to retest it with a shroud that at least closes the gab to the top of the fan blades. and ty for giving us the values of the slug w./-o. the shroud

[@nate51691]

The creator of the superfan has posted a few comments in here. Turns out his fan was mounted backwards for the test. Hopefully it gets another attempt!

[@manytrickpony695]

there is something really brilliant about what you are doing with this series and I think it's excellent that *anybody* can try. There is a great spirit of competition. Keep going people and make it (whatever "it" is) better.

[@chincemagnet]

That’s what I want to see, people who want to push the limits of fan design and conquer the leaderboard, great job to the top two, congrats 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@melechc7267]

Print the inside of the shroud with a surface dented like a golf ball, This has been used in racing applications on throttle bodies with significant increases in CFM. It gives significant increases over even highly polished surface features .

[@mutantblue99]

Do the Superfan in both orientations with/without the shroud and see what you get!!!!!! it shouldn't even need a new print!

[@muhammadirfanataulawal7630]

The wingfork's airflow profile is superb. All of the smoke just went through the middle of the fan. I'm surprised that no fan manufacturers are actually looking at airplane winglets for their fans.

[@bacco0447]

now let's see if any fan company contact the guy who made the shrouded fan

[@midlifehemi88]

Yeah I'm still waiting for that guy Thomas to come back from the early days of this show in Season 1. He made a neat fan and some fan company contacted MajorHardware asking if they could use that design, but no one could get ahold of the man Thomas that made it. If we do get contacted by a company for the shroud fan, the creator better respond XD

[@bulut6759]

they would probably rip off the design without even asking

[@ratonilla]

@@midlifehemi88 but he did respond eventually, there should be a comment of his on that video.

[@Zuxxkij]

let's hope someone contacts me hahaha. That would be amazing :D

[@shinjisan2015]

The smoke tests show why those two fans were so good. They made vortices and tighter columns of air for a measurable distance after the fan. That kind of control over the mass of air clearly improves thermal transfer.

[@chewinggum3]

And is a noctua A12 fan would improve with a shroud ? That would open a way about how our cases are made ?!

[@livedandletdie]

It probably wouldn't... the question of if a shroud helps with cooling or not is mostly dependent on the base fan, if a fan for instance have a shallow angle air intake or a sharp angle air intake, makes a huge difference, the Slug Mk2 grabs air from both shallow and sharp angles, however since the air flow is the fastest at the edges of the fan, the shroud allows for backflow of air, creating a vortex point, speeding up the center pillar of air, which due to convection causes more air to be pulled in but since the noctua doesn't have as much of a surface area to process the additional air with, the increase in effect is marginal at best.

[@chewinggum3]

@@livedandletdie Thanks for this clear explanaition, I understand better.

[@tomc.5704]

@@livedandletdie That makes sense, thanks for the insightful answer! I'd still like to see it tested though

[@seanabsher5577]

Hey guys, who's seen the movie "hackers"? The fan test music reminds me of an 80s synthpop rendition of the hacking montage sequence music in hackers. Also the slug with the shroud is amazing. (I'm glad this channel exists)

[@ugolenko345]

I've been waiting for someone to use a shroud this entire season. My thinking was, drag racers back in the day used to use stainless steel salad bowls on top of their intake to increase intake velocity. I was hoping it would have the same effect on the showdown.

[@cpufreak101]

I remember that salad bowl thing. it was something Motor Trend tested as a joke, but it ended up making more HP than no filter at all, and won the dyno showdown by a notable margin

[@anonymouspotato7538]

"The Superfan looks like a flower" And it sounds like a swarm of bees.

[@Mods_a_ton]

the superfan needs a shroud to avoid air spillage. Only then would you the benefits of this particular blade design.

[@vsm1456]

it doesn't need a shroud, it was mounted backwards

[@blackfrost273industries4]

That's fvcking cool engineering my dude, Mr. First place!

[@N7-alpha]

Was super fan upsidedown in the smoke test?

[@nate51691]

The creator commented and confirmed that the Superfan was mounted backwards in all three tests. I'd love to see it go the right way in the next episode, or a special update

[@jameslmorehead]

I submitted my fan a few months back. I used Solidworks Flow to go through about 10 iterations to take a 140 mm OD and squeeze the air down into the 120 mm form factor. It also incorporates a shroud on the rotating assembly. I hope it gets pulled out. I might have to run a few more iterations and upload a couple more generations.

[@dhgodzilla1]

I am a Fan of the Fan Showdown

[@temio.463]

Hehe

[@Knapweed]

The 'Shroud' is basically the air equivalent of the Kort Nozzle (Ducted Propeller) which has been improving the efficiency of boat propellers since 1931. The efficiency could be improved even further by giving an aerofoil cross section to the shroud.

[@Rosskoflex]

He was pretty spot on with his predictions. This guy knows his shit. Respect.

[@RedHeadForester]

Both those first and second place fans are ones which ought to be licensed for production. They're pretty fans when switched off, and hella effective when in use.

[@TKSubDude]

Fan Leader: No one can beat me! Slug: Hold my beer!

[@grougrouhh1727]

i am more impressed by the wing fan because the big fan is so big it seems really inconvinient !

[@C_Castillo]

My first thought was "imagine the slug beats first place but then the fork beats the slug lol🤣" but then that shrouded slug won lol xp

[@warpedweirdo]

Congratulations, Zuxx. That fan is impressive!

[@Americancosworth]

I wonder what the Slug would be like if you added little NACA ducts to it...

[@1drumshark]

Put the shroud on the Noctua. The shroud helps accelerate the air in the intended direction over a longer period of time. It's when a lot of hit rod engines have long open tube structures on the intake headers.

[@Silver4567z]

8:46 The Slog Mk2, shroud or not, is double the thickness of a regular noctua. This is hidden by the shroud. So of course the enlarged blades are scooping more air.

[@AltcoinXP]

Your smoke test music always gets me in the mood for 1980s aerobics.

[@berrycade]

I remember the first slug, the improvement was insane.

[@alihms]

Now, you should have 2 separate categories. Category one: with whatever attachment (shrouds, scoops etc). The fan won't fit the standard PC housing, but the goal is have the best cooling performance. The second category is the design that can be installed in regular PC casing. No protrusions or extra accessories (ex. separate ducting) required.

[@sinfulf4i]

put the shroud on the wingfork fan see how much it improves with the shroud

[@cyantox]

Nice Idea!

[@markzaikov456]

That's a massive flex, a confident prediction and then dominating the whole leaderboard. Congratulations man! I hope they start making shroud compatible cases

[@Michael-OBrien]

If the shroud were a proper vortex stack, you’d see more improvement

[@fredriks5090]

Any more improvement and you'll have submarine technicians knocking at your door with a cease and desist order.

[@jjr007]

Should try some of the other top fans with shrouds.

[@wadec6203]

Nice style fan, really like the extra induction like the compression side of a turbo impressive prediction and now 1st place. Thinking about adding this to my tower. C

[@lady_caridina]

I'd really love to see what your Onlyfans is like 😁

[@ghomerhust]

ive seen it. it blows..........

[@davidburton4682]

@@ghomerhust makes a change. Most of the other Onlyfans suck...

[@BillyBob-lt5nr]

Yeah, but they are definitely NSFW...

[@lansonfloyd4687]

Someone could easily get a startup company going printing shrouds of different heights, based on various popular cases and uses, or to make them to order and ship. Universally useful, inexpensive, easy for a 3D printer to make, and easy to scale as needed. This is a simple winner imo. Make them in a material that reacts to UV or other light, and you have yourself a cool attraction for the show-off builds too.

[@awizardman]

that is inovative all hell! having it create a constant low air pressure in the duct to draw in more volume of air. you could probably make this even better with some taper or higher fan speed.

[@chazsewell]

After seeing how much of a difference in the top two fans I kinda want a comparison category of fits in original form factor and doesn't added. I'd really like to see a placement list of fans that could fit the original form factor separate from the main overall list.

[@caleb186]

Petition for season three to have a noise normalized ranking in addition to the current performance only leaderboard. Performance to noise is an important consideration in anything but all out gaming or servers.

[@noanyobiseniss7462]

Adding shrouds skews everything. Shrouds increase pressure and that is why they improve fan cooling. This is why all cars are outfitted with them. Either they should be disallowed or all should be tested with them.

[@MeteCanKarahasan]

If you have too much pressure, air circles around the fan frame.

[@Dan-Simms]

So happy someone made the wingfork because that was what the design in my head has been since about episode 2 of this series...wanted to make it myself but have never used any design software before.

[@RalphEllis]

The split wingtips on a 737 is merely a go-faster stripe. It adds very little to a short-haul airliner. Note the 787 which REALLY needs drag reduction, has no winglets. R

[@Dhagen6278]

Once you add a shroud, you open up a world of possibilities. My first experiment would be to create a 3 stage fan design, first stage would be low AOA, second would be medium AOA, then a third stage with high AOA, probably higher than you would try otherwise. This design should create a LOT of pressure, not just airflow, so it would perform the best if the radiator has a very high fin density.

[@blagovdaryu]

I have a suggestion. What if you put fans into some kind of acrylic plane with the window, to keep incoming smoke on the left side, and to explicitly show what portions of the smoke passed, I mean with that isolated wall we will be able to see smoke flow more clearly. Because now we see how the smoke envelopes around the fan, even if it's not suck into the fan like we have with the UFO fan.

[@SaigneurGuerrier]

Incredible. To think the improvements went this far. This show is a goldmine of designs !

[@Dalorian1]

@5:45 If that cylinder was more like a cone, it might have done better at directly sucking in more air flow from a bigger area.

[@thetruthexperiment]

This might be the only channel who’s music choice is appropriate, funny and not horribly annoying.

[@krisplanker9640]

It makes sense that shrouds would work because barrels do. I wanna see where the point of diminishing returns is with shroud length.