Phobya NB-eLoop 1600RPM 120mm Review

Introduction

Phobya is a brand although it is made up of multiple companies, manufacturers, designers and technology owners. They do not have a head office but develop and produce products at multiple locations worldwide. All the products under the Phobya brand name adhere to strict quality standards along with a series of factors including the use of multilingual manuals etc.

Today we are taking a look at the Phobya NB-eLoop 1600RPM 120mm fan. This product has a few interesting features built in, so lets get on with the review.

Specifications and Features

• Dimensions : 120x120x25mm
• Weight: 125g
• Nominal voltage : 12V
• Start-up voltage : 6 V
• Power consumption : 1,01W
• Nominal speed : 1600rpm (+/- 10%)
• Pressure head : 1,560mmH2O
• Air flow : 104 m3/h
• Noise emission: 22,5 dB/A
• MTBF (25°C) : 140 000 hrs
• Connector : 3 Pin Molex with RPM signal
• Warranty: 3 years

Packaging and accessories

Taking a look at the box, it comes in very striking packaging with lots of colours and a large image of the fan on the front. The print has a gloss finish and highlights the use of the Bionic fan blade rotor which is patented by Dr. Rudolf Bannasch.

On the back of the box we see a list of technical specifications and bar-code. For peace of mind it comes with a 3 year warranty.

On the sides of the packaging we see the Phobya website (www.phobya.com) and logo. The sides of the packaging are the same on both sides.

Getting into the box we find the fan ships with four black fan screws and the fan itself. It is good to see the fan shipping with black screws compared to generic silver screws. I was expecting more in the box maybe some anti-vibration pins or fan resistor but obviously adding these in would add to the cost slightly.

Closer Look

The fan is very striking at first glance. I really like the design of the fan but obviously the colour of it makes it difficult to use in some colour themed builds, however it would suit a red/black theme perfectly. The fan also features some Noise Blocker elements to its construction and engineering.

Let’s start by taking a look at the Bionic fan blade rotor. This technology comes from Germany and was developed with support from the Federal Ministry of Economics and Dr. Rudolf Bannasch. This technology consists of the blades from the tip to the tail of the blade being attached to an outer ring to which all six of the blades are attached.

They say this unique design eliminates the vortices between the low and high pressure side of the fan blade tips. It works by breaking up the tip vortices into smaller vortices which are then distributed evenly. The result of this is reduced drag, improved energy efficiency and reduced aerodynamic noise.

The blades are made out a transparent red plastic and have a ribbed effect on the back edge of them. They also have a dust repelling super-smooth surface. I found them to catch the light nicely. I just thought it was a shame that the fan didn’t feature any LEDs, I think some white LEDs would make this fan look even more amazing in a system.

The fans chassis is very strong, with no flex what so ever. This is due to the fibre glass reinforced material used in its construction; the exact name is PBT UL94V0 30%GF. The intake side of the fans framework surrounding the fan blades has an angled design to help increase air intake. On the reverse side are small round dimples, which I assume help reduce noise/improve airflow.

On the corners of each fan are rubber dampeners made of a very soft red rubber and have the Noise Blocker logo embossed into them. These press onto the case/surface and help prevent noisy vibration. I would have liked to have seen anti-vibration pins included for mounting to help prevent vibration further. I would like to point out that the corners of the fan are left open.

The motor used in the fan is a NB-EKA 2 drive. This offers a number of benefits including:

• Auto-restart functionality for a reliable start-up
• Integrated blockage and overload protection
• Scalable NB-WideRange electronics
• RPM Signal lead
• AntiDust Technology thanks to the completely dust-protected motor
• Low voltage start-up

The bearing in the fan is a NB-NanoSLI 2 magnetic floating bearing, which offers both horizontal and vertical operation without increased noise, antidust technology since it is completely dust protected and special lubrication with Nano technology for long lifespan and low noise emissions.

The fan has a three pin black connector to power it and is capable of spinning up to 1600RPM at 12v. The cable also comes braided in a good quality weave braid which is nice to see; you can’t see the cables through it. However I found the heatshrink could have been tighter but on the whole, top job Phobya!

That concludes our look at the fan; let’s talk about its performance.

Performance

5v

The noise performance is very good, the fan is silent, no bearing noise and a surprising amount of airflow.

7v

The noise performance at 7v is also very good, I couldn’t hear any different when comparing it to the fan running at 5V however there was more airflow.

12v

Obviously there is a big step up in power being delivered to the fan and as such the fan became audible but bearable in my opinion. However the amount of airflow being delivered was quite staggering, quite a strong breeze and quite directional. Very impressive.

The fan can deliver a reasonable amount of static pressure at 12v (1.560 mmH20) delivering more than the Corsair SP120mm Quiet edition, so should perform admirably on watercooling radiators. Overall I was very impressed by the performance, silent at the lower voltages with a really powerful amount of airflow when running at 12v. Let’s move onto the conclusion.

Conclusion

From the start this fan impressed me. The packaging is striking and would attract your attention if in a shop environment. Everything is well packed and the fan held securely in place in the box thanks to a cardboard insert.

The lack of accessories in the fan was a disappointment to me. I would have liked to have seen a fan adapter or some anti vibration mounts included. The look of the fan is stunning. The blades have a really reflective finish to them and look superb when you catch them in the light. I would like to see an LED edition introduced as I think that would look amazing.

Build quality is superb. The fan’s framework is some of the toughest I have seen and the rubber dampeners soft to the touch. There has quite clearly has been a lot of effort gone into the design of the components used and they work; the performance is great!

I was very impressed by the Phobya NB-eLoop 120mm fan. Combining good performance with solid build quality and they would suit any red/black system down to the ground. Top job Phobya.

At the time of writing the fan can be purchased for around £14.

My thoughts at a glance:-

Pros

• Looks stunning
• Superb build quality all round
• Packaged well
• Anti-vibration corners
• Silent at 5v and 7v
• Fan connection is black
• Cable braid on the cable is good
• Black fan screws included

Cons

• Lack of LEDs
• No anti-vibration pins for mounting although there is rubber dampners at each corner
• No fan speed reducer

I am pleased to award the Phobya NB-eLoop our Play3r design award.

You can purchase the Phobya NB-eLoop fan from Aquatuning – Here