Review of Thermaltake SwaFan EX14 RGB PC Cooling Fan White TT Premium Edition (3-Fan Pack)

Fans with illuminated impellers may only look attractive from the front, but they can sometimes negatively affect the appearance of the assembled computer. To solve this problem, Thermaltake has offered fans with reversible impellers that can be installed instead of standard ones. The user can choose which of two impellers to use — standard or reversible — to ensure the fan looks its best.

We have already tested a set of Thermaltake SwaFan 14 RGB Radiator Fan (3-Fan Pack) with reversible impellers. In this article we will look at a similar set, which differs in the presence of magnetic connectors on the fans. These connectors simplify assembly and, if you have multiple fans, reduce cable clutter for a neater PC build.

The product's full name is Thermaltake SwaFan EX14 RGB PC Cooling Fan White TT Premium Edition (3-Fan Pack), but for brevity we will use «Thermaltake SwaFan EX14 RGB».

The box in which this set is supplied is made of durable cardboard and has a bright design.

This kit includes three fans and three reversible impellers, three cables with magnetic connectors, as well as four self-tapping screws (for installing fans into the case) and four elongated screws (M3; for attaching to the radiator) for each fan. Also included is a controller, a power cable for the controller, a USB cable for connecting the controller to the motherboard, and a USB connecting cable for daisy chaining the controllers. The screws and screws are made of hardened steel coated with durable black enamel. In addition, two pads are provided with complementary Velcro on one side and an adhesive layer on the other side (to secure the controller inside the case), manuals for the fans and TT RGB Plus software (containing mostly illustrations in English), as well as a description guarantees (with version in Russian). A grease gun is also included in the kit.

Manuals in PDF format are available for download on the manufacturer's website. In addition to this kit, the manufacturer also offers a similar set with black fans and similar sets of three fans with a diameter of 120 mm, available in black and white. No specific clarifications were found, therefore it is assumed that this set of fans is covered by the standard two-year warranty that is typical for Thermaltake products.

The fan frame is made of durable black plastic. On the front of the frame there is a ring-shaped light diffuser made of white translucent plastic. The fan impeller is also made of the same material. Multi-color LEDs are located under the light diffusers on the frame and central part of the impeller, creating two lighting zones: 14 LEDs on the frame ring and 6 on the inner ring under the impeller, for a total of 20 independently controllable addressable RGB LEDs on one fan.

The eyelets in the corners of the fan frame are equipped with vibration-isolating pads made of elastic plastic of medium hardness.

The pads protrude approximately 0.5 mm when uncompressed. The manufacturer assumes that this will provide vibration isolation between the fan and its installation location. However, if we take into account the ratio of the fan mass and the rigidity of the linings, it becomes clear that the resonant frequency of the structure turns out to be high, which makes vibration isolation practically ineffective.

The sockets for the mounting screws are part of the fan frame, which leads to the transfer of vibration from the fan through the screws to its main mount. As a result, this lug design may be considered more of a design element than an effective vibration isolation method.

The markings on the fan indicate that the model used is TT-1425 (A1425S12S-2), manufactured by Hong Sheng. However, this is a general designation for several fan models and probably refers to the impeller motor at best.

This fan uses a hydrodynamic bearing (Hydraulic Bearing). Here is a diagram of the design of this bearing:

Apparently, this is a sliding bearing with lubricant circulation. After several replacements of the impellers, the manufacturer recommends replenishing the grease in the motor bearing in an amount of approximately 0.1 ml. The supplied syringe is enough for about 4-5 lubricant additions.

Reversible impellers have the inscription Reverse on the stickers in the central part.

The impellers from the fans are removed with a little effort (but you need to make sure that there is no distortion) and are easily put into place.

The cables from the fan are enclosed in a braided sheath.

The shell, according to legend, supposedly reduces aerodynamic drag, but given the size of even two flat three- and four-wire cables inside the shell and its outer diameter, the effectiveness of this is highly questionable. However, the shell helps maintain a uniform design style for the internal space of the system unit. The fans support PWM control.

The electrical connections in the system are different from normal ones. Each fan is equipped with two magnetic and extremely durable connectors, one female and the other male. Only connectors of different halves can be connected to each other.

As a result, fans can be connected to each other without using traditional splitters, which simplifies the installation of the system and gives it a neater appearance.

To connect docked fans or fans separately to the power supplies for the motors and lighting, use a cable (89 cm long) with a female magnetic connector.

The operation of fans and their lighting, as well as the lighting of water blocks of a number of LSS models and other Thermaltake devices, is controlled using a controller. It is a black plastic box measuring 75x65x20 mm.

The controller is connected to the power source via a 50 cm cable with a peripheral connector (Molex type). If a free power connector for the 3.5-inch drive is available from the power supply, it is recommended that you connect this connector directly to the controller. Two 86 cm long cables with Micro-USB connectors come out of one connector to the USB 2.0 header. They are used to connect the controller and the motherboard. Since two Micro-USB connectors are available, one header can be connected to two controllers at once. The second method for increasing the number of connected controllers is to use a special cable (26 cm long) for serial connection of controllers, provided in the kit.

Each controller can be addressed in the system using switches on its underside. One system can operate up to 16 independently controlled controllers, each of which can control up to 5 fans, water blocks and other devices. This makes it possible to control up to 80 independent devices. The devices are connected to 9-pin connectors on the controller: on one side of the controller there are 3 connectors, and on the second — 2. Studying the functions of the contacts showed that four contacts in a row are intended for ground (common contact), 12 V power supply, fan rotation sensor input and PWM control output, and the remaining three pins are used to control RGB lighting.

Pinout of the connector on the controller:

This system's fan headers are pinned so that they can be connected to standard four-pin motherboard fan headers, but the backlight control functions cannot be used when connected this way.

Full control of fans and lighting requires the use of TT RGB Plus software, compatible with the Windows operating system. This software allows you to specify which devices are connected to the connectors on the controller, monitor the performance of your PC, configure the functionality and settings of fans and other devices, and control their lighting settings.

To view some of the backlight modes, you can refer to the video presented in this article.

In addition, Thermaltake has developed specialized software called NeonMaker to allow users to create their own dynamic lighting modes. This application resembles a simple video editor and allows users to create custom lighting effects for controlled devices.

Let us present the results of a number of measurements.

The nature of the dependence is typical: a smooth and slightly nonlinear decrease in the rotation speed from 12 V to the stopping voltage.

The fan speed control range is very wide: from 25% to 100% of the load, the speed gradually increases from approximately 500 to 2050 rpm. At 0% load the fan still continues to rotate at the minimum constant speed. This can be important if the user wants to create a hybrid cooling system that will operate in passive mode at low loads or partially use passive cooling.

Let me remind you that in this test we simulate a certain aerodynamic resistance (the entire air flow passes through the anemometer impeller), so the obtained values are slightly lower than the declared maximum performance in the fan characteristics. This is because those characteristics are given for a situation of zero static pressure (no aerodynamic drag). At the same fan speed with a reversible impeller, the performance is slightly lower.

Without resistance, the fan pumps much more air per unit time. Taking into account the measurement error, in this case the performance with two types of impellers is approximately the same.

At high rotation speeds, the fan noise is quite loud.

In the graph above: the lower and to the right the point is, the better the fan — it runs quieter and blows stronger. At the same performance, a fan with a reversible impeller makes more noise.

At high rotation speeds with the same performance, the fan with a reversible impeller again makes more noise.

It is inconvenient to operate a whole graph to compare fans, so from a two-dimensional representation, let’s move on to a one-dimensional one. In modern conditions and in the consumer segment, ergonomics, as a rule, takes priority over performance, so we will determine the fan performance at a noise level of 25 dBA for the case of high and low resistance:

In terms of performance for the case of high resistance, let's compare this fan with other fans tested under the same conditions:

It can be seen that in this parameter the tested fan with a standard impeller is better than most of those tested, but with a reversible impeller it showed an average result.

Let's also compare performance for the case of low resistance.

For this parameter, the result is the same: the standard impeller is excellent, and the reversible impeller is average.

The maximum static pressure is 45.9 Pa for the standard impeller and 37.7 Pa for the reversible impeller. In terms of this parameter, the fan in the case of a standard impeller is a leader, and in the case of a reversible impeller the result is very good.

It is noted that a high value of static pressure can maintain the level of air flow at a sufficient level under significant aerodynamic load, for example, when using dense dust filters in the housing. It is worth remembering that this parameter is indicated for the maximum rotation speed, at which the noise is also maximum. Thus, the presented diagram helps to select the best fan when it is necessary to pass air through dense elements, regardless of the noise level.

The fans included in the Thermaltake SwaFan EX14 RGB PC Cooling Fan White TT Premium Edition (3-Fan Pack) are part of the TT RGB Plus ecosystem, which integrates devices with addressable LED lighting using TT RGB Plus software. This set consists of three fans with a diameter of 140 mm, as well as a controller to control them. Important features of these fans are two ring lighting zones with 20 independently controllable RGB LEDs, as well as magnetic connectors for easy installation. Replaceable reversible impellers allow you to maintain the aesthetic appearance of the fans no matter how they are placed. Given the good performance of the fans, they are recommended for use in high-performance systems.