Just got AxeII... wow, fan noise.

hi all,
mine arrived today.
Just had the time to unpack it, plug in my headphones and the guitar and try some preset.
I had to say that I've been impressed by the sound as well as by the fan sound.
I sincerely did not expect this kind of fluctuating noise.
The noise it is not noticeable while playing with headphones or at medium/loud volumes, but it is noticeable enough to force me thinking, when I powered the unit the first time, it was broken... then a fast google search cleared my doubts.
Now you have to know that I'm going to use it in my monitoring room where I payed a lot of attention (and money) for acoustic treatment (bass traps, correct room proportions, skyline and rpg diffuser...).
Yes I can switch the unit on and off and this is what I'm going to do to bypass the issue, not elegant nor comfortable if you intend to use it also for reamp.
No doubt at all that this rattling noise should have been some way addressed by design.
I'm looking forward to hearing something official from Cliff and his staff as anybody producing great piece of audio gear (and FAS is!) cannot disregard noise control.
Kind Regards.

P.S.
IMHO this shoud be a topped thread...
 
For you guys with noisy fan problems:

Check out this fan:
NB-BlackSilentFan 60mm | Noiseblocker

I'm testing it right now and it is really great. Silent and the airflow seems better then the stock fan.
Mind you that I dont have any proper tools to measure.

If someone with the right tools can get one would be great.

Anyway I've been running mine with this fan and no problem whatsoever
 
a FAS praticable solution for fan noise

I was thinking...
1) the noise comes from the fan
2) you may use a bigger fan with lower RPM
3) if yuo do 2) then you lose linear velocity
....
solution:
4) use a bigger silent fan (noctua, artic silver, there's plenty of them) connected to a short duct (1,5/2 cm) with variable section (narrower to the end).
This solution is common in assembled PC.

The only problem is that you should build a dedicated duct (design a mould and start a production) for the AXE FX as I do not think yuo will find any that already fits it on the market.
Yuo should also better focus the air jet using the duct (e.g. the duct could also terminate with a rectangular shape).

This is what I meant saying that the issue should have been addressed by design.
This solution shall only come from Fractal Audio as a replacement part, I cannot afford the cost of a mould :p.

Let's wait for their decision.

Byez.
 
Yep, the fan is a pretty ridiculous thing to get into production. The fans that are in the Axe cost Fractal about $1.20-1.40 piece.
The facts say that a $2.00(cost) noiseless fan would make the Axe FX not profitable to manufacture. You must realize that a $2.00 fan at cost would be between $4.95 and $19.95 at retail prices. The difference at cost is 60 cents. If my math is correct then the Axe FX with a good fan would cost 60 x $2200 = $132,000.00 dollars

These are tough times for all : )

The Axe is still the loudest device in my house, well except for the coffee grinder...it's a close tie between the dishwasher and Axe FX...the angle grinder is maybe a touch louder too.
 
sonofmickel said:
Yep, the fan is a pretty ridiculous thing to get into production...
The Axe is still the loudest device in my house, well except for the coffee grinder...it's a close tie between the dishwasher and Axe FX...the angle grinder is maybe a touch louder too.
Click to expand...

To be honest somebody explained it is not only a matter of fan.
You can have better fan in terms of noise, but may be you have to increase the fan size to guarantee the correct amount of flow.
The solution I have proposed involves an air duct too to get the same air jet speed.
Is not the cheapest solution as you have to pay for prototype and mold as it is a custom solution.
I sincerely hope (and I'm sure) that FSA is not earning a couple of dollar per unit, moreover this solution, if feasible, could be adopted as a nice upgrade at a nice price, but not for free.
Not everybody needs a quiet equipment, but for those working in a sound treated environment it is mandatory! :D

Kind regards.
 
Yeah, yeah, yeah, we know about the Cubic Feet Minute stuff. There are many fans out there that provide the necessary CFM and are 6db or so more quiet than the stock fan. They would cost almost nothing more to a manufacturer to implement, certainly no more than $2 at cost. Either eat that $2 in manufacturing or pass it along to the customer for an extra $130,000.00

The problem is that Fractal will not authorize an after market fan. That would be an engineering fail.

I have poweramps that have quieter fans than the Axe FX. These poweramps are made to blast sound at 110db, they are designed NOT to be quiet. The Axe is a studio piece and a live piece. It should have been fixed after the first complaints . Cliff is a genius no doubt, he implements customer complaint fixes at a breakneck speed. That is in SOFTWARE, it does not cost him anything other than time. To fix a hardware issue would leave Fractal with a crate a crummy fans that nobody wants.

If Fractal would authorize any number of quiet fans I am sure everyone would buy it.
 
Finally got my II tonight. Was very impressed with the presets I could go through in these past few hours. Definitely a horrid noise from the fan though. I have a total of 5 fans in my PC and they combined don't seem half as loud as this thing. The place of honor (and most convenience) I had made for it, sitting under my display and between my Genelecs will have to be rethought because this droning noise sounds like a vacuum cleaner in the other room, or a circular saw just down the street.

I was hopeful it wouldn't be as bad as some people were describing, as my Standard produces barely noticeable fan noise, but this really is unbearable and unacceptable in any situation that requires creative concentration and critical listening. It is out of the question completely that I would use this piece as my interface because I'd rather tear my ears off than listen to anything for long over this awful noise.

The results: extremely mixed feelings at first contact. Awesome presets, seems like practically unlimited potential as far as the sounds one could get from this unit, but on the other hand - the relentless BZZZZzzzZZZzzzZZZzzrrZZZrRRRRRZZZZZrrrZZZZZ will drive me nuts if it continues. First time I've been really disappointed with any aspect of my two Axe-Fx's, but this one's a doosey. Might have to hack into the unit, warranty be damned, even though I definitely do not want to.
 
Fractal sent me a replacement fan and it is much better than the stock one. I will wait for my warranty to expire and replace the fan with an after market, super quiet, dual viscous, sealed, unobtainium bearing, valence shielded, auto sensing, "green", R-Type fan.
 
sonofmickel said:
Fractal sent me a replacement fan and it is much better than the stock one. I will wait for my warranty to expire and replace the fan with an after market, super quiet, dual viscous, sealed, unobtainium bearing, valence shielded, auto sensing, "green", R-Type fan.
Click to expand...

What was the problem with your original fan? Too loud in general or was the speed fluctuating? Is the replacement that Fractal sent you the same exact fan as the original? How much quieter now?
 
9 fans in my gaming PC and the Axe II is on par. I'm thinking it might be the pitch making it seem louder than it actually is, not sure.

Cheers.
 
Mine warbled and was quite loud. The replacement was a different brand and was initially just as loud and warbly. It settled down after leaving the Axe on for a few days straight. It's still louder than anything in the house.
 
My fear is that I will spend $3000 on an Axe and MFC-101 and be distracted, annoyed, irritated.. etc, while I spend time building sounds in a studio situation.

Is there an oversized and over spec'd silent fan than can be retrofitted? Maybe with a duct that focuses the airflow onto the Sharc processor heatsinks?

Sticking it in an iso box is not ideal when you have to take it into a studio.

Any recommendations for a real world solution to this issue would be appreciated.

EDIT: I see the oversized fan and duct have already been mentioned a few posts up. Been away for a bit so haven't stayed current with this thread.
 
Last edited:
FractalAudio said:
Anyone with a bad fan contact support and they will send you a new one.
Click to expand...

As somebody noticed, how can I determine if mine is "bad".
What I fear is that:
1) the new one will "sound" the same (the guy that received the new replacement fan said that the produced noise was very similar).
2) I will void warranty opening the Fractal enclosure (even if I'm used to electronics as I built 6 preamps for my studio ...)

I prefere to wait for a definitive solution, I have no doubts FAS has to fix it as this thread is one the most view.
What do you think?
Thank yuo for your attention.
cheers.
 
mudseason said:
As somebody noticed, how can I determine if mine is "bad".
What I fear is that:
1) the new one will "sound" the same (the guy that received the new replacement fan said that the produced noise was very similar).
2) I will void warranty opening the Fractal enclosure (even if I'm used to electronics as I built 6 preamps for my studio ...)

I prefere to wait for a definitive solution, I have no doubts FAS has to fix it as this thread is one the most view.
What do you think?
Thank yuo for your attention.
cheers.
Click to expand...

The president of Fractal is telling you that you can swap the fan with one they send you. Warranty is not an issue.
 
FractalAudio said:
Anyone with a bad fan contact support and they will send you a new one.
Click to expand...
As an update, the above seems to apply to US customers only. G66 informed me they are looking into a better solution but apparently have none to offer as of yet. As has been mentioned above, it's frustrating not to know if this is normal and intended or really a rare case of a misbehaving, overly loud fan. I'll get some basis for comparison when my friend gets his II (probably next week). I'll have to consider my options once I hear if his unit has a similar droning sound.
 
I'm getting a new II tomorrow or today, I can report the difference in fan noise compared to the one I had earlier, which was LOUD!
 
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