1. Introduction
Sharkoon is a well known manufacturer of gaming, modding and storage solutions. Especially in the German IT market, Sharkoon products have great respect amongst the enthusiast community, who are always looking to get that little extra from their PC case. In 2004, Sharkoon expanded its product line and now manufactures P.S.U.s, coolers and fans, network cards, input and multimedia devices, and many many more. You can see the complete product line here.
Generally speaking, all the cooling solutions on the market are very similar. Even the performance of case fans and CPU coolers is similar. For example, any 80mm fan will perform almost the same as any other 80mm fan when their rotation speed is the same. Sharkoon hopes to make false this claim with their latest Silent Eagle 2000 fan series. From a first look at the fan, there's nothing out of the ordinary and it certainly doesn't look like it's hiding any surprises in terms of performance. But if you look a little closer, you will notice a difference, hidden in the blades themselves. :-)
- CDRinfo's Golf Lessons!
This might sound strange, but you have to know how to play golf to understand the operation of this fan. So, if you're not a golfer, CDRinfo is going to teach you the basics.
When golf was invented, the golf ball was a smooth surfaced spherical ball, and very few liked golf because the ball's direction and spin were too hard to control. Only highly skilled players could play the game and even they could not perform as well as they would have wished. The problem was in the ball itself. The smooth surface offered the greatest air resistance and even a quick gust of wind was enough to send the ball of track.
Many tried to lower the air resistance of the golf ball, and they finally succeeded when they introduced small pits on the ball's surface. What actually happens, is that air is trapped in the pits and it is this same air that creates a turbulent layer on the ball's surface making the air flow around the ball, and hence reducing resistance.
Now, look closely at the following picture. Can you see any similarities between the new Sharkoon Silent Eagle 2000 and a golf ball? This surface structure provides an improved airflow, practically making the fan more effective at low rotation speeds. This gives you quieter operation and more effective cooling.
In addition to this, there is one more difference between conventional fans and the Silent Eagle that some of you might have already noticed. The black frame housing has rounded edges, making air flow smoother and increasing air intake.
In the package, apart from the Silent Eagle 2000 fan, you will find the usual stuff, like screws and a 3-pin to 4-pin converter cable. You will also find 4 rubber bolts that can be used to help absorb vibration, even if there is almost no vibration at 2000RPM.
We should also note that there is also the Silent Eagle 1000 available from Sharkoon, with the only difference being in the rotation speed (1000RPM), while there is always a "led" version, the Eagle 2000, that lights up blue when in operation.
- Features / Specifications
To summarise, these are the main features of the Sharkoon Silent Eagle 2000
• Unique rotor blade and frame design
• Robust metal sleeve bearing
• Cable protection from rubberized fabric sheathing
• Universal connection cable
(3-pin and 4-pin plus separate signal line for fan speed monitoring)
Here are the detailed specifications as provided by Sharkoon:
| Product Name |
SILENT EAGLE 2000 |
| Rated voltage |
12 V (DC) |
| Power consumption |
1.44 W |
| Fan speed |
2000 rpm |
| Airflow |
22.7 CFM |
| Noise level |
17.8 dB(A) |
| Dimensions (mm) |
80 x 80 x 25 |
| Connector |
universal |
2. Performance Tests
We used the latest SpeedFan to see the rotation speed produced by the Silent Eagle. Unfortunately, there is no way to increase or decrease the rotation speed so the fan is firmly set at 2000RPM.
We tried to find a way to test the performance of the Sharkoon Silent Eagle which would prove or disprove if this design truly offers better performance. In order to accomplish this, we used a copper based CPU cooler (without a fan) and installed on it a normal fan that is modified to have a steady, controlled rotation speed of 2000RPM. We then measured the temperature at CPU idle with SpeedFan. Always keep in mind that the Silent Eagle is not a CPU fan but a case fan. Our test setup is merely a way to see how effective the fan really is.
Then, we let the system cool down for about an hour and then installed the Sharkoon Silent Eagle 2000, measuring again the CPU temperature. For our tests, we used an AMD 3800+ CPU, but this is not so important since you should not judge the Silent Eagle by the CPU temperature value, but by the CPU temperature difference between the Sharkoon fan and the normal fan.
As you can see, the standard fan reported 41°C at 2000RPM...
|
normal fan - 2000RPM
|
... while the Silent Eagle gave us 39°C at the same rotation speed.
Sharkoon Silent Eagle 2000 |
At this point you might think that 2°C difference is not that much. This isn't entirely correct. While the temperature drop is not anything dramatic, it is nonetheless a difference. And as a case fan, the 1°C drop in CPU temperature in our test setup is the equivalent of about 3°C PC case temperature. In which case, the temperature drop is significant and we shouldn't forget that the fan spins at 2000RPM which is really quiet.
3. Conclusion
It's been some time since something novel has made its appearance in the cooling solution market. The Silent Eagle was the first product we received from Sharkoon and we were happy to see that this was not just another 80mm fan with a different logo on it. The Silent Eagle 2000 promises only 17.8dB at 2000RPM and it can deliver.
The big secret here is the design. Golf ball-like blades create a thin air layer on the blades where air flows more easily, reducing noise and resistance. Sharkoon engineers have done a good job with this fan, working on every detail. Even the frame has rounded edges to maximize airflow.
Our tests reported a 2°C CPU temperature drop over a normal 80mm fan, which equates to more than 2°C PC case temperature drop. Very good performance concerning temperature and low noise.
Sharkoon also offers the Silent Eagle Blue Led fan which is the same fan but lights up blue when operating.
However, there are some things that stop this fan from becoming one of our favorite fans. First of all, there is no 120mm version. Sharkoon should really look into this since bigger blades means better cooling, especially with the "golf-ball" design. Another thing we would like to see is a rotation speed controller. In some cases, 2000RPM is more than enough so reducing the speed can help make the system even quieter.
The Sharkoon Silent Eagle 2000 is priced at
US$11.99, a very low price for this type of fan.
- The Good
- Very good cooling performance
- Unique design
- Rubber bolts to absorb vibrations
- Very quiet
- The Bad
- Available only at 80mm
- No rotation speed controller