• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

Noctua Unveils its Flocked Surface Fans

btarunr

Editor & Senior Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Oct 9, 2007
Messages
46,276 (7.69/day)
Location
Hyderabad, India
System Name RBMK-1000
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5700G
Motherboard ASUS ROG Strix B450-E Gaming
Cooling DeepCool Gammax L240 V2
Memory 2x 8GB G.Skill Sniper X
Video Card(s) Palit GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER GameRock
Storage Western Digital Black NVMe 512GB
Display(s) BenQ 1440p 60 Hz 27-inch
Case Corsair Carbide 100R
Audio Device(s) ASUS SupremeFX S1220A
Power Supply Cooler Master MWE Gold 650W
Mouse ASUS ROG Strix Impact
Keyboard Gamdias Hermes E2
Software Windows 11 Pro
Noctua showed off its newest innovation in PC fan design, the Flocked Surface impeller. Simply put, these fan impellers feature fibrous flock layers along the surface, which creates a turbulent boundary layer of air, much like dimples do on golf balls, resulting in increased air-flow, and decreased air-flow separation (whiplash). Noctua is flocking its fans in two ways, flocked impeller, and flocked frame interior. Examples of both are pictured below.



View at TechPowerUp Main Site
 
Joined
Nov 28, 2012
Messages
413 (0.10/day)
they sure look funny =P
I hope they are actually practical
 
Joined
Apr 19, 2012
Messages
12,062 (2.77/day)
Location
Gypsyland, UK
System Name HP Omen 17
Processor i7 7700HQ
Memory 16GB 2400Mhz DDR4
Video Card(s) GTX 1060
Storage Samsung SM961 256GB + HGST 1TB
Display(s) 1080p IPS G-SYNC 75Hz
Audio Device(s) Bang & Olufsen
Power Supply 230W
Mouse Roccat Kone XTD+
Software Win 10 Pro
"Flocked Surface Fans" AKA super cute fluffy fans for your PC to make it "quieter".

It's actually just to make it look much cuter and adorable.
 
Joined
Aug 1, 2009
Messages
959 (0.18/day)
Location
Currently somewhere around NSW, Australia
System Name hmmm... / lappy (ASUS Scar III)
Processor Intel Core i7-8086K / Intel Core i7-9750H
Motherboard ASUS Maximus XI Formula / ASUS G531GW
Cooling Noctua NH-D15s w/ 2 x Noctua NF-F12 PWM Chromax and 1 x Noctua NF-A15 HS-PWM Chromax Fans / Stock
Memory 4x16gb G.Skill Trident Z DDR4 3600mhz / 2x16gb Kingston Hyper X Impact DDR4 2666mhz C15
Video Card(s) 2 x EVGA GTX 1080 TI FTW3 / Nvidia RTX 2070 8gb
Storage 2 x Samsung 960 EVO Plus 1tb NVME/ 1tb Intel SSDPEKNW010T8 NVME + 2tb Samsung 860 EVO SSD
Display(s) Acer Predator X34P / ASUS 15.6" Screen
Case Fractal Design Meshify S2 White-TG + Noctua Chromax Fans / ASUS Scar III Case
Audio Device(s) Onboard + Logitech Z623 / Onboard
Power Supply Seasonic Prime Ultra Titanium 1000W + PROLINK PRO903WS / ASUS ADP-230GB B Power Brick
Mouse Corsair Vengeance M65 PRO RGB / Logitech MX Anywhere 2S
Keyboard Corsair K70 LUX RGB / ASUS Scar III Keyboard
Software Windows 10 Professional x64 / Windows 10 Professional x64
Those flocks would be filled with dust and it's gonna be a pain to clean.
 
Joined
Mar 26, 2010
Messages
9,762 (1.91/day)
Location
Jakarta, Indonesia
System Name micropage7
Processor Intel Xeon X3470
Motherboard Gigabyte Technology Co. Ltd. P55A-UD3R (Socket 1156)
Cooling Enermax ETS-T40F
Memory Samsung 8.00GB Dual-Channel DDR3
Video Card(s) NVIDIA Quadro FX 1800
Storage V-GEN03AS18EU120GB, Seagate 2 x 1TB and Seagate 4TB
Display(s) Samsung 21 inch LCD Wide Screen
Case Icute Super 18
Audio Device(s) Auzentech X-Fi Forte
Power Supply Silverstone 600 Watt
Mouse Logitech G502
Keyboard Sades Excalibur + Taihao keycaps
Software Win 7 64-bit
Benchmark Scores Classified
Those flocks would be filled with dust and it's gonna be a pain to clean.
yeah i just think the same, the surface looks easy to trap the dust, even you have air filter
 

AsRock

TPU addict
Joined
Jun 23, 2007
Messages
18,851 (3.08/day)
Location
UK\USA
Processor AMD 3900X \ AMD 7700X
Motherboard ASRock AM4 X570 Pro 4 \ ASUS X670Xe TUF
Cooling D15
Memory Patriot 2x16GB PVS432G320C6K \ G.Skill Flare X5 F5-6000J3238F 2x16GB
Video Card(s) eVga GTX1060 SSC \ XFX RX 6950XT RX-695XATBD9
Storage Sammy 860, MX500, Sabrent Rocket 4 Sammy Evo 980 \ 1xSabrent Rocket 4+, Sammy 2x990 Pro
Display(s) Samsung 1080P \ LG 43UN700
Case Fractal Design Pop Air 2x140mm fans from Torrent \ Fractal Design Torrent 2 SilverStone FHP141x2
Audio Device(s) Yamaha RX-V677 \ Yamaha CX-830+Yamaha MX-630 Infinity RS4000\Paradigm P Studio 20, Blue Yeti
Power Supply Seasonic Prime TX-750 \ Corsair RM1000X Shift
Mouse Steelseries Sensei wireless \ Steelseries Sensei wireless
Keyboard Logitech K120 \ Wooting Two HE
Benchmark Scores Meh benchmarks.
Those flocks would be filled with dust and it's gonna be a pain to clean.

Just what i was thinking..

Ever took the frame from a fan and removed as much of the plastic as possible that holds the frame to it ?, well that's a major part that makes a air flow noise. So what i would like to see if thin metal bars holding the motor to the frame although would take some work to get the wiring to the side but it would make even a fan like the Cougar fans even more silent.
 
Joined
Nov 1, 2008
Messages
468 (0.08/day)
System Name It does stuff
Processor Ryzen 3600
Motherboard B550 Gaming X V2
Cooling Stock
Memory 16GB DDR4 3600
Video Card(s) RX 6700XT
Storage Too much
Display(s) 27" & 21.5"
Case Antec 300
Audio Device(s) ASUS Xonar DGX / Sony MDR-XB500s
Power Supply Corsair 750W
Software Win10 64
And what's the markup on these going to be? 800%?
 
Joined
Mar 24, 2010
Messages
5,047 (0.99/day)
Location
Iberian Peninsula
Their previous line of fans already have the flocks in the frame.
 
Joined
Jan 31, 2012
Messages
2,452 (0.55/day)
Location
Bulgaria
System Name Sandfiller
Processor I5-10400
Motherboard MSI MPG Z490 GAMING PLUS
Cooling Noctua NH-L9i (92x25mm fan)
Memory 32GB Corsair LPX 2400 Mhz DDR4 CL14
Video Card(s) MSI RX 5700 XT GAMING X
Storage Intel 670P 512GB
Display(s) 2560x1080 LG 29" + 22" LG
Case SS RV02
Audio Device(s) Creative Sound Blaster Z
Power Supply Fractal Design IntegraM 650W
Mouse Logitech Triathlon
Keyboard REDRAGON MITRA
Software Windows 11 Home x 64
I've never seen flocks on fans before. I must look for a review if these actually work. I hope they put some effort into Slim fans as well. So far Scythe's are my favourites when it comes to 12mm thickness, but competition can help a bit there.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Nov 23, 2010
Messages
313 (0.06/day)
Is it me or does this just look like felt?

A light grey colour would have hid the dust better...
 

AsRock

TPU addict
Joined
Jun 23, 2007
Messages
18,851 (3.08/day)
Location
UK\USA
Processor AMD 3900X \ AMD 7700X
Motherboard ASRock AM4 X570 Pro 4 \ ASUS X670Xe TUF
Cooling D15
Memory Patriot 2x16GB PVS432G320C6K \ G.Skill Flare X5 F5-6000J3238F 2x16GB
Video Card(s) eVga GTX1060 SSC \ XFX RX 6950XT RX-695XATBD9
Storage Sammy 860, MX500, Sabrent Rocket 4 Sammy Evo 980 \ 1xSabrent Rocket 4+, Sammy 2x990 Pro
Display(s) Samsung 1080P \ LG 43UN700
Case Fractal Design Pop Air 2x140mm fans from Torrent \ Fractal Design Torrent 2 SilverStone FHP141x2
Audio Device(s) Yamaha RX-V677 \ Yamaha CX-830+Yamaha MX-630 Infinity RS4000\Paradigm P Studio 20, Blue Yeti
Power Supply Seasonic Prime TX-750 \ Corsair RM1000X Shift
Mouse Steelseries Sensei wireless \ Steelseries Sensei wireless
Keyboard Logitech K120 \ Wooting Two HE
Benchmark Scores Meh benchmarks.
Is it me or does this just look like felt?

A light grey colour would have hid the dust better...

but if it's dusty it is not going be working as advertised lol.
 
Joined
Dec 15, 2011
Messages
1,962 (0.44/day)
Location
Sydney NSW, Australia
System Name Shoebox Sandwich | Razer Blade 14 | Synology DS418 w/ 4X8TB WD Red | iPhone 15 Pro
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D | AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX
Motherboard ASRock B650E PG-ITX WiFi | Razer thing
Cooling NZXT Kraken 240 RGB w/ Lian Li P28 + Corsair AF120 Slim | Double fan vapour chamber
Memory G.Skill Flare X5 2x16GB 6000MHz CL32 DDR5 | 16GB 3200MHz DDR4
Video Card(s) Sapphire Radeon RX 7900 XTX | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 8GB
Storage Seagate FireCuda 520 2TB + Lexar NM790 4TB | 1TB NVMe SSD + 2TB NVMe external SSD
Display(s) Alienware AW3423DW & Sony A90K 42" | 14" QHD IPS 165Hz & Sony X90J 65" 4K TV
Case FormD T1 - v2.1 - Titanium colourway w Aluminium mesh | Razer Blade 14
Audio Device(s) Schiit Hel 2E (Focal Clear & HiFiMAN HE-4XX & DROP PC38X) | Samsung Q950A
Power Supply Corsair SF750 Platinum | Razer 230W brick
Mouse Razer Viper Ultimate Mercury | Roccat Kain 202
Keyboard DIY Geek 64 PCB (Kailh Box Deep Sea - Matcha XDA Keycaps) | Corsair K63
VR HMD Oculus Quest
Software Windows 11 Home | Windows 11 Home
Benchmark Scores 2022 MINI Countryman SE PHEV Hybrid ALL4 | British Racing Green| Malt Brown Interior| YOURS Trim
Is it me or does this just look like felt?

A light grey colour would have hid the dust better...
I'm surprised they didn't use diarrhoea brown for that material.
 
Joined
Mar 24, 2010
Messages
5,047 (0.99/day)
Location
Iberian Peninsula
Sorry, I have the 15" Noctua fan since a couple of years, mounted con de C14 cooler. It already has the negative nops...
 
Joined
May 1, 2012
Messages
1,027 (0.24/day)
Location
New Jersey, USA
System Name Current Rig
Processor AMD 7800X3D
Motherboard MSI x670e Tomahawk wifi
Cooling Artic Freezer II 360
Memory G.Skill 32gb ddr5 6000mhz
Video Card(s) AMD 7900XTX 24 GB
Storage Samsung SSD 980 PRO 2TB
Display(s) Alienware 3420DW 120 Freesync
Case LianLi Lancool III white non-rgb
Audio Device(s) Onboard ALC
Power Supply Corsair Shift 1000W
Mouse G502 Hero
Keyboard Ducky Shine 5
Software Win 11 64bit
Benchmark Scores The second best!
That surface would seem to impede airflow compared to a slick one. Unless your goal is to build a pimp rig :pimp:
 
Joined
Jul 19, 2008
Messages
1,180 (0.21/day)
Location
Australia
Processor Intel i7 4790K
Motherboard Asus Z97 Deluxe
Cooling Thermalright Ultra Extreme 120
Memory Corsair Dominator 1866Mhz 4X4GB
Video Card(s) Asus R290X
Storage Samsung 850 Pro SSD 256GB/Samsung 840 Evo SSD 1TB
Display(s) Samsung S23A950D
Case Corsair 850D
Audio Device(s) Onboard Realtek
Power Supply Corsair AX850
Mouse Logitech G502
Keyboard Logitech G710+
Software Windows 10 x64
Could be a flocking good idea but will have to wait for testing......
 
Joined
Jun 27, 2011
Messages
6,680 (1.43/day)
Processor 7800x3d
Motherboard Gigabyte B650 Auros Elite AX
Cooling Custom Water
Memory GSKILL 2x16gb 6000mhz Cas 30 with custom timings
Video Card(s) MSI RX 6750 XT MECH 2X 12G OC
Storage Adata SX8200 1tb with Windows, Samsung 990 Pro 2tb with games
Display(s) HP Omen 27q QHD 165hz
Case ThermalTake P3
Power Supply SuperFlower Leadex Titanium
Software Windows 11 64 Bit
Benchmark Scores CB23: 1811 / 19424 CB24: 1136 / 7687
...includes flocked handcuffs.:p
 
Joined
Jun 6, 2012
Messages
550 (0.13/day)
Processor Intel Core 2 QX6850
Motherboard ABIT AB9 Pro
Cooling Zalman CNPS-9900 MAX-R
Memory Patriot PDC24G6400LLK (4x 2 GB)
Video Card(s) Palit GeForce GTX 560 Ti Twin Light Turbo
Storage Not Enough!
Display(s) Samsung T240HD
Case NZXT Zero
Audio Device(s) Creative Labs Sound Blaster X-Fi Elite Pro
Power Supply Thortech Thunderbolt Plus TTBPK00G 1000W
Mouse Elecom M-DUX70BK
Keyboard CM Storm Trigger (Cherry MX Brown)
Software NOT Windows 10
Noctua is flocking its fans in two ways, flocked impeller, and flocked frame interior.
I wonder why they don't just make a fan with both flocked impeller and flocked frame interior. There'd still be plenty of room for Noctua to splash their signature colors not to mention just putting those colors on the flocked parts.
 
Joined
Sep 15, 2011
Messages
6,457 (1.41/day)
Processor Intel® Core™ i7-13700K
Motherboard Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Elite AX
Cooling Noctua NH-D15
Memory 32GB(2x16) DDR5@6600MHz G-Skill Trident Z5
Video Card(s) ZOTAC GAMING GeForce RTX 3080 AMP Holo
Storage 2TB SK Platinum P41 SSD + 4TB SanDisk Ultra SSD + 500GB Samsung 840 EVO SSD
Display(s) Acer Predator X34 3440x1440@100Hz G-Sync
Case NZXT PHANTOM410-BK
Audio Device(s) Creative X-Fi Titanium PCIe
Power Supply Corsair 850W
Mouse Logitech Hero G502 SE
Software Windows 11 Pro - 64bit
Benchmark Scores 30FPS in NFS:Rivals
The flock actually reduce the pitch of the sound made by spinning the fins into a lower and more pleasant freq. ;)
 

AsRock

TPU addict
Joined
Jun 23, 2007
Messages
18,851 (3.08/day)
Location
UK\USA
Processor AMD 3900X \ AMD 7700X
Motherboard ASRock AM4 X570 Pro 4 \ ASUS X670Xe TUF
Cooling D15
Memory Patriot 2x16GB PVS432G320C6K \ G.Skill Flare X5 F5-6000J3238F 2x16GB
Video Card(s) eVga GTX1060 SSC \ XFX RX 6950XT RX-695XATBD9
Storage Sammy 860, MX500, Sabrent Rocket 4 Sammy Evo 980 \ 1xSabrent Rocket 4+, Sammy 2x990 Pro
Display(s) Samsung 1080P \ LG 43UN700
Case Fractal Design Pop Air 2x140mm fans from Torrent \ Fractal Design Torrent 2 SilverStone FHP141x2
Audio Device(s) Yamaha RX-V677 \ Yamaha CX-830+Yamaha MX-630 Infinity RS4000\Paradigm P Studio 20, Blue Yeti
Power Supply Seasonic Prime TX-750 \ Corsair RM1000X Shift
Mouse Steelseries Sensei wireless \ Steelseries Sensei wireless
Keyboard Logitech K120 \ Wooting Two HE
Benchmark Scores Meh benchmarks.
The flock actually reduce the pitch of the sound made by spinning the fins into a lower and more pleasant freq. ;)

I like to know what there like after a month of dust to see if their flocked or fucked.
 
Joined
Sep 15, 2011
Messages
6,457 (1.41/day)
Processor Intel® Core™ i7-13700K
Motherboard Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Elite AX
Cooling Noctua NH-D15
Memory 32GB(2x16) DDR5@6600MHz G-Skill Trident Z5
Video Card(s) ZOTAC GAMING GeForce RTX 3080 AMP Holo
Storage 2TB SK Platinum P41 SSD + 4TB SanDisk Ultra SSD + 500GB Samsung 840 EVO SSD
Display(s) Acer Predator X34 3440x1440@100Hz G-Sync
Case NZXT PHANTOM410-BK
Audio Device(s) Creative X-Fi Titanium PCIe
Power Supply Corsair 850W
Mouse Logitech Hero G502 SE
Software Windows 11 Pro - 64bit
Benchmark Scores 30FPS in NFS:Rivals
I like to know what there like after a month of dust to see if their flocked or fucked.
A month? Are you keeping your PC on the construction yard ?? :))))
 
Joined
Jun 27, 2011
Messages
6,680 (1.43/day)
Processor 7800x3d
Motherboard Gigabyte B650 Auros Elite AX
Cooling Custom Water
Memory GSKILL 2x16gb 6000mhz Cas 30 with custom timings
Video Card(s) MSI RX 6750 XT MECH 2X 12G OC
Storage Adata SX8200 1tb with Windows, Samsung 990 Pro 2tb with games
Display(s) HP Omen 27q QHD 165hz
Case ThermalTake P3
Power Supply SuperFlower Leadex Titanium
Software Windows 11 64 Bit
Benchmark Scores CB23: 1811 / 19424 CB24: 1136 / 7687
A month? Are you keeping your PC on the construction yard ?? :))))
On the dry end of summer, my dust filters can be really clogged in a week. I usually have to clean them out at least every two weeks, and never less than every month.
 

AsRock

TPU addict
Joined
Jun 23, 2007
Messages
18,851 (3.08/day)
Location
UK\USA
Processor AMD 3900X \ AMD 7700X
Motherboard ASRock AM4 X570 Pro 4 \ ASUS X670Xe TUF
Cooling D15
Memory Patriot 2x16GB PVS432G320C6K \ G.Skill Flare X5 F5-6000J3238F 2x16GB
Video Card(s) eVga GTX1060 SSC \ XFX RX 6950XT RX-695XATBD9
Storage Sammy 860, MX500, Sabrent Rocket 4 Sammy Evo 980 \ 1xSabrent Rocket 4+, Sammy 2x990 Pro
Display(s) Samsung 1080P \ LG 43UN700
Case Fractal Design Pop Air 2x140mm fans from Torrent \ Fractal Design Torrent 2 SilverStone FHP141x2
Audio Device(s) Yamaha RX-V677 \ Yamaha CX-830+Yamaha MX-630 Infinity RS4000\Paradigm P Studio 20, Blue Yeti
Power Supply Seasonic Prime TX-750 \ Corsair RM1000X Shift
Mouse Steelseries Sensei wireless \ Steelseries Sensei wireless
Keyboard Logitech K120 \ Wooting Two HE
Benchmark Scores Meh benchmarks.
On the dry end of summer, my dust filters can be really clogged in a week. I usually have to clean them out at least every two weeks, and never less than every month.

Even more so if you can have you PC in a none air conditioned room were most of the air is not filtered. Another reason is how many people live in the house too..
 
Last edited:
Top