120 AC fans that are quiet
I recently noticed that the fan in my SW cockpit sounds really loud. I took it out to see what the issue might be. It is pretty clean and seems to function correctly, but I noticed 3 things about the fan:
1. The fan is mounted to an adapter plate (seems really secure) which slides into a pair of slotted wood brackets in the cabinet.
2. The adapter plate (by design) is mounted securely to the fan, then has a mounting hole at two locations - but only one side has a wood block to mount to.
3. The fan blade section seems to have some 'slop' in it. I can push/pull on it about 1/4".
I went to the local Fry's Electronics and picked up a replacement for $18. After bringing it home and opened the package it seems to have the same 1/4" play on the fan blade section. So then I figured the new fan probably isn't any better than the original. Then I thought maybe the fan assembly is wobbling inside the wood slots so I got a 2nd screw to hold the other side of the fan adapter plate down rigid in place. It made no difference
I think maybe its just a louder fan due to the size. I suppose maybe I never noticed the extra noise back in the days of a crowded arcade full of machines? I tried to see if there was a quieter fan that matched the current 120VAC one in there, but they all seem pretty loud at around 40-45dB....
I'm fine with the fan noise, I guess that means I know its working?!
Anyone else experience this, find a quieter fan replacement?
-GackAttack