Be Quiet! Light Wings, the most silent cooling fan

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The company Be Quiet! has stepped in even deeper in the realm of the gaming computer rigs, initially with their 500DX desktop computer case, now it surprises us again with their newly added Be Quiet! Light Wings cooling fans. These now integrate an RGB ring light on both sides of the fan, a feature never explored before by the brand, but surely one gamers will be grateful for. Although the propellers have the same design from past iterations, the mount now has a different model, available both in 120 and 140 mm. Read further to see why this product remain in the top 1 position as the quieter cooling fan ever created.



Design and construction analysis

The design of the Be Quiet! Light Wings is no different from the majority of the brand’s product lineup. The frame of the fan was slightly modified for the integrated RGB lighting. This distinctive feature adds up a few millimetres extra to the product footprint, but it is not that bad. Additionally, we can see the flagship black color and the company’s logo in the center of the rotor.

The thickness of the Be Quiet! Light Wings is 25 mm, and while you hold it in your hands you can tell the extra weight, which gives us a very good idea on the quality of the materials. It has a sturdy and solid frame, with shock absorbent pads in the corners, on both sides of the installation points, to reduce at maximum the vibrations and noise of the units.

The cavity which gives place to the propellers has a wide diameter and a translucent ring made of plastic (when off), with 20 synchronizable RGB LEDs compatible with ARGB for a more impressive look. The brightness of the light ring is really powerful and produces an intense and consistent light all around.

Although the light can be seen from the two sides of the fan, the ring itself is more noticeable from the front. This is not unusual, since the normal orientation when installing the cooling fans is facing the opposite direction to the air flow when mounted on a computer chassis or radiator. However, on the back there is a thin rim that can be seen as an extension of the light ring.

The propeller on the Be Quiet! Light Wings comes with 7 curved silence-optimized blades with grooves on them from an improved airflow while providing a low-noise generation turbulence. The entire rotor is also black in color to match the pattern on the frame.

Installation

The installation process of the Be Quiet! Light Wings is carried out by 4 fastening points. One end of the spokes is a little wider to protect and route the cables away from the blades range of motion. This fan comes with Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) to accelerate the rate of the airflow when needed, and it is compatible with 4 pins connectors. There is a second cable dedicated for the RGB lighting system connection. The brand conveniently placed one male and female adapters on each unit. This feature gives us the possibility to daisy-chain as many Light Wings units we want. Additionally, thanks to the synchronization support, it is compatible with Gigabyte, MSI, ASRock and Asus.

Be Quiet Light Wings mounting screws

Be Quiet! includes an external RGB hub housing 6 5VDG connectors. Bear in mind this is only a means to group all the lighting-related functionality together, this is not a controller, and hence there is no software for RGB lighting management nor USB connectors in it. In the hub, there is a SATA connector, but this is just to power up the unit. There is another 3-pin connector that hooks it up directly to the motherboard, which makes all the lighting functionality work. Without this last connector there is no way possible to manage this system.

Product capabilities and advantages

Having spoken about the design and physical characteristics of the Be Quiet! Light Wings, we now move on into the more technical matters. This fan provides an excellent balance between airflow and pressure, generating the right amount of ventilation for the most demanding heatsink and radiator systems.

This cooling fan features a rifle bearing technology with a long-lasting lifespan rated for more than 60,000 hours of continuous use. It is a little odd that compared to the other models of the brand, the Be Quiet! Light Wings is the one with the least amount of hours of use, being the most durable the Silent Wings model, with a whopping 300,000 hours rate of use. We still think 60,000 hours of use it’s a lot of hours, so it is not that bad.

Be Quiet! Light Wings outer RGB ring light

With the PWM support, this fan is able to reach a maximum of 1500 RPM, with an airflow of 56 CFM, which is equivalent to 95.14 M³/H. In terms of the noise, it will generate a maximum of 23.3 dB, surpassing the standards of Be Quiet’s Silent series itself. At a really high peak of performance, you will only be able to hear the sound of the air passing through the scape vents. That is how noisy it is, a complete marvel of engineering and the most silent cooling fan ever created.

When space inside the computer chassis is a matter of concern, we have the option of bypassing the use of the hub, by daisy-chaining all the fans, and that way, avoiding the need to have an extra box rattling inside our PC. The hub itself won’t be flying around though, it can be fastened with 4 screws in the 2.5 inches SSD slot of your case (when it is available of course). However, instead of having this hub, we would have appreciated having some sort of PWM hub, with individual connectors to feed the fans.

Be Quiet Light Wings review
Be Quiet! Light Wings Pulse Width Modulation PWM support

On the downside, more related with the latter subject, the PWM support, there is no splitter cable to drive directly to the motherboard. Every single fan has to take an individual connector in the motherboard. If we had 3 fans, we will need 3 available PWM connectors in the motherboard to have access to this functionality. We can always buy this adapter cable / splitter ourselves, but it is a hassle it is not included.

Closing remarks about the Be Quiet! Light wings

Be Quiet! remains in the top of the chart for the quieter computer cooling fan ever created, and now integrating aesthetics features like RGB lighting and excellent design and additional functionality like the PWM support, added to the quality materials and excellent performance, this cooling fan is all you have ever wanted in your PC build, either heatsink or radiator based.

The new and improved look of the light ring makes your computer setup stand out, with a lighting element visible from all angles, rear and back of the units, a nice addition for those with gaming rigs and glass-cover computer chassis. However, we would really love to see the day computer component brands stop launching proprietary softwares and systems for managing the most elementary things like RGB lighting, that would really be something to be exited for.

Be Quiet Light Wings installed

Being completely honest, the included RGB hub was unnecessary. They could have saved those extra bucks in costs and toss in a PWM splitter cable, which in our opinion would have been a better addition and one that is really necessary on tight-space setups (which is more likely to happen). Eliminating the clutter by eliminating the non-elemental stuff should be the rule of thumb here, not the opposite.

The Be Quiet! Light Wings comes in a single pack and a pack of 3 units, both in 120mm and 140mm. The latter will have a price of around $45 USD. We assure you won’t have to do an extensive research to narrow down PC cooling fans, this is by far the best option you can buy. If the RGB lights are not a priority for you, you can go with the Be Quiet! Silent Wings 3 with an extended lifespan.

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