Thinkpads Forum

Does anyone know if there are multiple models of the fan that came with the x230? Also, is the fan a standard part. I.e.: could I buy a fan that was intended for another laptop but is that same size and will therefore fit into the x230.

My other idea is to somehow change the RPM speed of the fan.

The fan speed in the laptop works on an octet with an RPM for each. Ideally I would be able to lower the RPM of the first few bits because, at the moment, Fan Speed 1 is too fast and too noisy.

Delta fans seems to be quieter, according to some user experience.
https://yadi.sk/i/msYPZFGvzhy2Z (the one in the bottom)

X220/X220i/X230/X230i can all use the same fan(s).
The above mentioned Delta: http://www.ebay.com/itm/152162887513

nitrocaster wrote:Delta fans seems to be quieter, according to some user experience.
https://yadi.sk/i/msYPZFGvzhy2Z (the one in the bottom)

I have that Delta fan in my x230, its actually pretty noisy, had to use a custom fan profile to keep the sound down to a reasonable level.

http://i.imgur.com/Dbs2LUF.jpg

Admin warning: HUGE picture, tags removed.
Time for you to read the Rules of the Road, especially section 5: http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=14339

Same here, I've got the Delta fan in my X220 and it's definitely very noisy. Inaudible on level 1 (~1900rpm), definitely noticeable on level 2 (~2900rpm), obnoxiously so in addition to sounding rather whiney on level 3 (~3600rpm), and painfully loud on level 5 and 7 (4000 and 4600rpm, respectively).

Had to check and make sure this really was a Delta in there. If that's the good one I really don't want to hear the others...

first hand quiet replacement fan experience - please share.

Also, how to tell before disassembling the computer if the fan is a 3 or a 4 pin one?

Side-note: if you use decent thermal paste like Phobya Nanogrease Extreme, the fan shouldn't come on all that much, i.e. stay quiet.

Update 08/2021: use Noctua NT-H1

Good to know! There was also Everest, I heard. Thanks.

RealBlackStuff wrote: ↑

Tue Jun 09, 2020 12:49 am

Side-note: if you use decent thermal paste like Phobya Nanogrease Extreme Noctua NT-H1, the fan shouldn't come on all that much, i.e. stay quiet.

Know of a good supplier of this?

I bought that Phobya on Amazon UK, but it was shipped by DocMicro in France.
Currently it seems to be sold out everywhere.

Update 08/2021: rather go for Noctua NT-H2

RealBlackStuff wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 24, 2020 3:45 am

Currently it seems to be sold out everywhere.

You can use Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut (what I used, should be widely available) or Gelid GC Extreme (nearly just as good and much cheaper, which matters mostly if you use a lot of it).

Thank you - Good idea

Hi,
I wonder if you guys could advise me on this, please:
I already opened my x230, cleaned the dust off, reapplied the thermal paste and, although I could notice less fan activity and a lower CPU temperature, the fan noise is still there.
It does not bother me a lot, but it is interfering in my Skype/Zoom etc calls. People are complaining... Should I buy a new fan at this stage?
Thanks!

argo wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 06, 2020 11:53 am

.. the noise ... is interfering in my Skype/Zoom etc calls. Should I buy a new fan at this stage?

Would a Jabra headset be a better investment?

They're bloody expensive in the times of Coronavirus and working from home, but are also quite good. I think if you're using Skype you want a Jabra with UC MS in the model name - then the buttons on the headset will work to control Skype - at least under Windows.

There are both USB and Bluetooth ones out there. If Linux is anywhere in sight I suspect USB ones might be preferable. Otherwise either is fine. You may need to hunt on ebay and such.. Many normal outlets are sold out I think.

Update: my friend got Jabra Evolve 75 MS Duo Professional Bluetooth Headset with ANC for PC Laptop Tablet Skype for Business Certified with Link 370 (new) and is super-happy despite a large price tag. It looks pretty cool too with lights on the sides. And has got another advantage over the large earphones I'm using: mine are large (and cheap-ish) and enclose my ears. The result in the summer is that the ears get too hot. Jabra is free from this problem

atagunov wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 06, 2020 12:02 pm

Would a Jabra headset be a better investment?

Thanks.

I've tried with different headsets (with/without mic etc) and without them. In all cases people could still hear my fan.
In fact, it seemed that it was less annoying without headsets.

argo wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 06, 2020 1:51 pm

atagunov wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 06, 2020 12:02 pm

Would a Jabra headset be a better investment?

I've tried with different headsets (with/without mic etc) and without them. In all cases people could still hear my fan.
In fact, it seemed that it was less annoying without headsets.

Maybe it would be enough for you to just lower clocks on your CPU so that it would not get as hot as it might get now? Or speaking on my behalf as it have been with me for years now: I have X230 (and I also had a W530 but I sold it recently because one 12" laptop is all I really need) and for years I've been using now Thinkpad Fan Controller (tpfancontrol) utility (Windows, but there should be similar utility/script available for Linux) with which you can use custom fan temp level thresholds so that fan would not be spinning that fast (or at all) during times when you're just chatting over Skype/Discord, not doing anything CPU intense. I've been using default temp thresholds set by the application for years now and I had zero problems with any Thinkpad I had so far. Additionally, in Windows's Power Options I tend to create custom power plan "Less is more" and I limit in it Max CPU Power to something like 80% or 90% => this effectively leads to disabling Intel Turbo Boost, decreasing temps by 15-20°C, maybe even more. Of course, you're loosing some of the performance, but I found X230's Ivy Bridge being very powerful even without Turbo Boost. I had it like this for a very long time now and I am happy.
Additionally, for CPU/GPU intense applications (in my case World of Warcraft 1.12.1) I've been using BES – Battle Encoder Shirasé for limiting other processes (WoW.exe in my case) the amount of CPU time an application can use (by like -30% or -40%, which is still plenty for the game to run at 60+ FPS). All of mentioned above lead in my case to very quiet X230/W530, even at gaming, so I can also voice chat over Discord with others without annoying anybody with my fan.

I see, thanks. I'll check tpfancontrol.

But how does it work for you? Do you turn the fan off completely when on a call?
Because that's my issue: fan on = people complain. And the fan is on most of the time (is it normal?).

argo wrote: ↑

Tue Jul 07, 2020 6:58 am

fan on = people complain

I'm not saying I don't believe you but this sounds a bit extreme.. Could you perhaps check you're definitely not using the built-in microphone by accident?

Does the noise really go away if you manage to have the fan working on a low setting? Put a pillow in between X230 and the headset? %)
I've heard all kinds of weird noises on audio conferences btw.. Their sources do look mysterious sometimes..

And for avoidance of doubt have you really tried a high-quality headset? I didn't mention Jabra for no good reason, they are a nice tried and tested brand

Well, I am using default configuration for tpfancontrol except turning balloon notifications off (Start > type "edit" > edit TPFancontrol.ini > NoBallons=1 & StartMinimized=1

By default, there are these values for thresholds:
Level=60 0 // Level=140 0
Level=65 1 // Level=150 1
Level=75 3 // Level=165 3
Level=80 7 // Level=175 7
Level=90 64 // Level=195 64

That means that for <=60°C fan would be disabled (0 RPM).
65C+ = Level 1, 75C+ = Level 3, etc.
I have been using my laptop with these settings for years now and had no problems so far. Of course, keyboard might get a little bit warmer but I am already accustomed to that. Since it completely turns off the fan for <60C, I am not even putting the laptop to sleep/turning it off for night because it's utterly silent. You can adjust the thresholds yourself what suits you best.

argo wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 06, 2020 11:53 am

[...] noise is still there. It does not bother me a lot, but it is interfering in my Skype/Zoom etc calls. People are complaining...

The noise might be something else altogether. Did you try setting Control Panel → Sound → Recording → Microphone → Properties → Enhancements:

☑ Noise Suppression
☑ Acoustic Echo Cancellation



This is a driver feature. I'm not sure if the X230 has it but since the chipset is QM77 w/Realtek audio I think it should. (My X220 with a hacked Dolby driver doesn't, so the above screenshot is from an unrelated system.) There might also be app-specific settings to control it and there shouldn't be any noise once they're enabled.

Thanks, Jusrky. I'll try it later.

31336 wrote: ↑

Wed Jul 08, 2020 7:57 am

This is a driver feature. I'm not sure if the X230 has it but since the chipset is QM77 w/Realtek audio I think it should. [...] There might also be app-specific settings to control it and there shouldn't be any noise once they're enabled.

Thanks, 31336. I'm afraid X230 does not have it. The "Enhancements" tab is not available. Any suggestions on possible software I could download to change those specs? Cheers.