In general terms, a bearing is a machine element that constrains relative motion
and reduces friction between moving parts. In cooling fans specifically, the
purpose of a bearing is to allow the blades to spin around inside the frame
as efficiently and reliably as possible. But there are so many kinds of them. And
the PMM bearing hasn't been invented yet. So until that happens, how do we
know the pros and cons of each kind? Let's kick it off with sleeve bearings.
The most common bearing type in PC cooling fans. The main advantages are
easy. They are inexpensive and quiet, especially at first, but they should
only be mounted vertically for best results. And compared to other bearing types, their performance, especially
over long periods of time, is unexceptional. A sleeve bearing is what
is known as a line contact bearing, which means that the contact surface
area between its moving parts, is actually quite large. This isn't
inherently a catastrophic problem, but it makes them more susceptible to
failure due to changes in lubricant viscosity from higher ambient
temperatures and from lubricant loss over time. This combined with the way
that they often die quite suddenly makes them less suitable for industrial or
missionritical environments, which leads us nicely into the second most common PC
fan bearing type, ball bearings. They're more expensive than sleeve bearings and
louder at the beginning of their lives, but they make up for it because their
point contact design reduces friction and allows them to last longer,
especially in hotter environments, like say for example in a server or oftus
used gaming PC and they stay closer to their out ofthe-box performance over a
longer period of time. Like sleeve bearings, the main cause of failure of a
ball bearing is lubricant loss. But because of the way they operate and the
fact that they tend to be found in better designed products that are manufactured with tighter tolerances
overall, this will take longer to occur. Add to that that a ball bearing fan will
fail in a slower, more graceful manner, and you've got yourself a fan that's
much more suitable for cooling a component that won't take kindly to a
sudden lack of cooling, like a CPU or power supply. But not all ball bearing
fans are created equal. Cheaper single ball bearing designs will use one ball
bearing and one sleeve bearing at each end of the shaft. While more expensive
dual ball bearing designs use ball bearings throughout for improved
longevity and performance consistency. So depending on how much reliability you
need, you can plan your budget accordingly. Now, I don't want this
video to come off as a PSA about the dangers of sleeve bearing fans. In
non-demanding environments or where extreme silence or longevity aren't
really needed, a traditional sleeve bearing may be perfectly adequate. And
on top of that, not all sleeves are necessarily inferior. Fluid dynamic or
hydro bearings are the last common bearing type and are fundamentally a
modified sleeve bearing. Compared to normal sleeve bearings and even ball
bearing designs, they are the most expensive due to the Matsushida
licensing fees that they must pay in order to sell them, the genuine ones
anyway. But the way that they use the fan's own rotation to create a pressure
field that stabilizes the fan and dramatically improves lubrication
performance results in an extremely quiet bearing that generally lasts
longer than either of the first two that I talked about. The thing to watch out
here though for is that the fluid dynamic bearing name isn't trademarked.
So many manufacturers have created their own, sometimes inferior variants that
sell under the same name, buyer beware. Our last bearing type is the other
category. I mean, you see, hydro bearings aren't the only enhanced sleeve
bearings. Rifle, hydraulic, and SSO are
a few more examples with each taking a different approach to the goal of
improving sleeve bearing performance. I'll use SSO bearings as my example. The
main problem with sleeves is that if they're not adequately lubricated, they wear out extremely quickly. This
proprietary design, among other changes, adds magnetic stabilization and fluid
dynamic bearing design elements to improve stability, longevity, and
silence, especially at lower speeds. And they can be mounted in any orientation
to boot. Not bad, eh? So, that's pretty much it. Or wait, there's two more
things actually. First, factor into everything I just said that the design
and quality of the construction of the rest of the fan plays a major role in
its performance and its reliability regardless of bearing type. And second,
here's a handy little fan maintenance tip. It's never a bad idea to consult
the manufacturer for the best possible method, but using a drop or two of a
high-grade synthetic lubricant under the sticker on the back will improve the
lifetime of even the worst sleeve bearing fan in the world. So, give that
a try if you want to save a couple of bucks and keep your fans out of the
local landfill. Speaking of saving a couple bucks, if you enjoyed this video about fan bearings, be sure to check out
the fans from today's episode sponsor, Cooler Master. They produce a wide
variety of PC cooling components. I mean, it's right there in the company
name with everything from CPU, air, and liquid coolers to standalone fan
upgrades for your case that range from plain Jane black ones to fancy LED ones.
Show them some love for supporting Techquicki by checking out the link in
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