Ocypus Sigma F36 BK ARGB Cooling Fan Review: high airflow and unified design in one frame

TweakTown Rating: 100%

Our Verdict

The current times makes money a concern, and with so much on offer with such little investment, anyone looking for 360mm worth of cooling should look no further than the Sigma F36 ARGB.

Pros

• Aesthetics
• Availability and cost
• No software
• Motherboard control
• Airflow and speed-control adapter cable

Cons

• Heavier than normal fans
• Noise levels

Should you buy it?

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Introduction, Specifications, and Pricing

It's funny to think how far fans have come since we started in PCs. Back then you got mostly lower-end fans on just about every case and cooler out there. There were some notables along the way like Scythe Kaze and Delta fans, but the majority were average at best. If you wanted lighting in a chassis or on a cooler, then you had the choice of CCFLs or LED pucks, as LED strips and RGB fans were not a thing yet. When lighting hit fans, you were left with a single-color option; red, blue, green, or white were the only choices.

From those days till today, everything has changed, and while we imagined we had seen everything in 40mm to 200mm fans over the years, we never expected things to get this far. Yes, we assumed that more colors would be an option, and yes, it would happen across all sizes. What we didn't see coming was that manufacturers would also look at the market and make our lives simpler with the elimination of multiple fans, wiring, the mess, and being a much easier product to install and enjoy. While Lian Li and a couple of others have made interlocking fans, we have seen some combined fan versions in one frame from Antec, but never like this.

Ocypus has a different angle of attack. Rather than getting a box of three 120mm fans, all the wires, adapter, screws, and ARGB connectors daisy-chained together; there must be an easier way. So, they built a 360mm fan frame that takes three fans into it, hides all the wires, and requires just four screws to take full advantage of what Ocypus delivers in their Sigma F36 ARGB, where not only does life get easier, but Ocypus also takes fan illumination to a new level.

The Ocypus Sigma F36 BK ARGB is what we were sent, although they are available in white as well. While hefty at 575 grams, this trio of fans in one frame, we are also told that it is 365mm long, 125mm wide, and it is 28mm thick.

The three nine-blade fans spin on fluid dynamic bearings, and without any interruptions, can spin in a range of 500 to 2200 RPM. At full speed, they will deliver 82.5 CFM, 3.1 mmH2O of pressure, and are shown to be less than 36 dB(A). Ocypus also includes a fan speed reduction adapter to plug in line before connecting to the motherboard or fan controller, where speed gets reduced to 1900 RPM, with 70 CFM, 2.4 mmH2O, and says it's less than 32 dB(A).

Of course, there is ARGB included too, and it is everywhere. The fan frame has two rings around the outside of it; the sides illuminate the branding, and the fans have what Ocypus calls a floating hub ring, where the ARGB comes from the hub, but with the metallic sticker covering it, it appears the hub ring floats once the blades spin fast enough to virtually disappear.

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We are unsure if Ocypus raised the warranty time on their fans, but the best warranty we saw was three years for fans, so we will go with that. What really got us was the cost. While we have seen many attempt the ARGB, three, 120mm fan thing in the past, they were expensive, super expensive from some manufacturers. This tended to price out the masses from taking a chassis or a cooler into the ARGB enjoyment they were hoping for. At just $64.99 for the Sigma F36 BK ARGB, it puts sexy fans in the hands of just about anyone.

Packaging

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Ocypus sticks to silver for the backdrop, as we have seen on previous products, and uses the bulk of the front panel to sport an image of the Sigma F36 BK ARGB in all of its illuminated glory.

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The sides of the box either have the Ocypus name or a design, but no real information to show, so we skipped around to the back of the box. On the left, Ocypus shows us where to go for more information, while the right half shows the full list of specifications, with a partial image of the fans above the sticker.

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Upon opening, you are greeted with a black cardboard insert with the Ocypus branding on it, and once removed, there is a layer of dense foam taking up extra space in the box. The fans are also wrapped in plastic to ensure damage is kept at bay, while a small box at the left contains all the goodies that come with the Ocypus Sigma F36 BK ARGB.

Ocypus Sigma F36 BK ARGB

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One frame, three fans- that is what makes these a huge deal to many. You may also notice only four holes in the frame for mounting. Around the black frame is a milky white diffuser for ARGB illumination, while three sets of nine blades push huge amounts of air through the frame. We also love the hub covers, identical to what we see on their coolers, with the brassy O for Ocypus in the center.

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The sides of the frame have a highly textured black strip that runs down the center, and while it wraps the entire frame, we zoomed in on the Ocypus name. It is upside down on the other side, so that no matter how they get installed, you have the option to properly read the branding.

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This image gives you a better sense of how the black wraps the frame around the sides, but this is the important end of the fan assembly. On the left is a 6-pin proprietary connector, which is the one and only connection made to the Sigma F36 ARGB. This angle also shows the rubber isolation pads raised well above the top, and makes the fan frame float above the glass, leaving no part of the frame touching anything it could vibrate.

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Around back, outside of now seeing fan stickers and the frames supporting the fans, the outer frame is nearly identical to what we saw on the front. There are still the four mounting holes at the corners, but we also see four more rubber pads, ensuring the center of this design would not flex and vibrate anything.

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As to the specific fan assemblies in the frame, well, they all share the same serial number sticker down to 301 at the end of these Sigma F36 fans. The speed is shown under the name, and curved along the bottom is the OF3602812CM part number of the individual fans.

Accessories and Documentation

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The accessories that ship with the Sigma F36 BK ARGB are what tends to come with any fan, just not in triplicate this time. At the top is the speed reduction adapter to lessen the overall speed and noise of the fans, a set of five long screws to mount this to a radiator, the twenty-eight-inch-long power cable, and a set of five normal fan screws to attach the Sigma to the chassis.

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No literature comes in the toe box, no instructions, no warranty information. However, if you go on site, you will see a download at the bottom of the product page, which gave us this PDF file that we show above. It shows what comes inside the box, how to attach it to the chassis or radiator, and what to do with the cable and adapter. To be honest, if you need help getting the Sigma F36 ARGB installed, you either never installed a fan before, or you are doing something seriously wrong.

Installation and Finished Product

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To get started, we unraveled the cable to power the Sigma F36 ARGB and plugged it into the side of the frame. Getting it part of the way in is easy; seating the connector all the way does take a fair bit of pressure and some fiddling to get it seated properly.

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At the other end of the cable, you will need to make a connection to a fan header, and the other portion of the ribbon cable gets plugged into a 3-pin ARGB connector. Once you have done this, you can power things up and get to business.

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Once we got the ARGB from the motherboard running, the fans kicked into action with a rainbow of ARGB moving in a clockwise manner around the edge of the frame as well as the ring in the fan hubs. The lighting is bright, as all booth lights are on for these images, and while there are slight hot spots seen in the glass below, when moving, the spots are less obvious.

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The side of the frame is where most of the lighting emanates. The milky white plastic is now a rainbow of color, which also illuminates Ocypus on the side, making sure anyone who sees the build knows what fans are cooling it.

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While we don't suggest it, as you would lose view of the hub lighting, these fans can be used as a chassis intake, while still delivering a brilliant display of ARGB around the outside of the frame. However, you will still see the name and the sides glowing through the glass, and that may be enough to satisfy both your need for more air, as well as the bling it will bring to the build.

Test System Setup

Chad's CPU Cooler Test System Specifications

Final Thoughts

There is much to love in the Ocypus Sigma F36 ARGB. Whether black or white, the findings are the same. You get a metric ton of airflow, something we haven't seen in years. As many went to silence and bling only, it is refreshing to see a manufacturer making a beast of a fan and letting the user tune it back if needed. On top of that, you get one of the brightest and well-laid-out designs in ARGB illumination, while also making the user's life as easy as possible, while not putting a hundred-plus-dollar dent in your account.

We understand the desire for some to want to use the adapter provided, as it will reduce noise for those wanting to force 12V through the Sigma F36, but PWM and motherboard control will change that for most users. On a 12VDC header, the fans spin at their rated speed; in fact, we saw 2250 as the top RPM when testing, and with that comes a huge amount of noise. In realistic terms, the Sigma F36 ARGB hit no less than 59 dB on our sound meter. That is the sort of noise that will drone and make you wish you hadn't picked 12V constant power.

Some things we noticed along the way are the lack of software, so for any lighting control you are dependent on the motherboard. Even so, the Sigma F36 responds quickly and does whatever you can pick in your Sync software. We also accidentally flopped the fans on their face while running. Although the noise picked up, we were impressed with the amount of air it pulled off a glass table, with only the space of the four rubber pads around the mounting holes, allowing the fans to draw from. In the open, at full speed, we do not doubt their figures in the specs, and anyone opting for this kit is in for all the airflow you could possibly need, realistically. With only four screws needed for installation, it is a breeze and happens so fast you wonder why this took so long to be a thing.

As long as we have been looking at, studying, and testing fans, to say we are impressed is one of the biggest endorsements we can give. It has been since the days of 38mm metal-blade delta fans where we thought fans could hover, and if not for the rubber isolation giving room for the air to exit, these would have, even at 575 grams. In most instances, to get this amount of airflow, you would be looking at much more expensive options, and Ocypus does it with a ton of ARGB illumination, which feels more like a free add-on at this price point.

While Ocypus may cover these Sigma F36 ARGB sets for longer than three years, their site has not been updated to show that, so we went with their previous best option. Considering that all of the other "sets" of ARGB fans have been outrageously priced in our opinion, it is super refreshing to see Ocypus not drag us through the same coals. At $64.99, you get an elegant solution to cooling 360mm worth of fans in one easy-to-attach assembly with the lack of multiple wires, magnetic clips, and all the jazz that has been developed before this. If we were in need of a 360mm assembly of fans that makes life easy, looks amazing, has illumination for days, and at the basic level is one of the strongest fans we have seen in a long time, that is all great reasons to get on the internet and find yourself a set, or two, to enjoy.