cjh Posted May 17, 2017 Report Share Posted May 17, 2017 I know this subject has been discussed before, and the best remedy is "silent ducted wind" but in the absence of that are the Mole Richardson e fans the quietest studio option when all is need is an ambient breeze on close up coverage? What are the differences in performance noise wise of the 18" / 20" / 24" models? The prod I'm on at the moment has a lot of studio exteriors that req ambient breeze and the FX dept use their own custom designed fans, I'm just not sure they're as quiet as they could be. Understand it's all relative but keen to hear other user reviews as I don't have much exp with the Mole R line of air movers. Cheers, C. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moesound Posted May 17, 2017 Report Share Posted May 17, 2017 The Mole Richardson fans are by far the best fans made for our purposes. They can be dialed down to achieve the purpose of moving air while being well within the acceptance standards of the sound department. Regards, Moe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philip Perkins Posted May 17, 2017 Report Share Posted May 17, 2017 The deal with the Molefans is that they have to be in good repair and they have to not have been dropped or stored face down. On some jobs years ago I objected to one of them being wheeled right up to the talent, but that fan was the personal property of the FX guy, and he had babied it. He was right, it worked just fine. Rental fans, esp those that have spent their lives on trucks, are another story, and I've had those be very out of true and quite noisy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjh Posted May 17, 2017 Author Report Share Posted May 17, 2017 In good repair, good note thank you, doing some comparison tests with a 18" mole after wrap, I think it's an old one and likely not in great shape. Already been told it has a noisy rheostat, presume new models wouldn't have this issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidm Posted May 17, 2017 Report Share Posted May 17, 2017 A 24" is the quietest Mole as it can operate at a lower speed compared to smaller size fans for the same airflow. The problem that I experience with Mole fans isn't the noise they make when gently blowing an actors hair, it's the additional background fans deemed necessary to move background leaves on trees, curtains, etc. The artful wafting of a cutter does not appear to be in anyones job description these days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjh Posted May 17, 2017 Author Report Share Posted May 17, 2017 Cheers David, makes sense, the BG fans sometimes not an issue on this one as often GS BG or solid set, and when lots to move there is a fair reason for the BG noise. Wafting is always good but takes a good chunk of space and actors prob get distracted by the close proximity movement, guess that's why we never see it these days, nothing like a good waft though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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