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Fan bearing noise on my recently built K3 was very annoying. Elecraft support helpfully sent out 2 replacement fans, but they exhibited the same noise. The bearing noise at the lowest speed was clearly, annoyingly audible from my operating position.
After some research, I replaced the fans with SilenX IXP-34-16. I purchased mine at NewEgg for about $11 each. They are rated almost 9dB lower noise level than the Utec AT6015L-12L2B ND5 which ships with the K3. They are 25mm thick compared with stock 15mm, so I needed new mounting screws (4-40 x 1-1/4" flat head machine screws from Ace). I had to replace the connectors with connectors I cut off the extra stock fans. The fans are an ugly gold/silvery plastic, not black, but since they're in the back, who cares?
Results: I can no longer hear the bearings from my operating position. These fans are much quieter than what was in the radio before. Not silent, but much quieter. My K3 is finally a joy to operate (yes, the fan noise was really really annoying before!).
73 Joe N9OK
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