Akasa Addressable RGB Fan and Light Review
Vegas AR7 Addressable RGB fan and Vegas MBA Addressable RGB LED strip light
Review by: Jennifer Griffiths
Video & Testing by: Philip Griffiths
Introduction :
I know some of you are thinking "yeah, fans and lights...seen it done it got the t-shirt". But have you really? What if I told you that Akasa has something that can only be compared to the lights on Broadway? OK, maybe not that bright, but you get where I am going. For all of us that like bling in our PC, it would do you well to read on. I can see this as not only great for builds in store, but also for us gamers that just happen to work in the computer industry. Today we are looking at Addressable RGB LED lights and fans. Addressable RGB is a long flexible strand of LEDs each of which can be individually set to a certain colour. (hence addressable) By varying the level of red, green and blue (RGB) per LED, many colour combinations can be made. With this being said, you can make a wave effect with the lights. Oh dear, I am starting to ramble....just have a read and see what you think.
Manufacturer statement:
Vegas AR7 Addressable RGB fan (Product code: AK-FN099).
-
The fan utilises the new generation of digital addressable RGB headers. It comes with 7 translucent frosted finish blades and frame with embedded LEDs. Each LED node lights up individually enabling you to create complex lighting effects with your RGB-compatible software. Certified by ASUS Aura Sync, MSI Mystic Light Sync, Gigabyte RGB Fusion Ready and ASRock RGB LED.
-
Vegas MBA Addressable RGB LED strip light (Product code: AK-LD07-60RB)
-
The 60cm strip light utilises the new generation of digital addressable RGB headers. Providing bright, flexible and energy efficient LED lighting, coupled with magnetic attachment which offers easy installation and reattachment. Certified by ASUS Aura Sync, MSI Mystic Light Sync, Gigabyte RGB Fusion Ready and ASRock RGB LED.
About Akasa:
Established in 1997, Akasa has become a leading global supplier that designs and manufactures small form factor fanless chassis, thermal and hardware peripheral solutions - including coolers, fans, card readers, hubs and cables - for PC and specialist applications. Akasa have an extensive design and development capability worldwide to ensure when new advance technology arrives, Akasa have the products and expertise to make it work for our customers. We never compromise product quality and all our products are manufactured under strict quality control standards.
Packaging:
I can't really criticize the packaging on the fan or lights. Akasa has always been notorious for making their product stand out. You will see a black background with a fan or lights displayed on it. Both of which are very appealing and make me want to buy them. So, I am sure customers will take notice as well. You can clearly see who the manufacturer is. Everything you need to know is clearly written on the boxes.
Stand out points on the back of the box's, include:
Adapters included (will work on 3 and 4 pin RGB connectors)
Info about magnets in the LED Strip,
How the fan is assembled
Unboxing:
Both the lights and fans are packaged nicely. The lights are in a plastic inside the box with a connector and adapter included so you can use it on the new Digital RGB connectors or the old 4 pin connectors. The fan is about the size of the box so it fits nice and snug it also comes with an adapter so it can work in a 3 or 4 pin RGB socket and a Molex adapter to power the fan if you are out of 3 pin connectors. Despite not having much in the way of packaging, it is just fine. It comes with 4 mounting screws, unfortunately these are silver and most cases these days are back.
Installation:
This will depend on the kind of board you have. In one way or form it will work on any board that has a 4 or 3 pin RGB connector, but to make the lights addressable you need the new Digital 3 Pin Digital Connector, If you have an RGB board, you don't need any controls as you will do that with software that comes with your motherboard or controller. With my Gigabyte AORUS Intel Z370 Gaming 3 Coffee Lake ATX Motherboard, it was very simple. However, if you do not have a board that is this "fancy" I can see you having to buy a few extras to make it work.
See attached list of compatible motherboards here .
Testing:
The RGB lights did what they said on the tin, you can make them really bright and flash away to your hart is content, just don't stare at them to close or for to long like Phil did when he was trying to take pictures of them as they can give you a headache. Each light danced along as it should have and was easily altered using the Gigabyte app that came with the motherboard. The pictures and videos don't do the lights justice and look a lot more impressive in person. The fan was the same, the edges of the fan would light up different coulers and make a vortex looking effect, 1/4 of the can could be red, the others blue green and purple, and they would spin around, flash and so on.
Pricing and Suppliers: (Price and stock subject to change) 09/08/2018
Vegas AR7 Addressable RGB fan (Product code: AK-FN099).
Vegas MBA Addressable RGB LED strip light (Product code: AK-LD07-60RB)
Conclusion:
As for the fans the prices are very competitive, most are £20 and up. They are really nice looking and if my fans needed replacing I would probably use these. Being I am picky on my components, that speaks volumes! As for the lights, I can see them being on order for my case. The fact I can make them ANY colour or colours I want them to be was a selling point. I think I will have mine set up to be Crimson and a White. (Colours of my football team). I am amazed that no big distributors are carrying these products. All I can say is, "their loss". I will say this, I shopped around outside of the recommended supplier list to see about prices. While Amazon was highly inflated compared to the list we recommended, they were still cheaper than the likes of competitive brands. (this goes for the lights and fans). If you are going to do a nice build or upgrade for someone that likes lights on a machine whether it be a game one or just a little bling on a home and office PC, these are the products to showcase it. They look the part on the shelf and I can see customers coming in and picking them up for their own builds. So, there is a great way to make money on retail and builds. It's a win win as far as I can see.
Stand out point: The fact they are addressable and I can pick any colour and change it when I want as often as I want speaks volumes! But the price was the major selling point on if I would buy them.
Pros:
-
Addressable RGB can be any colour (or mixture) you want.
-
Adapter to use on regular RGB controllers
-
Fan has a molex to to fan connector
Cons:
-
.Would have been nice to see a SATA to fan adapter as Molex are getting fewer Molex connections on PSUs.
Scores:
FAN Lights
-
Value For Money 5 Value For Money 5
-
Packaging 4 Packaging 4
-
Quietness 4 Ease Of Setup 5
-
Looks 5 Looks 5
Total 18 out of 20 Total 19 out of 20
Each Product got a Platinum Award! Congratulations!