AC Infinity Cooling Fans Overview

Lack of ventilation can quickly kill your expensive home theater gear. Whether it’s from a tube amp pumping out audiophile warmness, or the video processors in modern AVR’s, heat build-up can throw your equipment into protection mode, and shorten its life span. Ideally, you would have your equipment in wide-open cabinets. But sometimes we need to make compromises in placement to make space livable and not have the equipment as the focus of the room. For these circumstances, the AC Infinity cooling fans fit the bill. 

What it is?

AC Infinity ha a line of fans that provide cooling to your components. They have a variety of models including front, top and rear exhausted fans. Some are integrated models that you install in your equipment rack. Others sit atop your components. 

Entry-level models have basic controls for speed and on/off settings More expensive models have digital displays showing fan speed and component temperatures, along with more advanced smart settings.

What AC Infinity cooling fans do well

• Quiet operation at low to moderate speeds. The fans and their components are made for silent running. The fans are smooth and move an adequate volume of air.
• Ease of operation. I had them up and running in. less than 5 minutes. The controls are intuitive and you don’t need a masters degree to understand the instructions.

Who needs this product?

• People who have their AV equipment in enclosed cabinets, or in furniture that does not provide adequate airflow around vents.
• People who own speakers that put a demanding load on your equipment, or amplifiers that produce significant heat.
• Those who don’t want to fuss over settings. Set it, and forget it is the focus of these products. Set your high temp alarm and they will turn on and off as needed to maintain those temperatures.

Who doesn’t need this product?

• Enthusiasts who are looking to add “extreme” cooling to their systems, but have adequate space around their gear. In my system, I see marginal drops of 5°C over normal operating temperatures. If I crank the fans to their highest speed I will see a more significant drop, but the sound is unbearable in a home theater setting.

Pricing and Types

AC Infinity cooling fans come in multiple solutions. The rack fans are designed to be rack-mounted and run between $120 to around $170 per component (you may need more than one for a complete cooling solution). Receiver fans (designed to be placed on top of an AV receiver but can be placed on any gear) run between $50 and $120. Cabinet fans can be retrofitted to a piece of furniture and run between $25 and $100 per component.

The Verdict

An AC Infinity cooling fan is a must-have for AV enthusiasts who prefer to have their gear in an enclosed cabinet or in a space that doesn’t provide adequate ventilation. The pricing is very affordable especially considering the ease of installation and use. For those who have proper spacing, you can give this one a skip. For anyone concerned about ventilation of their AV gear, AC Infinity has a cooling fan solution for you!