Quest for a quiet computer

[Scott]

Last week I started a quest to make my computer alot quieter than it is.. With a large graphics card (x1950xt), AMD 6000+ CPU, 4GB of ram, 700W PS, 2 hard drives, 2 120mm fans and 1 80mm fan my system is pretty loud, loud enough that I can hear it in the next room.

To combat the problem I’ve changed out the two 120mm fans with low speed, almost silent Antec fans with adjustable speeds and got rid of the 80mm fan. With one exhaust and one intake fan it is more then enough air flow and a lot less noise. If it starts getting to hot I can always turn up the fans for more airflow.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835209005

My graphics card fan was the loudest part of my system. I found a GPU heatsink on Newegg and decided to give it a try. I replaced the stock heatsink/fan with amazing results. My graphics card temps dropped and the fan is silent on the lowest setting. With the lowest fan setting it still keeps my GPU cooler then the stock hs/fan. Again with the adjustable fan speeds if it gets to hot playing a game I can turn it up.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835118001

Now the loudest thing in my system is the power supply. I have a OCZ GameXtreme. This is the first time I bought something other than an Antec power supply. Although this one is nice (except the blue led’s??? why does my computer need a light show?), the Antec's are silent and good quality. Next week I will be replacing my OCZ with a 550w modular Antec.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817103941

That leaves the CPU cooler but I find the stock cooler keeps my CPU at 32C idle and does it without making any noise. (why do so many say the stock cooler sucks? seriously...)

Much happier with this setup. I've pushed the power button a few times and wondered if it had turned on (i'm used to the sound of an airplane taking off...). I can't hear it in the next room anymore. The only thing I can hear up close is the faint fan of the power supply and my wd raptor hard drive.

I did the same for the novahq server. I replaced the aging power supply with a new Antec 380w 'earthwatt' silent power supply, 2 120mm adjustable fans (1 exhaust, 1 intake), replaced the motherboard with a new one that has an integrated GPU and no Northbridge fan, and cleaned the AMD hs/fan. Now I have to stick my ear to the computer or look for the power led to tell if it's on. That's how it should sound!

Thought i'd share incase anyone else had a loud computer!

[Steve]

had a few of the zalman coolers on my cards, just be careful because they can clog up with dust quickly because of their design (and how dusty your house is ). easy enough to clean, but just thought i'd say because sometimes my games would crash, after looking into it further gfx card temps would hit 105 and crash to desktop :@

but definately no noise on them when you turn the fan down (and better temps than stock coolers IMO).

[Hellfighter]

i heard the water cooler system some can work on GPU as will CPU but there is scale build up so once a year it need to be bush out tube and house, all so keep in mind watch out for dry-out on the plastic tubing

get a leak will you know


on the other hand there are them A/C Computer tower (a ice house) they cost like a lot of money

[DevilDog#1]

I just wear noise cancellation headphones...

[katana*GFR*]

Originally posted by DevilDog#1
I just wear noise cancellation headphones...

Thats a winner


Nice setup P.

I myself got a coolermaster 750W, and he does the silent job also.. Just replaced the stock AMD cooler on my Phenom for a AC Freezer pro, and i gained 5 less degrees.. on low speeds.. I'll let the mobo decide what to do with the speeds.. So i wont have to look after it.
My NB and SB both have passive cooling, and that works pretty sweet.. ( Crosshair Motherboard, its awesome )



The picture is not doing any good to the real thing tho.. Find a better picture for the best view..

Got 4 x 1GB GEiL memory on it, also with the passive cooling..
And offcourse my dual 7900GTX's, they are so big!


I'll make some photo's of it soon.

[Scott]

I put a Gigabyte board in mine last week (GA-MA790X-DS4).. It controls the fans alot better then my ECS (KA3 MVP) and does not have a tiny POS loud ass nb fan or strobe lights.

I noticed as soon as I booted up that the fans were running slower and quieter. I checked the BIOS and it has smart fan capability so it controls the rpm's. All the fans except the graphics and ps are controlled by the motherboard..

The zalman dropped my gpu temps by about 8c even on the lowest fan setting which I cannot hear. I played Anno 1701 for awhile and there was no overheating like there used to be... I used to have a 80mm blowing directly on the graphics card which was really noisy and a pain to reconnect and disconnect every time.

The only thing I can hear in my system now is my power supply fan, if I stick a pen in there to stop the fan my computer goes almost completly silent except for the wd raptor which is getting annoying.... I've used Antec PS's all my life except this time and find them to be alot quieter. The one in my server (380 Earthwatt) makes no noise at all, as did the one before it (500w TruePower).

[katana*GFR*]

Nice.. Im glad i got passives on my NB and SB.. On my old board the bearing of the active SB cooler was broken, so it sounded like a asthmatic cooler...

[Troy]

I've got a real nice DELL XPS GAMING/MEDIA Machine! It's very quiet! The Laser Mouse that came with it stinks though. It's my first Laser Mouse and I'm never going to own one again. I'm going back to the good ole roller ball.

[Scott]

You perfer a roller ball over a laser mouse?? How is that possible? Whats wrong with the laser mouse?

The best mouse on the planet:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16826105018

I got 3 of these when newegg had them on sale. 1 for use and 2 for backup incase MS stops making them again Man that sucked!

[Scott]

Decided to try and save $100 and change out the psu fan with an adjustable Antec fan. Opened the psu, cut out the old one and attached an adjustable Antec fan. It went well so now I have 700 watts of silent power and a silent PC. Got rid of the blue leds while I was at it. Happy at last .

[Troy]

When playing in a fast paced intense game ya know how sometime you accidentally pic it up or slide it off the pad because you are moving so much? Well I hate it because I totally lose direction and end up facing backwards staring up at the sky and getting shot or falling off a building or something. The roller normally stays put in this case. If it moses at all it's not as bad and I can recover faster.

[katana*GFR*]

Learn to play? I started playing better almost right away since its much more sensitive..
Also, put your sensitivety ( spelling? ) some higher and pratice with it. You'll see you have way less mouse movement then a rollerball..

Im not trying to squeze an inch, but on my highest setting i only use ~ 7 inch all directions at maximum...


Scott, try the G5 or 7 form logitech. I hate the brand, but the senses of the thing, and the adjustable weight.. I fell in love with it.. I almost wore out my first G5.. So i got a G5 on stock and a G7..

[Chrispy]

Originally posted by Troy
When playing in a fast paced intense game ya know how sometime you accidentally pic it up or slide it off the pad because you are moving so much? Well I hate it because I totally lose direction and end up facing backwards staring up at the sky and getting shot or falling off a building or something. The roller normally stays put in this case. If it moses at all it's not as bad and I can recover faster.

Never really happened to me. I just move the mouse steadily and watch where I point it and I'm fine.

Chris