building a quiet system

[SS]

I'm fed up with the noise of my PC. CPU fan, power supply fans, video card
fan, case fans, hard drives (well, the hard drives I could put up
with)....it sounds like a jet taking off in my office.

Short of water cooling a system (which I'm not prepared to do), what are the
most effective steps I can take to eliminate system NOISE?

I think the biggest offenders in my current system are the retail CPU fan
(AMD XP 2000+), the fan on my ridiculously large GeForce 4600 video card,
and the power suppy (Antec 350W Smart Power).

I've disconnected all the case fans and instead aimed a big (maybe 10in
diameter) fan at the side of the open case (the big fan runs very quietly),
but the Athlon XP 2000+ seems to run quite hot and I don't think I can get
away with no cooling fan there...same goes for the video card, I think.

Money is a consideration. Are there any cases out there that offer serious
sound baffling of some kind but maintain decent airflow? Or has anyone
tried a home-made sound barrier of some kind? I know that getting rid of
all the fans is the most direct approach, but as I mentioned above, I'm not
so thrilled at the idea of water cooling (just looks too complicated and
expensive), and I'd prefer not to have to replace all my current system
components with pieces designed specifically for low sound. I know I'll
need to compromise somewhere, but I'd appreciate advice about the most cost
effective and sensible way to proceed.

Thanks

 

[D. Rogers]

I've built a nearly silent pc cheaply and easily. I bought a Zalman Flower
Cooler kit for the cpu for about $30, a Zalman heat pipe cooler for the
GeForce for about $5 (Fry's had a sale) and then used my existing case fan
with a speed control. That cut the noise in half and my CPU runs cooler.
Then I changed my PSU fan to a quieter model and then all I could hear was
the whine of the hard drive. Let me tell you that once you get started on
this project you will accept no less than 100% silence. The whine noise
drove me nuts, so I bought a Samsung SpinPoint series drive and now I have
total silence.

 

[Biff]

I suggest you visit http://www.silentpcreview.com/
You'll find a tremendous amount of information there about quieting PCs.
Be sure to visit the forums.

 

[KW_UK]

My computer is too loud also

i dont know what is the best way to tell what makes the most noise really...

but i know once i start making it quiet, as said in previous posts, i wont
be able to stop making it silent, and therefore spending more and more
money!

it prob doesnt help having two cpus and therefore two fast and noisey fans!!

 

[Guido]

I use a sheet of paper rolled up into a cone and use it as a "stethoscope"
to pinpoint sources of noise.

Like you say, once the loudest source is eliminated, you hear the next,
source, etc.

Currently, my SONY SDM-X202 lcd monitor (has a cooling fan inside) and
WD1200JB disk idling make the most noise. The typical person can't hear
either unless being told about it.

 

[SS]

Thanks all for the tips and links....

 

[Spajky]

I'm fed up with the noise of my PC. ....it sounds like a jet taking off in my office.

Short of water cooling a system (which I'm not prepared to do), what are the
most effective steps I can take to eliminate system NOISE?

lowering fans to 7V, schematics on my site under electronics...

and the power suppy (Antec 350W Smart Power).

Money is a consideration.
Or has anyone
tried a home-made sound barrier of some kind?

I did ... something similar ...

I know that getting rid of
all the fans is the most direct approach,

bad idea ...

I'm not
so thrilled at the idea of water cooling

me either, I run all my fans @5V, but I do not have so hot chip like
you do!

-- Regards, MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR, SPAJKY
& visit my site @ http://www.spajky.vze.com
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[Spajky]

The whine noise
drove me nuts,

me to, but I resolved the problem like described under comp/mods on my
site ...

-- Regards, MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR, SPAJKY
& visit my site @ http://www.spajky.vze.com
Celly-III OC-ed,"Tualatin on BX-Slot1-MoBo!"
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[Erez Volach]

me to, but I resolved the problem like described under comp/mods on my
site ...

-- Regards, MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR, SPAJKY
& visit my site @ http://www.spajky.vze.com
Celly-III OC-ed,"Tualatin on BX-Slot1-MoBo!"
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ATT: Spajsky
Is here a simple way to connect fans to one 4 pin molex, one 3 position
(1,0,2) switch (the kind with 6 pins) and get a choice of 12v, 7v and 5v ?
no RPM sensoring needed.

TIA

 

[Spajky®]

Is here a simple way to connect fans to one 4 pin molex, one 3 position
(1,0,2) switch (the kind with 6 pins) and get a choice of 12v, 7v and 5v ?
no RPM sensoring needed.

yes, but you have to be a bit carefull not to accidentaly short some
PSU voltages; another way (with diodes & switch) is described on my
site under electronics/fans2, 2nd page ...

-- Regards, MERRY HOLIDAYS & HAPPY NEW YEAR, SPAJKY ®
& visit my site @ http://www.spajky.vze.com
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[Ed Dems]

I've built a nearly silent pc cheaply and easily. I bought a Zalman Flower
Cooler kit for the cpu for about $30, a Zalman heat pipe cooler for the
GeForce for about $5 (Fry's had a sale) and then used my existing case fan
with a speed control. That cut the noise in half and my CPU runs cooler.
Then I changed my PSU fan to a quieter model and then all I could hear was
the whine of the hard drive. Let me tell you that once you get started on
this project you will accept no less than 100% silence. The whine noise
drove me nuts, so I bought a Samsung SpinPoint series drive and now I have
total silence.

He's right. The Zalman flower fan in copper is probably about the best
you can do. Copper beats aluminum all to hell. It will dissipate lots of
power with a temperature rise of 0.18 degrees per watt. I put one on my
xp 2000 and the temperature dropped from m60 to 40, and the fan noise is
very low. Also use good heat sink compound like Arctic Silver Ceramique.
Check overclockers.com.

They are into speed, but heat is a consideration they deal with, and
their findings can help you. There are also some web sites devoted to
quiet pcs. Do a Google search.
Oh yes, I bought the Antec Sonata case, very nice. 120 mm fan on the
back, and rubber grommets for the hard drive attachments. Larger
diameters, slower speeds help. Think ceiling fan. Seagate Barracuda
drives are much better too, because they are pioneering the Fluid
Dynamic Bearing technology. Beats ball bearings.

 

[Ed Dems]

lowering fans to 7V, schematics on my site under electronics...




I did ... something similar ...




bad idea ...




me either, I run all my fans @5V, but I do not have so hot chip like
you do!

-- Regards, MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR, SPAJKY
& visit my site @ http://www.spajky.vze.com
Celly-III OC-ed,"Tualatin on BX-Slot1-MoBo!"
E-mail AntiSpam: remove ##

You can look up the heat disipation by processor type. Search on
"processor electrical specifications. "