Alternate Power Supplies for Antec Aria

[Guest]

I've got an Antec Aria case and I'm not so happy with the noise output
of the included 300W power supply. I was thinking about replacing the
case fan in the power supply, but noticed the replacement fan had
three prongs, while the power supply had two for the fan. Is there an
adapter I can buy? What is that adapter called?

I've also been thinking about replacing the power supply altogether
and looking for something in the 400W range. Any recommendations?
The included power supply is oddly cut, with a niche that fits a
heatsink over the processor, so I haven't been able to find a
replacement off the shelf that fits. Of course, I'd like to keep that
replacement as quiet as possible as well.

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Conor]

I've got an Antec Aria case and I'm not so happy with the noise output
of the included 300W power supply. I was thinking about replacing the
case fan in the power supply, but noticed the replacement fan had
three prongs, while the power supply had two for the fan. Is there an
adapter I can buy? What is that adapter called?

The third prong is for sending a signal for speed monitoring. There is
no adaptor. Snip the plug off the old one and join the black and red
wires to the black and red ones on the new one.



--
Conor

Greedo shot first. Greedo ALWAYS shot first. You did not see Solo shoot
first.
It never happened. Never, ever. Not in any version. Remember: Greedo
shot first.

 

[Matt]

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

I recommend that you stop second-guessing Antec's engineering. You are
not up to the job. You should assume they have already done about
everything that can be done to reduce the noise.

If you really need 400W, you are going to need a bigger case. Just what
do you plan to put in it?

 

[Guest]

I recommend that you stop second-guessing Antec's engineering. You are
not up to the job. You should assume they have already done about
everything that can be done to reduce the noise.

If you really need 400W, you are going to need a bigger case. Just what
do you plan to put in it?

Conor, thanks for the tip. I'll give that a shot.

Matt, I'm a total newbie to building PCs, and just wanted to try it
out. Wanted to put together an HTPC, and some other folks who've done
similar projects recommended the case, but also recommended I upgrade
the power supply. The ones they recommended, they weren't too happy
with, so thought I'd try the groups. It's not that I'm
second-guessing Antec, just wanted to see if there was something else
I could try. With the wide variety of mod products out there, I
figured there's always a chance someone else has figured a different
way to do it.

 

[Matt]

Conor, thanks for the tip. I'll give that a shot.

Matt, I'm a total newbie to building PCs, and just wanted to try it
out. Wanted to put together an HTPC, and some other folks who've done
similar projects recommended the case, but also recommended I upgrade
the power supply. The ones they recommended, they weren't too happy
with, so thought I'd try the groups. It's not that I'm
second-guessing Antec, just wanted to see if there was something else
I could try. With the wide variety of mod products out there, I
figured there's always a chance someone else has figured a different
way to do it.

Okay, I have only seen pictures of the Aria, but it looks like a lot of
care went into the design and that it is already well-optimized for its
purpose, and you won't be able to do much to improve it. So if you
think you'd like to use that case, you have to check whether it will
have enough power for you. It will if you stay away from power-hungry
CPUs and video cards.

See the AMD builders' guide, page 7, at:

http://www.amd.com/us-en/Processors/SellAMDProducts/0,,30_177_4458_3505^869^4348^1065,00.html

and also

http://www.jscustompcs.com/power_supply/

 

[David Maynard]

Okay, I have only seen pictures of the Aria, but it looks like a lot of
care went into the design and that it is already well-optimized for its
purpose, and you won't be able to do much to improve it.

Not to mention it's a proprietary, custom, PSU so I don't know where you'd
find something else that would fit the hole.

 

[Guest]

Not to mention it's a proprietary, custom, PSU so I don't know where you'd
find something else that would fit the hole.

David, that power_supply link was a great tool. Thanks.

Yeah, I'm starting to rethink the decision to use the Aria. Great
box, but want a little more flexibility. Thanks for everyone's help.

 

[David Maynard]

David, that power_supply link was a great tool. Thanks.

Yeah, I'm starting to rethink the decision to use the Aria. Great
box, but want a little more flexibility. Thanks for everyone's help.

I thank you for the accolade but, in all fairness, it was Matt who posted
the PSU link. I just pointed out that the Aria's PSU is a custom job.

It being custom is not unusual for small form factor cases, however,
because it's difficult to make cases that size with 'standard' units.