The issue is not voltage, not directly anyway.
Each new generation of CPU has lead to more transistors, and thus more power
demands. Sometimes the voltage increases, sometimes not, it just depends on
the the current technology, whether trace counts can be reduced, shortened,
etc. So each CPU is rated for a given voltage. In the end, what determines
the need for a fan is temperature. If the CPU temps can't be keep within
functional limits without assistance, well..., you need something to keep
those temps down, either a bigger heatsink, more efficient heatsink (e.g.,
moving from aluminum to copper), better thermal paste, a fan, a BIG fan, or
one or more of all of these! So can you remove the CPU fan on the P3 and
not have problems? Hard to say, haven't used the P3 myself, ultimately you
need to determine from the Intel specs on that P3 what is the working temp
range, measure YOUR temps, and determine if the temps remain within that
range *under load* (i.e., worse case scenario). If so, well..., there's
your answer.
I suspect you don't like the noise of the fan, thus looking to eliminate it.
Your better bet might be to find a much more efficient (cooper) and bigger
heatsink that fits the P3. If you're using the stock unit, these are
usually just adequate. Removal of the fan is very likely to lead to
overheating. I'm not even very confident that the more efficient, larger
heatsink alone will compensate for lack of a fan, but if there's any hope at
all, you gotta start there. But at least if you can get a BETTER heatsink,
you can usually get away with a slower turning fan (less RPMs). Less RPMs
generally means LESS noise. In fact, Zalman sells several models (for the
P4 and Athlon) that uses a large, flower-type heatsink, which is then
(optionally) fanned by a big, ol' 90mm fan screwed to a PCI slot, no less!!!
(
http://www.zalman.co.kr/usa/product/cnps3100P.htm ). Bigger fans require
fewer RPMs for the same CFMs, and combined w/ the big honkin' heatsink, you
get a VERY quiet solution. For some, the heatsink alone proves adequate.
The other option is water cooling, if you can find a cheap, P3 compatible
model (may be difficult at this time). These often still use fans, so the
noise reduction might not be much.
HTH
Jim
