PSU-CPU fan noise question

tml240 · Post by **tml240** » Tue Apr 10, 2007 10:13 pm

Hi,

I'm new to this forum and case upgrading/modding and I have two parts in my rig that causes big noise issues:

1- Powersupply http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6817171018

2- Stock CPU Fan

I have AMD X2 3800 socket AM2 (89W - i think -one) with a generic case.

Q1 - for the PSU, I didn't know about the noise 6 weeks after the purchase. Initially it was quiet, but then it started to get noisy and now it's the loudest thing in the whole rig. I'm thinking about replacing the PSU fan (120mm) with this one: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6811998121

which is also installed as the back case fan and is actually quiet.

So is it safe and okay to just get rid of the original fan and solder the wires with this APEVIA one? (Voltage, Amp are the same -- 12V, 25A) I don't want to dump this PSU and buy a new one for another $50+

Q2 - For the AM2 CPU Fan, which model is the commonly used one for noise and cooling? (under $30)

Q3 - I have two 18" x 18" x 1.5" silence foams as experiments:

Any tips on how to utilize them correctly before i cut them? :p
Right now, I just taped them on the sides of the case with no side panels, just the foams for now.

Thank you

angelkiller · Post by **angelkiller** » Wed Apr 11, 2007 3:20 am

Ok, if you think the Aprevia fan is quiet, go for it. It's perfectly safe. (assuming you do it correctly.) SPCR wrote an article about a PSU fans swap.

Under $30?

The Scythe Ninja is $40 at Newegg. It's highly recommended here at SPCR. Can you stretch a little?

I don't know how to use them correctly. I'd just put one on the inside of the side panel, and cut the other one to fit in small places around the case. Hope all this helps.

tml240 · Post by **tml240** » Wed Apr 11, 2007 8:08 am

angelkiller wrote:Ok, if you think the Aprevia fan is quiet, go for it. It's perfectly safe. (assuming you do it correctly.) SPCR wrote an article about a PSU fans swap.

Under $30? The Scythe Ninja is $40 at Newegg. It's highly recommended here at SPCR. Can you stretch a little?

I don't know how to use them correctly. I'd just put one on the inside of the side panel, and cut the other one to fit in small places around the case. Hope all this helps.

cool thanks for the clarification

i think i could spend extra bucks when neccessary... Just want to find the right one. And some of them are huge (for good reasons,) which also interfere with the 3rd and 4th ram that's right near the CPU. :/

jhhoffma · Post by **jhhoffma** » Wed Apr 11, 2007 9:44 am

1) I doubt that fan would be any quieter than the one in your PSU. If you want it quieter you'd need a slower fan. The fan in the PSU is a sleeve bearing, which I find odd as they generally don't last long running horizontally (especially in a hot environment). A quiet ball-bearing fan like the ADDAs in the Seasonic PSUs might be a better alternative. However, it's mainly up to the fan controller to keep the speed down if you're going to plug it in to the mobos PSU header or directly into the PSUs fan header itself.

2) Ninja is good, Zalman cooler are ok (especially with a fan mod), Thermalright makes excellend HSF but they are usually pretty expensive.

3) That foam is meant to stop sound from bouncing off flat walls/surfaces. Taping them to the case panels as you have is probably as effective as you'll get with it. Depending on your case, you may have vibrations issues with the case panels and the HDD cage/tray. There are different methods to help in this area. Suspending or soft-mounting your hard drives is the best way to reduce vibration going to the case and also quieting your hard drives as well (sacrificing some cooling ability, but not much). Dampening your case panels with a heavy material (self-adhesive vinyl floor tiles work well) is very effective at lowering the frequency the panels will resonate at, which most people will perceive as being quieter. You can always put the acoustic foam on top of the panels when you're done too.

I use a combination of vinyl floor tiles and automotive headliner material (foam/fabric sandwich) to deaden my case. The tiles dampen the case while the foam, cut and pressed into the right areas, can be squeezed into the joints prone to vibration and keep the panels from vibrating against one another.

Hope that helps.