Search found 22 matches

by tom thumb
Mon Apr 08, 2013 3:59 pm
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: New Seagate Barracuda 2TB or 3TB? (ST3000DM001)
Replies: 7
Views: 7166

Re: New Seagate Barracuda 2TB or 3TB? (ST3000DM001)

To anyone who would like to know... This issue is resolved. The drive seems just fine. It's got huge storage (which I am taking advantage of, I have a lot of stuff), and is fast for an HDD. (200 would rival the older velociraptors IMO, but access time is slower of course). I ended up getting an inte...
by tom thumb
Mon Jun 25, 2012 9:05 pm
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: New Seagate Barracuda 2TB or 3TB? (ST3000DM001)
Replies: 7
Views: 7166

Re: New Seagate Barracuda 2TB or 3TB? (ST3000DM001)

I just picked up the 3TB version. A quick benchmark shows this thing can deliver upwards of 200MB/s in some sectors, averaging ~170. There is no head parking problem. I believe this issue was resolved a while ago. New drives of this type should be fine. The drive is not silent. It's about as loud as...
by tom thumb
Sun Jun 24, 2012 6:56 pm
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: New Seagate Barracuda 2TB or 3TB? (ST3000DM001)
Replies: 7
Views: 7166

Re: New Seagate Barracuda 2TB or 3TB? (ST3000DM001)

Just to update:

I read that a firmware update fixes the head parking problem. Is this true? ... I just want to double check.
by tom thumb
Sun Jun 24, 2012 3:40 pm
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: New Seagate Barracuda 2TB or 3TB? (ST3000DM001)
Replies: 7
Views: 7166

New Seagate Barracuda 2TB or 3TB? (ST3000DM001)

I've noticed the new barracudas are on sale at a store nearby. I can get the 2TB for 100CAD and the 3TB for 150. I'm short on space at the moment with my 1TB barracuda (it's an older one from ~2009). This drive will be just a personal storage drive, it's not going to be used for windows boot, nor wi...
by tom thumb
Sat Nov 19, 2011 9:16 pm
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Seagate Barracuda Green Random Noise (Help!)
Replies: 9
Views: 5166

Re: Seagate Barracuda Green Random Noise (Help!)

did OP find out if its the drive or the case yet? try running drive out of case, on a book or a Styrofoam plate/tray. The drive was making the unusual noise both when suspended and when just placed on a desk. This problem is not related to mounting. Is it possible to change the hardware settings wi...
by tom thumb
Sat Nov 19, 2011 4:24 pm
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Seagate Barracuda Green Random Noise (Help!)
Replies: 9
Views: 5166

Re: Seagate Barracuda Green Random Noise (Help!)

The noise went away for the past 2 days so I didn't reply, but it's back. The model# is: ST2000DL003 I got a trial of HD sentinel, and the SMART test seems to run just fine. When I loaded the software and ran the test, the drive was quiet: http://i582.photobucket.com/albums/ss265/garbagemansam/quiet...
by tom thumb
Wed Nov 16, 2011 11:11 am
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Seagate Barracuda Green Random Noise (Help!)
Replies: 9
Views: 5166

Seagate Barracuda Green Random Noise (Help!)

Before the great hard drive price disaster of recent months, I bought a 'quiet' storage drive. The choice was between the Barracuda Green 2tb and the Caviar Green 2tb. I chose the barracuda because it was (according to the reviews) both faster and quieter than my existing 1Tb Barracuda 7200. The dri...
by tom thumb
Fri Sep 09, 2011 6:43 pm
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Barracuda Green vs Caviar Green (2Tb)
Replies: 5
Views: 5823

Barracuda Green vs Caviar Green (2Tb)

My new storage drive will likely be one of these two. The barracuda green wins in benchmarks, but only just, so I am leaning for the Barracuda. Either drive is faster than my current 1Tb barracuda, so benches don't really matter. Price also doesn't matter. The Barracuda Green is 5900 rpm, whereas th...
by tom thumb
Sat Sep 03, 2011 12:46 pm
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Anything quieter than a barracuda 7200, yet just as fast?
Replies: 5
Views: 3542

Anything quieter than a barracuda 7200, yet just as fast?

First let me give you an idea of my situation. I've got two SSDs for programs and OS as well as a 1TB 7200 RPM Steagate Barracuda for storage, playback of movies (HD included) and a handful of old programs that are used sparingly. The Barracuda is the loudest thing in my case right now, *even though...
by tom thumb
Sat Oct 23, 2010 6:06 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Aftermarket Cooling on the HD6870
Replies: 6
Views: 3958

Re: Aftermarket Cooling on the HD6870

Thanks for the input guys. I didn't think about the extra weight on the card, after all, the shroud + the old cooler are removed. No matter though, I have ways of counteracting that. Does anyone have any shots of the card from the side? This way I can measure the height of those VRMS to make sure th...
by tom thumb
Fri Oct 22, 2010 7:27 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Aftermarket Cooling on the HD6870
Replies: 6
Views: 3958

Aftermarket Cooling on the HD6870

So, the new cards are out and it seems to me that they might be ideal in creating a powerful silent PC. To my knowledge, never before have you been able to get so much performance-per-watt. The idle 19W is also impressive. (If I am wrong here, please correct :D) Right, so I want to get one of these,...
by tom thumb
Sat Oct 16, 2010 4:07 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Good i7-950 setup?
Replies: 10
Views: 4045

Re: Good i7-950 setup?

I've never seen the case you want, but from my experience, stock case fans are all too loud. The 3-speed antec fans that come stock with antec cases were too loud for me even at their lowest setting.
by tom thumb
Sat Oct 16, 2010 3:47 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Best GPU cooler + 4-pin fan
Replies: 1
Views: 1456

Best GPU cooler + 4-pin fan

I need advice on what aftermarket GPU cooler offers the best heat dissipation performance. The card in question is a HD 5850 or one of the upcoming 6750 (that surely everyone is excited about). You might say that it would depend on which card - as they have different idle and load power draws - howe...
by tom thumb
Mon Oct 11, 2010 2:04 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: How do I slow down a 4-pin gpu fan?
Replies: 4
Views: 2137

I did a bit of research on the MSI Twin Frozr. Modo is right, it is quieter than the vapor-x, but it is a hotter card as well, at least according to this review: http://www.overclock.net/ati/702833-msi-hd5850-twin-frozr-review-comparision.html This is my impression right now: In terms of heat: vapor...
by tom thumb
Sun Oct 10, 2010 3:24 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Good i7-950 setup?
Replies: 10
Views: 4045

- good choice for the PSU, seasonic is great. I have the X750 :P - your build is very, very cpu heavy. It will make a good workstation, but games will be terrible. - I would not recommend cooling an i7 passively... you might get away with it at idle, but you are just asking for trouble if you load i...
by tom thumb
Sun Oct 10, 2010 2:53 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: How do I slow down a 4-pin gpu fan?
Replies: 4
Views: 2137

How do I slow down a 4-pin gpu fan?

First off, my intention is to buy a vapor-x or toxic 5850, they are essentially the same IMO, aside from the clock speed. Before I ask about the fan, is this the best choice for a quiet card at the 5850-level? As far as I know, high end cards must have fans, it's really a question of the quality of ...
by tom thumb
Mon Sep 20, 2010 7:56 am
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Sapphire Vapor-X 5770 vs Vapor-X 5850?
Replies: 1
Views: 1506

Sapphire Vapor-X 5770 vs Vapor-X 5850?

I am trying to chose between these two cards. To some it might look like an easy decision dependent on what my requirements are, but I also must consider noise and price. 1. How do these two cards compare in terms of noise at idle, at maximum and equal load (that is to say, how would the noise compa...
by tom thumb
Sun Aug 15, 2010 3:29 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: What is the quietest 5700 or 5800 series card?
Replies: 10
Views: 4454

Thanks for the advice guys.

Would it be possible/beneficial to remove the heatsink on a vapor-x card (leaving the "waterblock") and install an aftermarket cooler (like what Mats mentioned)?
by tom thumb
Sun Aug 15, 2010 3:16 pm
Forum: Fans and Control
Topic: Need advice on 120mm case fans.
Replies: 1
Views: 1507

Need advice on 120mm case fans.

So my new i7 rig is nearly done and I need a good 2 or 3 120mm case fans. So far I've tried every trick to get my total noise output down... Noctua CPU heatsink - two noctua 120mm fans w low noise adapters Seasonic X750 PSU - fan only turns on when system load exceeds ~250watts Sapphire Vapor-X HD58...
by tom thumb
Wed Jul 28, 2010 6:50 am
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: What is the quietest 5700 or 5800 series card?
Replies: 10
Views: 4454

Thanks for the suggestion, it is good to know that there is a mid-range card out there that is fanless, however the 5750 will probably not be enough for me. I could go with 2 in crossfire, but then I'd need to worry about cooling, and the price would start to ramp up. I've decided to go with a 5800 ...
by tom thumb
Tue Jul 27, 2010 6:55 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: What is the quietest 5700 or 5800 series card?
Replies: 10
Views: 4454

What is the quietest 5700 or 5800 series card?

What is the quietest HD5700 or 5800 series card on the market today? I'm thinking it could be the vapor-x from sapphire, but I'm looking at all options at the moment. I highly doubt that there would be a passive one with such a powerful gpu. I know a lot of you have modified your 5700s and 5800s wit...
by tom thumb
Tue Jun 22, 2010 10:01 am
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Does overall HDD noise depend on windows installation?
Replies: 3
Views: 2173

Does overall HDD noise depend on windows installation?

Hello SPCR, Is there any acoustical difference (with respect to seek, idle, etc.) in a typical hard disk drive (HDD) if windows is installed/running or not? I am thinking that windows likes to do a lot of seeking & reading randomly through operation and that would produce more noise than a storage d...