Search found 18 matches

by zdb
Wed May 11, 2022 3:05 am
Forum: CPU Cooling
Topic: Noctua NH-P1 Passive CPU Cooler
Replies: 10
Views: 12923

Re: Noctua NH-P1 Passive CPU Cooler

I don't see the point of this cooler. Just buy a D15 and run it fanless. There has to be a big enough gap between fins for air to freely flow upward due to buoyancy. Too close and the flow of hot air is retarded, trapping heat in the stack for longer and thus decreasing the effectiveness of the coo...
by zdb
Tue May 15, 2018 9:09 am
Forum: General Gallery
Topic: Streacom DB4-based Completely Silent Computer
Replies: 8
Views: 23355

Re: Streacom DB4-based Completely Silent Computer

Yeah, you are seeing the capability of the CPU cooler header to quickly transfer heat up to a point and then the slower tail of the heat pipes transferring heat to the case. Pretty typical of passive designs.. Ah... All of my previous machines have been air- or water-cooled and their curves did not...
by zdb
Tue May 15, 2018 1:10 am
Forum: General Gallery
Topic: Streacom DB4-based Completely Silent Computer
Replies: 8
Views: 23355

Re: Streacom DB4-based Completely Silent Computer

I'm always interested in the soak time curves as it provides a good feel for how well the platform can cool and where some of the limitations may be. It looks like the limit of transfer with 6 heatpipes is 42C to the exterior of the case (same temp for 75% and 100% loading). I'm not sure that sayin...
by zdb
Mon May 07, 2018 1:52 am
Forum: General Gallery
Topic: Streacom DB4-based Completely Silent Computer
Replies: 8
Views: 23355

Re: Streacom DB4-based Completely Silent Computer

CA_Steve wrote:What soak temps are you seeing with typical loads?
I've completed the first round of CPU thermal testing — a full write-up can be found here.

The final results (normalised to an ambient temperature of 20⁰C) are:

Image
by zdb
Sat Apr 21, 2018 9:08 am
Forum: General Gallery
Topic: Streacom DB4-based Completely Silent Computer
Replies: 8
Views: 23355

Re: Streacom DB4-based Completely Silent Computer

Thanks Steve. Haven't gotten around to any rigorous thermal testing yet. Waiting for Ubuntu 18.04 LTS to drop (in four days) before I do a clean install and migrate everything I need over from the old machine. Light use and an IR thermometer suggests good conduction to all of the spreaders and no ob...
by zdb
Sat Apr 21, 2018 8:29 am
Forum: General Gallery
Topic: Streacom DB4-based Completely Silent Computer
Replies: 8
Views: 23355

Streacom DB4-based Completely Silent Computer

https://tp69.files.wordpress.com/2018/04/db4a.jpeg?w=1024 Case: Streacom DB4 Mobo: ASRock AB350 mini-ITX CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1600 CPU Cooling: Stock DB4 heat pipes + Streacom LH6 Cooling Kit RAM: 32GB Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 SSDs: 1TB Samsung 960 Evo NVMe + 1TB Samsung 860 Evo SATA GPU: Asus Phoeni...
by zdb
Tue Apr 17, 2018 12:24 am
Forum: CPUs and Motherboards
Topic: Tips for selecting RAM in 2018
Replies: 2
Views: 4778

Re: Tips for selecting RAM in 2018

All things considered, a good guide. I do have a few points to make, though: If you have a motherboard with two slots, it's better to go with one larger capacity stick than two smaller ones since you can always upgrade the second slot later. If money is tight and performance is less important, then ...
by zdb
Thu Feb 22, 2018 3:12 am
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Why are there no good HDD silencer in 2018?
Replies: 17
Views: 22122

Re: Why are there no good HDD silencer in 2018?

So yeah, like I said, I'm surprised HDDs are still being manufactured. Really? Then you're not thinking big enough... Hmmm... I guess that's one way to look at it. Here's another: America has a massive digital hoarding problem Is Digital Hoarding a Mental Disorder (And Do You Have It)? Digital hoar...
by zdb
Mon Feb 19, 2018 3:32 am
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Why are there no good HDD silencer in 2018?
Replies: 17
Views: 22122

Re: Why are there no good HDD silencer in 2018?

An alternative to storage drives of any form is now the Cloud. For example a Evil Empire subscription will bring with it 1TB of Cloud storage. Yes, there are issues about Cloud storage particularly the need for a reliable, reasonably quick internet connection. But it does make the SSD boot drive + ...
by zdb
Mon Feb 19, 2018 2:58 am
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Why are there no good HDD silencer in 2018?
Replies: 17
Views: 22122

Re: Why are there no good HDD silencer in 2018?

I'm surprised HDDs are still being manufactured, to be honest. Cost is still a significant factor. From my local supplier the cheapest 1TB hard drive is around 25% of their price for the Samsung 860 Evo 1TB equivalent. Interesting that you compared the cheapest possible HDD to the second-most expen...
by zdb
Mon Feb 19, 2018 12:55 am
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Why are there no good HDD silencer in 2018?
Replies: 17
Views: 22122

Re: Why are there no good HDD silencer in 2018?

Silent PCs and SSDs are common in 2018, but HDDs are still around for large storage. I don't think that a lot of people will buys 2tb SSDs for storage soon. I built a new system a couple of weeks ago. Put in a 1TB Samsung 960 EVO NVMe M.2 SSD as the system drive and a 1TB Samsung 860 EVO SATA SSD a...
by zdb
Mon Feb 12, 2018 6:21 pm
Forum: The Silent Front
Topic: Sound Level Meter suggestions please
Replies: 7
Views: 18575

Re: Sound Level Meter suggestions please

Before throwing ur monies away, why not check out those smartphone apps, often free, may be just do the job. That's what I have been using. Unfortunately, smartphones use a microphone technology that can't detect sound pressure levels below ~30dB. The software is irrelevant — it's the hardware that...
by zdb
Tue Jan 30, 2018 9:21 am
Forum: The Silent Front
Topic: Sound Level Meter suggestions please
Replies: 7
Views: 18575

Re: Sound Level Meter suggestions please

The jump from 30dB(A) to 20dB(A) involves a couple of grand or more... Yikes! :shock: Sounds like 30dB is the threshold for a particular type of 'mainstream' microphone technology... and sub-30dB requires something quite different and more specialised (thus more expensive). and realize any app usin...
by zdb
Tue Jan 30, 2018 7:15 am
Forum: The Silent Front
Topic: Sound Level Meter suggestions please
Replies: 7
Views: 18575

Re: Sound Level Meter suggestions please

I'm in the same boat. Looking for a meter to get some objective measurements.

All of the meters in the above list are 30dB+ but my environment is already down to 35dB (at least, according to the app on my phone), so I'm after something that is sensitive down into the 20s.

Any suggestions?
by zdb
Tue Jan 30, 2018 6:28 am
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Interested in a Ryzen - Fanless System
Replies: 13
Views: 9533

Re: Interested in a Ryzen - Fanless System

I suppose water cooling with an external convector is the way to go for proper cooling. Might allow for some more powerful GPU as well... Sure, but water cooling means pumps and pumps mean noise. If they're happy to settle for quiet instead of silent , that's an option. I actually really like the l...
by zdb
Sun Jan 28, 2018 4:34 pm
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Antec case - screws needed for HDD
Replies: 17
Views: 17201

Re: Antec case - screws needed for HDD

Around 8 years ago and due to SPCR I bought an Antec 182 case ... Over the years I added several 3.5'' hard drives, I now have 3 working, and I'd like to install a 4th one ... but for that I need to get some screws. The person that installed the 3rd drive said that he only had 2 screws left, that h...
by zdb
Sun Jan 28, 2018 2:57 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Interested in a Ryzen - Fanless System
Replies: 13
Views: 9533

Re: Interested in a Ryzen - Fanless System

I'm interested in a fanless build for my office and was really interested in the AMD Ryzen chips ... I was looking at the Seacom DB4 which looks like a beautiful case and wanted to build a system around it. What's the ideal CPU to use with this case? Would an AMD threadripper CPU work? The Streacom...
by zdb
Sun Jan 28, 2018 12:49 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Gaming Build Fortress FT05B
Replies: 31
Views: 26215

On the subject of non-scaling UIs...

I am still using a monitor from 2008! Viewsonic VX2835wm 1920x1200 I notice that 28" monitors aren't common anymore. I am also going to replace the monitor, although not necessarily right away. One of the games I play the most is an MMO, Dungeons and Dragons Online, it is older and the UI is not sc...