As for SSDs that claim to have power failure protection, it pays to dig into it to see if it's marketing hype or reality. If the SSD doesn't have super caps on the board, no way will it protect on-the-fly writes from being lost. That is precisely the case with the Sandisks I mentioned: they're safe...

Limitations of reality, fair enough Mike. Hardware could be debated about ad nauseam, but I didn't really see the point: you had a theme, you had your resources, you stuck to your guns and got us a guide. I aimed less to shame the drive (it is a decent drive, bought one for parents' laptop in fact) ...

PPS. Something I forgot about that test... the first fatality was the second HyperX : The first HyperX failed a little earlier [than the second drive to fail], at 728TB, under much different conditions. It suffering [sic] rash of reallocated sectors, programming failures, and erase failures before i...

I did give it a good read, Luka - these were the only details I thought were worth pointing out right away. The rest of it I would have no problem suggesting a friend read and maybe even follow, budget allowing (and in case they want a mini-fridge under their desk, but that is beside the point for n...

I don't really agree with the SSD choice: Sandforce-based SSDs have a bad reliability reputation (maybe with the only exception of the Intel variants). The reported alternatives are OK. That was where the article really started jarring for me as well. The 980 and an i7 can be justified assuming the...

It's good to take the doubting approach. Maybe by 2020 we'll have enough people questioning the hardware sites to make them change how they have always gone about their testing - though I doubt it. I trust HardwareCanucks not to lie, so it's more like a whine/no-whine roundup for me. When it comes t...

quest_for_silence wrote:

MikeC wrote:Nice find. Posted as front page news.

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...reference R9 290X and R9 290 should be avoided if you’re at all concerned about squealing or any other odd noise a GPU can make...

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Check the table above the quote.

I wonder if someone with a deeper understanding of electronics at a component level (and disposable hardware) might be able to try a DIY fix? Carefully disolder the components at fault and replace with known good components? Don't know if this is an oversimplification or not. IIRC there have been p...

Definitely a worthwhile aspect of computer silence: component selection goes deeper than fans or HDDs/SSDs. I've even had whine from a mouse, not to mention several power supplies or converters for monitors and laptops. Good to see manufacturers recognising the issue, at least as far as RMA policy i...

Still don't have any new Reds to compare with, but I'm quite pleased with my Seagate ST3000VN000-1H4167. It's not as quiet as the old Reds, but it's well within tolerance range sitting under my desk in the workspace - it lets out grumbling noises and idles slightly louder*. (* slightly louder than i...

But half the queries in SPCR forums are from gamers wanting to quiet their gaming rigs. lol! Step 1) I want to play this game! Step 2) I built something I heard was good to play games with! Step 3) Why can't I hear myself think anymore? :lol: As an aside, people do seem more aware of quiet and sile...

Thanks for an SFF review; they're the system of choice I recommend for ordinary home users these days and I've been curious about the BRIX series. Gigabyte offers more variety than Intel does with NUCs, unfortunately it seems that includes lemons as well. People who have bought NUCs have given me ov...

From 2011 to 2014. Feels like time travel. 8) Regarding enclosures, I think the time for internal 'silencers' is drawing to a close. As smaller form factors like µATX and mini-ITX become more popular, there's just no space left (RIP 5.25" bays; note plural), so it'll be soft-fix (elastic band etc.) ...

I should have added -- "I much prefer heatsink ", which is more precise, imo. Cooler has so many definitions; ... I think you missed my point. It was this part of the sentence: " ... 'air only' heatsinks and all-in-one water cooling devices... ", that triggered me. * There's no "air only" (no heats...

Nice to see a fresh update, the Recommended articles could certainly use frequent refreshes.

This review was the only place I could find documentation of the actual SATA chipset used on this board (Intel 7 Series/C216). Even the manual for the thing is frustratingly vague. Thanks! Yeah it's complete ass trying to find the exact controller model in case of Intel. Especially fun when install...

Did they get any SMART readings (doubt it since it's a NAS, but worth finding out)? Knowing if the drive goes above 50 Celsius or stays in the 40 range would be useful. Both would probably feel 'hot' to a human hand. Regarding SSDs, 1 TB SSDs still cost as much as a whole NAS rig. If you can afford ...

Probably can't manipulate a card's power circuitry that much via 3rd party software, especially if said card and circuitry haven't been built to have such a feature. AMD advertsises ZeroCore for all 7000 series but has a footnote saying it's just 'specific products', so buyer beware . Fan speed adju...

Thanks for the tip - once I pick out a 750 Ti, I think I'll give this a try with the 650 Ti, as bricking it won't be an issue then.

Nice! Palit has had both expensive and budget stuff, I hope this lands somewhere in the middle. 115 euro for the GTX 750 and 140 euro for the GTX 750Ti according to the link in this post . Thanks; I've been so busy (and lazy) that I just keep up with the posts I have subscribed to. :wink: Edit: spo...

Palit have released a passively cooled 750 Ti: http://hexus.net/tech/news/graphics/72113-palit-releases-passively-cooled-nvidia-geforce-gtx-750ti-cards/ The cooler tall! They don't say how tall in their specification though. Nice! Palit has had both expensive and budget stuff, I hope this lands som...

Ditto, Steve. Also, I wonder how the SPCR review is doing - AFAIK the process is underway with a donor MSI.

Thanks for the input, aerial, the MSI sounds just about perfect indeed (just gotta watch out for those leaky bearings). The STRIX system's main attraction - for me at least - is that it's something progressive, something outside the box, if not exactly an innovation. The GPU cooler space has been ve...

I read the same review. At first I wasn't too taken aback by the ranking, but then I looked at the actual figures. It's just a poor show on Asus' part. Definitely holding back on the purchase until there is reliable verification regarding the noise and RPM levels of the (or any) card. Too often the ...

Talked about a coming build today, checked Kotetsu availability. Locally available, prices start at 32 euros. Limited retail stock, but importer seems to have plenty.

Thanks, I went through some of the pictures but was at work, so couldn't go through every one of them. If 50% means 2500 RPM then wow - that's nearing the 3k limit, which is where I'm used to seeing GPU cooler fans top out.

Semipassive sounds really nice. As much as I like passive cooling, it's nice to know there's a Plan B in place in case conditions deteriorate. The Hardocp article cites the fans as starting at 300 RPM, which is really noteworthy considering how ridiculously high the lowest setting on most stock fans...

How does one wipe the grease out of a PCI/PCIE slot, i wonder... Microfibre cloth sips it right up, otherwise just use an electronics/contact cleaning spray or slot cleaner; I've had the spray work wonders on car electronics where the contamination can be quite a bit messier than in a nice indoors ...

http://www.overclock.net/t/1449389/video-card-shooting-out-water report of Twin Frozr card shooting out grease/lubricant from fans. Damn, thanks for bringing that up. There is no excuse for having lubrication fail on your fans. I've heard of this in case fans but not cooler fans so far. PS. Reading...