Antec NSK3480 vibrations

comomolo · Post by **comomolo** » Tue Sep 22, 2009 5:44 am

(I've tried searching for this issue to no avail. May I suggest you allow an option for searching ONLY messages' TITLES?)

I have five of these miniATX Antec cases and all of them exhibit serious vibration issues. Removing both side covers eliminates the vibrations, but obviously you don't want' to do that permanently. I've tried putting some softening material but there's almost no room between the PSU and the case. No luck so far.

The vibration is definitely caused by the PSU being too big for this case. The older NSK3300 model used a smaller PSU that didn't touch the walls of the case, as the newer does. I know I might replace the PSU for a smaller one like these from Seasonic. That's far from straightforward, however, so before I try it I'd like to know if someone has succeeded eliminating or reducing the vibrations.

Thanks in advance.

mond · Post by **mond** » Tue Sep 22, 2009 8:44 am

How about mounting the fan with rubber grommets?

I did that when my fan was swaped for a Nexus, and have no vibration issues whatsoever. There are several threads on this, here is mine (slightly different subject, but look at the picture in the bottom of the first post).

nutball · Post by **nutball** » Tue Sep 22, 2009 9:17 am

Whoa!!! Back up a minute.

The vibration is definitely caused by the PSU being too big for this case.

Some extra qualifying statements such as "I removed all the hard-drives and still hear vibration, the only fan is the PSU" or "they're running from SSDs" would be good at this point.

comomolo · Post by **comomolo** » Mon Sep 28, 2009 3:39 am

mond wrote:How about mounting the fan with rubber grommets?

Thanks! That's an interesting suggestion. I must check, but opening the PSU's case would probably remove the warranty from Antec. I build these systems for a living, so I'm not sure I can go that route.

nutball wrote:Whoa!!! Back up a minute.

Some extra qualifying statements such as "I removed all the hard-drives and still hear vibration, the only fan is the PSU" or "they're running from SSDs" would be good at this point.

The sentence "The vibration is definitely caused by the PSU being too big for this case." should have given you a hint: I did all that testing before even trying to post here. I have used the old NSK3000 models in the past too, where the only difference was the PSU.

What I'm looking for is advice on how to isolate the PSU from the case. There's very little room to do that, as I already said, but maybe there's some material I don't know of that can help.

OR maybe there's a way to fix the side covers of the case so that they don't resonate. I've tried with some strips of felt to no avail.

Thanks again.

jhhoffma · Post by **jhhoffma** » Mon Sep 28, 2009 7:17 am

comomolo,

You may think you've checked everything, but that's usually the case when people post questions only to find out they haven't. You may have missed something and since you're having a problem that no one as far as I have seen has experienced with this hardware, it is the most likely scenario. That doesn't mean your theory is wrong, it just means that we need to make sure we're looking at all possible issues.

To be as confident as possible that the PSU fan is causing vibrations that are being transmitted to the rest of the case, turn on a machine so that it produces the vibration. Then stick a toothpick or something soft near the hub of the PSU fan in the back of the case, stopping the fan from turning. If the vibration goes away, that's your source. If not, then something else is causing it and we need to keep looking (since you haven't posted hardware specs, I won't speculate).

Now to treat the problem with 1 of 3 options:

1) RMA all PSUs, and hope the replacements won't have vibrations issues (unlikely).

2) Crack open the PSU and either replace the fan with a quieter one, or isolate the fan using grommets or other devices. But like you said, warranty issues apply.

3) Isolate the PSU itself from the panel it contacts with a thin piece of open cell foam. I've used automotive headliner material for this, as it's soft, crushes down well, and can be found in many colors (looks can be important). It's basically a thin layer of foam laminated to a thin layer of felt-like material. I've isolated my PSU inside my Antec 300 with it (along with just about every other case I have). I also use it between my optical drives and the drive bays to eliminate vibration there.

Now, I for one, believe you are on the right track with your assumption that the noise is coming from the PSU vibration (can't comment on the size though) as I experienced vibration from my Earthwatts PSU that transmitted to the little PSU feet at the bottom of the case, throughout the rest of the case. Since the case is so lightweight, the vibrations are very noticeable and I had to do a LOT of work to make this case quiet.

yamahaSHO · Post by **yamahaSHO** » Tue Sep 29, 2009 7:45 am

If the vibration is coming from the active PSU having contact on the case, I have found painters tape on the metal that makes contact with the other parts has been able to get rid of some of my rattles/vibrations.

reddyuday · Post by **reddyuday** » Tue Sep 29, 2009 9:09 am

Have you tried any anti-vibration mounts, e.g.,
http://www.emcsolutionsltd.com/pdf/vibr ... mounts.pdf ?

The first thing I noticed after assembling my new system in NSK1380 was the CDROM drive vibration, which got transmitted to the desk and, through it, the keyboard and my fingers. It was surreal!

I haven't figured out what to do about it yet. Fortunately, I don't use the CDROM drive except occasionally.

jhhoffma · Post by **jhhoffma** » Tue Sep 29, 2009 5:10 pm

reddyuday wrote:Have you tried any anti-vibration mounts, e.g.,
http://www.emcsolutionsltd.com/pdf/vibr ... mounts.pdf ?

The first thing I noticed after assembling my new system in NSK1380 was the CDROM drive vibration, which got transmitted to the desk and, through it, the keyboard and my fingers. It was surreal!

I haven't figured out what to do about it yet. Fortunately, I don't use the CDROM drive except occasionally.

I think the problem the OP is having is that the PSU is touching the case panel at a different spot from where it's mounted, so gasket/grommet-type devices won't really help here.

As for your issue, I'd try to get some soft fabric like felt or even an old tshirt and place small pieces in between the drive and the cage and in places where the cage touches the other case panels. Also, look at using Nero DriveSpeed when using the drive to keep it from spinning up too fast if you don't need the full transfer speed.

neljeffz · Post by **neljeffz** » Thu Oct 22, 2009 6:53 am

jhhoffma wrote:
reddyuday wrote:Have you tried any anti-vibration mounts, e.g.,
http://www.emcsolutionsltd.com/pdf/vibr ... mounts.pdf ?

The first thing I noticed after assembling my new system in NSK1380 was the CDROM drive vibration, which got transmitted to the desk and, through it, the keyboard and my fingers. It was surreal!

I haven't figured out what to do about it yet. Fortunately, I don't use the CDROM drive except occasionally.
I think the problem the OP is having is that the PSU is touching the case panel at a different spot from where it's mounted, so gasket/grommet-type devices won't really help here.

As for your issue, I'd try to get some soft fabric like felt or even an old tshirt and place small pieces in between the drive and the cage and in places where the cage touches the other case panels. Also, look at using Nero DriveSpeed when using the drive to keep it from spinning up too fast if you don't need the full transfer speed.

The edges are completely raw but even the selvage of this fabric is pretty.

_________________
rhinestone motif | clothing label

mcoleg · Post by **mcoleg** » Thu Oct 22, 2009 3:35 pm

I'd first make sure it's only the PSU. Could be something else as well adding to the vibration besides it.

Stop the fan by sticking a pencil it the slots before booting up - earthwatts can go passive for loads bellow 200 for a while, no worries about overheating.

if the PSU is the main culprit, based on your priorities, your best option is to de-couple it on all sides that touch the case. that includes the back-panel where it screws on, otherwise it all will be for none. the ideas the other guys gave you are solid - some sort of thin-ish foam should do. however, make it thick enough so that the psu will wedge-in tight enough to eliminate the need for the back screws.

alternatively, have you thought about adding weight to the side panels? that might reduce vibration to the tolerable levels without doing anything to the PSU.