Want to help Corsair build the [quietest] case ever?

[tbessie]

I can't add anything to this thread, except that I'm starting a new build soon with the latest-and-greatest Intel (Z87 chipset with an i7-4771, SSDs in RAID-0 (Tom's Hardware says I shouldn't bother with RAID for SSDs, but we'll see), and I wanted the perfect, quiet case for it that could also handle my desire to have 4 or 5 5.25 bays in front (2 or 3 CD/DVD/Blu-Ray drives and 2 hot-swap drive bays), and in an ATX form-factor.

Problem is, most of the cases like that are HUGE.

I bought a Fractal Define XL R2, and it was gigantic, so I bought a Corsair (wink wink) Obsidian 550D at the local computer store before everything closed for the holiday, as I wanted to build it this weekend.

The main thing is, I want all of the above, but in a smaller package. The best I could find is a Lian-Li PC-7FN (or similar Lian-Li case), but they don't seem to do a lot for cooling nor quietness.

What I'd like is something like the Corsair Obsidian 550D, but with the build quality and space-efficiency of a Lian-Li case. 4 3.5 internal bays (or more if 2.5 drives are used - the 550D has far more drive space than I need, so could be a bit shorter if it left them out). Solid metal, less breakable plastic, and if you have to have a door, make it a much more solidly-attached door. I still want 4 or 5 front-panel 5.25 bays tho' That's my main issue with available cases.

Anyway, just my 2 cents, even though I don't have the amazingly astute recommendations of the incredibly smart computer-silencers above.

- Tim

[grimreeper]

It would be great to hear if you are still reading this thread or not. Regardless here are my thoughts.
I currently have a Silverstone Raven RV01 (which is terrible) and previously had the amazing Antec Solo.

The main thing I dislike about my current case is the dust, ensure you have good filters and you implement them well. If you have top vents (or a vertical mobo) (even if its as exhaust) it is taking in dust all the hours of the day when you are asleep or it isn't on. So provide a good filter on top, or just avoid it altogether. I don't have much clearance between the top and my desk so thermal performance probably isn't optimal, not to mention I have very little room for cables.
I wouldn't haven't any intakes on the bottom or side panel either, or vents. In my current case I just find this invites dust.
On a side note if you insist on having a bottom vent make the filter removable from the front.

I would stick to 120mm fans everywhere, I prefer 2x120mm fans compared to 140mm. I actually get better performance (both heat and noise wise) this way.
Ideally I would like 1x120mm intake at the front and 1 or 2 120mm at the rear.
Internal sound baffles for inside the case, but out the direct airflow path. I imagine this is something that would benefit everyone here but not the average joe with mediocre fans.
With the front fan I would duct it slightly inside the case, with the duct lined with sound deadening material.

I wouldn't include a fan controller unless you make it fully removable. I like to use my own so if you include one and I can't remove it just takes up space.

It might be an idea to test splitting the 5.25 bays. For example:
the top bay for a fan controller, then underneath that a 120mm filtered and ducted fan, the 2nd bay underneath for dvd drive maybe.
Or if you scrap the ducting idea make the 5.25 bays movable so this idea is still possible if the user so chooses.

I agree with others that SDD's are the only way for a silentpc purist. Although I think a common setup is 1 ssd and 1 mechanical drive.
So if you had suspension you would only need it for 1 mechanical drive.

Another suggestion is regarding the closed loop coolers. I'm not sure how good the corsair h50/100's are but could they be used fanless in a low power PC.
Why not make it so you could mount the radiator externally? I'm not sure how long the tubes are but maybe if you just cut open the water cooling case holes so they loops could go in it would work. The pump noise would be contained and the radiator would be exposed to the cooler outside air.

[roadie]

From my limited experience dust control is important! To that end, ALL openings into the case should be filtered or blocked off! Fan intakes should be filtered too. Open grills at the rear or on the side are a bad idea!

My ideal case would combine:
- 2 or 3x120mm front intake fans with filters. No guards. These should be fitted behind a sound blocking, but non restrictive panel (think improve Antec SOLO front panel).
- PSU at the bottom with its own filtered intake. HDD cage with room for at least 3x3.5" devices mounted toward the front using the dead space here. The cage should use suspension or rubber decouplers to prevent vibration to the chassis. The cage should be as open as possible for cooling and should be orientated to the side of the case
- 1x5.25" bay for optical devices sitting above the front intake fans.
- 1x140mm (or 120mm if space restricted) exhaust fan at the rear. I don't like top openings, just because of the possibility of knocking a glass of water off my desk...

I believe this could be accommodated in a case around 45cm high.

[Olaf van der Spek]

my turn
bottom only intake to keep noise away, 3*120 or 3*140 mm fans

Silverstone FT02 and RV02?

[Alex55]

I want a case without ANY holes on top, bottom, left and right panels. The air should come from the front and exist through the back. Additional holes just contribute to noise getting out and dust getting in. We have plenty of cases with superior cooling abilities. If we are building "the quietest case ever", sacrificing some cooling performance is perfectly acceptable.

[Hokusai]

Be the first manufacturer to shun 5.25" drives in an ATX case! Kill these things already!

Zero 5.25" drives (possibly a slim drive)
One 3.5" drive
One 2.5" drive
As small as possible but plenty of room for cooling, cables, PSU and GPUs.

I don't see the appeal of huge cases - maybe I'm the only one who would buy such a case. I like the Air 540 but it's noisy and has two useless (to me) 5.25" bays.

[quest_for_silence]

has two useless (to me) 5.25" bays.

Yes, JUST to you.

[axee]

I think it's the only feature that you cannot find anywhere (and I believe no one mentioned):

NO HONEYCOMB FAN GRILL!

We all read fan reviews from SPCR, and basically every quality fan becomes (I quote) "inaudible" below around 600 RPM. OK, it's silent below that speeds, but what happens when you put in in front of a grill? You get air whoosh. Now imagine you have 3 "inaudible" fans, running at 600 RPM, in front of those honeycomb grills. You get audible air whoosh, and IMHO, that makes PC quiet, but never silent. That's why a lot of us aren't satisfied with "slow" case fans, that would be inaudible, if they werent in front of fan grills. So we use PWM control, just to slow down fans even more, to get rid of that whooshing noise.

If you really want to build "quietest" case ever, you have to address this. There shouldn't be any high restrictive object near fan blades! Combined with NO top or side vents, good HDD vibration solution (!!), that would please even the most hardcore silencers.

I would be interested what other silencers think about this.

[tim851]

I know it's an old topic, but:

- Standard case layout.
- Two 180/200mm intake fans in the bottom
- PSU and standard 120/140mm rear fan for exhaust
- No other openings in the case

All that's needed.

BTW, is it true that Silverstone has a patent on rotated mainboard designs? What the f***?!?!

[Razor444]

There is one thing that many cases are missing and which can impact noise levels drastically.

What you need to do is allow user to add custom noise dampening foam. Make space for it, lots of space. The customer will buy this material by himself, thus the cost won't be as high.

And i'm not talking about thos useless 3mm inner covers. I'm talking about 1+ inch material which would cover EVERYTHING inside: sidewalls, top, bottom, front (upper part) and back (lower part). This will have huge impact.

Just make space for it but don't included it. We'll buy it ourselves

[Sirius]

Front intake fan should have curved / bended intake tunnel curved to bottom. 45 degrees
Top exhaust fan should also have curved exhaust tunnel curved to REAR side 45/90 degrees

[whispercat]

Any word on whatever became of this?

[Silent but deadly]

Any word on whatever became of this?

There was around a year between Corsair George starting the mITX thread on overclock.net and the 250D being announced. These things take time.

Hey guys, George here from Corsair.

Hey George. I hope you read this.

I love these kind of threads, I followed the thread I mention above for a long time and I had great fun designing my own version of a Corsair mITX case. I have three questions,

1. You said that we can start with "a completely blank slate", does that include designing something that wouldn't necesarily fit in with Corsair current product families?
2. Does it include using fans in sizes that Corsair don't currently manufacture?
3. What kind of price point would you be looking at?

[Olaf van der Spek]

Any word on whatever became of this?

There was around a year between Corsair George starting the mITX thread on overclock.net and the 250D being announced. These things take time.

Sure, but some feedback from Corsair George would be nice, we're not asking for product annoucenements just yet.

[skogs]

After a lot of experimenting with different cooling solutions in my rig, this setup gives me the best "cooling per decibel":
- Three 120mm fans in the front, airtight seal around them. I'm currently trying to design a clever dust cover, large area to minimize back pressure.
- Side, top and bottom airtight and dampened.
- Rear of the case opened up as much as possible, no fans.
Simple and very efficient. Case temp is pretty close to room temp with minimal effort from the fans.

The post may be a little old, but this is by far the most inspiring posts i've seen in a long time. Should almost be a sticky. Full of clever ideas.