Choosing a silent Case/PSU hell....for the love of god help!

[moving shadow]

Well after hours (days?) of reading every review on the net, reading this site from top to bottom, then left to right for good measure, i am still as unsure about what case and PSU to buy.

The problem for me is that money is an issue for me so i cannot just go out and get the best case and and a zalman 400 PSU. With that in mind these have been the possible combinations that i have been thinking about, along with why none of them seem to fit the bill:

1) Antec Sonata - I have the chance to buy one of these second hand with the acousticpack damping already installed for £75 inc del. Problem is from what i have read i dont think i will be wanting the PSU, as from what i understand it isnt the quiestest option. With this in mind i cant justufy buying this case if i have am going to have to get a new PSU straight away, but then again i am getting it £50 cheaper than if i bought the sonata and acoustipack new

2) The new acousticase C6607 + Cheap/Silent PSU (is that even possible?). This looks like a very nice case with the added benefit of having the acoustipack pre-cut, but it seems the price is a steep compared to buying the components seperatly. Also i would have to get a PSU, is there such a thing as a quiet/cheap PSU? I was thinking about the fortron 350w maybe?

3) Antec 3700BQE and then buy the acoustipack seperate, looks a very nice case but once again ships with a PSU i probably wont want:(

4) GMC Neo-Classic (also known as the jeantech timeless) (no psu), apparently it comes with acoustic material, not sure of the quality as noone seems to have got one of these cases yet.

5) I dont know any other ideas?


Basically i want to quiet my pc on the cheap. The last thing in my computer to be sileneced is the case/psu as i am already running or ordering the following, hopefully this list will help PSU recomendations as i keep thinking i have found a decent one then i read a review somewhere sayings its bad:)

Ti4200 with Zalman HP80a
2 x Samsung Spinpoint 160g Drives
1 x Pioneer DVDRW
1 x Zalman CPNS7000ALCU
1 x Audigy 1
2 x 512 DDR 2700
1 x XP2000+ cpu
2 x 120mm Enermax Fans @ 7v

Please someone help me as i am an undecisive soul who just doesnt knw what the hell the want, well i do, i just dont want to spend loads doing it

cheers for any help

[silvervarg]

I would recommend that you get the Antec Sonata. It might not be 100% perfect, but you will get a good case and pay little money for it, so even if you decide to replace the PSU you have done an OK deal.
The PSU in the Sonata is not bad, but from what I have read it is not up to the best Seasonic standards.

If you have lots of money and want the very best thing you might want to go with a different choice.

[Ralf Hutter]

1) Evercase 4252. Very inexpensive and has no PSU. Well reviewed my MikeC on the main site and well thought of here in the forums too. Available in the UK according to this thread. Search here for "evercase" and read.

2) Compucase 6A19. It's the SLK3700AMB without the door, it's the same case that the AcousitCase 6607 is built from. You can get them here in the US w/o a PSU for around $40, maybe you can find them in the UK too.

[dukla2000]

Are you prepared to assault your case/psu yourself with tinsnips, dremel etc?

My view (because I have never had a true 'quality' case) is I am not sure big bucks for the case is worth it IF you find a nice cheap case that already has good airflow or that a pair of tin snips can sort. Similarly the Antec psu may be dodgy but with a Panaflo L1A mod it could be fine till payday

Again my view: acoustipack etc is a waste of cash: rather spend your money on quiet(er) components. (While it may shave 0.xdBA, you cant expect it to perform miracles! Basically I see it as a solution to the wrong problem!)

You will be fine with a good 300W psu - just to double check what mobo do you have? (And for that matter, what is the current psu/case?) If your current case takes 2 * 120mm fans it may be worth giving it a retread & service and keeping it. Spend the cash on a 120mm fan that will be quieter than the Enermax, and 1 fan at 5V could be enough anyway?

If you want case & psu off the shelf then you will have to pay.

[Tom P]

You already spent a bunch of money on other stuff; why get cheap over small differences in cases? Essentially all they are is a box to put the rest of your components in. Get one you like the looks of, that's reasonably priced, and a decent inexpensive power supply like the Fortron or one of the others mentioned around here. (Hey, I'm good at spending other people's money, so please take this with good humor/humour.) By the way, spending lots of time on any enthusiast site, whether it be about automobiles or model airplanes or silent computers, can often lead to either loss of all reason or indecision when it comes to actually buying something!

[Zyzzyx]

Another vote here for the Evercase 4252. I've built two systems with it so far, and love it. Best for the price IMO (under $30). The one's I've used have mounts for 80mm front and rear, but I think some other versions of the 4252 have mounts for 120mm.

Can also get the 4252 with a PSU for ~$40. Mod with a Panaflo and be good. Actually, I've yet to mod my Evercase PSU, and its not TOO bad. It is next on the list though, and will be Panaflo modded before I get the $$ for a Seasonic or similar.

[DImblum]

I do own a Neo Classic case with all sound dampening materials plus the four ADDA case fans.

Case constructions quality is fantasic - one of the best I have seen.

Sound dampening foam is quite good, difference is noticable. Not sure how it compares to others since this is the only sound dampening foam I have used.

ADDA case fans are fantastic - 15db claims appear to be true.

Airflow "is" good. Air is drawn in from the bottom of the case (helps with silence). Make sure to keep the case elevated if it is being placed on a plush surface, otherwise airflow 'will be blocked'. Also, the pop-out panel on the bottom 'does not' interfere with airflow either opened or closed. I have achieved excellent low temperatures using the Neo Classic.

[moving shadow]

this just gets harder...lol...hearing postive things about all cases, i do wish though that we could get cases like the 3700 series as cheap as your lucky buggers in USA do:(

[PeterDLai]

Dang DImblum you make me want the Neo Classic again.

[moving shadow]

Dang DImblum you make me want the Neo Classic again.

well its certaintly made me look at it again..looks v. nice..bit pricey here in the UK tho for just a steel case, about £80-90 i think

but it does look nice

http://www.gmc.co.kr/english/good_e_neo.htm

[DImblum]

I admit, the looks are part of the reason I got the case. It is a little more expensive, but damn if it isn't the most well made case I've ever had.

Be careful when shopping for this case. Some vendors (expecially US vendors) are selling the Neo Classic 'without' many of it's silencing parts. I ended up buying a stripped version of the case and ordered the missing parts from Korea directly.

The Jeantech Timeless appears to include options to purchase the dampening foam and ADDA fans. Check in advance to make sure the case also includes the Clamshell (screws, anti-vibration pads, etc). It already adveratises the silicone coating. So you should be good to go.

P.S. If you get the dampening foam in a kit, it will already be pre-cut for the Neo-Classic. The only piece you have to cut is for the bottom of the case (pretty easy).

[ilsie]

I own both a neo classic and a sonata. The sonata I bought after mucking around for a long while w/ different power supplies, panaflos, passive cooling stuff, etc in one of the old standard antecs. When I got the sonata put together, the first thing I noticed was that it was louder than my custom job! I wasnt too happy with that.

The neo classic I used an antec TruPower power supply that I modded with Panaflos. The first time I turned it on w/out a video card in it, just to see how loud it was, I thought I had hooked something up wrong, because I didnt even hear it go on. Very pleased with the neo classic. Plus, I think it looks nicer than the sonata.

I didnt know US retailers were selling Neo Classics w/out the silencing stuff, my parents live in Korea, so they ordered me one directly from the manufacturer.

[engseng]

Who here has a Lian Li case? Wanna know how much they vibrate.

The Lian Li PC-6070 is advertised as being quiet. But it's quiet because due to the fact that its fans run a little slower than the other models, and it has some dampening material in the front panel if I remember correctly.