A Man's Noble Quest to [Quiet] a PC
Posted: Wed Sep 17, 2008 8:59 pm
My Rig
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-M55SLI-S4 motherboard
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 (AM2) 6000+
RAM: Corsair DDR2 2GB PC-5300 (1GBx2) Value Select (VS2GBKIT667D2), 1 x 1GB RAM chip (forget the brand)
Graphics Card: GIGABYTE NX76T256D-RH GEF7600GT, 256MB, DDRIII, PCIEx16, DUAL-LINK DVI, SILENT-PIPE II
Case: Thermaltake Matrix Black Case with 430W, VD2430BNS (I think the PSU is actually rated a bit higher from memory)
Fans (Extra): 120mm SmartCool Case Fan
CPU Heatsink/Fan combo: Zalman CNPS9500 AM2
Thermal Paste: Antec Silver Thermal Compound
Hard Drives: 1 x WD Raptor 74Gb, 2 x WD 320Gb 7200 16Mb Cache SATA 2
Optical 1: Lite-On SUPER ALLWRITE, DVD+-18X8X8/ 8X4, DVDRAM12X, CD48X32X48, LIGHTSCRIBE
Optical 2: Some Samsung DVD burner
Speakers: Logitech Z-4 2.1 Speakers
Keyboard: Logitech G-15 Gaming Keyboard rev 1
Mouse: Logitech G5 Laser Mouse
Monitor: Dell UltraSharpâ„¢ 2408WFP 24" Widescreen Flat Panel Monitor
OS: Windows XP (Home) SP3
The 120mm SmartCool Case Fan is mounted in front of the hard drives currently and is a lot quieter than the CPU or PSU fans (PSU has two 80mm fans, one on the bottom and one for exhaust). I currently have no issues with cooling although during summer the 120mm fan will go back on because it gets hot here. Both the hard drives and optical drives cause the case to vibrate and simply putting my hand on the case stops that noise.
A few questions, I have been researching parts and most of what has been mentioned on the website and forums here is available from http://www.pccasegear.com.au or http://www.centrecom.com.au.
I don't really plan to upgrade any of my components this round as my PC is more than adequate for my gaming needs and easily covers basic windows tasks. I don't have some particularly strange restarting errors on startup. I don't have anything much in mind for a budget to quieten my PC but I figure about AU$500 is the top range considering I won't be buying upgrading the specs.
1) Without some hefty modifications to my case it simply bleeds noise due to the entire front of the case being a grill. It is also not super sturdy and so vibrates. I have come to the conclusion that perhaps the P182 would be a good long term replacement for my current case but have also heard good things about the Antec Solo. The Solo has the benefit of already have soft mounted hard drives but the P182 would seem to give me far greater long term options for silencing.
2) I have two 7600GS card's (that I would SLI) with a small heatsink/fan combo. Are there any good options for cooling these either passively or at least a lot quieter? My best idea is to pull off the fans and plastic casing and stick a 120mm fan to blow over them instead. I have something similar to this in my parents case. It has an 80mm fan cable tied to the below slot blowing directly on to the video card. Remarkably effective at cooling it.
Will either Solo or P182 cope well an SLI system with higher powered graphics cards that I will eventually upgrade to? (Perhaps one year from now) My new monitor wants better graphics capabilities driving it and I am loathe to say no to it.
3) I am thinking at the same time I can upgrade my power supply to a Enermax Modu82+ 625. Is the PSU giving me too much grunt for my needs and so perhaps a lower watt version would be more beneficial to my wallet? (It will be available at the store in a few weeks so all is good there.)
4) I will drop the two DVD drives (both use an IDE conenction) which I have never used together for a single SATA drive. Are there any suggestions for a "silent" drive here or are they much of a muchness?
5) Will I gain much benefit from replacing the stock 92mm fan on the Zalman heatsink for a third party 92mm fan? I have seen it done on these forums and it seems within my technical capability to do.
6) I am think of shafting my two 320GB hard drives (one is partially corrupt anyways). Would a WD Caviar Green Power WD7500AACS sound a lot different to my current two 320GB drives. They are mostly used for backup with almost all work done from the 74GB raptor. I would be planning to use the 2nd 750GB as a backup for the first which is roughly how my current situation works.
7) I am thinking of modding the drawers of my wooden desk to hold my PC. Would be too hard, just take my circular saw to the front and back of part of it to create vents. I was then thinking of filling the rest of the space with heavy foam leaving only the back and front of the PC uncovered. Would think cause any thermal issues?
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-M55SLI-S4 motherboard
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 (AM2) 6000+
RAM: Corsair DDR2 2GB PC-5300 (1GBx2) Value Select (VS2GBKIT667D2), 1 x 1GB RAM chip (forget the brand)
Graphics Card: GIGABYTE NX76T256D-RH GEF7600GT, 256MB, DDRIII, PCIEx16, DUAL-LINK DVI, SILENT-PIPE II
Case: Thermaltake Matrix Black Case with 430W, VD2430BNS (I think the PSU is actually rated a bit higher from memory)
Fans (Extra): 120mm SmartCool Case Fan
CPU Heatsink/Fan combo: Zalman CNPS9500 AM2
Thermal Paste: Antec Silver Thermal Compound
Hard Drives: 1 x WD Raptor 74Gb, 2 x WD 320Gb 7200 16Mb Cache SATA 2
Optical 1: Lite-On SUPER ALLWRITE, DVD+-18X8X8/ 8X4, DVDRAM12X, CD48X32X48, LIGHTSCRIBE
Optical 2: Some Samsung DVD burner
Speakers: Logitech Z-4 2.1 Speakers
Keyboard: Logitech G-15 Gaming Keyboard rev 1
Mouse: Logitech G5 Laser Mouse
Monitor: Dell UltraSharpâ„¢ 2408WFP 24" Widescreen Flat Panel Monitor
OS: Windows XP (Home) SP3
The 120mm SmartCool Case Fan is mounted in front of the hard drives currently and is a lot quieter than the CPU or PSU fans (PSU has two 80mm fans, one on the bottom and one for exhaust). I currently have no issues with cooling although during summer the 120mm fan will go back on because it gets hot here. Both the hard drives and optical drives cause the case to vibrate and simply putting my hand on the case stops that noise.
A few questions, I have been researching parts and most of what has been mentioned on the website and forums here is available from http://www.pccasegear.com.au or http://www.centrecom.com.au.
I don't really plan to upgrade any of my components this round as my PC is more than adequate for my gaming needs and easily covers basic windows tasks. I don't have some particularly strange restarting errors on startup. I don't have anything much in mind for a budget to quieten my PC but I figure about AU$500 is the top range considering I won't be buying upgrading the specs.
1) Without some hefty modifications to my case it simply bleeds noise due to the entire front of the case being a grill. It is also not super sturdy and so vibrates. I have come to the conclusion that perhaps the P182 would be a good long term replacement for my current case but have also heard good things about the Antec Solo. The Solo has the benefit of already have soft mounted hard drives but the P182 would seem to give me far greater long term options for silencing.
2) I have two 7600GS card's (that I would SLI) with a small heatsink/fan combo. Are there any good options for cooling these either passively or at least a lot quieter? My best idea is to pull off the fans and plastic casing and stick a 120mm fan to blow over them instead. I have something similar to this in my parents case. It has an 80mm fan cable tied to the below slot blowing directly on to the video card. Remarkably effective at cooling it.
Will either Solo or P182 cope well an SLI system with higher powered graphics cards that I will eventually upgrade to? (Perhaps one year from now) My new monitor wants better graphics capabilities driving it and I am loathe to say no to it.
3) I am thinking at the same time I can upgrade my power supply to a Enermax Modu82+ 625. Is the PSU giving me too much grunt for my needs and so perhaps a lower watt version would be more beneficial to my wallet? (It will be available at the store in a few weeks so all is good there.)
4) I will drop the two DVD drives (both use an IDE conenction) which I have never used together for a single SATA drive. Are there any suggestions for a "silent" drive here or are they much of a muchness?
5) Will I gain much benefit from replacing the stock 92mm fan on the Zalman heatsink for a third party 92mm fan? I have seen it done on these forums and it seems within my technical capability to do.
6) I am think of shafting my two 320GB hard drives (one is partially corrupt anyways). Would a WD Caviar Green Power WD7500AACS sound a lot different to my current two 320GB drives. They are mostly used for backup with almost all work done from the 74GB raptor. I would be planning to use the 2nd 750GB as a backup for the first which is roughly how my current situation works.
7) I am thinking of modding the drawers of my wooden desk to hold my PC. Would be too hard, just take my circular saw to the front and back of part of it to create vents. I was then thinking of filling the rest of the space with heavy foam leaving only the back and front of the PC uncovered. Would think cause any thermal issues?