I've been thinking abou just upgrading the PSU on my SG31G2 instead of replacing the fan on my current one with 2x Scythe fans for about $15. The question is, is there a worthwhile silent PSU for this rig:
Shuttle SG31G2
E7600 @ 334.5 x 9 with 1.09v actual
F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ @ 835 5-5-5-15 1.8v
XFX 9800GT EE @ 650/1625/1100 w/VF900
2x WD 1tb Green's ( fn Shuttle has no raid )
XP Pro/Vista Home Premium 32-bit dual-boot
If there is nothing worthwhile that is quietter than I can make my stock PSU then I'll prob just upgrade my current one but if I can get a good PSU that is silent at stock I'd rather do that.
The PSU Calculator says my system is arround 160w full load so I'd want a 200 - 250w ish PSU @ 80+ effeciency.
I have thought about these DC/DC converters to run silent but I just don't want an adapter laying outside of the case.
Any suggestions?
===Edit===
Part of the reason for the lack of desire for external power is the cost. I'd probably be looking at arround $50 - $70 for a 180w notebook adapter and another $30 - $50 for a converter for the box itself whereas I could get one of the 270w FSP 80+ units and make it silent for $80.
I'm trying to weigh the best of each option but in the end the costs may make me just try to silence my current PSU unless I can find a much better option in the $50 - $75 ish range.
Silent or fanless ITX Psu for a Shuttle SG31G2?
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Silent or fanless ITX Psu for a Shuttle SG31G2?
Last edited by WARDOZER9 on Mon Feb 15, 2010 3:27 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Wattage ratings for PSUs are DC ones, not AC, so a 250W PSU is guaranteed to deliver 250W sustained. At 80% efficiency that means the AC load will be 312,5W for 250W DC. Shuttle uses the SilentX series of PSUs in all their XPCs, but the noise scales with the power - swapping to a different one won't help, unless the bearings on the PSU fan is broken or something.
I know you don't like the idea of an external PSU, but it's probably the best option. Not only do you get more efficient cooling of the PSU itself, but it doesn't contribute to the system heat, which means you can run the system fan slower.
I know you don't like the idea of an external PSU, but it's probably the best option. Not only do you get more efficient cooling of the PSU itself, but it doesn't contribute to the system heat, which means you can run the system fan slower.
There is the seasonic ss 250u in the 1U form factor that tends to sell for less than the fsp 80+. I got one for around 35 euros excluding shipping, not sure about availability overseas though. I haven`t used it so far but I've heard it`s fairly quiet.
Those dc dc psu`s (pico, pw...) are nice but I have to agree with you that an external ac brick defeats the purpose of a shuttle pc somehow.
Those dc dc psu`s (pico, pw...) are nice but I have to agree with you that an external ac brick defeats the purpose of a shuttle pc somehow.
$66.50 shipped for the Seasonic SS-250SU on eBay. Very tempting and looking arround it does indeed appear to be a truely silent PSU.
Gotta look into if it will mount in my case without too much issue but if it does I'ma be eyeballing that real hard coming this payday.
I have to do something about my PSU soon because the faint knocking of my current 40mm PSU fan is driving me fn nuts when there is no game, movie or music playing to override the noise.
Gotta look into if it will mount in my case without too much issue but if it does I'ma be eyeballing that real hard coming this payday.
I have to do something about my PSU soon because the faint knocking of my current 40mm PSU fan is driving me fn nuts when there is no game, movie or music playing to override the noise.
Re: Silent or fanless ITX Psu for a Shuttle SG31G2?
I've been working a lot with the Shuttle PSU lately. See my thread/post here: viewtopic.php?f=23&t=60576&p=530328#p530328 I wanted to bump this thread because I got a lot of info from this and similar threads.
My Seasonic SS-250SU is quiet, but not that quiet. It has a single fan with a very high power rating. You will likely want to replace the fan, but any "quiet" 40mm fan is going to be much, much slower than the stock fan. I'm fairly confident the Seasonic doesn't need such a powerful fan, but I have no idea if a single Scythe fan would be enough.
In contrast, the Shuttle PC40 and PC50 have two fans in push/pull. They are much lower in power and closer in spec to the Scythe Mini Kaze Ultra and the Sunon MagLev Vapo fans. Everything else being equal, it should be easier to cool a PSU with two fans than one fan. So assuming your PSU is perfectly fine, I would just do a fan swap.
My Seasonic SS-250SU is quiet, but not that quiet. It has a single fan with a very high power rating. You will likely want to replace the fan, but any "quiet" 40mm fan is going to be much, much slower than the stock fan. I'm fairly confident the Seasonic doesn't need such a powerful fan, but I have no idea if a single Scythe fan would be enough.
In contrast, the Shuttle PC40 and PC50 have two fans in push/pull. They are much lower in power and closer in spec to the Scythe Mini Kaze Ultra and the Sunon MagLev Vapo fans. Everything else being equal, it should be easier to cool a PSU with two fans than one fan. So assuming your PSU is perfectly fine, I would just do a fan swap.
Re: Silent or fanless ITX Psu for a Shuttle SG31G2?
I updated the thread in my previous post with some thoughts on the Scythe Mini Kaze Ultra fan (good) and the Sunon MagLev Vapo fan (bad). I still get significantly amplified noise when putting the fans in the PSU and I am not sure why. I don't think it's from direct vibration (my fans are not touching any part of the PSU casing) so I'm guessing the confined space is acting as an echo chamber. Unless there is a way to prevent this, even a normally quiet fan will sound loud inside a Shuttle PSU.