Silencing the Alphaware XBlade

Enclosures and acoustic damping to help quiet them.

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NigthStalker
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Silencing the Alphaware XBlade

Post by NigthStalker » Sun Jan 09, 2005 1:54 pm

hey , i got a XBlade whit :
L&C 450w P/S
AMD Athlon XP 2000+ (1666 mhz)(needs upgrade) + stock heatsink/fan
ASUS A7V600 (fanless)
2x Major DDR266 256mb + 1x Azenram DDR400 512mb
Maxtor 30gig + Maxtor 160gig + Quantum Bigfoot TX 5 1/2 8gig HDDs
Video Sapphire 9600 Atlantis 128mb (fanless)
SoundBlaster Live
LG CDRW + Floppy + LCD panel
1 panel fan , 2 case fans

and it's so noisy, one of the fans is between the hdd rack and the case front and it's noisy as hell + the panel fan is too , but i don't know why , i removed the XBlade insignia in fornt of the intake to allow more air flow but didn't help much , so i taugh you could help me.
Thanks.

Jordan
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Post by Jordan » Sun Jan 09, 2005 2:18 pm

Try chaning the aforementioned fans to Nexus RS's and upgrading to a Mobile XP and changing your HS.

NigthStalker
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Post by NigthStalker » Sun Jan 09, 2005 2:20 pm

i was more like opting for a XP 3200+ and a Coolermaster XDream 3

EDIT: and where can i get Nexus fans ( in a shop , in canada ) and how much do they cost, because i don't have a huge budget see...

Jordan
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Post by Jordan » Sun Jan 09, 2005 2:38 pm

The 3200+ is a much worse option. It produces masses of heat and it's more expensive than a Mobile.

Read up on the Mobile XP in these forums. An XP-M will overclock as far as a 3200+ easily on it's stock 1.45V and will still run at lower temps. Also, another huge factor is your RAM. An XP 3200+ would be hugely limited with your PC2100 RAM but with an XP-M you can work around that since it has an unlocked Multiplier. For a 3200+ to run as a 3200+ you HAVE to replace your RAM, there's no way around it.

You'd have to check the BIOS options on that board though to fully take advantage on an XP-M, but it sould be sufficient.

There's a section on these forums listing shops in different countries.

NigthStalker
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Post by NigthStalker » Sun Jan 09, 2005 3:07 pm

oh thanks , but will my moto support the mobile ? and i don't know much about overclocking , but your enlarging my options , ill consider the M-XP
whitch one ?

EDIT: and i don't only wanna upgrade form 1.6 ghz to 1.8 ghz, id like to have atleast 2 ghz

Jordan
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Post by Jordan » Sun Jan 09, 2005 3:12 pm

Yes it will fit your board. A mobile is pretty much the same as a normal XP. I won't go into it but if you do a search on the forums you will see a lot of info.

A 2400+M will almost overclock to at least 3200+ speeds (2.2GHz) but while there's no gurantee they almost always go well past this (around the 2.4GHz range on good air cooling).

NigthStalker
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Post by NigthStalker » Sun Jan 09, 2005 3:18 pm

well , if everything your telling me is true , then im trashing the 3200 and getting XP-M 2500 (or the best one ) ( will the .. lets say 2800 overclock more that the 2500 or less ? ) ....but where the heck can i find the XP-M , can't find it at cheap shop...

Jordan
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Post by Jordan » Sun Jan 09, 2005 3:36 pm

The only chance you have is online. NewEgg in the US stock them. Possibly Tiger Driect in Canada may have them

NigthStalker
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Post by NigthStalker » Sun Jan 09, 2005 3:50 pm

well , i have a store that has AMD XP-M 2500+ 1.83G/333/512K/S462 OEM for sale at $129 if i pay cash , what cooling should i get ? would the XDream 3 from Coolermaster work for the overclocking ?

Jordan
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Post by Jordan » Sun Jan 09, 2005 5:06 pm

Check the recommended list on the main site.

I'd recommend a Thermalright SI-97 with a Nexus 92 mm fan.

NigthStalker
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Post by NigthStalker » Tue Jan 11, 2005 7:50 am

Ok , my actual order list is AMD XP-M 2500+ FSB 333MZH ( posted earlier , at 130$ ) and the SI-97 like you recommended ( taugh it was a great choice for price and heat dissipation ... and it looks nice ) but i cant find a local shop that sells Nexus fans , witch i would really like to have whit the HS , since the Nexus fan is the 92 mm that produces the least noise ( in recommended fans on SPCR ) , but since the nexus fan is the only one in the 92 mm league that produces under 20 db of noise ,so if i canèt find one , i might think of getting a 80 mm fan then :?
My shop only sell Antec , CoolerMaster , Vantec, Nikao ( same as my case fans ) , Sunbeam , ThermalTake, Zalman , and generic products. Here is the link to the site if you wanna check it out
http://www.microbytes.com/

BTW: If anyone knows a shop that sells Nexus fans at a decent price in the Montreal area , please post the adress , and , if available , webpage link , so you can help me in the search of a truly silent pc , cuz... sincerly , the pcs that are used at my school , produce less noise than mine :cry:

Oh and if anyone has an other fan that would fit well the SI-92 ( under 20 db of noise ) should post it here :)

Thanks and sorry for the long post and the spealyng erraurs :P

sthayashi
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Post by sthayashi » Tue Jan 11, 2005 8:08 am

Wow...

NigthStalker, I know you didn't ask for an opinion in this particular area, but I think you'll find that one of your major noise sources will be your hard drives. I had that Maxtor 30 GB and I actually gave it away because it was so noisy (the friend I was giving it to thought I was nuts, but he needed several Gigs of my files).

I also have a Quantum 5-1/4 drive here at work, and I cringe every time I need to fire it up (which thankfully is rare these days).

Jordan
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Post by Jordan » Tue Jan 11, 2005 9:13 am

I really think it's worth importing those Nexus fans for the HS and case fans. If you have to go with someone else then get a fan controller (or you may even want to even if you get the Nexus'). Out of that list I'd go with the Zalmans if I HAD to but they're still not great.

Yeah good point, sthayashi, I just thought I'd deal with the obvious (and probabaly biggest noise makers first).! You may not notice the noise as much just now NigthStalker but when you get your new quiet fans you'll really heat those HDs. Ditch all but the 120GB and if you have to buy another to make up for the lost space then get a Samsung or Seagate drive. In fact if you got one of Samsungs 200GB models you could probabaly sell the noisy 120GB Maxtor too.

NigthStalker
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Post by NigthStalker » Tue Jan 11, 2005 3:00 pm

Thanks sthayashi for your advice , and i usually don't plug my Quantum too , ill work on it once i get my cpu array up and working. I can't find Nexus fans anywhere , i looked in dealer and vendors in canadian retailers ; nothing.
But what's so great about the Nexus fans ? good RPM ? good CFM ? low noise ? low RPM whit high CFM ?
Zalman aren't easyer to find around here. I can go to Toront at BigFoot Computers and get a 92mm 1600-2800 rpm whit 20-36 dBa ( silent / normal ) fan for only 10 can bucks but you say it's not worth it...

Help me ; current user looking for silent 92mm fan other than Nexus that is as good ; Retailer must be in Montreal or Toronto ; Thanks

Jordan
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Post by Jordan » Tue Jan 11, 2005 3:06 pm

"good RPM ? good CFM ? low noise ? low RPM whit high CFM ? "

It's the perfect combination of all of these that make it such a great choice for silencing. Read the comments in the recommended section for a summary of the noise and noise signature.

NigthStalker
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Post by NigthStalker » Tue Jan 11, 2005 3:33 pm

Yeah i checked out the of fans and dBa / CFM / RPM / Voltage ; and i found in the table the Vantec SF9225L at 92 mm whit 20 dBa and 28 CFM
i think that if i can find this fan , i'dd go for it. But i don't know much about CFM , so would "* CFM be nuf for my cooling ?

Jordan
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Post by Jordan » Tue Jan 11, 2005 3:49 pm

What table? Dude, don't belive a word Vantec says. Their fans never live up to their noise level claims. This applies to a lot of manufacturers.

The only table you can trust is this:

http://www.silentpcreview.com/article63-page2.html

NigthStalker
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Post by NigthStalker » Tue Jan 11, 2005 3:52 pm


burcakb
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Post by burcakb » Wed Jan 12, 2005 12:11 am

Actually none of them :) as they all cite manufacturer specs with comments from actual use.

If you search around the articles, distributed here and there are actual CFM and dBA measurements of certain fans. I trust only those.

The general trend is Nexus & Globe fans are pretty near manufacturer specs, Panaflos are noisier by 2-3 dBA, everything is BS.

I'd say the Vantec Stealth 80mm is around 28-30 dBA, NOT 21 dBA. Considering the scale is logarithmic, that's a HUGE difference.

Tibors
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Post by Tibors » Wed Jan 12, 2005 1:35 am

NigthStalker wrote:I can't find Nexus fans anywhere , i looked in dealer and vendors in canadian retailers ; nothing.
How about mail ordering from Vancouver :?: That is in Canada AFAIK.
http://www.endpcnoise.com/cgi-bin/e/nexus120mm.html

Slaugh
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Post by Slaugh » Wed Jan 12, 2005 2:12 am

NigthStalker wrote:I can't find Nexus fans anywhere , i looked in dealer and vendors in canadian retailers ; nothing.
I got my Nexus fans (80mm, 92mm and 120mm) at NCIX.com, also in Vancouver. I guess you have to order them online, but it's worth it! And you don't have to pay for the PST because it's outside Quebec! :)

NigthStalker
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Post by NigthStalker » Wed Jan 12, 2005 6:51 am

Yeah...Vancouvert... i`dd need to order it while im in vacation , cuz in not doing online banking , maybe money order , but cash ( pay the post office dude :P ) is easyer , just g2be there whe the guy shows up...

And i could try go to Toronto at the inMax Shop , they sell Nexus 92mm fans for 15$ , and whe can pay cash , in case i can`t get a lift to go to Toronto , i know i can easyly go to Ontario , but Toronto... or is it the opposite... alway got mixed up between Toronto , Vancouvert and Ontario :lol: :lol: :lol:
I can`t see the NCIX website on my pc ,but i can se it on this 422 mzh pentinum ( ILUVAMD ) scool pc , wierd , do you need so sort of ... thing to acces the site ?

Slaugh
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Post by Slaugh » Wed Jan 12, 2005 3:24 pm

NigthStalker wrote:I can`t see the NCIX website on my pc ,but i can se it on this 422 mzh pentinum ( ILUVAMD ) scool pc , wierd , do you need so sort of ... thing to acces the site ?
I can see the site without problem using IE6 or Firefox... Maybe you just have spywares in the way...

NigthStalker
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$$$$ Error $$$$

Post by NigthStalker » Wed Jan 12, 2005 3:42 pm

Yeah maybe...

But , apart from the SI-97 HS , what other HS\Fan could i use to cool the overclocked XP-M 2500+ ? ( that is non-Thermalright and non-Zalman )

sthayashi
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Re: $$$$ Error $$$$

Post by sthayashi » Wed Jan 12, 2005 8:50 pm

NigthStalker wrote:Yeah maybe...

But , apart from the SI-97 HS , what other HS\Fan could i use to cool the overclocked XP-M 2500+ ? ( that is non-Thermalright and non-Zalman )
Alpha PAL8055 w/ an L1A or M1A undervolted will work alright.

NigthStalker
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Post by NigthStalker » Wed Jan 12, 2005 9:54 pm

i can't find Alpha around here , i have only 2 shops available around here and i can't order online

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