Damped SLK3000B vs Solo

noisekiller · Post by **noisekiller** » Fri Dec 08, 2006 10:00 am

I will going to buy a new case for my pretty quiet PC,but i can't decide betwen damped 3000B and Solo...main advantages of 3000B is place for 120mm fan in the front and open side panel (better for cooling passive VGA)...so...what do you people think?

P.S.-sorry my bad english.

ultrachrome · Post by **ultrachrome** » Fri Dec 08, 2006 3:14 pm

You could cool VGA by removing unused slot covers.

The real question may be do you really need a 120mm in front?

noisekiller · Post by **noisekiller** » Sat Dec 09, 2006 12:18 am

ultrachrome wrote:You could cool VGA by removing unused slot covers.

The real question may be do you really need a 120mm in front?

Hm...i have only one hard drive,so...i suppose that one 92mm@5V would be enough to cool it...So-it is better to take Solo then?

Post by **Ralf Hutter** » Sat Dec 09, 2006 6:21 am

noisekiller wrote:
ultrachrome wrote:You could cool VGA by removing unused slot covers.

The real question may be do you really need a 120mm in front?
Hm...i have only one hard drive,so...i suppose that one 92mm@5V would be enough to cool it...So-it is better to take Solo then?

I certainly would.

ultrachrome · Post by **ultrachrome** » Sat Dec 09, 2006 8:50 am

noisekiller wrote:Hm...i have only one hard drive,so...i suppose that one 92mm@5V would be enough to cool it...So-it is better to take Solo then?

Might not even need it. I operate my Sonata without a front fan with 1-2 drives and they stay pretty cool.

noisekiller · Post by **noisekiller** » Sat Dec 09, 2006 9:38 am

ultrachrome wrote:
noisekiller wrote:Hm...i have only one hard drive,so...i suppose that one 92mm@5V would be enough to cool it...So-it is better to take Solo then?
Might not even need it. I operate my Sonata without a front fan with 1-2 drives and they stay pretty cool.

I dont know...my WD800JB can get pretty hot (around 40 degrees C)...

Firetech · Post by **Firetech** » Sat Dec 09, 2006 11:53 am

noisekiller wrote:main advantages of 3000B is place for 120mm fan in the front

I use the fan but that's because I'm running a Raptor, Seagate 7200.9 and a Seagate 7200.10 320 (hot runner!). I think the Solo's 92mm fan would be fine, if required.

noisekiller wrote:and open side panel (better for cooling passive VGA)...so...what do you people think?

Mine is blocked off as it ruins the case air-flow when left open.

The deciding factor on which case to buy should be based on your intended CPU cooler, IMO.
If your thinking XP-120 style then the 3000B is ideal but if it's a Ninja type then I'd go with the Solo.

noisekiller · Post by **noisekiller** » Sat Dec 09, 2006 2:17 pm

Well...i thought of putting Thermaltake Big typhoon (but i'm also thinking about Scythe Mine,AC Freezer 64 Pro,and-Ninja is a bit to expencive for me) because i plan to overclock my venice...not much,but...totally passive will not work here.I have tested three setups now (with my current case):

1)side panel slots open,cpu duct to to upper side panel opening:

CPU: 25
Case: 25

2)side panel slots closed.cpu tunel removed,open slots at the back (PCI)

CPU: 28
Case: 27

3)same as 2),but with back closed:

CPU: 31-33
Case: 29

This is mi current setup:

s.754 Venice @2GHz /stock cooler with 92mm Revoltec fan @5V on top
Foxconn 760GXK8MC-RS
Asus N6200/TD (passive)
Seasonic S12-380

Here are some older pictures:

In meanwhile i made cable managment much,much better,and in place of old Geforce 2 MX there is now 6200.

So,i think that a damped SLK3000B would be a better option for me...am i right?And will it be then just as quiet as stock Solo?

noisekiller · Post by **noisekiller** » Mon Dec 11, 2006 11:38 pm

Is Solo much quieter than a damped SLK3000B or is there not much diference?

ultrachrome · Post by **ultrachrome** » Tue Dec 12, 2006 12:05 am

With some effort the 3000 could probably be as quiet as a stock Solo. But you don't get the Solo's integrated hard drive suspension. And I think the Solo might be thicker steel.

I have a SLK1650 which is pretty thin metal but I stuck some vinyl floor tiles to the inside, put some nice heatsinks on the CPU and GPU with 5V fans, swapped in a spare tri-cool and it is super quiet.

Firetech · Post by **Firetech** » Tue Dec 12, 2006 12:07 am

noisekiller wrote:Is Solo much quieter than a damped SLK3000B or is there not much diference?

I suspect the Solo will be quieter than the 3000B.
With your current set-up have you tried blanking the VGA grille, leaving the cpu duct in place and running both front & rear fans then checking temps?

noisekiller · Post by **noisekiller** » Tue Dec 12, 2006 9:33 am

Firetech wrote:I suspect the Solo will be quieter than the 3000B.
With your current set-up have you tried blanking the VGA grille, leaving the cpu duct in place and running both front & rear fans then checking temps?

VGA has no influence on CPU temperatures...Even if i remove it and use onboard VGA,the temperatures are exactly same...
HDD cage in SLK3000B can be removed and i would make something like i have now for HDD suspension...so...that is not such a big deal for me...And-SLK3000B is a bit bigger,and it costs 30 euro less than Solo...

http://www.amazon.de/Antec-Miditower-Ge ... F8&s=ce-de

http://www.amazon.de/Antec-Geh%C3%A4use ... F8&s=ce-de

I dont know...I would put an Abit NV8 (+ Thermalright HR-05),Leadtek 7600GT (passive) and Scythe Mine inside...

Firetech · Post by **Firetech** » Tue Dec 12, 2006 10:37 am

You misunderstood.
I did not suggest you remove your GPU but just cover the grille that is meant to allow air to the GPU.
I found it short-circuited the airflow, prevented the air flowing from front to rear and made my case/system temperatures rise.
I get the feeling your heart is set on the 3000B but am not sure what benefit it has over your current case?

noisekiller · Post by **noisekiller** » Tue Dec 12, 2006 11:17 am

Firetech wrote:You misunderstood.
I did not suggest you remove your GPU but just cover the grille that is meant to allow air to the GPU.
I found it short-circuited the airflow, prevented the air flowing from front to rear and made my case/system temperatures rise.
I get the feeling your heart is set on the 3000B but am not sure what benefit it has over your current case?

Well...i think it is like you are saying...my heart is on the 3000B side...there are 4 main reasons:

1)Bigger
2)Cheaper
3)120mm fan at the front
4)Better colling for VGA (i sould make a special isolated zone only for VGA...) (i think)

However...there is one thing that i dislike on 3000B:the door...i dont like it...alot...

My current case is very low quallity (i cant get the screws properly to close side panel anymore...they just spin endlesly) and...i dont know if a big heatsink like Mine would fit in there...

Chris Chan · Post by **Chris Chan** » Tue Dec 12, 2006 4:17 pm

Look at the HEC Compucase LX-6a19 - it's the SLK3000B structure without a door.

ckolivas · Post by **ckolivas** » Tue Dec 12, 2006 6:56 pm

I have a 3000B and a Solo. Go with the Solo.

noisekiller · Post by **noisekiller** » Tue Dec 12, 2006 11:06 pm

Well...ok then...if you guys say Solo...than i say Solo

Thanks

Firetech · Post by **Firetech** » Fri Dec 15, 2006 1:09 pm

noisekiller wrote:However...there is one thing that i dislike on 3000B:the door...i dont like it...alot...

I have an enquisitive toddler who likes to press buttons. I love the door!!

kaange · Post by **kaange** » Thu Dec 21, 2006 7:35 pm

ckolivas wrote:I have a 3000B and a Solo. Go with the Solo.

Hi,

I read your description of the system you have built using the Solo case but I was wondering how much you had modded your SLK3000B. I really prefer the extra external bays on the SLK3000B but if the Solo has enough inherent advantages for quietness, I could be swayed.

Thanks
Greg

Aris · Post by **Aris** » Thu Dec 21, 2006 8:49 pm

noisekiller wrote:
ultrachrome wrote:
noisekiller wrote:Hm...i have only one hard drive,so...i suppose that one 92mm@5V would be enough to cool it...So-it is better to take Solo then?
Might not even need it. I operate my Sonata without a front fan with 1-2 drives and they stay pretty cool.
I dont know...my WD800JB can get pretty hot (around 40 degrees C)...

40c is pretty cool actually. I wouldnt start to worry until it got up to 50c or higher.

ckolivas · Post by **ckolivas** » Fri Dec 22, 2006 4:06 am

kaange wrote:
ckolivas wrote:I have a 3000B and a Solo. Go with the Solo.
I read your description of the system you have built using the Solo case but I was wondering how much you had modded your SLK3000B. I really prefer the extra external bays on the SLK3000B but if the Solo has enough inherent advantages for quietness, I could be swayed.

Not sure what mods exactly you had in mind because they were pretty minimal on my part. What I had was a custom PSU with a modded 120mm aerocool fan running at 400rpm, a P4 with a modded Zalman 7000 with a 92mm fan running at 800rpm, and 2 120mm case fans front and rear running also at 400rpm. The hard drive was sitting on a custom made soft cushion, and the side vent was left open. The front of the case I used a dremel to cut the base open so that more airflow came from underneath instead of around the usb ports which is a known problem with this case. I had tried with just a front case fan through the air filter (to minimise dust) but found the P4 was just so much more adequately cooled with a rear case fan. Then I found the hard drive was too warm (idling at 47 degrees) so I added the front case fan. With the Zalman 7000 the P4 was not adequately cooled with the side closed unless the fan on it was turned up to a speed that was actually noisier than with the side open and the fan on low speed. I did no major mods to the case itself apart from the dremelling. Overall there is a kind of hollowness resonance that I can hear probably from the case being open and probably from the plasticky front letting out sound that doesn't seem at all present with the Solo. It's exceptionally good value to work with but the airflow through the Solo unmodified is better, the inherent sound deadening is better, the inbuilt suspension meant one thing that I didn't have to create a custom mod for and so on. I'm pretty sure the 3000B could be modded to a spec similar to that of the Solo however there was great appeal to having all the requirements out of the box with a lot less effort. The cost difference was substantial though (100 Australian dollars). Sticking my head down around both (at this instant) I note that most of the extra sound leaks out of the front of the box. Bear in mind I'm working with a pretty quiet setup (of course thanks to SPCR standards), where the WD5000KS sounds quite loud during seeking even from inside the box suspended and the rating of that drive according to SPCR is 22dB in free air so suspended from within a box it should be lower than this.

If there's anything else you wish to know; feel free to ask.

kaange · Post by **kaange** » Fri Dec 22, 2006 6:05 am

Thanks ckolivas. I guess I was mainly wondering about whether you did any drive suspension (which you did) and case damping (which you didn't). I agree that you get what you pay for and the Solo looks to be far superior as delivered but I'm wondering how the SLK3000B fares with the addition of case damping and some port blocking or venting as some folks here have done. Plus I'm a tinkerer at heart

If they made the Solo with 2 additional 3.5 inch external bays (or even one), I wouldn't think about which was more suitable for my purposes.

Greg

Damped SLK3000B vs Solo

Damped SLK3000B vs Solo

Re: Damped SLK3000B vs Solo