hey i'm a new member here, and owner of a stock sonata case. i've used the search, and went through couple pages but found it difficult to find what i was looking for. even though the sonata is advertised as being silent, i found it pretty loud. i have a shuttle mn31n motherboard, the speeze whisperrock 2 hsf, and am using the onboard video. i've tried windows programs where you can set the speed, but they don't work for me.
my question is, what are some simple modifications, new hsf, or fan swaps i can do to make my computer quieter? i don't mind the sound from the hard drives, so it's mainly the fans that i want to be as close to silent as possible.
got another question about the hard drives, i noticed in a lot of pictures you guys have the rear (where the power and cables plug in) of the hard drive towards the opening of the case. how do you plug the cables in when you have it turned the other way?
any help will be very much appreciated. thanks in advance.
please help me out with stock sonata case
Moderators: NeilBlanchard, Ralf Hutter, sthayashi, Lawrence Lee
First of all, Welcome to SPCR
I would suggest looking at the recommended hardware page
Specifically, the first things you may want to consider are new hard drives (You didn't state what you had, but there's a BIG difference in noise between hard drives), a Zalman-7000A Alcu heatsink if the motheboard can support it, the SLK-800 w/ Panaflo L1A if it doesn't. And in your case, I would also suggest the Nexus NX-3000 or NX-3500 power supplies.
All of the the above should go a long way into quieting your computer.
I would suggest looking at the recommended hardware page
Specifically, the first things you may want to consider are new hard drives (You didn't state what you had, but there's a BIG difference in noise between hard drives), a Zalman-7000A Alcu heatsink if the motheboard can support it, the SLK-800 w/ Panaflo L1A if it doesn't. And in your case, I would also suggest the Nexus NX-3000 or NX-3500 power supplies.
All of the the above should go a long way into quieting your computer.
Well, my recommendations migth sound a litle extreme, however that's what im 
So, i will disconnect every case fans (uneed, realy), replace the cooler of CPU with Zalman CNPS7000Cu on silent mode and put the HDD down in case to foam layers like this:
...and don't worry, the temperature of the HDD get higher by only one degree
Measured.
So, i will disconnect every case fans (uneed, realy), replace the cooler of CPU with Zalman CNPS7000Cu on silent mode and put the HDD down in case to foam layers like this:
...and don't worry, the temperature of the HDD get higher by only one degree
Measured.Recommendations for replacement 120mm fans:
Panaflo L1A, Panaflo FBK L1A (eBay or some forum members) - some think it's slightly quieter, others think it's slightly noisier than stock.
Papst 4412FGL (or something like that - the 120x25)
Acoustifan (this is thermally controlled, so don't plug it into fan only)
NMB - I think they do have 120x25 low speed fans, but I've not been able to find any.
Enermax (?) 120x25 - don't have this, but some forum members think they're decent.
Don't buy Vantec Stealth fans. Overpriced crap.
You may also want to consider replacing the PSU fan with a L1A or M1A/M1BX.
Enlarging the intake hole at the bottom of the front bezel can help more cool air enter the case, enabling you to either manually turn the fan down, or maybe have the PSU run cooler and therefore give less voltage to the fans it control.
120mm fans are not exactly cheap. They cost $10 to $20 each. You can get a Zalman 7000AlCu for $30.
Panaflo L1A, Panaflo FBK L1A (eBay or some forum members) - some think it's slightly quieter, others think it's slightly noisier than stock.
Papst 4412FGL (or something like that - the 120x25)
Acoustifan (this is thermally controlled, so don't plug it into fan only)
NMB - I think they do have 120x25 low speed fans, but I've not been able to find any.
Enermax (?) 120x25 - don't have this, but some forum members think they're decent.
Don't buy Vantec Stealth fans. Overpriced crap.
You may also want to consider replacing the PSU fan with a L1A or M1A/M1BX.
Enlarging the intake hole at the bottom of the front bezel can help more cool air enter the case, enabling you to either manually turn the fan down, or maybe have the PSU run cooler and therefore give less voltage to the fans it control.
120mm fans are not exactly cheap. They cost $10 to $20 each. You can get a Zalman 7000AlCu for $30.
Re: please help me out with stock sonata case
thadon wrote:hey i'm a new member here, and owner of a stock sonata case. i've used the search, and went through couple pages but found it difficult to find what i was looking for. even though the sonata is advertised as being silent, i found it pretty loud. i have a shuttle mn31n motherboard, the speeze whisperrock 2 hsf, and am using the onboard video. i've tried windows programs where you can set the speed, but they don't work for me.
First try plugging the case fan to the fan-only molex connector.thadon wrote: my question is, what are some simple modifications, new hsf, or fan swaps i can do to make my computer quieter? i don't mind the sound from the hard drives, so it's mainly the fans that i want to be as close to silent as possible.
Next, get a zalman fanmate and use that with your cpu fan. I dunno if you can do this, depends on how low the temperatures are with the stock speed.
If the fan on your hsf is replaceable, try replacing it with a model that has same airflow but less noise.
The Zalman 7000A-AlCu is a great hsf if you decide to replace it completely. I have it and it's very quiet at slowest speed, which is still cool enough.
The Papst 4412F/2GL is a great replacement for the case fan. Use this with a zalman fanmate. With slowest speed, it's nearly inaudible and there are no disturbing components in the sound. I have it in my sonata and it's by far the most quiet component in my setup, still moving enough air to keep the case cool.
After getting the zalman and the papst, the stock sonata psu fan will be the loudest component. Or maybe your hdd.
Plug them _before_ you put the drive tray in.thadon wrote: got another question about the hard drives, i noticed in a lot of pictures you guys have the rear (where the power and cables plug in) of the hard drive towards the opening of the case. how do you plug the cables in when you have it turned the other way?
I bet it would be a bit hard to do after...
Try searching for it. Main thing is - be careful. There are dangerous voltages in there, and may be present when powered off and unplugged. Best to leave it unplugged overnight to let it drain. Heat sinks may be live, so try not to touch them. Also, things are pretty tight in there - be careful not to bend things out of shape.
The Sonata PSU fan has 3 wires. What I did is to cut off the wires as close to the fan as possible, then push each wire into a header for the Panaflo, then connect the header to the pins on the hub of the Panaflo. If you have a Panaflo, this will make sense to you - otherwise it'll probably sound strange. The Panaflo FBA is the only fan I own where the wires can be easily removed from and reattached to the fan. A fan has only 3 wires : +ve, ground and (only on some fans) tach. +ve is red. Ground is black. Tach is whatever's left.
Search the forums. There are many folks who has done it. And there's a sticky on how to try not to electrocute yourself.
The Sonata PSU fan has 3 wires. What I did is to cut off the wires as close to the fan as possible, then push each wire into a header for the Panaflo, then connect the header to the pins on the hub of the Panaflo. If you have a Panaflo, this will make sense to you - otherwise it'll probably sound strange. The Panaflo FBA is the only fan I own where the wires can be easily removed from and reattached to the fan. A fan has only 3 wires : +ve, ground and (only on some fans) tach. +ve is red. Ground is black. Tach is whatever's left.
Search the forums. There are many folks who has done it. And there's a sticky on how to try not to electrocute yourself.
Re: please help me out with stock sonata case
Though I assume there's nothing wrong with just hooking it to Fan-Only, like the stock rear fan, right? Do the stock plastic "screws" provided with the Sonata work with the Pabst? Did you actually see a temp drop as a result of adding the intake fan? Others have said it doesn't affect ambient but does help the HD's, though I'm not sure I follow that.lm wrote:The Papst 4412F/2GL is a great replacement for the case fan. Use this with a zalman fanmate. With slowest speed, it's nearly inaudible and there are no disturbing components in the sound. I have it in my sonata and it's by far the most quiet component in my setup, still moving enough air to keep the case cool.