Any tips for a noise-reducing cabinet?

[Prodigy^]

my computer is so noisy it's making me nuts....athlon 1.4ghz with geforce3, Sb live, and one or two harddrives, 7200rpm. was wondering if there are any special cases out there that help keeping down the noise? i dont overclock, and live in a not-so-warm country.

thanks!

 

[Rahminator]

Buy quiet fans and power supply.

 

[Prodigy^]

any suggestions for quiet fans and a power supply?

 

[Moonbeam]

Here

 

[virtuamike]

Put some foam type material in your case, line the panels. Anything that's porous and traps air/noise will do the trick. Case might run a little warm but at least you'll get rid of the noise reverbing off the walls. Don't use Dynamat, that's used to reduce vibrations. What you want is something to muffle/trap sound.

 

[MaskedAvenger]

Which fan is making the most noise? It's probably the CPU fan, so . . . buy a fan adapter and have a low noise 92mm fan suck air from your cpu. You'll get as much cooling as a howling 60mm or a noisy 80. If your power supply is noisy, see if you can trade out that 80mm for a quieter (slower) one. To compensate for the slower PS fan, add a low noise 80mm case fan to suck air out of the back of the case. To make sure you have enough air coming in, make sure that you have another 80mm case fan blowing air in from the front. Don't forget about your hard disks, which would like a fan of their own. And a slot fan, like the Cyber Cooler Central System Cooler, is great for cooling your video card and bringing in some more cool air. You'll hardly notice any noise coming out of your PC after you make these simple changes.


By the way, did I mention I run a fan company?



PS: My first suggestion was the best (re: the 92mm fan adapter).

 

[olds]

By the way, did I mention I run a fan company?
Link?

 

[anime]

use 30ish or lower dba fans.
For PS-if you are at the adventurous side--you can just replace your PS fan with any low dba fan instead of buy one from pcpowerandcooling.com--their stuffs are just too pricey for my taste.
Use sound dampening materials inside your case.

 

[olds]

<< Buy quiet fans and power supply. >>



Better yet, don't turn your machine on.

 

[olds]

I was curious about the "noise" coming from my machine. Right now, I have one side of the case off my Antec 1240SX because I am expecting my new video card any day. It reads 54 db on my meter. I put the side back on and it read 53. Not much of a difference. I have a Glaciator HSF, 80mm rear exhaust fan and an Enermax EG651P-VE, PS . I have a fan in the front that I am not running. My temps are around 46 C. I am curious about how much "deadening" my case will change those numbers. I just might have to get off my dead a$$ and use up some of the left over Dynamat I have.

 

[Daovonnaex]

<< my computer is so noisy it's making me nuts....athlon 1.4ghz with geforce3, Sb live, and one or two harddrives, 7200rpm. was wondering if there are any special cases out there that help keeping down the noise? i dont overclock, and live in a not-so-warm country.

thanks! >>

Yeah, it's called the Koolance case.

 

[iamme]

Any other recommended brands of PS's? Preferrably in the 30dB range?

 

[Hani]

QuietPC makes PSU that use 28dBA fans. Just check out QuietPC.com.

 

[iamme]

<< QuietPC makes PSU that use 28dBA fans. Just check out QuietPC.com. >>



Wow, I just posted a question about this PS! Anyways, it actually says less than 26dBA (if you go down to PSU specs)!

 

[Hani]

Well, the fan is made by ADDA and produces 28dba. But there's a voltage regulator that lowers the voltage going to the fan, so it will run quieter.

 

[doinmybestatlast]

I had the same noise problem and after some research (and some experience) I put together this very, quiet system:

Full tower case - two front and two rear fans. Panaflo's purchased for $2.49 @ mpja.com, 4-pin connectors for 0.50 @ svcompucycle.com.
Enermax 350 P/S - excellent, fairly quiet dual fan P/S. Changed the 80mm fan to Panaflo and also the 92mm.
Alpha 8045 w/Panaflo

For an Athlon I recommend this set-up because of all the heat the CPU produces. Intel - two fans are enough.
Panaflos have always worked well for me and so far have not burned out, unlike some other after market fans.

I've put together four of these systems for myself and my children. You can't here the computer unless you stick your head next to it.
Now my only problem is if I can figure out how to make Marilyn Manson quieter!

 

[iamme]

When you say you can't hear unless you put your ear to it, does that include that barely audible hum? I think it's my PSU, it's not loud, but it definitely quieter when my computer is off. I'm using a stock 300 watt PSU that came w/ my case.

 

[doinmybestatlast]

I think anyone who changed their fans to Panaflos, Pabsts or PCPower noticed a definite noise reduction. Stock P/S's even those noted for their quiet operation can use a fan change. The cost is minimal for the fans and the labor is under 30 minutes to change the fan in the P/S and the case altogether. There is no guarantee that the noise level will go to silent, but there will be a definite lowering of the 'hum'.

Other 'noise' might be the HD, or the HSF. There are some utilities for the HD to lower the noise they produce.

For all its worth - the time and money is very minimal for a general reduction of the noise.

 

[kabir2]

Try buying some Panaflo's from either bgmicro.com or mpja.com. MPJA is a little more expensive, but more selection. Replace the fans inside your power supply with the .13A Panaflo's from mpja. That should considerably reduce the noise.

One quick question, if I have a heatsink that came with my retail processor (appears to be a Volcano 5) cooling my Athlon 1700+, can i change the fan to a quieter one. Its a 60 mm .21 A fan. And if I can, what should I use.

 

[Bentrold]

Try some low-noise fans like Pabst and maybe a new fan on your CPU heatsink and / or new heatsink-fan combo!!

try this link: Studiedata
They have a few tips on how to lower PC-noise

-bentrold

 

[bearmeat]

make another case out of cheese and use that.