Computer in a cabinet (Pic added)

[HeroOfPellinor]

I have a built-in computer cabinet in my desk and my BQE fits with 1" to spare on all sides. I'd like to use this cabinet to quiet my computer more than it already is.

I have some ideas, but I'd like to know how other people solve the problem.

 

[wisdomtooth]

The most important thing is to make sure there is a way for hot air to get out. If hot air coming out of the computer is trapped in your cabinet, you can have 200 fans in your computer and it will still get hot.

I would cut holes in the back of the cabinet at the locations where the computer's exhausts would be (case exhaust fan location and PSU exhaust grill location), and use cardboard to make ducts to let those exhausts duct heat directly out of your computer cabinet.

This trick is used quite often by people who put their HTPCs in enclosed home theater cabinets to keep them cool.

HTH.

 

[ChurchOfSubgenius]

Drill 5 or more 1/2" holes in the bottom where the front of your case sits and make a carboard (or whatever) duct in the rear for your PSU and fan ....this is assuming there is ventilated space under your desk for cool air to feed up.

Pics would help foir brainstorming.

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Yeah, luckily the back of the cabinet is some kind of high density cardboard, so getting the exhaust vent installed will be a snap. The real issue is the intake. I'll get a pic up asap. The cabinet is about two inches off the ground and the compartment below is only open from the back. I'm thinking of sawing a slat in the bottom right behind the door and then two holes on the sides of the uder compartment inline with the slat.

I have the front 120mm fan installed, but I'm not sure that will be enough to draw in sufficient fresh air. Will I need to duct the front of the BQE or am I going overboard?

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Bump for a pic.

Link

 

[Tiamat]

Good luck, I do not see a good way of getting fresh air intake without sacrificing the visual quality of the door of your desk.

One idea might be to cut out 2" from the front edge of the bottom piece of the cabinet. This would give a 2" by 10" rectangular "hole" behind the door for the computer to get air from. You would definately need a 120mm or decent 2x80mm intake at the front bottom of your case.

You will need excellent exhaust - a 120mm would suffice, doesnt have to be high noise, just have a good pathway for the hot air to go.

 

[imported_fatal]

Just knock the back out..my desk is the same setup

 

[Dough1397]

you could move the door foward a bit and have a gap between the door and the sides of the cabinet.... but it might not look as good as one would think.... but this would provide alot of fresh air as there would be a say 1/2 inch gap all the way around.... and maybe you could use some dark filter or brown filter to keep dus tout and maybe make it look a bit better....

 

[imported_Slider]

I'd say just manually unscrew the door and remove it. It would be pretty hard to make a custom vent without ruining it.

 

[imported_Kensai]

Grills on the sides.

 

[CaBoOse999]

Take the panels off the case and cut holes in the cabinet to mount fans in. It would probably look god aweful but it would be neat.

 

[xbassman]

Originally posted by: CaBoOse999
Take the panels off the case and cut holes in the cabinet to mount fans in. It would probably look god aweful but it would be neat.

I definately wouldn't rcommend removing your case panels.
It should be easy enough to cut a hole in the side or the door of the cabinet with a hole saw. You can make a nice clean cut with a 3" hole saw. (this size is appropiate for an 80mm fan)
Then go buy a fan grill of your choice. Many styles are available, so it doesn't have to look like crap.
If necessary you can add a fan to your desk to force air in.
The back panel of your desk should definately be removed, or holes should be cut to accommodate PSU and exhaust fans.

You could also get creative with a duct on the inside of the door leading to your case's intake.

 

[Navid]

Remove the cardboard from the back so that the back is completely open.
Place the PC as far back as you can inside the cabinet.
Intake air will come from the back of the desk and around the PC and into the front bottom intake. The exhaust leaves the back and goes up.

The challenge is to separate warm and cold air. As long as you provide room in the back behind the desk for the warm air to move up and away from the PC, and around the PC for air to move, you should have no problem.

If you do that, closing the door should have no noticeable effect on the temperatures.

 

[Sentinel]

I was going to say put a couple quiet 120mm fans in the side wall of the cabinet

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Make a custom door with a front grille, or complete mesh setup.

- M4H

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Thanks for the ideas.

1. I'll be leaving the back closed except for the holes I cut for the exhaust fan and PSU. My goal is to quiet the system, so that extra little layer back there will be useful for applying dampening material. It'll be easy to baffle those smaller exhaust vents too.

2. Removing or opening up the door is not an option because that would defeat the purpose of using the cabinet.....which I got to help silence my computer when I'm writing or mixing.

The left side of the cabinet is fair game for adding fans or what not, but there's only a 1" clearance all around the case, so the air from such a fan would mostly just hit the case and spread around inside the cabinet instead of being routed to the intake which, for the BQE, because of the downward vents in the bezel, is directly infront and below the case. I still think the idea of an external fan of some sort is a good idea though.