Does anyone have a self built computer as quiet as a Dell?

[fyleow]

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[Lager]

Just use the default CPU fan for Pentium or Athlon processors.

 

[Kelvrick]

You'd be suprised how much noise the ps makes. Disable all the fans and enable them by themselves. The PS makes tons of noise. Try getting a lower noise one as long as those quieting kits like rubber corners for the PS and rubber grommets for the fans.

 

[ElFenix]

if i stop the fan on my radeon it'd be more quiet than my sister's dell. that fan is pretty loud.

 

[fyleow]

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[fyleow]

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[Chu]

Originally posted by: fyleow
I've been trying to get my computer quieter but I can't seem to get it as quiet as a Dell. I'm using a Lian Li case with 5 case fans (even disabled it's still loud). I have the Zalman heatpipe cooling on my video card (probably a bad idea for the 9800 pro since it gets hot). For my 2.8 ghz P4 I have the Big Zalman copper one with the fan on the lowest setting. Besides that the only thing making any noise are the power supply fans (Antec 430 watt).

So has anyone reached Dell like silence? I'm seriously just considering getting a 400SC, adding in my video card and using that instead. It would be the same performance but a lot quieter

Not as hard as you think. 3 steps :

1. Replace all fans with panaflow's - INCLUDING THE PS FAN.

2. Make absolutely sure that your hard drives are fluid bearing and not ball bearing.

3. Rubber gromets are your friend.

#2 is much more important then you think. Also - a low noise built case (Sonata the most popular) can get you even quieter then the dells - but at that point it really is diminishing returns.

 

[ElFenix]

dells aren't *that* quiet...

actually the loudest thing in the system is this blasted JB drive. stupid non fluid bearings...

my other computer, with the arctic cooling thermal control cpu fan, AC video card cooler (set on low), antec tru330, and a big slow 90 mm thermal fan, is pretty much dead silent. loudest thing in that is probably the drive.

 

[ThisIsMatt]

Mine is quieter. 21dba NBM intake, psu fan, heatsink fan, exhaust, 60mm fan on a socket A heatsink strapped to my gpu running at 5v.

 

[RS3SR]

Possible bro. Very easily possible to get much QUIETER than a dell.

Check out http://www.silentpcreview.com/ for some info. You can get passive heat sinks (for pentium 4's too), passive power supplies, hard drive silencers, etc...

I'm a silent PC guru, I can't stand tons of noise from my rig... You can't even hear my sever (custom built for quietness) when it's running. I have to turn the monitor on to even see if the thing's turned on.

 

[sygyzy]

Can't seem to find any place that sells rubber grommets for PS's. Any tips?

 

[Nebor]

Originally posted by: sygyzy
Can't seem to find any place that sells rubber grommets for PS's. Any tips?

It's an antec kit. They should have it at your local CompUSSR.

 

[Mik3y]

ya, its pretty easy to get it quieter then a dell. u just gotta have some money and know wut products to use. dont forget, harddrives make some noise too. well, its easy to limit down to whats causing the noise. then u just gotta work on makin em quiet. thats the logic. for the case itself, it does a huge job of dampening the sound, so sound absorbing foam is a thumbs up. also, since ur case is metal, then try to stop vibrations from any moving thing inside the computer. that way, you should be able to kick some of the noise's ass.

 

[Kenny]

I've been trying to get a quiet computer for quite some time now, and I believe it's just as quiet as a Dell.

The noises that come from it are my stealth fan (rated at 21dBa) for the CPU on an old slk800 heatsink, the stock video card fan, and my antec truepower psu. I have seagate hard drives, and I hardly ever hear them seek; only when I'm decompressing a large file.

I know I can shut up my video card with a zalman, but the psu is the loudest. It drowns out the other sounds.

I've heard of seasonic psus being super quiet, but they're too expensive for me. I have also heard of a 100% passive heatsink out there, but lost the reference links to it.

Seeing how cheap Dells have become, it may be worth it to just buy a Dell, so you don't have to spend more money trying to make the computer quiet.

 

[Nebor]

There are several fanless power supplies available. After spending $500 in air cooling\silencing components, I've come to the conclusion that only through water cooling is silence achievable.

 

[Chaotic42]

Originally posted by: Nebor
There are several fanless power supplies available. After spending $500 in air cooling\silencing components, I've come to the conclusion that only through water cooling is silence achievable.

Doesn't the pump make a lot of noise?

I'm clueless about water cooling.

 

[Eli]

I bet I could make a PC quieter than any Dell...

 

[Chaotic42]

Originally posted by: Eli
I bet I could make a PC quieter than any Dell...

No Via or Cyrix chips.

Or 286es either.

 

[zimu]

Originally posted by: Eli
I bet I could make a PC quieter than any Dell...

yeah... turn it off.

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: Chaotic42

Originally posted by: Eli
I bet I could make a PC quieter than any Dell...

No Via or Cyrix chips.

Or 286es either.

Heh..

No, I was thinking a medium performance rig...

Although, I have to admit that I'm not up on all the current stuff out there, so maybe there aren't that many fanless solutions for the newer stuff....

I bet I could do it.. make either a fanless rig or a 1-fan rig.

 

[OulOat]

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: Chaotic42

Originally posted by: Eli
I bet I could make a PC quieter than any Dell...

No Via or Cyrix chips.

Or 286es either.

Heh..

No, I was thinking a medium performance rig...

Although, I have to admit that I'm not up on all the current stuff out there, so maybe there aren't that many fanless solutions for the newer stuff....

I bet I could do it.. make either a fanless rig or a 1-fan rig.

For $300?

 

[Twista]

nope not me. I use too but the new mobo without fan control and the new radeon 9700 pro killed it :/

 

[Pliablemoose]

Yep, I use a Zalman PSU, vid card heatsink, & CPU fan, panaflow case fan on the last system I built for my wife, it's really quiet...

 

[acemcmac]

No Dell that I am aware of stays as quiet as it was new after 6 months. I fix a lot of comptuers in dorms and one of the biggest complaints eventually boils down to clanking hd's and power supply fan groans....

 

[Carbo]

Some good info on quieting your rig here, by Fred Langa.