Tips on making my PC quieter?

[geekgeek]

Hey guys,

Would appreciate some tips on making my PC quieter. A bit of background info first.

My current rig noisemakers:

AMD64 3200 cooled with Arctic Freezer Pro 64
Asus A8N-E (active cooling on northbridge)
Leadtek 7800GT
Verudium Vortex 430W PSU
Coolermaster Praetorian with 4 x 80mm case fans (1 top, 1 back, 2 front)

I don't overclock my CPU or graphics card, so everything pretty much runs at stock speeds. The ambient temperature in my room varies between 75F to 86F.

I suspect that the majority of the noise is coming from the 4 case fans, in which case I wonder if the following wil help:
1. Disconnecting the front 2 case fans? Or disconnecting one?
2. Switching the case fans to a quieter brand like Panaflo/Nexus?
3. Using a fan speed controller to make them run slower?

I'm not sure how much the graphics cooler is contributing to the noise. Would it be advisable for me to change it to something like the AC Silencer NV5? The only problem I have with that is that I'm quite n00bish, and I'm not quite sure how to go about removing the graphics cooler without destroying the whole thing.

Any other ideas?

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

For your reading pleasure

http://www.silentpcreview.com/ >FAQ in the Silent PC Briefing Room. Top center page, in blue.
Enjoy!


...Galvanized

 

[geekgeek]

That was a most useful link, thanks!