A Silent PC Case

Get some Dynamat or Fatmat Xtreme insulation as well. Should be able to get it from car sound places.
 
xera said:
Hi, My setup is kinda up-to-date.

PSU: Corsair HX750
CPU: Intel i7-2600K
GPU: MSI 6970

so yip, would like to get a bigger fan for the cpu, along with a new case. My CM590 has a small & tall grill thing in front. Is that a bad thing?
Click to expand...

Well grill/mesh means that sound escapes... Unless you seal it up with sound insulation material.

Also, consider an after-market cooler for your graphics card - will be much cheaper.

*edit*

I mean much quieter, lol.
 
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haha.... well that would be the life now, wouldn't it.

I read a review about the above case. It seems it has a major airflow problem.

I have a constant ringing in my ears, mainly left ear or maybe just left. I'm sure it's from my pc being on all day, on the left.

So I'm thinking it would be worthwhile to get a case thats as silent as possible, which would at least be a good start for a silent computer.
From what I've read, the coolermaster cosmos 1000 is the most silent. If it is silent, it could be well worth the price considering my position.

What do you think?

Does anybody else have cosmos 1000, and can they give me a bit of feedback about it please?
 
Link to article regarding Cosmos? Trying to understand why it would be more silent than others? I think it's big, ugly, also it's ooold. IMO.
 
Antec take their slient cases seriously.

After some less-than-stellar reviews on SilentPCReview.com they asked Mike Chen (the founder of SilentPCReview) to assist them in designing a new case. The result was the P180, the first of their three-chamber cases.

I have an Antec P180 sitting on my desk less than a metre from my left ear ... the only time that I can hear that it was running is when I switch off the machine.
 
rrh said:
Antec take their slient cases seriously.

After some less-than-stellar reviews on SilentPCReview.com they asked Mike Chen (the founder of SilentPCReview) to assist them in designing a new case. The result was the P180, the first of their three-chamber cases.

I have an Antec P180 sitting on my desk less than a metre from my left ear ... the only time that I can hear that it was running is when I switch off the machine.
Click to expand...

+1

I also mentioned in a previous thread about the Antecs.

Have a look at the Antec Performance One P183 V3 for R1 395 or the Antec Performance One P193 for R1 595 and the Antec Performance One P193 V3 for R1 795.

They're out of your price range though and I'm not all that geared up on silent chassis, but I read up on the Antecs and their layered design for silence etc.
 
rrh said:
Antec take their slient cases seriously.

After some less-than-stellar reviews on SilentPCReview.com they asked Mike Chen (the founder of SilentPCReview) to assist them in designing a new case. The result was the P180, the first of their three-chamber cases.

I have an Antec P180 sitting on my desk less than a metre from my left ear ... the only time that I can hear that it was running is when I switch off the machine.
Click to expand...

sounds awesome... what hardware do you have in it?

My psu looks a bit big for that though (HX750)
 
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I've built about 3 silent PCs to date. Each time carefully planned and every time I try to top myself. Thus far I've succeeded every time thankfully :p
To put it into context, my friends Macbook Air was louder than my PC, and a normal 2.5" hard-drive is easily audible over my computers "noise" (eg. I can't hear my computer while it is next to me on the desk)

My current build has a Cooler Master Sileo, without the foam panels. I bought some Dynamat (local knockoff type tho) and did the entire interior with it, makes a huge difference in terms of vibration noise.

My current build is:
Intel Core i5 750 with Thermalright HR-02
Western Digital Green Power suspended with string (loudest component in the computer but you have to put your ear up against the computer to hear it). I'm upgrading to a SSD soon however
Fans x3 = Nexus Real Silent Case Fan D12SL-12 (From Cyberdyne Systems in Jhb @ R80ea) running at 6.9volt
PSU = Cooler Master Silent Pro 600W

Things to note:
A case doesn't make a Silent PC
The biggest difference by far comes from suspending the hard-drive with string, not normal string the type used with clothes (stretchy). Green Power drive combined with that is inaudible except when you have your ear next to it.
For mechanical drives the WD Green Power is the only choice when it comes to noise. Believe me I've tested them all. They are the best noise wise.
Nothing beats the Nexus Real Silent Case Fan yet that I have tested although Gigabyte cases come with a Gigabyte fan with blue stickers on that come close. Everything else I've tested that was marked as "Silent" sucks, big time.

PSU wise the Coolest Master Silent Pro is easily the best thus far but ideally you'll want a Seasonic X400 or X460 fanless (available from Cyberdyne System in Jhb for R1.2K).

My next build will be:
Lian Li PC-A05FN again padded inside with Dynamat
Again the Nexus Real Silent Case Fan because they are truly inaudible and move enough air with a decent heatsink
I'll try look for something other than Thermalright coolers (because they are so expensive) but for silent PCs they do a very very good job at keeping everything cool

Next build will also use a more efficient PSU over a silent type and I'll replace the fan myself with a Nexus Real Silent Case Fan. Mostly because the Cooler Master Silent Pro although very quiet is more noisy than the Nexus fans (they are just the best).

I'll use SSDs from now on, anything else sucks.

In the past I also went with passive GPUs but you can't not have fans in a computer anyway so rather buy a HUGE aftermarket GPU heatsink and add a Nexus on there.

I could easily assemble a TOP of the line PC right now (so long as it only needs 1 GPU) that would be as silent as any PC you could buy. You just need to buy the right components.

EDIT: I haven't stressed this point enough but if you build a silent PC the case isn't nearly as important as the other components. I could build a silent PC with a R400 case easily because a "good" case is a case that doesn't obstruct the fans (eg. fan shrouds are bad, they cause noise). The Lian Li case I posted from above costs around R800 and will easily beat anything off the shelf when I'm done with it (eg. adding the car silencing mats to it and removing some fan shrouds + interior bits).
 
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xera said:
sounds awesome... what hardware do you have in it?
Click to expand...

I agree with Gnome: if you are depending on a case to quieten your rig you are [pretty much] doomed to failure.

A silent PC is based on the total build, not the individual components.

In my case I based my build on the recommendations published on SilentPCReview.com - they have pretty much led the way.

The case is an Antec P180. This is the first of the three-chamber cases designed by Mike Chen (the creator of SilentPCReview.com) for Antec.

My motherboard is an Asus M3N72 - I think: my original purchase was a 939, but each motherboard has failed, there has been no replacement stock, so I have received a new model motherboard. I have insisted that all motherboards have heat pipes to assist with the cooling.

The CPU is an AMD 5000 black, no overclocking. Cooling is via a passive (i.e. fanless) Thermalright HR-02.

The board has 4MB Kingston ram.

I have also installed an old Nvidia passively-cooled graphics card: this gives me monitor #2 + monitor #3.

The PSU is a Seasonic 600W (might be 650W) that I purchased in the UK: when I did the original build Seasonic where not available locally. It was one of the first to achieve a +80% efficiency rating.

The Antec's fans - pretty quiet by themselves - were replaced by Panaflo's: at that time the best available. They are mounted using rubber grommets.

I have two drives: a Raptor 10K and a 2TB Caviar Green. I used the neoprene (?) disk mounting grommets supplied with the Antec: I haven't bothered with bungee cords etc.

All cabling is routed around the edges of the motherboard: this ensures a clean airflow.

Not a gaming rig by an measure, but Windows 7 fair hops, so I am not complaining.

My next rig will probably be one of the AM3+ units that are due shortly. The build - other than to use more modern components e.g. the Nexus fans - will be pretty much the same ...
 
Gnome said:
I've built about 3 silent PCs to date. Each time carefully planned and every time I try to top myself. Thus far I've succeeded every time thankfully :p
To put it into context, my friends Macbook Air was louder than my PC, and a normal 2.5" hard-drive is easily audible over my computers "noise" (eg. I can't hear my computer while it is next to me on the desk)

My current build has a Cooler Master Sileo, without the foam panels. I bought some Dynamat (local knockoff type tho) and did the entire interior with it, makes a huge difference in terms of vibration noise.

My current build is:
Intel Core i5 750 with Thermalright HR-02
Western Digital Green Power suspended with string (loudest component in the computer but you have to put your ear up against the computer to hear it). I'm upgrading to a SSD soon however
Fans x3 = Nexus Real Silent Case Fan D12SL-12 (From Cyberdyne Systems in Jhb @ R80ea) running at 6.9volt
PSU = Cooler Master Silent Pro 600W

Things to note:
A case doesn't make a Silent PC
The biggest difference by far comes from suspending the hard-drive with string, not normal string the type used with clothes (stretchy). Green Power drive combined with that is inaudible except when you have your ear next to it.
For mechanical drives the WD Green Power is the only choice when it comes to noise. Believe me I've tested them all. They are the best noise wise.
Nothing beats the Nexus Real Silent Case Fan yet that I have tested although Gigabyte cases come with a Gigabyte fan with blue stickers on that come close. Everything else I've tested that was marked as "Silent" sucks, big time.

PSU wise the Coolest Master Silent Pro is easily the best thus far but ideally you'll want a Seasonic X400 or X460 fanless (available from Cyberdyne System in Jhb for R1.2K).

My next build will be:
Lian Li PC-A05FN again padded inside with Dynamat
Again the Nexus Real Silent Case Fan because they are truly inaudible and move enough air with a decent heatsink
I'll try look for something other than Thermalright coolers (because they are so expensive) but for silent PCs they do a very very good job at keeping everything cool

Next build will also use a more efficient PSU over a silent type and I'll replace the fan myself with a Nexus Real Silent Case Fan. Mostly because the Cooler Master Silent Pro although very quiet is more noisy than the Nexus fans (they are just the best).

I'll use SSDs from now on, anything else sucks.

In the past I also went with passive GPUs but you can't not have fans in a computer anyway so rather buy a HUGE aftermarket GPU heatsink and add a Nexus on there.

I could easily assemble a TOP of the line PC right now (so long as it only needs 1 GPU) that would be as silent as any PC you could buy. You just need to buy the right components.

EDIT: I haven't stressed this point enough but if you build a silent PC the case isn't nearly as important as the other components. I could build a silent PC with a R400 case easily because a "good" case is a case that doesn't obstruct the fans (eg. fan shrouds are bad, they cause noise). The Lian Li case I posted from above costs around R800 and will easily beat anything off the shelf when I'm done with it (eg. adding the car silencing mats to it and removing some fan shrouds + interior bits).
Click to expand...

Sounds awesome - do you have any pictures (especially the suspended hard drives)
 
AfricanTech said:
do you have any pictures (especially the suspended hard drives)
Click to expand...
Pics of my PC with the T-Mat (basically mats used in cars for sound dampening) applied:
http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthr...d-or-done-it?p=4527517&viewfull=1#post4527517

http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthr...d-or-done-it?p=4572762&viewfull=1#post4572762

Here is the suspension:
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article8-page2.html

Mine is identical so to speak, I just bought some of that stuff from a local needle work type supply store. Nothing special, cost me around R40 for a few meters (white tho).

EDIT: If anyone is interested in buying let me know. I think I might do a new build but no rush (so might wait till next year). You are even welcome to come inspect and see if it meets your needs in terms of noise. I like creating these builds so wouldn't mind doing one again.
 
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rrh said:
I agree with Gnome: if you are depending on a case to quieten your rig you are [pretty much] doomed to failure.

A silent PC is based on the total build, not the individual components.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the specs, gosh not many fans in your pc...

If you read my previous posts then you'll see that I have already been trying to make my computer in my current case as silent as possible.
My hdd's are already mounted on rubbers in the hdd bay. I organized the cables neatly the first time I built it, so airflow is fine, but it's still loud.

As some have said in previous posts, having holes in the case doesn't help much with keeping it silent. And I think thats part of the problem with my case. There are holes for 2x fans on the side panel, 2x on the top (none of those 4 used), and the whole of the front is basically one big hole.

So I think in my case a case that helps dampen the noise would be a good starting point for me.
I will also be getting a bigger cpu fan, which is hopefully quieter than the stock.
 
I've done a bit of reading and I'm thinking of getting the Antec P-193 and the Hyper 212 Plus cpu cooler. My pc isn't under hectic load the whole time, it's the idle noise I'm wanting to be a silent as possible. What do you think?

Would everything fit?
Antec P-193
Corsair HX750
Asus P8P67 Deluxe
SB cpu with Hyper 212+ cooler
ATI 6970
 
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