Quiet PC

[Pakman{GB}]

Anyone got any ideas on how to Silentify my comp... I've the the Thermaltake XaserIII W/ Full window. Any suggestions help, But I still want to be able to look inside my comp and be like.."Yeha, My comps owns"

O and my budget is 200:woot:

[Mista K6]

Well, I think most thermal take cases have a rheobus to turn the fans down, so that will make it quiter. If it doesnt come with it already, buy some rubber grommets to put between the chassis and the HDD to absorb vibrations. Also, get some silencing foam (I used thin sheet plastic foam) to absorb vibrations anywhere throughout the case. Just listen for any rattlings ans the cut and fit a piece in between the metal parts to stop it. You could also buy a noise dampening kit, but you'll be limited to where you can put it so you dont block your window's view. Getting all of that stuff should be under $200. : peace2: Mista K6

[minibubba]

Mista K6 has some very good suggestions but your biggest source of noise could come from your CPU cooling solution. Depending on how much money you are willing to spend depends on the solution of course. For a tighter budget I'd recomend the Thermaltake Silent boost (personally love the Silent Boost :thumb: ) ; on the opposite extreme would be a pricey water cooling setup.

*nevermind, i see you have a $200 limit, better put the water cooling off till later.

[Wordbiker]

One of the best "free" mods is doing a 7V mod to selected fans. It will reduce the fans speed down, but usually not enough to prevent it from starting up. I say it's free, but that's only if you have the supplies on hand already to accomplish it. There's a guide here to start you off. Another along the same lines is to run a pair of fans in series, rather than parallel as they are probably all running now. This splits the normal 12V between the fans to 6V each, but not all fans will start at that voltage. I wouldn't recommend this unless your running a pretty cool system to start with, as airflow is drastically reduced, and it stays that way constantly. Your best bet is the Rheobus as Mista K6 suggested. That will give you the most range of adjustment, and good units won't go low enough to allow your fans to be turned down so low that they stop. You can turn it down for silent running or up for gaming or other intensive usage.
The suggestions about grommeting and isolating noise-producing hardware (Fans and harddrives are the main culprits) are also excellent, and very cheap if done with scavenged materials. If you do these in a craftsmanlike manner, you won't change the aesthetic appeal of your case at all, and in the process, may even clean it up some. There are kits sold for this as well.
I also use a ThermalTake Silent Boost, and it's an excellent cooler. I even have a decent overclock, although it's on a relatively low-heat producing XP1800+. For a hotter processor, look into the Zalman flower coolers. Their CNPS7000-Cu is one if the best quiet solutions on the market, if it fits on your particular motherboard.
Another area to look at is your power supply. If you're comfortable with soldering, and take the necessary precautions, it is possible to replace the fans in your PSU for quieter models. This will void the warranty on most PSUs, and is also potentially dangerous, so only proceed if you know what you're doing. With a $200 budget, you may want to look into one of the several PSUs that offer built in fan controls. Some are manual and have a small rheostat knob on the back to control the internal fan speeds, others have a line that attaches to the motherboard, and will control the internal PSU fan or fans based on the demand placed upon and temperatures of the motherboard. For the ultimate in control of your PSU, look at an Antec True Control which has a special fan circuit that can automatically control all the fans in your case, as well as full voltage controls, and power to spare for most any system. That might sound like I work for them, I don't, but using a power supply rated higher than the actual power demands of your system is a good idea. It won't work as hard, and therefore will run cooler and quieter, and gives you a good safety margin and room for later system expansion.
For $200, you may even consider a watercooling system, although it comes with it's own set of issues, and takes a lot of research and work to get a good one going. Same thing here, only proceed if you're sure you have enough information and know it's what you want to do.
If you're asking here, I'm going to assume that air cooling is what you'll be doing, and if so, simple things like cutting out the stamped fan grills on your case and replacing them with wire grills can dramatically increase your airflow, reducing turbulence and noise, and allow you to run them slower and quieter with the same amount of airflow. This is also a great "free" mod, if you have the tools and skills to accomplish it.
I would avoid so-called noise-dampening kits that have sheets of material to apply inside your case as a noise barrier. IMHO, they're ugly, and although they may indeed reduce the noise coming from the case, they also can insulate the heat from escaping, and your fans will have to run at higher rates to disspate it.
Finally, adding rounded cables, tidying and sheathing loose wires that restrict airflow will also allow you to run your case fans at lower speeds and noise.
If you have further questions about any of these suggestions, check out the other forum threads. I learned just about all of these from the very experienced folks here, and have tried nearly all of them with much success. Good luck with your silencing! :cheers:

[Pakman{GB}]

Mista K6 has some very good suggestions but your biggest source of noise could come from your CPU cooling solution. Depending on how much money you are willing to spend depends on the solution of course. For a tighter budget I'd recomend the Thermaltake Silent boost (personally love the Silent Boost :thumb: ) ; on the opposite extreme would be a pricey water cooling setup.

*nevermind, i see you have a 0 limit, better put the water cooling off till later.

Lool Look at my sig.. I have the Exos Water cooling..

And I found out the main source of all the noise is my PSU. I'm looking into that Antec True Control.
I have rounded IDE cables already. and im modding a 120mm fan into my window (UV reactive).. And my case does have the rheobus.. Doesnt decrease the noise by much.. I have the Silent Power by ThermalTake 480W ...loud


Thnak for your input guys

[minibubba]

Lool Look at my sig.. I have the Exos Water cooling..

I apologize, but with the notebook I'm using atm it is difficult to read exactly what your sig says.

[Pakman{GB}]

I apologize, but with the notebook I'm using atm it is difficult to read exactly what your sig says.

Yeh it is kinda hard to read.. I wasnt falming at all. sorry if i came off like that.. Thanks anyways

[Wordbiker]

Yeah, sorry...I missed the Exos in your sig too. Sorry if I came off like you were a n00b, but I'd rather give too much info than not enough. Going to larger fans is a good call. I always put the largest ones that will fit. How does the Exos work for you? I don't know much about them. Are the fans adjustable?

[Pakman{GB}]

i AM a noob. lol. Adjustable as in 3 steps, yes. low, thenlow(rises as temp rises) , then HIGH. High is like a storm.. but very cool.. I liek it.. wish i woulda got the aluminum one tho.. :(

120mm Fan = teh ownage..comes tomorrow :) ,as do my 4 UV cathodes.. only 2 goin in my case tho.. <3:bounce:

[Mista K6]

Looking good^^ :thumb:

Well, I did this mod to my PSU, dunno if it'll help you. I took some of the fore mentioned plastic sheet foam, and cut it into little strips. I then electrical taped them between the different contact areas between the PSU and the case, and then screwed everything back together. My PSU wasnt really loud in the first place, but now its silent, try it :thumb: . : peace2: Mista K6