Continued: Quest to build the world's quietest computer.

[WATYF]

A while ago I posted this thread regarding my quest for the world's quietest computer. I received a lot of advice on the issue and I now have some results to report... some good.. some bad.

First off... this is what I ended up going with. (as far as noise generation/supression goes)

Silverado HS/F
Noblesse Case
Enermax Whisper Quiet
Abit Siluro GeForce4 Ti 4200
Papst 80mm Ultra Quiet.

I'm glad to say that most of the results are positive and here is a detailed summation.

1) Silverado: Bottom line.. this thing rocks! It was cake to install.. it makes very little noise, which you almost can't hear at all when the case is closed. (especially on the lower settings such as 8 or 10 volts) and it cools very well.

2) Noblesse case: Once again.. this thing rocks. I'm really happy with this case. It doesn't have all the annoying quirks that my previous two cases had and it looks sweet. The sides are studier than my previous cases so it holds the noise in better and its closing front panel suppresses sound very well.

3) Enermax Whisper Quiet: In my initial thread, I had mentioned that I thought this wasn't as quiet as I had wanted, but once I got rid of my old HS/F I found out that this PSU doesn't make much noise at all. I'm not ecstatic aboot it.. but overall I'm pleased with the performance.

4) Abit Siluro GeForce4 Ti 4200: I needed to get a new video card, and I knew that it would affect the noise level since it would have a pretty powerful fan on it, so I looked around. An article at Toms Hardware compared GeForce4 Ti4400's and Ti 4600's and showed that the Abit had the quietest fan of them all. (I was considering an MSI until I found out that it had a horribly loud fan) Well,.. I can tell you for the fact that Abit's Ti 4200 is just as quiet as their 4400's and 4600's. I can barely hear this thing at all, once everything is on. (oh yeah.. and the card smokes.. With the stock settings I got 9500 in 3DMark and with just a few minor tweaks (not even overclocking) I hit 10000)

5) Papst 80mm Ultra Quiet: This is the one thing I'm disappointed in. Everywhere I looked said that it was the quietest case fan, so I was expecting great things. Well.. I gotta admit. It's d@mn quiet... in fact... I can't hear it AT ALL!! do you know why?? Cause it doesn't move any air. I put my hand to the back of the case and couldn't feel a thing.. so I took the side off, dismounted the fan and put it right up to my face while it was running... nothing. If you so much as touch the blades of the fan, they stop,.. that's how weak the RPMs are. So it's the world's quietest fan,.. well duh.. anyone can make a super quiet fan simply by making one that doesn't really do anything. If anyone has this fan as has a different experience with it, please let me know. If I got a bum fan, I’d like to know, so I can return it.

So... I've got a great setup now. It's quieter than ever... (a mere hum in the background) but I have a bit of a cooling issue. Since the Papst doesn't do jack dookey for exhaust, I'm relying totally on the PSU for cooling the case. Which means that my CPU isn't as cool as I'd like it. Granted.. it's still in a very good range. (aboot 45C or so.) but if I get some decent case fans, I could knock the Silverado down to 8 volts and it'd be even quieter.

So if anyone's got any suggestions on quiet case fans that actually do something.. let me know..

Other than the Papst, though, I would recommend all the stuff I used for making a quiet setup.

WATYF

[shasha]

I knew the silverado would make you happy. They do rock. That PS will be even quieter if you can keep that CPU cool. I can actually hear mine speed up when it gets warm.

Check out my new system pics in my signature. I updated the page and am really happy with it.

[mellojoe]

Have you looked at the Panaflo 80mm fans? They are particularly quiet but move decent amounts of air. They are very well known to have the best noise/performance ratio on the quiet side of things.

Take a look at them.

[WATYF]

I will do that.. what's the best place to find em at?

WATYF

[muzikjunkie]

Originally posted by WATYF
I will do that.. what's the best place to find em at?

WATYF

look at the Vantec Stealth fans at newegg or www.sidewindercomputers.com they push about 27cfm at 21dba

[shasha]

Try here . I ordered from him a few years ago and was really happy.

[WATYF]

I found two others I might consider...

PC Power and Cooling's "Silencer" fan.. 27CFM (at 1600RPM) 20 dBA.

or

Quiet PC's 80mm fan.. 28CFM (at 1500RPM) 20 dBA

Anybody else using these???

WATYF

[Bootleg]

would water cooling be more quiet?

[raider1v1]

yeah, but water cooling is really expensive and you can still hear some tof the thing working and the fans over the radiatior too

[Hey Yoda]

Too bad you didn't get an Intel system... Then you wouldn't have had to buy the ultra expensive Silverado. The Intel stock hsf is just as quiet!

[wenus2]

The obvious answer is "larger fan" if it will fit, you can push more air for the same noise. I don't know how big your case is, and I'm too lazy to check, but if you can fit a 120mm exhaust that would be ideal, hehe. I can't beleive you're ont happy with your enermax psu, but I assure you their fans won't dissapoint. Enermax has one of the highest cfm/noise ratios, and they also offer a neat little fan (I bought 4 of them) that allows you to adjust the noise level/ airflow equilibrium to your liking.
This is where I got mine, their cs rep is great and so are their prices. click here to go to em and get the biggest one you can make fit. 120mm wink wink

[Praxxus]

Found this article while browsing around... They have some good ideas that you may be able to use if you haven't already tried them.