Tips for making your computer quieter???

[lowrider]

What ever happened to the days when computers only had 1 fan (in the mighty 145W power supply) and were super quiet? I think everything about computers has advanced except the noise level they operate at.

Does anyone have a 1 GHz T-bird system that is quiet and stable? It sure would be nice.

I have a KT7-Raid housed in an Enlight 7237 case with a 250 W power supply. The HS/Fan is an FOP32-1. Any suggestions on how I could make my system quieter? I'd like to be able to watch TV without having to shutdown my computer.
I'd particularly appreciate it if somebody could suggest a good 250 or 300 W power supply that is quiet.

Thanks

-Lowrider

[daveleau]

I use an enermax 350W PS (got it in town, new, for $45). It has two fans in the PS and they are really quiet. I do have plenty of other fans to pick up the slack on noise generation though. http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/wink.gif
dave

One note...I have found that the CPU fan has been a primary source of noise for me in the past. I have used several Alpha HS's and they were all loud (and expensive). I now use Golden Orbs and they are MUCH quieter and perform better and are less expensive (can't get much better than that!)

[This message has been edited by daveleau (edited 12-20-2000).]

[mudoggy]

I too have found that the processor fans, even the little cheap ones included with many processors, are a major source of noise.. noiser than the PS fan!! I would have thought it was the other way around, until I did a test.

[lowrider]

I was thinking about getting an Agilent Arcticooler HS/Fan.
Has anybody used this and how well does it work? I hear they are pretty quiet.

[thekingofpain]

You might be able to semi line the case with Dynamat, its a sound dampening material common to the Car Stereo industry...(try placing a blanket over it first without blocking your "airways" thatl give you an idea if Dynamat might help) Dynamat is expensive at about 4$ or so a square foot, ive seen people use carpet padding, (15¢ a square foot) not sure how safe that would be tho?...

[This message has been edited by thekingofpain (edited 12-20-2000).]

[3beanlimit]

So your case noise is louder than you wife, after a bout of the kids eating all their halloween candy and bouncing off the wall?

Ok so lets quiet this puppy down!

Maximum PC had an article on just this subject.

Click here for the article. (http://www.maximumpc.com/reprint/silence/)

Hope this helps! http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/biggrin.gif

[AMD kicks]

I've noticed that if your system has a good "exhaust" fan(in addition to PS fan), you can disable the "intake" fan without much worry. The exhaust fan(if strong) will create low pressure inside the case by pulling air out thru the back this causes the outside air to rush in regardless if theres a intake fan or not. Also you can use foam pads that comes with your video, modem card, and use it to isolate the hard drive, the loudest part in the computer by far. You can also kill any unnecessary hdd noise by setting the computer to shut down the hdd sooner I set mine at 10 minutes, also saves electricity.

[lowrider]

Thanks for the tips. Keep 'em coming!

[Graham]

Fans are supposed to be quieter if the trailing edges are 'feathered', sort of zig-zag along the back edge.

G

[seti]

If you have intake and/or exhaust fans, removing the grills on the case can reduce noise quite a bit.

I have a fop32 as well. I find the fan gets a lot more noisy as any amount of dust collects on the blades. This is probably true of any fan, but I've only really noticed it on fop32's fan.



[This message has been edited by seti (edited 12-20-2000).]

[lowrider]

Are there any Socket A CPU coolers that are quiet AND perform well?

[Biff]

I'm with daveleau on the noisey alphas. I got a P3-125 and it's really noisey. There are articles around the web that talk about supplying fans with 7 volts instead of 12 to reduce the noise. You could start off at http://www.7volts.com/ Myself I have several fans that I put in pairs and run through rheostats so the fan speed and/ or noise is variable.

[Over Clocked]

I have almost the same exact setup except that I have 4 Hard drives and a lot more fans.

I have found the only way to get rid of the noise is to turn up the MP3z!!! I am serious... Get a set of the Klipsch Promedia that are 400 watts of bumping power, just like my ps) They get loud enough to cover up the noise. If you wanna watch TV, your gonna have to buy a tv card and turn it up loud.

I,ve been thinking of geting my comp and putting it in the room next to mine, drilling holes through the wall and getting an external CD-Rom and some long cables!!

[AMD kicks]

I have a little tip on air cooling I want to tell you guys. Right now I am trying to build my own case(full tower) out of wood, yes wood. Of the people who have done this, they say wood case are so quiet compared to regular steel cases. Wood has excellent sound dampening properties thats why good speakers are made out of wood and not plastic or metal. For this case, I will use a twin fan setup in the back of the case, then I will leave no other openings except a small maybe 3" hole in the center of the front face plate. This hole will feed a custom aluminum piping I've made directly to my Duron 700 heatsink fan which is also about 2 1/2 to 3" in diameter. So the result is I hope, all the air entering the case will go thru this hole then down the pipe then directly onto the heatsink. Remember that this air will be totally fresh not warm case air. Also, I have two exhaust fan which will drive down the pressure inside the case which I hope should create a turbo effect on the intake air tube. The only intake fan I will have in effect is the processor fan. I am hoping this project will go as plan if so I will post some pictures of it soon.

[ablang]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it possible to leave the CPU fan disconnected during any time but the summer? Or just off during winter months? Yes, even for those hot AMD chips.

[brandon184]

ablang, I would see that as incorrect.

A case pretty much has its own environment inside which is up to you to regulate. The CPU creates heat no matter what, as do other devices in the case.

So, unless your house is abnormally cool in the winter - I'd get the good old fans running all the time.

- Brandon

[skuz]

Some could tell I'm suicidal, but my secondary system (K6-2 333) has only one fan in the power supply, and there's none on the CPU, there's no other special cooling either.

Of course it's not overclocked. It only has a big heatsink that I found some years ago on a Pentium 166. By the look, it's obvious it hasn't been designed to have a fan on it. Even after a gaming session, you can still put your hand on it. It's hot alright, but not hot enough to burn.

I wouldn't use it for my K6-III though...

I only hear the sound from the power supply fan of this old AT case, and the Quantum drive that makes a typical hissing sound.

[Dave_H]

Here is a real quiet Power supply, it's expensive at 85 bucks for a 275w but It is really quiet.
The Silencer (http://www.pcpowercooling.com/products/power_supplies/ultra_quiet/index.htm)
That site also sells the Silencer fans at 9 or 10 bucks each.
Dave

[Szech]

I had an idea on how to make an almost dead-silent computer... Right now it's just a pipe dream, but if I get my hands on some time and money, it might become the plans for my next computer.

First off, the processor will be water cooled. The water will be led from the processor, to the pump, then to a radiator. I'll cut open the power supply, and remove the stock fan. I'll install a 120mm 12 volt fan into the power supply, that will blow the air out of the power supply, and blow onto the radiator. I'll splice the red and yellow wires, so the voltage will be reduced, and the fan will run quieter. This way, there will only need to be one fan in the computer, and that one fan will run quiet. I don't know what to do about the hard drive, but I might jack AMD kicks's idea and put wood around it to dampen the noise it makes. Anywho, that's my idea. If someone else does it first, tell me how it goes!

[lowrider]

Wow, so many good ideas!
I think my first step will be to get a quieter CPU fan. That seems to be making the most noise.
Any suggestions on this? Has anyone purchased one of those "TaiSol" HS/Fans?

[ablang]

My brother leaves his case cover off his tower, and we are always wearing sweaters in the house, so I guess it's about 60 degrees in the house, which should be cool enough for any AMD K6-2 CPU...