how loud is the thermaltake xaser III?

[Serp86]

i was going to buy it, but was wondering on how loud it was going to be?

how does it compare to normal cases with 1cpu fan (retail p3), 1 system, and 1 PSU?


does the fan speed controls help? and by how far will the temperatures go up?


Thanks in advance
Jonathan

 

[BenSkywalker]

Fairly loud, but it varries greatly on many factors.

When I have my CPU fan cranked up I don't hear any of the other fans, although that is loud as hell

If you use the stock case fans and connect them up to the speed controls then they aren't all that loud, although they put out more noise then a 'standard' PC for sure. I have replaced three of the stock fans in my case with louder fans(lit, nothing was wrong with the ones that came with them) and even when they are turned all the way up and my CPU fan is all the way down it isn't unbearable. Overall I just leave my case fans all cranked up, my processor fan makes them fairly inaudible.

The fan controls make a huge difference on my processor fan. When it is spun all the way up(5400RPMs) they thing screams, down to the lowest setting it isn't offensive at all to me. Temps in the case depend hugely what you are running. I have dual 7200RPM fans, a decently OCd AXP a GF4 and a really hot running sound card(!?) that throw a decent amount of heat but even then I turn the case fans down all the way there is no large spike in temps.

If noise is a big concern for you, I would not reccomend the case. Considering what it is though, it isn't all that bad.

Honestly speaking, the weight of the case was a much bigger shock to me then the noise. I have the V1000A(black one) and it weighs significantly more then a standard case, the size of it is also much larger then what I thought it would be. Not saying these are bad things, although the case is so large it wouldn't fit in my desk where standard cases have plenty of room.

 

[Serp86]

Thanks.

anyway, since sound is a bit of an issue to me i think i won't get it.

can you suggest a brand that makes good and low noise 80mm fans?

Thanks

 

[Compddd]

Of course its going to be loud if you leave the case fans on semi high- to high rpm mode, just use the fan controls on the case to turn all the case fans to the lowest they go, at lowest setting the Thermal Take Orange Case fans spin at 1300 rpm with 17 dba of noise, thats quieter then a P4 Zalman 7000 cooler, cant even hear them. I think the case is Awesome

 

[clarkmo]

Same case Supbly your own Panaflos

 

[OulOat]

Originally posted by: Compddd
Of course its going to be loud if you leave the case fans on semi high- to high rpm mode, just use the fan controls on the case to turn all the case fans to the lowest they go, at lowest setting the Thermal Take Orange Case fans spin at 1300 rpm with 17 dba of noise, thats quieter then a P4 Zalman 7000 cooler, cant even hear them. I think the case is Awesome

Haha, nice joke

 

[Fallen Kell]

WHAT WAS THAT AGAIN? I CAN'T HEAR YOU OVER ALL THIS NOISE.

 

[Compddd]

I fail to see what the joke is of my post OulOat, care to elaborate?

 

[amcdonald]

He put the 17db reference in bold print. Thats the joke.
I've got one of these and just got sick of hearing it.
However its volted its either audible, pointless, or an unsatisfying mix of the two...
Its now adding a bit of color to my box of extra fans.

 

[OulOat]

Originally posted by: Compddd
I fail to see what the joke is of my post OulOat, care to elaborate?

Elaboration:

Thermal Take Orange Case fans spin at 1300 rpm with 17 dba of noise

Just because they are orange doesn't mean they are Thermaltake Smart Fan 2, which, btw, is a POS. If you take a look at Thermaltake's own website about the Xaser 3, which btw, is extremely overpriced, it says the fans are "A1420 (TT-8025A), 80x80x25mm Silent Fan, 30dBA." Those fans are just their regular fan constructed in orange plastic. I also like how they claim they're silent; they claimed that the fans in the Xaser 2 is silent, and those are 21dba. Hm, being 8 times louder than a fan at 21dba, I fail to see how a 30dba fan is silent. Plus, I didn't add in the Thermaltake factor, +10 to all claimed dbas.

 

[BenSkywalker]

I think the case is Awesome

I'd agree with that completely, doesn't change the fact that it is loud. I fix people's PCs regularly, and my XaserIII is considerably louder then any OEM built PC I've worked on ever. Fit, finish, construction, features, quality are all exceptional, hands down the best case I've ever had or worked with. It is still pretty damn loud.

You said you can't hear your case? Where is it sitting exactly? Mine won't fit in my desk so I nowhave sitting on my desk where there is no way in hell you can't hear it, even with every fan turned all the way down. Noise isn't a mjor issue to me and I think its well worth it, but it is to some other people and for them I wouldn't reccomend it. Wait, actually, you could yank most of the fans out of the case and that would quiet it down quite a bit, maybe I'll try that at some point just to see what it does to noise v heat.

 

[Compddd]

how loud are the fans in 17 dba mode?

 

[joecool]

Originally posted by: clarkmo
Same case Supbly your own Panaflos

Hey, this seems like a MAJOR deal - the cheapest i can find the xaser iii for, with all of the fans and the hardcano thingy, is $145. since i'm not that crazy about the front of the xaser iii (kind of pimped-out!), or the way they installed the window (not big enough, you can't get a good view of either the cpu or the vid card!), this server case seems like the way to go for me. couple of questions:

- is the door aluminum, plastic, or steel?
- aside from the lack of thermaltake add-ons, is it really identical? ie, tool-less, thumb-screws, hd installation, etc?
- i notice it has filters for the front fans but not the side - is it possible to get filters for these fans? my current case is dust-covered, i'd like to find a solution to this problem!

thanks for the great tip!

-joe

 

[joecool]

hey, fyi, i went for the xaser iii and i LOVE it!!! this is one sweet case. the blue light on the front really looks sharp. sound is absolutely minimal - the included thermaltake fans seem to push about as much air at about the same sound level as my panaflo L1a's. my only complaint with the fans is that they do seem rather cheaply made. some of them have a little bit of a rattle, like the fan is loose in the housing. think i'll probably swap all of them out, but only 'cause i've got a bunch of panaflo's lying around. if i didn't i'm sure i'd be fine with the stock fans.

i do have one major complaint, tho. the hardcano fan controller just doesn't work very well. i love the concept and was expecting to get fine control of my fan speeds and sound level, however, the hardcano has minimal if any effect. i'm wondering if i got a bad unit. i'm going to contact thermaltake, if they won't replace it i will probably replace it myself - it really is kind of worthless. annoying considering this is one of the major features of the case! nevertheless, the other features are good enough to outweigh this negative.

hope this helps anyone considering this case. i'll post later about how the hardcano issue gets resolved.

joe