• We’re currently investigating an issue related to the forum theme and styling that is impacting page layout and visual formatting. The problem has been identified, and we are actively working on a resolution. There is no impact to user data or functionality, this is strictly a front-end display issue. We’ll post an update once the fix has been deployed. Thanks for your patience while we get this sorted.

I want a silent PC. What case should I buy? $300 max

G

Gozu

Banned
Well, the topic says it all. I have my computer in my bedroom and I want to leave it on 24h/24h but I have trouble sleeping because of that whining HD noise (i have a 100Gb and a 120Gb WDs). Don't get me wrong, it's because i'm quite noise sensitive (my wife isn't bothered at all). My cpu fan's noise is very low (god bless northwoods) and so is the fan of my antec trupower PSU. Really, it's those damn HDs that piss me off. Hum, anyways. I don't want to spend more than $300 and for this price, it wouldn't hurt if the case is good enough to last me 2 or 3 years.

So, what do you suggest?

ps: silentmaxx claim they have the quieter cases HERE. Can anyone confirm? For Only $135 for the black model, I'm tempted.
 
If I was using silent HDs, I wouldn't complain about their noise, now would I? 😉

No, unfortunately, the barracuda's are 80 Gb and I need lots of storage.
 
The Sonata is a popular, reasonably cheap "quiet" computer case. It has no insulation, but it has grommet mounts for your HDs which will reduce vibrational noise and a quiet single fan truepower. I have never heard of the case that you mentioned. After spending months trying different things I am inclined to say that a "quiet" case will never help as much as quiet components. I would suggest looking into the Seagate Barracuda V. A simple way to quiet your existing HDs is to set them on a piece of acoustical foam on the bottom of your case. This is very cheap and effective. As for a quiet case, look into dampening your own. You can buy foam and apply it to whatever case you like. Check out http://www.silentpcreview.com for a lot of really good silencing ideas.

Brian
 
Unfortunately, there really aren't any cases out there that are quiet out of the box. While the Sonata is nice, its PSU really isn't that quiet. The SLK3700AMB (which the Sonata is based on) is a cheaper unit that provides a solid base upon which to build a quiet machine. The ubiquitous Antec SX800/1000 models are also good candidates.

WDs are notorious for their awful whine. The Barracuda Vs are a good suggestion, but they're becoming harder to find as Seagate is quickly phasing them out in favor of the newer 7200.7 models, which do not have acoustic management in them. However, even the 7200.7s will going be a big improvement over the WDs.

I would personally recommend that you check out Samsung's new SpinPoint P80 hds. They're fast, cheap, and quiet. You can find them at Newegg, ranging from 60GB up to 160GB models. They carry 3 year warranties too.

It's also helpful to check out SPCR's Recommended section for more info.
 
I have a Maxtor DiamondMax9+. It comes with Acoustical Management software that allows you to manipulate the tradeoff between noise and performance. Knocking performance down a single notch from full does wonders for the noise and hardly reduces the performance of the drive at all (according to Sandra, anyway). Something to consider.
 
There is a case at Directron.com that is supposed to be a huge heatsink that connects to the various hotspots in a computer through heatpipes. It costs 300 dollars, but I'm not sure it's in stock yet. I would go with karmasalad's recommendation though. Get a SLK3700AMB, then get the 400w Fortron Source PSU, go to bestbyte.net and get one of the 80mm NMB's for 1.99 + 1.00 shipping, and replace the fan in the Fortron Source PSU. Numerous quiet PSU's from Zalman/SilenX/others are based off of the 400w Fortron Source PSU. It has huge heatsinks. In addition, it can easily hold it's own in power and rail regulation against Antec's and Enermax's, while being a lot cheaper. The SLK3700AMB is bigger than the Sonata, making it easier to work in, but still offers the grommet mounted drives and the 120mm fan mounts. Coolcases.com offers a modded version where grommets are added to the fan mounts and the "restrictive" (restrictive compared to a wire grill, but not to most) stamped grills are removed and other nice stuff is done. NMB makes great fans that are used in servers where reliability is a must. These fans are top quality for a good price. I have heard that they make clicking noises at lower voltages, which you might encounter with the thermal regulation that the Fortron Source 400w PSU offers, so you might consider getting a Panaflo L1A, which goes for 4.99 at KD Computers (5.00 flat rate shipping) and 3.75 at case-mod.com (I have heard that case-mod.com might have gotten a bad batch or something like that). You could go completely passive on your PSU too by getting one of the ProSilence ones, but they carry a hefty premium. Seasonic recently came out with a 400w PSU that is supposed to be great as well. With an efficiency rating of around 75-76%, it gives off a lot less heat compared to other PSU's.

If you still want more, you might consider buying Melamine foam from McMaster-Carr for 2.95 a sheet. I've heard shipping is extremely reasonable. I remember someone mentioning around $5 shipping for four sheets. Each sheet is huge, 24" x 24". They provide a great value and are supposed to work better than stuff like Dynamat or Akasa Paxmate. Acoustimat (sp?) is also a possibility, but it is much more expensive. It's available at SiliconAcoustics.com. I'm not sure how the Melamine foam does against the acoustimat stuff.
 
get silent drive enclosures or something. i've found that after silencing a pc, the harddrive becomes the most annoying. unless you buy very quiet harddrives, baracudas are supposedly quiuet.
 
get silent drive enclosures or something. i've found that after silencing a pc, the harddrive becomes the most annoying. unless you buy very quiet harddrives, baracudas are supposedly quiuet.
 
Just for clarification. The Sonata is not based on the SLK3700AMB.

I'm not sure that a case alone will help with HD whining though, just depends on why it's whining (ie if it's from vibrating in the case then a new case will help, if it's something within the drive a case alone won't do a lot of good).

AntecCSR
 
Yeah, I'd reccomend the Sonata as well. It has rubber things the hard drives rest on making it somewhat quieter and it comes with rubber grommets for the fans.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Back
Top