Quiet case & PSU for MY situation

[soundasleep]

Putting together a new build & trying to decide on a case & PSU for a quiet (not silent) system with decent cooling for my situation:

- No overclocking (stability & reliability is key)
- Primarily for music production / light video editing
- somewhat high ambient temp. for part of the year (Los Angeles)

Trying to use quieter/cooler components:

i5 2500
ASUS P8P67
Sapphire VAPOR-X Radeon HD5770 (should be cool & quiet, right?)
Crucial RealSSD 128GB – OS & programs
WD Caviar Black 2TB (x2) – media drives (non-RAID)
ASUS DVD burner

I was trying to keep the case and PSU each to $100 or less, but I would potentially spend more on something like an Antec 183 ($136) if it was deemed the best option

PSU: Cooler Master Silent Pro M 600W or ??

I’m leaning toward adjustable fans since the ambient temp. and CPU load will vary, so the Cooler Masters may be out. Here’s my current “short” list:

Antec Sonata Elite - $90
- 1 rear 3-speed 120mm
- 1 slot 3-speed 120mm exhaust blower
- side vent

Antec P183 - $136
- 1 rear 3-speed 120 mm
- 1 top 3-speed 120 mm
- 2 front (optional) 120 mm fan for HDD
- 2.50 Internal - 2 x 2.5" for SSDs
- Dual chamber design
- Three layer side panels


NZXT H2 - $100
- 2 120mm front fans, 1200 RPM
- 1 120mm Rear fan, 1200 RPM
- 1 140mm top fan, optional
- 3-speed fan control for all fans
- Noise dampening foam - front & sides

Antec 300 - $60
- 1 rear 3-speed 120mm.
- 1 top 3-speed 140mm
- 1 front (optional) 120 mm (HDD).
- 1 side (Optional) 120mm (GPU).

Antec Solo - $90
- 1 rear 3-speed 120mm
- 2 front (optional) 92mm
- HDD suspension system

Cooler Master HAF 922 - $100
- 1 front 200 mm Red LED on / off fan / 700 RPM / 19 dBA (can be swapped for 120 / 140 mm fan x 1)
- 1 top 200 mm / 700 RPM / 19 dBA (can be swappwed to 120 mm fan x 2 )
- 1 rear120 mm fan x 1 / 1200 RPM / 17 dBA
- 1 bottom 120 / 140 mm fan (optional)
- 1 side 200 mm fan (optional) (can be swapped for 120 mm fan x 2)

Cooler Master Sileo - $100
- 1 front 120mm
- 1 rear 120mm

 

[Doclife]

1). The best option is Antec P183
2). Second best option is Antec Solo, although it will be a bit tight, space wise, because of the wires that you have to run to your SSD and x2 HDD. In addition, all those wires from the SSD and HDD will partially block the air flows from the front x2 92mm fans to the video card.
3). 600W PSU is overkilled for your system. A quality 400-500W PSU is plenty for your system. This is a rebadged Seasonic PSU with very good pricing currently.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371047

 

[Silenus]

The Caviar Blacks will probably end up the noisiest thing in the system. For media drives you do not need 7200 RPM drives, which really only get you better access times anyway. Most modern 5200-5400 RPM drives are just about as fast on sequential I/O which is all that matter for media drives.

I've had very nice results with the Samsung Spinpoint F4 2TB drives. They are quick and quiet and less expensive at $80 on newegg right now.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152245&Tpk=hd204ui

I second the motion to reduce your power supply. A Sesonic S12II 380 or 430 watt would be a great choice and more than enough power.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151072&cm_re=s12II-_-17-151-072-_-Product

 

[Zap]

Antec Solo also has dampening pads pre-applied to the major panels. This is my vote for a really quiet system. Use two low RPM 92mm intake fans to take advantage of the front filters (and remember to clean out the filters periodically).

Why get a graphics card if you aren't gaming? Get one of the new Z68 chipset motherboards and use the integrated graphics. Use the money saved to buy a passive CPU heatsink like the Scythe Ninja SCNJ3000 or the Thermalright HR02.

I agree with Silenus that the WD Caviar Blacks will be noisy. Go for WD Greens or the Samsung F4. You'll also save money. If using in the Solo, use the suspension (just keep it in mind if you ever need to move the system, or the drives will slide out).

Such a system will likely use less than 150W under full load (CPU and IGP + HDDs) and will likely idle under 40W. A low wattage SeaSonic PSU would be perfect.

 

[soundasleep]

Thanks guys, noted about the PSU (I've been told before, I never learn). I was thinking about the HDD noise, too. Only thing is, I will be playing back Panasonic HD video files (28Mbps 1080p) from the drives, and doing light editing (mostly just chopping & joining). And for music, I could potentially be streaming lots of audio files at once, with jumping around and stuff. I figured I'd play it safe. But I hear what you're saying, Silenus. I should check out some sequential specs because I'd love to make at least one of them quieter/cheaper.

Now about the video card...I've been going back and forth about it, but after reading up on some audio forums (software I'll be using), I think I'm gonna go with the card. It's kind of a borderline thing, but again I'm gonna play it safe. I really don't want to have to change much once I'm done...

Regarding the dampening pads...from what I've been reading, the P183 has some kind of thing on the side panels too I think. Not foam per se, but some kind of material. I think...

 

[alaricljs]

I can stream 2 DVDs and 3 FLAC tracks off my WD 2TB greens and not notice issues, haven't bothered trying to get to the point where it's an issue tho. You could still go with green drives, just keep the vids on one and music on another. Migrate old data off to external drives.

The P183 is a panel sandwich, metal/crap/metal where the crap is some sort of dampening material.

 

[Zap]

Now about the video card...I've been going back and forth about it, but after reading up on some audio forums (software I'll be using), I think I'm gonna go with the card. It's kind of a borderline thing, but again I'm gonna play it safe.

Safe with what? Either the software requires something out of the card (3D acceleration, or GPGPU/OpenCL) or it doesn't.

The P183 is a panel sandwich, metal/crap/metal where the crap is some sort of dampening material.

LOL@ description.

 

[soundasleep]

Safe with what? Either the software requires something out of the card (3D acceleration, or GPGPU/OpenCL) or it doesn't.

I guess what I mean is, I keep reading about how the on-board graphics really aren't very good, and I DO plan on doing some basic 1080p editing. Also, if you have lots of tracks of audio running and you're watching all the waveforms, the video card can get pretty taxed. Granted, I won't be doing much (if any) gaming, so I guess 3D isn't too important. But since I can get a quiet, decent video card for $125, I'm just gonna go for it. It actually comes out close to $100 when you knock the 2500k down to a 2500. I'm gonna have this computer for a long time hopefully!

Regarding the M/C/M construction (maybe someone should trademark that?) - I guess it must work if the P series is always touted as quiet. Plus it keeps the crap factories in business.

 

[alaricljs]

If your software is not outputting 3d then the video card isn't getting taxed in any way. Outputting multiple waveforms in 2d (meaning no directx or opengl) isn't going to tax anything. 1080p editing isn't going to tax anything either (in the video output path)

2d data paths are old hat and sadly while it is true that 2d speeds have gotten lower as 3d has become more of a priority, your 3d card choice isn't going to help that any. Matrox has some of the best 2d output to be had (are they still in business?)

 

[Zap]

I guess what I mean is, I keep reading about how the on-board graphics really aren't very good

Do you understand why people say that? Here are a couple reasons that I can think of:

1) Cannot output 23.XXX FPS for BD movies.

2) Not good for high end gaming (AKA latest games with everything turned up).

3) Cannot do GPGPU except for transcoding (AKA no CUDA or OpenCL).

If you don't specifically need all three of those, then the only thing that you'll get with a Radeon 5770 is more money spent, more noise created, more heat created and more electricity used.

If you DO SPECIFICALLY NEED one of those:

1) Get a lower end discrete card than the 5770, preferably something that doesn't need a fan.

2) Get a higher end discrete card as 5770 isn't that great for high resolution latest games turned up all the way.

3) Something mid-range will suffice, but you will need to find out if the software runs better on Nvidia or AMD (there can be a big difference).

 

[lsv]

Antec Solo also has dampening pads pre-applied to the major panels. This is my vote for a really quiet system. Use two low RPM 92mm intake fans to take advantage of the front filters (and remember to clean out the filters periodically).

Why get a graphics card if you aren't gaming? Get one of the new Z68 chipset motherboards and use the integrated graphics. Use the money saved to buy a passive CPU heatsink like the Scythe Ninja SCNJ3000 or the Thermalright HR02.

I agree with Silenus that the WD Caviar Blacks will be noisy. Go for WD Greens or the Samsung F4. You'll also save money. If using in the Solo, use the suspension (just keep it in mind if you ever need to move the system, or the drives will slide out).

Such a system will likely use less than 150W under full load (CPU and IGP + HDDs) and will likely idle under 40W. A low wattage SeaSonic PSU would be perfect.

I'd go with the Solo but you can get more airflow and even quieter fans using the P183. Imagine 4 1150rpm Scythe Gentle Typhoons in there

 

[soundasleep]

Originally Posted by Zap

If you don't specifically need all three of those, then the only thing that you'll get with a Radeon 5770 is more money spent, more noise created, more heat created and more electricity used.

Yeah, I hear you. It's a thing in my brain about not using on-board video I suppose. Not logical I guess, but there it is. I just don't trust it for anything. But the card does run very quiet & cool, which is why I chose it over some slightly cheaper/slower cards.

 

[deimos3428]

Originally Posted by Zap
Yeah, I hear you. It's a thing in my brain about not using on-board video I suppose. Not logical I guess, but there it is. I just don't trust it for anything. But the card does run very quiet & cool, which is why I chose it over some slightly cheaper/slower cards.

A 5770 is only cool and quiet *relative* to other discrete GPUs. It's going to dump a lot of additional heat into your case. I wouldn't be concerned if you had great airflow, but quiet and airflow are diametrically opposed.

So I would highly recommend at least trying the on-board video out first; you'll be surprised how much on-board has improved. Then if it's not meeting your needs, buy the 5770.

As for adjusting the fan speeds, there's really no substitute for a quality front bay fan controller. You can adjust the speeds precisely on the fly for performance or noise, without mucking about in software and without opening the case. I'd recommend the Sunbeam Rheobus / Rheosmart models.

 

[soundasleep]

I was thinking about this last night and I think I've seen the light. As deimos suggested, there wouldn't be any harm in trying out the on-board graphics first and later deciding if I want to go discrete (if I'm not happy with the performance, or decide to do more serious video editing, or whatever). Kind of excited to see how quiet this system might be, at least at first.

So...I'll be switching to an H67 board (no overclocking or SSD caching needed). Would a basic Intel DH67CLB3 be reliable, or should I stick with a Gigabyte or something? It's cheap and it has everything I need, I've just never used an Intel mobo (usually ASUS or...hey...whatever happened to ABIT?).

I'm going with the P183 I think. Kind of a dumb question...the switches for the "TriCool" fans - they just dangle out on cables or something? Thinking I may sacrifice a little silence and get an adjustable front fan for the HDDs. I guess I'd either go with a TriCool type thing or something connected to a bay controller (though maybe not worth it for one fan?).

 

[alaricljs]

Top/back fan switches are panel mounted on the back of the case, bottom fan is dangling inside the case.

Abit folded btw.

 

[Zap]

So...I'll be switching to an H67 board (no overclocking or SSD caching needed).

You could do a Z68 chipset board, just in case. :hmm:

 

[soundasleep]

Sheesh, I just might have to. I didn't realize just how few full-sized ATX H67 motherboards there were.