Reserator 1 Plus

[godra]

In search of absolute(?) silence.
Total novice to water cooling.
Got $1500 to spend. Need advice.
Thanks in advance.

Lian-Li PC-V1100B Plus (Black) or PC-V1200B Plus (Black)

Zalman RESERATOR 1 Plus:
CPU Water Block (ZM-WB3 Gold)
VGA Water Block (ZM-GWB2)
Northbridge Water Block (ZM-NWB1)

Zalman ZM400B-APS
Serial ATA Cable w/SecureConnect (WDSC50RCW)
Western Digital Raptor WD740GD 74GB Serial ATA150
Seagate Barracuda 7200.8 250GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache IDE Ultra ATA100

Abit AV8-3rd Eye K8T800 Pro

AMD Athlon 64 3700+ CPU (San Diego) - Serious intent to overclock;-)

CORSAIR XMS (4 x 512MB) TWINX1024-3200XLPT

SAPPHIRE Radeon X800XL 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 VIVO AGP 4X/8X
SAPPHIRE PCI Interface Theatrix Theatre 550Pro TV Tuner
(Already have both barely running in Shuttle SS51G)

NEC Black DVD/CD R/W/RW DL ND-3540A

My concerns:
- Does Abit AV8-3rd Eye support installation of all 3 Water Blocks? If not, any AGP 939 MB that does?
- Will Zalman ZM400B-APS be able to support this system? (OC, 2Gb of Mem, gamming)
- Enough room for water-cooling in PC-V1100B Plus?
- Not enough sound isolation by PC-V1200B Plus? (Raptor, PSU, DVD Burner)

 

[Tiamat]

Raptor is very quiet in idle. Only do you hear it seeking. You cant really hide the seek noise completely.

My Seagate Barracuda 7200.8 is much noisier than my raptor. So good luck with that...

If you get either Antec Phantom, or Seasonic S12 power supplies, you should be fine.

Isolate the fans from the case with EAR isolators.

Suspend your harddrives using bungee cord.

After that, should make a pretty quiet computer at idle. If you want silent, you are going to have to spend at least 10x your budget as solid state harddrives cost $8000-$16000 for 8GB and 16GB respectively.

 

[Operandi]

Here are my issues with that proposed system.

Zalman ZM400B-APS

That PSU will power that system fine but it's not as quiet as you may think. It's defiantly not load but compared to Reseratrtor it will be noticeable. Unless you do a fan swap a Seasonic is about the quietest actively cooled PSU you can buy and a better choice.

CORSAIR XMS (4 x 512MB) TWINX1024-3200XLPT

Stick to as few DIMMs as possible. If you want 2GB get it in the form of 1GB DIMMs x2.

Western Digital Raptor WD740GD 74GB Serial ATA150

If you decide to get this drive you'll want to make sure it's one of the newer models with the fluid bearings, not the old (loud) ball bearing motor.

 

[godra]

Tiamat & Operandi,

Thanks for the tips!

Never heard of Seasonic before. Checked the Net and found good reviews on S12 500W unit. Newegg carries it.

Tiamat, can you be more specific on bungee cord and ear isolators. Don't forget, you are dealing here with a novice when it comes to a silent PC.

Also, how about Mb and all those holes that water blocks need?

 

[Tiamat]

Originally posted by: godra
Tiamat & Operandi,

Thanks for the tips!

Never heard of Seasonic before. Checked the Net and found good reviews on S12 500W unit. Newegg carries it.

Tiamat, can you be more specific on bungee cord and ear isolators. Don't forget, you are dealing here with a novice when it comes to a silent PC.

Also, how about Mb and all those holes that water blocks need?

I dont know much about water cooling, however you should pay Silentpcreview.com a visit. It would be wrong of me to steal all of their hardwork and make it seem like my own.

Mcmaster-carr carries bungee cord. I got the 3/16" black ones and if you do a search in the archives of "HDD Suspension" and Tiamat as the author, you will find pictures. (Case and cooling section).

EAR isolators - McMaster Carr also carries these in packs of 20. (5801K6) is the item number and specific size you want.


Also, do not mistaken a silent pc with a very quiet one. You are going for a very quiet computer - not a silent one.

For media, i would suggest getting some Samsung Spinpoint HDDs. There are the new 200GB ones and the older Nidec motor 160GB ones. The Samsung is as quiet as the Fluid Bearing Raptor at idle, and much quieter during seek (than the raptor).

 

[Mrvile]

I might consider a different motherboard. I don't think VIA K8T800 chipsets overclock very well, you're probably better off with an NF3.

 

[Operandi]

Originally posted by: godra
Tiamat & Operandi,

Thanks for the tips!

Never heard of Seasonic before. Checked the Net and found good reviews on S12 500W unit. Newegg carries it.

Tiamat, can you be more specific on bungee cord and ear isolators. Don't forget, you are dealing here with a novice when it comes to a silent PC.

Also, how about Mb and all those holes that water blocks need?

Seasonic make some of the best PSUs out there, they also happen to be some of the quietest.

Here is a link to the E-A-R HD mounts. I have them in my Lian Li 6070 they do make a pretty dramatic difference. They can be tougher to install then regular screws though since the isolator has to sit between the HD and the case.

Regarding the motherboard and the water blocks; I would email Zalman and see if they can give you specific details about compatibility. Zalman is known to have pretty good tech support they should be able help you out. As a side note I don't really think you need a block on the north bridge, the stock passive heat sink should be enough.

 

[0roo0roo]

you should be getting a p180 or sonata 2, not a lian li if you are going for silence.

 

[0roo0roo]

too bad its 2x ur budget http://www.voodoopc.com/eden.aspx

 

[jdogg707]

For the PSU, look at the new Antec 500W Phantom, it should allow you to maintain a quiet system, while also providing enough juice to current and future components.