Shutting up 2 fans

[SneakyStuff]

Hello, I own a Dell Dimension 4500, and this will be the LAST computer I ever buy from a manufacturer, but until I make my own, i'm stuck with it, so I might as well make the most of it, the system has 3 fans total, a CPU exhaust fan attached to the back of the case, with a sheathe over the CPU heatsink, a PSU fan, and a video card fan.

The video card fan makes very little noise, so that's really not a problem, but what REALLY bothers me is the noise that the CPU exhaust fan, and the PSU make. Are there any tricks that can damper these noises down a bit? It just seems like the CPU fan is rattling around, and is jet engine loud. the PSU fan is also pretty loud. I've made sure that both fans are SNUGLY fit, used a que tip to clean off all the dust, but the noises persist. The only other step ive taken is to put my case on a carpet square, so it's not on a wooden floor. Any ideas? Thanks

EDIT: here's a link to what my case looks like, HERE

 

[OulOat]

Yes. Buy two new fans.

 

[Dman877]

Ways to quiet fans:
Mount on rubber grommets (won't result in much dif)
Sound proof the case (lot of work, may, depending on the quality of workmanship, help noise a little)
Use a fan controller to lower fan speed (can lower noise significantly but at the cost of cooling capacity)
Buy high quality low speed fans (panflo L1A would do wonders and probably puts out close to the cfm your Dell case fans do)
Switch to water cooling

 

[SneakyStuff]

is there a replacement power supply for a dell system? that is silent?

 

[Dman877]

If it's a standard size case, I imagine any atx psu would work. If silence is important get an enermax or antec higher end model.

 

[kamper]

no, you can't swap an ordinary psu into a dell, different connectors...

I would also recommend against a voltage regulator, especially for the case fan. That thing is the only fan drawing air of your processor and I don't think Dell left too much room for screwing around with stuff like that.

As for my recommendations, I think replacing the case fan wouldn't be a big deal. I have the same problem (w/a Dell) and I've considered doing the same but have never gotten around to it. As for the psu, you could open it and find out if a standard connector is used for the fan in there. But that sort of thing is generally a little more dangerous than messing around with case fans. Do your research first.

I've heard of some companies that make replacement Dell psu's but I don't know who they are. Probably expensive though, and it might not help all that much.

You could try putting a simple baffle over the exhaust. Just make the sound bounce off some cardboard a few times before coming out. Just make sure that there isn't a real hindrance to the air coming out

 

[SneakyStuff]

Ok, here's what I did. I cut a carpet square and put it onto the wall behind the pc to absorb some of the sound. I got some rubber foam, placed it as a buffer between the psu and case, and the fan and case. And I must say, it has actually shut the PSU up quite a bit. Now as for the CPU fan, it's still annoying, but better. Thanks kamper for the advice, I guess i'll just have to deal with this crappy case until I make my pc.

 

[kamper]

thanks for experimenting, I may follow your lead

can you post pictures of your foam work? is it just thin sheets at the contact points of the fan and psu? If I understand correctly you've killed most of the noise just by catching the larger vibrations (I'd have thought it was the fans whirring), very cool.

If you're interested in fan replacement here's an article on power supply fan replacement.

 

[SneakyStuff]

Now THAT'S an interesting little read , well sorry, I can't post any pics, now anyway, I gave my digital cam. to my dad for some ebay pics

But all I did was take the PSU out, cut some rubber foam to go along the side of the PSU that touches the case, and squeezed the PSU back in, snugly this time, Now the annoying thing about the dell cases (dimension 4300-4550) is the extra fan grate, in front of the psu fan grate! which makes for 2 metal grates. I got a piece of thin adhesive mounting, and placed that in the middle of the fan grate of the PSU, so it didnt affect airflow, and this seperated metal from metal. And as for the 80mm fan, you know how it is in a screwless enclosure? I cut some more foam, and used that to brace the fan, it doesnt jiggle around at all now. Well I hope my writing was as good as a pic, but you know what they say, a pic. says 1000 words

 

[tracerbullet]

Was the machine always that loud? Dell's are usually thought of as being pretty quiet from the factory. We use a ton of them at work and I've been impressed by them.

If you do decide to go with a Panaflo or similar fan, remember that there are several speeds of them - L, M, H, and U. These correspond roughly to low, medium, high, and ultra for the air flow rates (and unfortunately noise as well). I'd consider at least the M fan for the power supply, ditto for the chip actually. The L fans (ie L1A) are very quiet but might not be enough airflow for you.

I can't say if they are for sure or not, just be mindful of it.

 

[kamper]

thanks sneaky, that's about what I wanted to hear, I wonder if it'll work for me?

question about fans: I think they would be temp controlled in some way (mine is always loudest at boot, oh but that doesn't make sense, they don't get louder when I crunch seti). but anyway, if you were to put a low panaflo in there and not enough air was being moved could the mobo overvolt it to make up for the loss?

 

[SneakyStuff]

Dell PSU fans do use temp sensors to control the fan speed, and in response to bullet's comment, Dells are indeed DEAD silent when you first buy them, but after having mine for 2 years, it has become QUITE loud.

 

[InlineFive]

Originally posted by: SneakyStuff
Dell PSU fans do use temp sensors to control the fan speed, and in response to bullet's comment, Dells are indeed DEAD silent when you first buy them, but after having mine for 2 years, it has become QUITE loud.

It's probably because there's so much dust in there! The fans are temp controlled so they can be really quiet when the machine is fresh from the factory, because there is no dust build up. But after dust builds up the fans need to keep going at high speeds to cool the system.

So I say go buy a can of compressed air and blast that thing out!

-Por

 

[Abzstrak]

Originally posted by: SneakyStuff
Dell PSU fans do use temp sensors to control the fan speed, and in response to bullet's comment, Dells are indeed DEAD silent when you first buy them, but after having mine for 2 years, it has become QUITE loud.

If this is happening, something is wrong with airflow now or the fans... if they're cheap sleave fans, replace them before they completely screw you... Chances air the fans are dying if they're making noise now, but did not before.

 

[0roo0roo]

cheap sleeve fans wear out after a year sometimes, but would dell go with sleeve fans instead of bearing? grinding fans sounds like rattling sometimes.