Build a silent PC

[Phantasm66]

http://www.hardcoreware.net/reviews/other/silent_pc/1.php

Several companies are opting not to go the "extreme performance, LOUD operation" route, and are going for more of a sophisticated "sufficient performance, silent operation" approach. Thermaltake has been doing this for quite some time now, with temperature-based fan speeds and whatnot. Thermaltake does not make entirely passive heatsinks however, and remember that we are going for a DEAD SILENT PC here.

There are few companies brave enough to market passive heatsinks for high end setups, but Zalman, and recently OCZ Technology both have Pentium 4 solutions. We went with the Zalman unit, because as of press time the OCZ product was not yet available (although it has been announced and should be shipping any day now).

Zalman also has some video card solutions, and today we'll look at one of them for a passive video card heatsink solution. That's right, a passive heatsink on a highly overclocked GF4.

Thermaltake does offer a silent PSU, and that's what we're putting to the test today to take care of that usually noisy component.

Very few hard drive manufacturers market themselves as having a high end silent solution, but you'll find that not all drives are created equal. You won't normally notice the noise of a hard drive, but when you quiet everything else down, you wouldn't believe the noise that comes from a drive spinning constantly at 7200 RPM.

Keeping the case cool is going to be the trickiest part of our mission here.. Let's see what we can do about that...

http://www.hardcoreware.net/reviews/other/silent_pc/1.php

 

[LNCPapa]

Very nice! /me likes - would like to build a nice quiet machine like this but it's pretty far away on the radar...

LNCPapa

 

[Vehementi]

Dead-silent? Why? I wouldn't need one. I'm perfectly satisfied with my setup right now.

 

[Mictlantecuhtli]

Completely noiseless computers are usually needed in some cases, like in recording studios. I think it's a very Good Thing for home use too, especially for those who leave their computers on at night. I use passive cooling with my PSUs and gfx card, but CPU heatsink (the default one) is too small, I think. And mass storage devices aren't quiet either.

 

[young&wild]

DEAD SILENT pc? Unless they gonna suck out all the air from the tightly sealed casing to form vacumm..

 

[SNGX1275]

Vacuum....hmm, anyone know what that would do to heat dissipation?

 

[ss1]

I'm two thirds the way near a slient PC.

PSU: QuietPC.com 300W PSU
HDD: Segate Barracuda IV
Intake Fan: Evercool 80mm - running at 1,000rpm
HSF: Zalaman Flower Cooler with Fan in silent Mode (1,600rpm)


The only thing that is left making noise is my GeForce 4 Ti4400 card. I'm gonna change that very soon . The new Zalaman ZMP-80 is what I'm looking at .



ss1.

 

[Mictlantecuhtli]

Originally posted by SNGX1275
Vacuum....hmm, anyone know what that would do to heat dissipation?

If I remember my physics classes correctly, heat wouldn't go anywhere, it would just stay there until something that conducts heat is used.
It's like vacuum flasks.

 

[StormBringer]

Originally posted by Mictlantecuhtli
If I remember my physics classes correctly, heat wouldn't go anywhere, it would just stay there until something that conducts heat is used.
It's like vacuum flasks.

Right mic, but the things inside there getting hotter and hotter will expand and contract with the changing temperature and eventually the heat, along with everything else would go Everywhere.

 

[Phantasm66]

Isn't it a law of thermodynamics that heat always moves from a hot spot to a cold spot?

 

[Vehementi]

Yeah Phant...All energy seeks balance, so it gives it's heat to the next conductible thing until they both are the same temperature.. If you pour a few mL of 12* water into a gallon of 400* water what's going to happen?

Anyway I don't want to get back into my 9th grade Physical Science class, it definitely wasn't fun.

 

[techjohn]

Whatever happens, i believe they make power supplies with fans only, So, your Pc is going to make some noise.

 

[Rick]

Originally posted by Phantasm66
Isn't it a law of thermodynamics that heat always moves from a hot spot to a cold spot?

There are few exceptions to this from what I remember, but this is how it works for all intents and purposes. And here on earth it is especially true.

Even in a vacuum heat cannot remain constant... That would be a little too much like perpetual energy I'm sure.

 

[Per Hansson]

I have a DEAD SILENT PC!

It's an AST 75mhz with 8mb ram ;-)

I've removed the top cover and put a large heatsink on the cpu (no fan), then I've removed the cover from the powersupply to help the air get out (again removed it's fan)

I start it with a DOS bootdisk, then I make a ramdrive of 2mb and copy DOS onto it, change all variables to pint to the ram drive and remove the floppy drive. (it doesn't have a harddrive)

And viola, it's a dead silent PC!!!

Ok you say, isn't it overheating? nope, I'm monitoring the temps with diodes and the PSU and CPU never exceeds 40C...

It's running the Distributed.net OGR client (like Seti@home or United Devices but can run on much slower hardware and is compatible with virtually all platfroms...)

I'd like you guys to help me with something though, this AST doesn't have any prints on the mobo to show me what speed the CPU really is running at so I'd like a program like WCPUID (which displays CPU speed) but for DOS... (v7.10, i.e. the Win98 version of DOS)

 

[Vehementi]

I also have a :dead: DEAD :dead: silent PC.

It's off

I could get it down to 29dBa if I had watercooling...

 

[Mictlantecuhtli]

Originally posted by Per Hansson
I'd like you guys to help me with something though, this AST doesn't have any prints on the mobo to show me what speed the CPU really is running at so I'd like a program like WCPUID (which displays CPU speed) but for DOS... (v7.10, i.e. the Win98 version of DOS)

Holin Datentechnik has PC-CONFIG, it should show the speed.

 

[Phantasm66]

Quiet System Review: ARM Systems' STEALTH PC

 

[agissi]

But for a gamer, why have a "DEAD SILENT PC"? Its not worth your while....cool, it doesnt make noise - *wow*. Unless you want to leave it running 24/7, why? Whats the big deal¿It sounds like mine is dead scilent, unless absolutly nothing is happening in the house (which is only when every1 is in bed). And no, I havnt done anything what so ever to make it quieter. Just saying...

 

[Justin]

Having a silent PC (save the HDD) is no big achievement for non-gamers.

My server for a long time was a fanless p2 deschutes @ 400mhz. No CPU fan, no case fan, no power supply fan. The PSU got quite toasty but never enough to scare me.

VIA C3s 800mhz and below will run without fans, I believe (in fact they were designd to do just that).

 

[Per Hansson]

I use my comp for much more than just gaming...

Like now when I'm surfing in the morning; I can't turn up the music because then I'll wake the whole hose up...

And sitting listening to a loud fan then makes me go crazy, remember; this comes from someone who has been OC:ing for a looong time...

I bought the first Alpha 6035 aluminium cooler when it was released years back, ahh the memories

Oh; and I found a good progg "syschk." Thanks for the links though, and sorry for the delay in my reply

 

[iss]

I built a dead silent PC once......until I figured out I had hooked the power switch connection on the board wrong it was completely silent.

 

[Vehementi]

I probably have the best performance to noise ratio here. My PC can't be any more than 30dba, and well, I recently posted my temps in the temps thread, and as you can see my PC is very cold

My previous PC was pretty dang quiet. Had a tiny 40mm fan spinning on the CPU, one single 80mm case fan not moving much air at all, and a single fan PSU.

 

[Justin]

While we're on this topic, just FYI, I ran a Pentium II 400mhz (Deschutes core) @ 504mhz in a closed case for months (it used to be my server). No GFX card fan, no CPU fan, no PSU fan (sidemount heatsinks and a removed back cover, also low wattage), and the hdd was very quiet to begin with. I put cotton padding near it (was moved to a 5 1/4 bay) save the airhole, and once the case was sealed it ran virtually "dead silent" for about 7 months, before I replaced it. Never had one issue with it either.

 

[Nick]

a cold cpu is a happy cpu

 

[Vehementi]

But not too cold.

(/me wonders if someone just wanted to reach 100 posts...)