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about pump noise

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teamgreen

Member
Joined
May 19, 2004
I've been reading this forum and others, and I have gathered some knowledge about the pumps popular among water coolers and their stats. What I haven't heard much about is how much noise they make. At least not comprehensively.

What I want to know is how you guys would rank pumps by noise. I'm in the market for a new pump, and given certain specs, I want the quietest solution.
 
My maxijet 1000 is a great pump for what i paid (25USD) and its practically silent. If you let it set against metal it will be noisy from vibration, but mine is ziptied to a aluminum case and has a thick wad (1/4inch at most) of toilet paper under it so it doesnt rattle.
 
maxijet? that's a pump I haven't heard much about, but looking at some specs it looks like 265 gph and 5'9" head.

Maybe I should have specified that I need a high pressure pump. I plan on buying or have already bought a tdx, maze4 chipset, polarflo gpu, a fedco 2-378 rad (does anyone know what it's made of?) and a res.
 
i have a res, chevy heater core, maze 4 CPU, and about 17ft of total tubing because its an external cooling box. This pump hasnt skipped a beat, and im soon to be adding the NB and GPU blocks
 
I have heard that most 12v pumps like the iwaki and the MCP600 emit a higher pitched whine than the AC pumps, but are also much smoother running. Because AC pumps run at 60 hz, they all make the same slight vibration, but are generally much quieter. The DD D4 pump is supposed to be one of the loudest. My maq 3 is silent until I put it up against the case, then the entire thing vibrates. I believe it is best to have a vibration isolated AC pump for noise.
 
I was leaning toward the mag3. But wouldn't you know it? The only pet store around here that carries danner pumps only has the mag2 and mag5. I can order it online for about $50.
 
Why not go ehiem (sp?)
price, size

the hydor L30 II models are impressively quiet. i can't compare it with anything else though. vibration isolation is what it's all about when you're trying to make your pump quiet. I have mine suspended in mid air directly down from my heatercore, and it has worked just fine for keeping vibrations down
 
I will probably buy the mag3, but am willing to spend a little extra for a better + quieter pump. I am willing to buy an iwaki or siwftech if they are significantly quieter.

also, how much heat do these pumps generate? Can I go buck wild blocking sound outta the thing, or do I have to let some air blow over it?
 
Air flow will make it cooler which is the point. Like i said mine is just sitting on some padding in an open air box setup.
 
I have some different pumps, the L30 is very quiet when you have it on a piece of foam or in a suspension as stated above, you can only hear a small humming sound then. But my other pump a Swiftech MCP600 is totaly quiet, i cant hear it with the side panel open even. Im still awaiting another new Alphacool 1500 pump to get delivered, to se how that one behaves compared to the other ones.
 
I was between buying the mag3 and the swiftech pump. Price being the reason I am leaning towards the mag, but if the swiftech is really silent I am willing to spend the ~$30+ for it.
 
I can hear a slight whine from the swiftech. It's not really that bad, though. But I wouldn't say it's silent. I would say its about as loud as a moderately quiet 80mm fan.
 
I have a Mag 3. It vibrates, but it's not loud. When dampened properly (3 layers of mousepad for me) I can't hear it over other things in the case.
 
my eheim 1250 is silent. Use some rubber grommets in mounting to prevent vibration an it's good to go. Not to mention it's been running 24/7 for over 2 years. Pretty darn impressive and very well worth it! If you're wanting a stout pump for all those blocks this is definately one to think about.

J.
 
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