Lookin to make a few adjustments to my old system

[Spawne32]

Given the recent problems ive had ive decided to do a bit of an overhaul on 2 key areas, cooling and power. As of right now im using a Ahanix Zion case which is basically a cheapo 20 dollar steel case, and i drilled out the very restrictive air holes over the 2 80mm fan areas for more air movement and put wire grills over them instead. As far as fan cooling there is a standard 80mm LED exhaust fan in the back, a panaflo 92mm mounted on top of my thermalright xp-90, the stanard fans that came with the enlight 420watt power supply, and another cheapo 80mm fan in the front, the system is relatively loud and it sits right next to the speakers so ideally i wanna quiet the whole thing down a great deal, as well as keep a decent amount of cooling. As far as changing the power supply, the one i have now is mediocre at best now, it puts out alot of heat now and operates with only a single 12v rail at 18a, and i need more. So heres the list of what im thinkin of gettin...


- Possibly a new case with better airflow, need suggestions, somthing small in size too.
- SilenX Case Fans
- Power Supply with large 120mm fan and not alot of loose cables.
- if there is no built in temp monitoring system, some sort of aftermarket LCD type that mounts in a cd bay. much like this....
http://heatsinkfactory.com/shop/images/d_669.jpg

So what are your thoughts guys?

[phantasm]

Well I would stay away form the SilenX case fans. Better fans can be found elsewhere.

As for a PSU you can't go wrong with a PCP&C or a Seasonic or a Zippy for that matter.

As for the LCD displays: Matrix Orbital (http://www.frozencpu.com/cat/l3/g34/c141/s298/list/p1/Bay_Devices-LCD_Multimedia_Displays-Matrix_Orbital-Page1.html) is supposed to be really good.

Whats your budget like?

[Spawne32]

Well I would stay away form the SilenX case fans. Better fans can be found elsewhere.

As for a PSU you can't go wrong with a PCP&C or a Seasonic or a Zippy for that matter.

As for the LCD displays: Matrix Orbital (http://www.frozencpu.com/cat/l3/g34/c141/s298/list/p1/Bay_Devices-LCD_Multimedia_Displays-Matrix_Orbital-Page1.html) is supposed to be really good.

Whats your budget like?

the matrix orbital LCD display is farrrrr too expensive, im only lookin to put about 150 bucks in on upgrades here...im gona put a quick list together and you tell me what you think. Oh and why are you against the SilenX case fans, i hear they flow awesome amounts of air for the amount of noise....

[Spawne32]

SilenX Case Fans...

SX-12025-14 SilenX 120mm 14dBA Fan $23.95
http://www.silenx.com/productcart/pc/viewCat_Z.asp?idCategory=3


Newegg...

COOLER MASTER RC-330-KKN1-GP Black SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail $39.99
XClio 450BL ATX 450W Power Supply 115/230 V UL, CUL, TUV, CB - Retail $39.99

LCD Thermal Display...

Lian-Li 3.5in LCD Thermometer and Fan Controller Model "TR-3" Black $29.95
http://www.coolerguys.com/lianlitr3.html


the power supply is a reccomended midrange psu from the guys over at Hard ocp

[grumperfish]

Oh and why are you against the SilenX case fans, i hear they flow awesome amounts of air for the amount of noise....
Yeah they're alright when not next to a heatsink, grill, or anything restrictive. And that's just it... They're just alright. You can find much, much better fans out there that don't have to rely on deceptive business practices to be sold. They're also not anywhere close to silent. Do a forums search on SilenX and you'll see that many, many people dislike them for these reasons and others (see: highly overpriced and crappy bearings).

SX-12025-14 SilenX 120mm 14dBA Fan $23.95
I feel like this fan comes up EVERY TIME one of these threads pops up. 14db at the RPM's they list isn't possible. If you're sitting waaayyy away from your system you might get 14db, but within 3 or so meters... not a chance.




If you really want quiet fans look into some yate loons (http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=49&products_id=4041) or Scythe S-Flex (http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=49&products_id=4072) fans. Heck, you can buy 3 YL's for the price of a single awful silenx fan and I'd bet that all 3 of them running together would sound just as "quiet". You can even find YL's in orange (http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=49&products_id=4581).