My system is freakin loud!!! (for me at least)

[The masterless newbie]

Greetings everyone!!
I just did some cooling mods on my system... I installed an alpha pal6035 w/ a 27cfm ys tech fan, a slot cooler(one of those PCI slot doohickeys), and a 60mm 22cfm exhaust fan. It works great. My case temp is around 22 degrees C and my cpu's running at about 37. There's only one problem. This thing is really freakin loud, at least compared to all my roommate's comps. I was wondering if there were any techniques people have used to deaden the noise from the case w/o hurting cooling? Dynamat perhaps? Anyone try this? Any input is greatly appreciated!! Thanks everyone.

 

[asmodean]

I have 13 fans at the moment, gonna add some more.
Noise-reduction is an issue nowadays. That dynamat is a good idea.

Sorry for the shortness, I just translated 2 pages of HTML from finnish to english...

 

[The masterless newbie]

I've actully seen people use egg cartons... does this really work?

 

[e_storm]

The masterless newbie (Apr 18, 2001 02:14 a.m.):
Greetings everyone!!
I just did some cooling mods on my system... I installed an alpha pal6035 w/ a 27cfm ys tech fan, a slot cooler(one of those PCI slot doohickeys), and a 60mm 22cfm exhaust fan. It works great. My case temp is around 22 degrees C and my cpu's running at about 37. There's only one problem. This thing is really freakin loud, at least compared to all my roommate's comps. I was wondering if there were any techniques people have used to deaden the noise from the case w/o hurting cooling? Dynamat perhaps? Anyone try this? Any input is greatly appreciated!! Thanks everyone.

I hear ya man ... I had a similar setup, had a PIII 700 @ 933. I wasn't going anywhere near the speed that some of the guys on this forum do, and I had 3 case fans, 1 cpu fan, and 1 vcard fan, just to keep it cool. When all was said and done, it sounded like a tornado ... but very cool I backed it back down to 700 and took the fans out becaue I couldn't stand the noise (its in my bedroom).
I would also like to know if there is any way to keep a cool system, but quiet too with maybe a little overclocking.

 

[Karsta]

I have used bitumen for taking off the resonance from the case (it's sold as thin arcs with adhesive on other side - at least here in Finland). Everywhere I could I put insulation material normally used to insulate machine rooms in boats. It has also adhesive and is like dense foamed plastic. It is sold in various thicknesses. Important thing is to make insulation as continuous as possible cause noise "leaks".

And of course rubber grommets between skrews. I built a stainless steel shield (or L-formed tube) couple cm away from front fan outside the case so that air intake is farther away from me. It is also a good idea to avoid things in front of fans. Lowering fan speeds and using larger fans help alot.

My computer still keeps some noise (hard drive is the most annoying one) but is much better than before. It's quite tight but motherboard temp holds 1°C over room temp - this with one 92 mm intake fan with lowered speed (2300 rpm - full speed 2800 is not markedly more efficient) and PSU's 80 mm fan blowing out. GORB may not be best hsf but it works great for me and is not loud. I also noticed that the more fans I put inside case the more temp and noise rises.

I don't have extreme overclock (P3 700@805) so the heat is not so big issue for me - but having case open doesn't lower much my cpu temp.

 

[-=UR=- Ranger]

If you want to overclock a lot, without much noise, watercooling is the way to go. There are several kits available, which are not very difficult to install, and offer good performance...of course at a price

 

[Szech]

I feel your pain. Computer noise is like a jackhammer to me (I'm in the CS labs a lot). Anyway, I found a lot of useful information off of www.7volts.com on how to quiet a computer. Very interesting stuff.

Once this quarter is done for me, I'm planning on building a dead silent computer. The plan so far is to water cool everything, then lead the heated water to a passively cooled heater core, then to a second heater core that will have two 80mm low speed panaflos (21 dBa) blowing on it with a temperature sensor. This will be in addition to all the other quieting techniques off 7volts.

 

[The masterless newbie]

Hey shaun...
It's me Earl.....

RoninX74=the Masterlessnewbie=Earl

hehe...

 

[William]

well there is a guy who built some noise baffles in the Alternative Modding Section of the forum. Very slick design. You could also use a voltage regulator on the fans to turn their RPMS down reducing noise at the cost of airflow. Just a choice though. You could also go to much larger fans which would allow you to run them really slow and still get the same amount of airflow that you have now. They also would produce a much lower pitched noise, which is not as annoying as the high pitched squeel of some fans(cough Delta cough cough)

 

[Szech]

Earl?!? What's poppin'?! Damn, didn't recognize you. The puzzle comes together...

Anyway, did I show you my power supply? You can check it out here at My project page. I admit it's a pretty half-***, temporary solution, but I haven't had the time to size out the water blocks for my power supply. If you want, I can cut your PS open after midterms. While we're at it, we can drop in some panaflos. I got mine from 2cooltek.

After midterms next tuesday, I should also be able to build that fan adapter in metal shop. I already bought 4 square feet of aluminum, and it's just kicking it in my car. I'm going to be buying some stuff from allelectronics, so if you want me to add some rheostats for you to quiet those case fans down, just give me a holler.

BTW, hold off on the dynamat, it's pretty damn expensive (about $45 to cover your case) compared to low noise fans or temperature controlled circuits.

I'll hit you up later.

 

[The masterless newbie]

Hey what up shaun...

Thanks for the offer... When are you done w/ midterms? Anyway how much do those rheostats run? Hehe... I just shelled out some cash for ramsinks, a compunurse temp probe, a blue orb, some rounded wires, and a non-conductive shim, so i'm running low on endz. I'm getting the o/c'ing itch, so i'm gonna go after my vid card first since my mobo is kinda holding me back w/ the cpu o/c'ing. And I haven't even unlocked the thing yet. So wait up on the dynamat huh? Cool. Anyone tried the eggshell carton thing?? I'm kinda pressed for space cuz my case is pretty small. PEace!!!

 

[Szech]

I just found it really funny that your sig says "Budget PC!" and you're talking about all the funds that are going in it . I just looked up the rheostats, and they're about $4 each. You could hook up all your fans to one rheostat, but that would mean slowing them all down. If you want, I could just hook up a resistor in-line, and they would run slower/quieter all the time. Resistors are dirt-damn cheap, so if you want to do this, don't even worry about getting me back. I don't recommend you do the 7 volt wiring though. I had my exhaust fan hooked up that way, and I think that it was causing my drive problems. I think...

The eggshell carton (assuming it's packed cardboard and not the foam type) should take care of some lower frequencies. But your case is pretty damn small, so I think you'd have to put it on the outside or something. Another temporary half-*** solution is to put your computer behind your desk. Of course, accessing it is a pain in the ***, but it does work.

I'm done with my 152 midterm Tuesday, and I'm probably going straight to the shop to build my waterblocks. I'll bring some of the sheet metal for your proc.

 

[The masterless newbie]

Cool cool... I just put a temp probe in and it at alright temps on the inside. 28.6 C isn't too bad is it? Sounds low enough to me... only 2-3 degrees above ambient. Peace!