Noisy CPU Cooler

[David05]

Hi,

I have an Athlon 1700 with a thermaltake volcano 6cu cooler attached. The cooler is very noisy. I am thinking of purchasing a new cooler. I have been looking at the CNPS7000B-AlCu. Has anyone had experience with using this CPU cooler. Can someone recommend other quiet coolers?

Thanks

David

 

[perz]

it all depends on your wallet of course, the zalman is a great cooler as i understand.
But if you looking for cheap you can probably just purchase a small resistor cable or a zalman fanmate and attch to your volcano so it speeds down.

 

[harmonica]

I have the CNPS7000B-Cu. It's practically the same as the one you were talking about. I am happy with it, very good cooling-performance and very quiet. The price isn't a problem I would say...if I am not mistaking it's something like 30 euro,


greetz

 

[bill_bright]

Wait - you can't just buy this cooler and expect it to work. It is HUGE and it will not physically fit on many motherboard due to clearance. Also, many fans require mounting holes around the processor socket - not all boards have it and since you specify a fairly old CPU, chances are you have an old motherboard too - many old board do not have the required holes. Check the Zalman website for the HSF and verify your motherboard will support it.

 

[David05]

The motherboard is an asus a7v266e I checked it and it seems to have the holes. I bought a new fan. Hasn't made much difference.

 

[bill_bright]

The motherboard is an asus a7v266e I checked it and it seems to have the holes. I bought a new fan. Hasn't made much difference.

If it didn't make a difference, then obviously, the old fan was good. Check your other fans. Note the little 40mm fans on chipsets and video cards are notorious for going bad. With the case open and the PC running, stick your head up close and see if you can determine where the noise is coming from. You can put your finger on the fan hub to slow it down or stop the fan - just long enough to see if the sound changes or stops. Touch the metal case first to discharge any static buildup before touching any components.

I have an old A7V266 (not "e") and it does have the 4 mounting holes too. It does not have a chipset (Northbridge) fan, but your "e" model might. Video card fans are hidden under the card and hard to reach and see but you need to check that too.

Most power supplies have at least 1 fan - you can isolate that by putting your ear close to the PS exhaust.

Note that anything with a motor can make such noise - not just fans, harddrive and optical drive motors go bad too. You can power down, disconnect the power connectors for all your "extra" drives, and power up - not the boot drive to see if that is it.

 

[bill_bright]

Modifying motherboards is not for everyone - but certainly an option.

verndewd - I would suggest you reconsider your position about fan noise, however. I worked air traffic control radio maintenance in the Air Force for many years and all our transmitters had fans for the lighthouse tubes. Individually, each fan was not too loud, but with a room full of radios, it was certainly audiable, but never really bothersome.

However, long term exposure to the same drone causes permanent hearing loss at some frequencies. Not cool - as it now affects my hearing.

Additionally, many folks have more than one computer in their work or home office - with just 2 PCs, 10 - 15 fans is certainly noticable.

Also, more and more folks are using their PCs to watch DVD movies, or they integrate their PC into their entertainment centers. No one wants to hear a bunch of fans whirling about during quiet passages.

Also - though not a hard set rule, quiet fans are typically made to tighter tolerances - their bearings are more precise, resulting in less friction and less noise from the fan motor - meaning, they are better fans and are likely to last longer. Of course, if the fan is simply made to blast huge amounts of air, then "wind" noise is a given.

IMO, the goal should be cool AND quiet - not one OR the other.

 

[bill_bright]

when I can get watercooling I will agree with you whole heartedly 8)

Certainly, watercooling accomplishes both cool and quiet - but of course, introduces a whole new set of concerns. Fortunately, Intel and AMD are also addressing cooling concerns as new CPUs run cooler than some of the older models.

And where did you get the idea i was modding my motherboard?I modded my cpu heatsink? :?

My mistake, you did say "modded the CPU cooler". Sorry 'bout that Chief.

 

[David05]

I have now installed a Zelman cnps 7000Balcu. It has significantly reduced the noise. It is great.
However, the northbridge fan has been playing up also. It was really noisy. So I removed it. I have been running for about 4 days without a northbridge fan and have encountered no problems at all. Do I really need a northbridge fan? I also have removed the fan on my graphics card because it was burnt out. Do I really need these fans? My pc has been running fine so far, with the covers off.

 

[harmonica]

where there were fans you need fans or approved heatsinks, watercooling or something else that cools it...for the northbridgefan a mate of me bought a fanless heatsink solution also from zalman, but maybe other brands also have good solutions...whatever you do, don't just remove the fan and leave it at that I would say,


greetz