PC Silence

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itotallybelieveyou

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Jul 6, 2007
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Ok I've had my new build for about 6 months now. I've recently started noticing it's really loud and everyday I wake up in the morning I turn it on and it's screaming loud and I never get used to it. I have the NZXT Apollo Case (obviously not designed for silence.... or airflow), E6600 with Arctic Freezer 7 Pro and 8800 GTX with stock cooling. Anyone have ideas on how to shut it up. New watercooling system for CPU and GPU or New Case design for silence? PC is sitting on glass table if it has anything to do with the loudness.
 
Try setting the case on something other than the glass case. Have you cleaned your system recently? Dust buildup can raise the heat enought that the fans need to spin faster.
The 8800GTX "usually" runs very quiet. AC Freezer 7 Pro is fairly quite a low RPMs-are you running an OC'd system?
Have you run the CPU & GPU fans at lower RPMs and checked if the temps are still OK?
The NZXT case fans are usually quite as well but you should experiment by running them slower, or off, while you're trying to figure out what is causing the noise that is bothering you.
You'll need to experiment and find out what is creating this "noise" thats bothering you.
Wouldnt be much fun to toss a water cooling system for the CPU/GPU to find out your case is just as loud as before.


 
It would be pricey but you could replace your case with a quiet one like the Antec P180/P182. They have sound deadening which is supposed to really help. Also if you get an Tuniq tower or Thermalright Ultra 120 you should probably see some benefit as well. Another way to approach this would be to open up your case and see what components make the most noise and work from there.

-mcg
 
I've pretty much noticed my new rig is quiet with 120mm fans, and 140mm front fan (all on fan controller), compared to my 4 80mm fans in my old case, which I still like. :lol:

So, ya I agree with Mr. CG
 
Listen to your PC to determine where the sound is coming from. Then check / replace that part.

You don't necessarily need to buy the Antec P182. When building a quiet PC, there is more to it than just the case. All your other parts needs to be quiet too.

Check the for dust since that can cause heat build up.
 
http://www.3btech.net/blat90gacawl1.html

Bought this case and an Orion 585w super-silent PSU.
Comes with one fan, but theres three fans in it right now, and I will be getting one or two more.
EDIT: forgot to mention Intel C2D stock fan, GeForce 8400 stock fan, but trust me, it wasn't worth mentioning anyway...
1x 92mm rear fan (getting a 120mm for that spot, not controlled, came with case)
1x 80mm GPU blower fan (front panel control, took from old case)
1x 80mm high-rpm CPU blower fan (goes in the shroud on the case, front panel control, took this out of the first PSU I got for my old computer. Was loud as a rock concert when it was in the PSU, but boy did it push air! With a fan controller keeping it to 1/3 speed at idle, its quiet though.
When I buy the 120mm fan and replace the 92mm, I'm either going to put the 92mm in the front of the case (cuz there isn't one there now) or get another 120mm for there.

All in all, this is one quiet case. Even with the fans all set to max (which I almost never need to do, the GPU blower spins up once in a while, that's about it), I don't need to adjust my volume or anything. And when the fans are at idle setting, I wouldn't even know it was on if it wasn't for the front LCD :)

Couple of minuses about the case: when you push a button on the front panel it emits a pretty damn loud beep. And the same speaker that emits the button-push beep also is responsible for the overheat/fan-failure alarm. I just took the backplate off and stuffed a bit of Kleenex in the little speaker. Also, I think it's just my case, but the CPU blower fan controller seems to be not working, I'm using the HDD one instead (the fan that the HDD controller would normally use isn't there...)

Yes, when the computer is running full-tilt, playing the most advanced games I can, the CPU blower will kick on and you will hear it. But you need to make allowances for performance. Even the most silent (gas powered) car will still make noise at top speed; expect the same from your computer. But for $70.00 this case is just the right mix between silence and performance.

:sol:

EDIT: Then again, I work in a noisy environment; going deaf is a very real possibility for me 😛
 
First, find out where the noise is coming from. Take a cardboard tube like the center of wrapping paper. One end goes near your ear, and the other to suspect parts of the PC. You should be able to pick out the noisiest parts.

Noise comes from fans running fast.

The 8800GTS/GTX are great cards, but they will be the biggest heat generators in your computer.
It is good that the stock cooler expels most of the heat out back through the extra slot. The stock coolers are quiet too.
OEM replacement coolers are good at extracting heat from the GPU chips, but without rear exhausts they don't help the whole system because the recirculated hot air puts added load on the cpu and case coolers.
The 8800 has four slits which let hot air back into the system which increases the case heat, and ultimately puts extra load on the cpu cooler.
I have found it very effective to add a slot cooler like this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811999704
Mount it just below the 8800. It has a speed knob so you can adjust the cooling vs. noise equation.
This will help both vga and cpu temperatures.ng at high speeds.
Look for reasons why your cpu/psu/vga fans might be ramping up and see if you can eliminate them.

A glass table can act like a sounding board. See if you get relief by moving the PC, or at least putting some rubber cups or such under the PC
 
I have an Antec P150 (yes... it's a little tight) with a water cooled e6600 and i love it! I think a 182 would probably be even quieter since it has better noise-proofing than the P150/Solo. I had it up to 3.6 but I had to run the fans on my triple rad a little faster than I liked due to the jacked voltage. At 3.4 I give my yate-loon's just enough juice to spin up and I hear just a whisper. I run F@H console on one core and F@H GPU with the other core/GPU (1950pro 512) so both cores and my vid card are maxed 24/7 and my temps are mid 40s.

My 500GB AAKSs are suspended too which helps with vibration.

Water is an expensive option, but for me at least it was worth it. You can get the same level of silence with air, but I don't know how to get quiet and a solid overclock with air. Plus, most of my water gear will survive at least a few upgrades so the investment does last a while.

1/2" custom cooling with Swiftech blocks on CPU/GPU/NB. Swiftech triple Rad (using radbox off the back) and DDC pump w/Petra's top.
 
Usually through the BIOS settings or the motherboard utility programs (either through RPM or voltage adjustments). Be sure to monitor the temps (idle and load) when you slow down the fan speeds.
A couple other things you can check. Make sure the fan blades are clean - any grease and dust build up can alter the way a fan sounds. Also check the fan blades for nicks or other damage for the same reasons.
If the lower RPMs doesnt reduce the noise or let your OC'd CPU keep good temps, and there is no fan damage or problem with dust/grease build up you might be able to swap out the heat sink fan to reduce noise. Check how the fan mounts to the heat sink and judge if can be easily replaced.


 
The noise of a fan is related to the RPM it runs at. Under 1000 rpm it is pretty quiet, over 1200rpm, it starts to get noisy. Your fan goes from 900rmm to 2500rpm.
A 120mm fan does not need to turn as fast as a 92mm fan to push the same amount of air. If you can not get adequate cooling at under 1200rpm, then look for a cooler with a 120mm fan; preferably one that directs the hot air towards the back exit fan. The best quiet 120mm coolers are the scythe ninja, and the thermalright ultra 120/extreme. Do read some articles from www.silentpcreview.com as WR2 suggested.

Personally, I prefer to run my fans at a constant speed. It seems to be less distracting that way. The cpu does get hotter under load, but not too much.
 


He's right about the speeds of the fan. I have two different 80mm fans in my case. One has a max RPM of 2595, and the other can get to around 3500, and you can really tell the difference! When they're at the same speeds, they sound about the same; when they're turned down to ~1400 RPM you can't hear them at all! But when that turbo fan kicks in, you definitely notice. As far as constant speed is concerned, I disagree. When you have an overclocked system, you need to have automatic fan control, because the CPU doesn't put out a lot of heat all the time, but when it gets hot, you need to get rid of that heat. The turbo fan does that, really well, but I don't want to listen to that racket when I don't need to. And I only hear it when the CPU is approaching dangerous levels; any other time, it stays at the same speed as my other fans, keeping things pretty quiet.

:sol:
 
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