Near silent case and PSU for i5 gaming rig....

[Mikey787878]

Hello,

Well i'm attempting my first ever computer build. After much research and component selection where I find myself stuck is on something I thought I would never care about - the case.

I'm trying to build something that will be as near silent as possible.

But also plenty powerful for all modern games. Certainly on a 24inch monitor - may also sometimes use my old 19 inch lcd as a second display.

Primary use will be online games like RIFT; LOTRO. Will prob have a bash at Crysis 2 sometime or other.

I've plumped for:
- an i5 2500k
- asus p8p67 evo gen3.0 1155 motherboard
-Nvidia gtx 570
(at some point in the future when game quality goes up and prices come down, i may want two in sli)
-8gb ddr3 1600 corsair

i'll also want one HDD and one small SDD
-dvd writer
-possibly a soundcard?

Can anyone suggest a good case to house all this? Obviously affordable is good and it will need to be biggish for airflow I understand? But my main priority is for all this to run quietly!

Whilst i'm at it I still need to decide on a PSU and CPU cooler - any recommendations there also?

Thanks in advance

Mike

 

[popatim]

The HAF 932 has some 230MM fans that are about as quiet as you can get yet still move lots of air. I've no problems hearing my video cards fans over anything else in the case.

 

[davcon]

Fractal Design Arc Midi about $100 U.S./Canada
Comes with 3x140mm fans and controller.
http://www.hardwareheaven.com/reviews/1263/pg1/fractal-design-arc-midi-case-review-introduction.html
http://www.fractal-design.com/?view=product&category=2&prod=57
http://www.aria.co.uk/SuperSpecials/Other+products/Fractal+Design+Arc+Midi+Tower+Chassis+?productId=45664&source=skinflint
Choosing a cooler will be trickier many don't have quiet fans.
Thermalright,Scythe,and Gelid make coolers with quiet fans.

 

[Gothams Finest]

Your not going to get near silent for CPU & GPU cooler unless you watercool.
As for cases and case fans, the bigger fans usually make less noise.

CASES

These are some great options
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119213
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119216

the Fractal Arc Midi will probably be too small for you.

CPU COOLER

If you can afford it go for one of these, it is one of the best, if not the best air CPU cooler on the market.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608018&Tpk=nh-d14

or if your on a budget go for one of these, excellent "bang for your buck"
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

PSU

Your going to want a minimum of 750w if you are considering getting a 2nd GTX 570 but ideally you'll want an 850w
Corsair and seasonic do good power supplys

Corsair 750w

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139010&Tpk=hx750
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139021&Tpk=tx750

Corsair 850w

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139011
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139029

Seasonic

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151087
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151102

 

[triplej]

I agree with gotham's finest,

I'd get a case with 120MM and bigger fans, like the Antec 900 or CM HAF 922 / 932

CPU cooler, I'd get the newest COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099

With the i5-2500k and GTX 570 you probably use 500 watts of power max but if you want to overclock or SLI the 570 probably an 850 watt. corsair has a new silent series on their website

 

[Mikey787878]

Thanks all

Will get browsing

I never considered water cooling - is that a complex/costly thing to do?

 

[Mikey787878]

And what do people think of this case?

too small?

(i've changed motherboard on order from asus p8p67 evo to msi p67a gd53 b3 now if that makes any difference)

 

[davcon]

Barring a full size case( most people have no idea how big they really are) a mid tower case has more then enough room for the components you've listed.
The FD Arc Midi is a mid tower case btw and large enough for your gear.
20.28" x 9.06" x 18.11" LXWXH
COOLER MASTER CM 690 II Advanced = 20.80" x 8.40" x 20.10"
Nice case i have one also, however, it's not silent my Antec 902 is quieter and has more fans running in it.
The FD Arc will be quieter then any CM case gothems finest listed since it comes with 3 x 140mm speed controlled filtered fans.
Fractal Designs whole design principal is quiet computing they've built their reputation on it.
You don't need a big huge cooler for a SB cpu either.
They run cooler then the previous gen of Intel cpu's.
A nice quiet cooler is the Thermalright MUX-120 fans are under 20db and it's plenty for a 2500k.
Ram compatibilty is stellar i have all 4 dimms filled with Corsair Dominators = tall ram 52mm


I know i have one on my oc'd i7 860 i can't even hear the fans and i've added another they're so quiet.
Ambient room temp 25 C = highest core is 33C as i'm writing this.
The 212+ is a good cooler but the included fan is not quiet = have one on in another rig.It's in the mid 30's db.
Water cooling will not be quieter then the cooler i mentioned btw.
I don't care what anyone might comment you still need fans and a pump which all make noise.

 

[Gothams Finest]

I agree with some of the things you are saying davcon but it is not the actual case that makes the noise it is the fans, which can always be swapped and changed for others, at little cost and is simple to do.

So because of that in my opinion you should not choose a case soley on the basis that it comes with quiet fans, it is definitely a bonus, but you should also be making your decision on features, size and aesthetics aswell, as you can not change these like you can change the fans...but this is just my opinion.

The Thermalright MUX-120 is also a good suggestion, but it all depends on what sort of balance you want between noise and performance, if you would rather have slightly less noise and also don't mind having slightly less performance then go for the MUX-120.

True the 212+ is not a "quiet" cooler, but as the OP did not state his budget I included this incase he is on a tight budget.

Mikey787878 you may find this helpful
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/lga-1156-heatsink,2535-15.html

 

[Gothams Finest]

Thanks all

Will get browsing

I never considered water cooling - is that a complex/costly thing to do?

It depends on how skilled and confident you are with computers/DIY and it can get very costly.

 

[Mikey787878]

Thanks all - this has been really helpful

Can anyone see any probs with the above setup and the Fractal Designs R3 ATX? That's what i'm looking at currently

And the article on coolers leads me towards the Thermalright mux-120 but it seems a year or two old - anything better out there that is equally quiet and can handle my setup?

 

[Gothams Finest]

No you will have no problem with your motherboard as the R3 supports Mini ITX, Micro ATX and ATX.

The GTX 570 will have plenty of room, the GTX 570 is 267mm and the R3 supports graphic card lengths up to 290mm.

You have not said for sure which CPU cooler and PSU you are going for but I don't see you having a problem. These are the dimensions:

Supports CPU coolers with height of 165mm (MUX-120 is 160mm)

Supports PSU's with a depth of maximum circa 170mm, when using bottom 120/140mm fan location. When not using the bottom 120/140mm fan location, the case supports also longer PSU's, typically 200-220mm