Building a leech station

[rsuh]

Got a question for you hot shots...

Goal: Build a super quiet PC leech station for Kazaa Lite, IRC, ftp, DC, hotline, etc.

Criteria:

1. Must be super quiet. Cannot exceed 30 dBa, no exception. Strongly prefer 20 dBa.

2. Low heat. Current leech PC outputs enough heat to raise the room temp by 10 degrees. Unacceptable. Slow processor is fine with me, Celeron 400Mhz or faster.

3. Must use WinXP Pro


Material planning to use for project.

cheapo ATX case
Enermax 350watt PSU with manual adjust
1 Seagate Barracada IV 80gig (not planning to add any more HD’s)
512meg RAM (PC133 or DDR)
3com 10/100 NIC
48x cd-rom
video card not important
no floppy
don’t need sound.
keyboard/mouse
headless server, remote access by timbuktu
60/80/92mm fan adapter for heatsink.

Question: What processor, heatsink, and systemboard do I use? If the processor can’t run without heatsink, I’ll slap on an Enermax 92mm casefan with manual adjust. Don’t worry, remember, I got the fan adapter.


Another thing… what’s with this system? Why is it so dirt cheap? $40 bucks or so for an almost complete system. Reading some reviews, the VIA C3 looks like the ideal choice for me; however, how dependable is this processor? Anyknow knows any first hand experience with it?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2048478920

 

[Matisaro]

I would get the cheapest duron you could get, unlock it and run it at 500-450 mhz, that will be easy to cool and whisper quiet, pair with a ecsk7s5a and you have a winning cheap cool quiet combo.

The Cash Left In My Pocket,The BEST Benchmark

 

[LancerEvolution7]

Use the Via C3 processor. You don't need a fan on the processory so you don't that will make the noise go down. Don't run to many system fans either.

 

[LancerEvolution7]

Use the Via C3 processor. You don't need a fan on the heatsink for the processor. That will be the best way.

 

[Crashman]

Here's the spec on mine: Pentium 233MMX@262MHz (overkill, worked fine with a Pentium 166MMX), PIII retail boxed cooler (very quiet), 1 80GB Seagate rubber sleeved drive, 1 40gb Seagate rubber sleeved drive, some DTK Pentium board that supports big drives in BIOS, an old babyAT desktop case, a PCI video card (overkill, but the ISA card put out too much heat), and a 200W power supply. Oh, and 128MB SDRAM and Windows 95 version B. It runs mIRC as a server, and G6 FTP Server. It's WAY overkill for the task.

<font color=blue>You're posting in a forum with class. It may be third class, but it's still class!</font color=blue>

 

[Crashman]

BTW, what I meant to say is, WTF are you stupid? Why the hell would you even need a Celeron 400 or that much RAM? Or even a CD-ROM? I pulled mine after copying the OS files to the hard drive. And why the hell do you need XP Pro? If you need an NT based OS for security, save yourself some memory money and use NT4! And noise? Dude, you're getting a Dell! Seriously, go buy an old Dell Pentium 200 desktop, upgrade the hard drive, and call it a day already! Total cost including drive: $200. Noise level: Under 30DB. Most schools and businesses used their with 3-com 3C-905TX 10/100 cards, so that's free. And they use no CPU fan!

<font color=blue>You're posting in a forum with class. It may be third class, but it's still class!</font color=blue>

 

[grassapa]

whats a leech station? is it a computer that hosts files for people to download or a computer that downloads files from kazaa, mirc,etc?

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My computer is so fast it proves the theory of relativity wrong...

 

[o1die]

I would go with a used Dell P3 450-500. My folks have one, and it's super quiet. Only negative is the hardrive is ata 33, rather slow data transfer rate. It's probably a bx motherboard.

 

[rsuh]

Relax and chill... I know what I'm talking about. I have a Pentium 200MX station. I already tried to use it as a leech station. The problem I encountered was:

1. WinXP doesn't run on this system. Incompatible. Go figure. Win98 is too unstable on this POS

2. sysboard and processor is too slow. For a server, P5-200MMX is one thing, but I'll be leeching stuff off the net which requires me to transfer files off the leech station onto my LAN. That's slow.

I need a balance of a slow processor that has low heat however I need it fast enough to transfer data off the PC to the other PCs.

3. Already have a Dell Celeron 400, pentium II 400, and P3-866. They're still not quiet enough.

4. I need XP cuz I've yet to see a single stable PC running Win98. Let's put it this way, the HD's are already partitioned for 4gigs and I have ghost images of those PC's ready to re-image them with Win98. I re-image the PC's every 3 months and most are Dells or AMD builds. If you're wondering, the 4 PC's running Win98 are gamer PCs for my family, XP sucks for games.

I have XP on my primary PC and 2nd PC. Rock solid, small problem is that they're both LOUD. 50 dBa, easily. The AMD is 60 dBa. I'm starting to go deaf with these things and I can't sleep with the AMD in my room, hence the leech station.



Ok, VIA C3 processor eBay link looks like my buddy. Any system board you guys recommend? I'm definetely gonna chuck out that POS PCChips M780 board out.

 

[phsstpok]

How about a Duron 1 Ghz and oversized cooler with a slow 80mm fan? I'm thinking Volcano 7, Thermalright AX7, or SLK800. For motherboard nforce 420 (with Video). Has everything you need LAN, video, etc. No chipset fan or video fan.

I'm not sure what's the biggest HSF that will fit an nForce board. If the oversized ones don't fit you could try a Zalman flower cooler. Doesn't cool that well but they are very quiet, or so I've been told. More than enough for a Duron.

<b>I have so many cookies I now have a FAT problem!</b>

 

[Crashman]

You could just quiet down your PII 400 by clocking it down to 266 and running a passive cooler. Win2k can be your friend of NT4 has "Problems". You still don't need XP. But XP would run on the underclocked P4 if you added enough RAM. And you definately don't need a new CPU, the PII 400 will run cool enough to use a passive cooler when underclocked.

<font color=blue>You're posting in a forum with class. It may be third class, but it's still class!</font color=blue>

 

[DesperateDan]

Yeah, I've seen p2 350s using nothing but passive cooling and no extra case fans.

You are talking like its the cpu that makes the noise when its the cooler .

 

[Hoolio]

Yeah win2k is cheap and solid enough. Windows NT4 is very stable to and even cheaper.

I was a network manager for a couple of years. Win NT4 and Win2k do not crash. I personally think win NT4 is more stable but does not have such an extensive hardware support(no USB or PnP).

Use win 2k, stable and reliable. I know where you can get a copy of win 2k server or advanced server if you want it, (v.cheap). I have had a win 2k server run for 80 days without a reboot or error. (then a power outage so unavoidable).

Why do you need it to run so quietly? Is it gonna be running in the same room as you? You could try a water cooled set up I suppose...You can buy water cooled PSU's now and if you were to have a large water resevoir external to the case and no need for a radiator or fans to cool it.

Just an idea.

 

[jihiggs]

water cooling is not neccissary yet, you can have a silent computer with air cooling. even though i hate to admit it, those new dells are so quiet i cant tell its on in an empty office on top of a desk.

how do you shoot the devil in the back? what happens if you miss? -verbal

 

[Crashman]

I was refering to the PII400 system noise, not "cpu noise" lol. But the easiest underclock would be 266MHz. And he wouldn't need a huge passive cooler for that. The original 266 would be much hotter as it's a 2.8v CPU I believe.

<font color=blue>You're posting in a forum with class. It may be third class, but it's still class!</font color=blue>

 

[xxsk8er101xx]

pentium 4 1.6ghz using intel stock fan. as for board i'm using the abit IT7 works great. i have the 2.0ghz and runs really cool. Even though temps arn't an issue with pentium 4's. Thats only with athlons as they have a higher tendency to melt down and burn your houses and cows and chickens too. (thats a joke get over yourself AMD/Intel fanboys)

Via cyrix is about as dependable as a crack whore in the army watching your back. so ya ... i wouldnt touch it.

<A HREF="http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?id=9933" target="_new"> My Rig </A>

 

[xxsk8er101xx]

hmmm i see .. so he basicly wants to make this kind of like a router/firewall combo? is that it?

why does he need winxp pro... what he should get is Linux! that's the ultimate security protection. Still a little vulnerable but still.

what is he asking for exactly? It is very cryptic but you seem to know what he is asking for.

<A HREF="http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?id=9933" target="_new"> My Rig </A>

 

[rsuh]

No, read it carefully. I'm building a leechstation. It has two purposes:

1. Download stuff off the net through Kazaa, IRC, DC, Hotline. All 4 take a while to leech stuff.
2. Run mIRC Sysreset fserve (sorta like ftp). Running fserves give me additional permissions in IRC so I can leech stuff faster.

Since that PC is going to be running 24/7, I need it low power, low noise, and low heat. Basically I need a stupid dumb PC to leech stuff, that's all.

I already have a gateway/firewall server. It's on the Mac G4 Cube with Seagate Barracuda IV HD running MacOS X Server 10.1.5 (UNIX). That Mac gives out just 3 dBa. That's right, just 3. Loudest thing is the HD. It's amazingly silent and stable too. Been running OS X since Mar 2001 when it first came out. Not a single crash and I haven't reset the Mac yet (other than the 4 OS upgrades)


As for watercooling. Not yet, I'm saving that project when I build my 2+ Ghz AMD gamer system or maybe 3Ghz Intel sometime this winter season. Besides, water cooling isn't that quiet, the water pump is kinda loud. Definetely gonna put the pump outside and feed the line into my house.

Hell with it, at $35, VIA C3 barebone system is cheap enough to experiment. I let you guys know how it goes.

 

[xxsk8er101xx]

ahhhhh ok ... then ya you want a cyrix or a transmeta chip. very low power chips.

<A HREF="http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?id=9933" target="_new"> My Rig </A>

 

[Crashman]

No, he doesn't need a VIA chip. He could just underclock one of the chips he already has. He doesn't need to buy a thing, just to find a way to cool things passively.

<font color=blue>You're posting in a forum with class. It may be third class, but it's still class!</font color=blue>

 

[xxsk8er101xx]

he said he was going to buy a cyrix barebones. He already made his choice. I was just agreeing with him.



<A HREF="http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?id=9933" target="_new"> My Rig </A>

 

[Crashman]

Yeh yeh, waste of money.

<font color=blue>You're posting in a forum with class. It may be third class, but it's still class!</font color=blue>

 

[Crashman]

Just installed XP on my Pentium 1 system, works fine. Only using 128MB mem, it's not fast, but it doesn't need to be for serving. In fact, it's dog slow, but still probably a hundred times faster than a 10/100 network.

<font color=blue>You're posting in a forum with class. It may be third class, but it's still class!</font color=blue>

 

[Kzzrn]

My high school uses a similair setup. Those machines are SSSSLLLLOOOOOWWWWWWW. I personally think that they should have put NT 4.0 on them.

Knowledge is the key to understanding

 

[Matisaro]

If you're wondering, the 4 PC's running Win98 are gamer PCs for my family, XP sucks for games.

Only ancient dos games, nvidias xp drivers rock

Heatsinks, if you dont overclock, use the <b>STOCK!</b>