Quiet computer for moderate gaming (updated)
Posted: Sat Nov 13, 2010 6:05 pm
Accidentally scratched the previous Lian-Li case, and I wanted a smaller
case anyway. So got a cheap CM Elite 341 case as replacement. Really
wanted the Antec 3480, but didn't want to pay extra for the PSU.
I very happy with the noise level. The GPU and PSU cooling components are
essentially silent: two Scythe Kama-Flex fans; both running at 500 rpm
when idle, and at 800 rpm under heavy load. They are controlled by a
mCubed miniNG controller (bottom right picture).
The CPU is cooled by a Noctua D14 + Nexus PWM fan (controlled by the
motherboard); it runs at 600 rpm idle, 1000 rpm max load. After
20+ hours of LinPack, the CPU temperature maxes out at 48 C. The
GPU temp maxes at 78 C after hours of 3D benchmarking.
Notes:
- The Noctua D14 barely clears the side panel. The tip of the heatpipes
are less than 1 mm from the side panel.
- GPU fan is mounted using the bracket included with Prolimatech MK-13.
- Elite 341's tool-less PCI and bay mounting are crap (as expected). Good
thing you can remove them and use good ol' screws.
System specs:
- CPU: AMD Phenom X4 II 940
- CPU Heatsink: Noctua D14
- Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-M68M-S2P
- RAM: Geil 4GB DDR2
- Video: Palit GTS 450
- PSU: Seasonic M12II 620W, fan swapped with Kama-Flex
- HDD: Seagate 500GB 7200rpm notebook drive
- Case: CoolerMaster Elite 341
case anyway. So got a cheap CM Elite 341 case as replacement. Really
wanted the Antec 3480, but didn't want to pay extra for the PSU.
I very happy with the noise level. The GPU and PSU cooling components are
essentially silent: two Scythe Kama-Flex fans; both running at 500 rpm
when idle, and at 800 rpm under heavy load. They are controlled by a
mCubed miniNG controller (bottom right picture).
The CPU is cooled by a Noctua D14 + Nexus PWM fan (controlled by the
motherboard); it runs at 600 rpm idle, 1000 rpm max load. After
20+ hours of LinPack, the CPU temperature maxes out at 48 C. The
GPU temp maxes at 78 C after hours of 3D benchmarking.
Notes:
- The Noctua D14 barely clears the side panel. The tip of the heatpipes
are less than 1 mm from the side panel.
- GPU fan is mounted using the bracket included with Prolimatech MK-13.
- Elite 341's tool-less PCI and bay mounting are crap (as expected). Good
thing you can remove them and use good ol' screws.
System specs:
- CPU: AMD Phenom X4 II 940
- CPU Heatsink: Noctua D14
- Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-M68M-S2P
- RAM: Geil 4GB DDR2
- Video: Palit GTS 450
- PSU: Seasonic M12II 620W, fan swapped with Kama-Flex
- HDD: Seagate 500GB 7200rpm notebook drive
- Case: CoolerMaster Elite 341