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My moderately quiet PC

Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 6:26 pm
by m1st
Hey all!

Just wanted to post a few pictures of my main computer. I, like many of you, constantly struggle to sate both my desire for quiet computing and my thirst for raw computing power. I'm pretty happy with the compromise that I have with this computer. Most of the computer was purchased in late 2009, but I've upgraded bits and pieces as I've found them on sale (curse you, Newegg...)

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Main computer shot. Relevant specs:

Core i7-920 @ 4.01GHz, 1.35v
Gigabyte EX58-UD3R motherboard
3x4GB Kingston HyperX DDR3-1600 9-9-9-24-1T
Asus Xonar DX sound card
XFX Radeon 6950 flashed to a 6970 (unlocked shaders) @ 880/1375, Scythe Setsugen 2 HSF
120GB OCZ Agility 2 SSD
Scythe Mugen 2 CPU heatsink
Scythe S-Flex FDB fans throughout
Scythe Kaze-Q fan controller (Scythe fan much?)
Seasonic X-460 fanless power supply
Some ASUS blu-ray drive...
Antec P183 case

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Seasonic X-460 power supply.

I just got this on a really good Newegg deal ($78) after MIR. The power supply is absolutely amazing. I did a full stress test (8-thread Prime95 & Unigine Heaven 2.5), and the power supply stayed blessedly-cool. I took the partition out from between the top chamber and bottom chamber (Antec P183), and this allows the case fans to pull air from the bottom chamber to make sure the power supply doesn't overheat. After a few stress tests, I can confidently say that the power supply gets plenty of airflow and I'll never worry about it overheating.

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Radeon 6950 w/ Setsugen 2 HSF

I researched for quite some time before getting the Setsugen 2, and I'm almost completely satisfied with it. It's very lightweight compared to some of the other monster coolers out there, and it comes with all the heatsinks you'll need for installation. The VRM heatsink works perfectly. My only quip is that the stock adhesive is pretty terrible (not a problem on the VRM heatsink as it uses screws). I ended up using Arctic Silver Adhesive, so it looks like this is a one-way mod. I hated the fan control that came with the Setsugen, so I replaced the stock fan with an almost identical Slipstream fan, the only difference being it had a normal 3-pin power connector, which I hooked up to my Kaze-Q. The card runs fine at 5v if I'm web browsing or watching a movie, but I turn it up to 12v when gaming.

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Stress testing...mmm...

During the Prime95/Unigine test. I did the test to make sure the X-460 wouldn't overheat or anything. After the test, I felt the unit, and it was the same temperature as the rest of my case. Also, I put my hand behind the back vent on the power supply, and I could feel quite a bit of air being drawn in, meaning the components are getting fresh air to keep it cool.

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Picture of the stress test

The CPU temperatures crept up much higher than this by the end of the test (stabilized around 90C), but the rest of the temperatures stayed where they are in this picture.

Re: My moderately quiet PC

Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2012 3:19 am
by Deucal
Clean and nice cable management.

Was a little concerned about the X-460 but if you're getting a slight breeze through there then it's all good.

Re: My moderately quiet PC

Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2012 9:13 am
by jorgea
You have done an admirable job with your PC. Thanks for sharing your pictures here at http://www.silentpcreview.com