Inaudible Silverstone FT-05 / 6700k / GTX1080 gaming/VR

Show off your quiet rig.

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SKlPPY
Posts: 2
Joined: Wed Sep 21, 2016 2:48 am

Inaudible Silverstone FT-05 / 6700k / GTX1080 gaming/VR

Post by SKlPPY » Wed Sep 21, 2016 3:35 am

Have been a LONG time lurker whilst planning this build – found the site to be a fantastic resource so thanks to all those who contribute. Figured I’d post my build in case it’s useful to anyone in the same way…

PROC: I7 6700k
MOBO: Asus Maximus VIII Hero Alpha
RAM: 32GB Corsair Dominator Platinum 3200MHz (2x16GB)
GPU: Asus GTX 1080 Strix Advanced
SSD1: Samsung 950 Pro 512GB (m.2)
SSD2: Samsung 840 Evo 512GB (SATA6)
PSU: Corsair HX750i
HS/F: Noctua NH-D15S (single fan)
CASE: Silverstone Fortress FT-05B (no window)
FANS: 2 x Noctua NF-A14 PWM (to replace stock SST AP182s)
MISC: Acoustipack Ultimate noise damping foam
MISC: Phanteks 5050 RGB LED strip set (2016 is the year of “RGB everything” afterall)

I work from home and for 8+hrs a day this PC is ~2ft from me at head height so my main aim was something that was silent at idle thru medium loads but was still top-spec for gaming and (in the not too distant future) VR.

I fell in love with the FT-05 both for its design and outstanding thermal performance on air, but read mixed reviews on the AP182s in terms of noise so they never even made it into the build. For the most part the case is amazing, the only down side is the lack of space between the mobo tray and right panel for cable management, but I went into that with eyes open having read about it in every single review. To an extent it drove some component choices such as the PSU as it comes with flat ribbon style cables. I honestly don’t think anything approaching a neat build could be achieved with chunky bundled cables or, worse, a non-modular PSU.

I had also read good things about the Acoustipack Ultimate foam so I went to town with that and foamed every single surface I could (multiple layers in many places). This for the most part was in addition to the not so great foam Silverstone include by default, except for the right panel where I ripped it off and replaced due to the above space constraints. I didn’t do any quantitative tests before or after (too eager to get on with the build) but what I can say is there is a VERY big difference in terms of noise when I pop the side panels off when they system is under load, so the solid panels+foam are doing their job.

In terms of fan noise at anything but heavy load the GPU fans don’t run, and because the total draw of this rig even at max is <300w the PSU fan NEVER spins (literally never…), so at idle thru medium 3D load it’s just the 3 Noctua’s. Using Asus Fan Xpert on default PWM settings and fan curve they idle in the 250-300RPM range (depending on ambient) and are totally inaudible in a very quiet room in the middle of the night. Not a bean. This is backed up by the totally scientific use of a DB meter on my iPhone which sees no change at all against ambient noise. Under sustained max (torture test) load they top out at ~550rpm and can only be heard with my ear right by the intake and with the iPhone ~1ft away still no detectable noise. This is all whilst keeping the i7 at <30c idle and 60c full load.

The GPU tops out at 60-65c under max sustained load (20+min torture test) and that’s with fans at ~1600rpm. At that speed they can be heard but it is a very dull, distant, and not unpleasant hum, the case and foam do a fantastic job of keeping it in check. Since building I played through Doom with every single setting cranked to max and I never once heard or noticed the case at all, even during quiet parts of the game. For reference I don’t like gaming on headphones so was playing with audio on speakers but QUIETLY… all my playtime is after the kids are in bed and my office is directly beneath my 6mth old daughter’s room in a spit and Kleenex new build house if that helps as a frame of reference! I didn’t bother with actually logging temps or fan speed etc but the odd time I tabbed out to desktop the GPU was only ~50c and at that sort of temp the fan may not have even been spinning.

Idle:
Image

Load:
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In a nutshell, between the case, the foam, the fans etc. I am astounded by the thermal and acoustic performance of this build; it has well and truly surpassed the high expectations/demands I had for it and there’s not a single component in my build I’d change. The only thing I think could possible be improved would be the cable management but with the limitations of the case, my skills and patience it's about as good as I could get it. Aesthetically I love the looks of the case, especially with the RBG LED strips tucked up in the fan intake area. I thnk it actually gives quite a subtle effect and stops the case being so much of a big black slab. Won't be to everyone's taste obviously but I like the "council-house-at-Christmas" look :lol:

Case:
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Guts:
Image

Excuse the quality of the pics, taken in haste on a phone. Happy to provide more/better quality if people have a specific ask and feel free to ask for more info on anything to do with components/build.

Cheers!

CA_Steve
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Joined: Thu Oct 06, 2005 4:36 am
Location: St. Louis, MO

Re: Inaudible Silverstone FT-05 / 6700k / GTX1080 gaming/VR

Post by CA_Steve » Wed Sep 21, 2016 7:57 am

Welcome to SPCR and congrats on your build.
This is backed up by the totally scientific use of a DB meter on my iPhone
Heh. I think the noise floor for phone mics is around 35-40dB.

SKlPPY
Posts: 2
Joined: Wed Sep 21, 2016 2:48 am

Re: Inaudible Silverstone FT-05 / 6700k / GTX1080 gaming/VR

Post by SKlPPY » Wed Sep 21, 2016 8:19 am

CA_Steve wrote:Welcome to SPCR and congrats on your build.
This is backed up by the totally scientific use of a DB meter on my iPhone
Heh. I think the noise floor for phone mics is around 35-40dB.
Thanks! And yeah, wasn't meant seriously about the phone dB meter - although on my last build (Corsair 540 air with 140mm noctua reduxs on 7v) it would still pick up a change against background. Ear is king for me here though and other than at high load i can't hear it at all so am happy!

ascl
Posts: 279
Joined: Tue May 05, 2009 1:15 am
Location: Sydney, Australia

Re: Inaudible Silverstone FT-05 / 6700k / GTX1080 gaming/VR

Post by ascl » Sat Oct 01, 2016 11:23 pm

I did a pretty similar build recently, and have similar low idle noise.

Very nice build! Looks like you did a pretty neat job with wiring too (which is, IMO, the biggest issue with this case -- would it really have killed them to add 10mm to the width and given a little more room behind the mobo tray?).

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