Hello everyone!

He're my problem. My Gaming PC (although pretty quiet) is too loud for working at night. Current setup is an Antec 300 case with 4x120mm and 1x140mm fans. The fastest fan there runs at 1300RPM. Everyone say it's pretty quiet but its not enough for me.

I'm a programmer and I like to code at night, when everyone else is sleeping. I'd like to build something just for work. Let me know what do you think of this setup. Is my idea valid? Are just 2x120mm@800RPM fans enough?

mobo: mATX with basic capabilities
ram: 2x2gb sticks
drives: 1xSSD, 1xHDD, no optical drive
cpu: Intel G620 with integrated GPU
cooler: tower cooler without a fan
psu: I'm inclined towards Seasonic SS-400FL (400W fanless) or Enermax Modu87+ (500W, 330RPM).
case: Aerocool PGS QS-200
fans: 2x Scythe Slip Stream 120mm SY1225SL12L 800RPM (1x front, 1x back)

If I'm right, these PSUs are an overkill for such a small setup. But I might use them to build another system later and they're available in Poland. The case is recommended for 150mm PSUs but those two are 160mm in length. I've seen a 180mm packed into it so it shouldn't be an issue.

I don't have much experience with building silent PCs (I've constructed about 7 gaming setups from scratch) therefore any help is greatly appreciated. Nothing is carved in stone, I might even consider an HTCP. Your thought?

Yes, these PSUs are overkill and not particularly efficient compared to a cheaper DC/DC board + AC/DC brick solution (something like a pico or the solution integrated in the low-power cases of Morex, Antec, Shuttle and so on).
To save power, get an Intel H61 board. Note that Intel makes board with integrated DC/DC meaning that you wouldn't need a PSU, only an external AC/DC brick.

It's pointless to put a tower cooler on a G620 in my opinion unless you want to run your system without any fans.
Having two case fans is also pointless (and definitely overkill! a G620 system with a single spinning drive and no graphics card uses very little power). You could run a G620 system with a single fan but if you're going to use two, put one on the heatsink!

Such a large case would also be pointless. Aside from the expense and the waste, surely you'd appreciate a smaller footprint for a secondary system.

If it's just for work, do you really need an internal HDD? You can cram a lot on a small SSD if you're careful.

Having two sticks of RAM might also be pointless (depending on what use you have for RAM bandwidth).

In my opinion, if you're going to spend so much you might as well get a more powerful CPU.

Thank you HFat!

I'll look into picoPSU solutions. Do you know where can I read some more about this solution?

A case I chose is rather big for such a small setup but it's cheap (around $40) and sturdy. I doubt if I can get anything better at such a small price tag. Internal HDD is needed for synchronized backup and photos (I photograph a lot and make about 150-200GB a year). I'd like to have 2 sticks of RAM just in case one of them stops working. This happened to me twice in my career, one time without any backup stick. A more powerful CPU is not needed for programming work, I might even downgrade to G530.

For your needs, a single fan would probably be sufficient. I'd put it on the CPU, but you could also put it on the side (though be careful of vibrations), or in the back. Two fans might be unnecessary for your needs. 800 rpm is also too loud for true silence (I can easily hear the mentioned fan running 800 rpm at night. I have two myself, but they're undervolted to 5 V)

I'd recommend a Scythe Mugen 3 + no other case fans. It performs great enough so you won't need additional case fans, and the stock PWM can be dialed down to 300 rpm. That's practically as low as you can get for fans (and it's silent!).

Consider buying an ASUS mainboard. The FanXpert application (found in ASUS AI Suite) is a great and simple program to control your fan.

Your primary concern should be your harddrive. Western Digital Green is probably the most silent HDD on the marked. You'll also need to suspend it for true silence.

If you mean actual picos, I guess you should start with SPCR's review.
If you mean the general type of DC/DC board, I don't know that there's much to read about it. It's simply what many low-power case vendors integrate. There are competitors offering standalone alternative to picoPSUs as well.
Look at the products offered by a shop selling low-power computers like LogicSupply (they can answer your questions as well).

That said, if you're not going to get a case with an integrated DC/DC board, I would generally recommend you pick a board with an integrated DC/DC converter if you've got a compatible AC/DC brick lying around. Separate power supplies are tedious and expensive.


Yes, the pricing of cases is strange. Virutally nobody sells cheap standalone cases. But they sell cheap case/PSU combos. The value of such combos can be higher than the value of any standalone case including the one you're talking about.