mcmaster!

you can get enough stuff there to isolate the fans and drives and put sound absorber in at least two PCs, for the price of one regular sound absorber kit from somewhere else. their acoustic damping material is relatively a bit expensive, but FAR less than you'd pay for anything like Dynamat or those thick ugly tar sheets. unless you have a tiny aluminum case, you can get away with just using melamine tiles or one of their other sound absorbers, for a lot less.

there are a few big threads here about what people have found useful from there, just search...

how about nada for now? do it later -- you can get all kinds of foams from foam / matteress shops or even adapt packing materials. If you decide you need panel mass damping, try any kind of heavy rubber sheeting. Main issue will be to use the right adhesive. Maybe double-sided carpet tape.

Don't be so quick to count paxmate out, I've used both the Acoustipack Deluxe and paxmate, and if I had known how well the paxmate was going to work I would have just gotten that instead of the Acoustipack. And in reality, the "sound proofing" of cases doesn't really do all that much becuase the noise will still escape out of your case where it isnt (intakes and exhausts) so I think it's a good choice to buy the paxmate, you won't be diappointed. Wumpus used paxmate as well and he thought it did a good job as well.

Yes, pax.mate is my dirty little secret. I like the stuff. Eggcrate foam is more effective (and cheaper), but I can get pax.mate for $10 a box, and it goes places that I can't fit eggcrate foam.

It's more of a "finishing touch"; I don't expect it to make a big difference, just to slightly increase sound diffusion (reflections) in comparison to what would otherwise be a plain metal surface...

I'm surprised you think it compares favorably to Acoustipack Deluxe, though. It has no density, but then again, neither does eggcrate foam. I agree that damping is the last step in a long process of reducing noise at its SOURCE first, before resorting to these kinds of things..

Eggcrate foam is very inexpensive, easy to cut and mount (I like to pressure/fit mount, so the pieces are held in by their own expansion) and definitely would be my recommendation to start with.. won't do anything for density (this is FOAM after all) but I guarantee you will hear a difference if you install enough.

Probably the best damping material would be two layers: something thin but dense and heavy (roofers tape, rubber sheeting), with eggcrate foam on top.

Theoretical question here:

Steel cases do manage to keep noise in the case most of the time. The worst you get with a quality case is a tinny sound like air blowing in a HVAC system. My understanding of foam use was that it'll mostly absorb sound that's bouncing around the case anyway, thus leaving little to escape from fan openings, etc.

If this reasoning is correct, sound absorbing foam has a greater impact than sound barrier. Is this thinking correct?

I'll be testing this with melamine foam this weekend. We don't have mcmaster here but I hear I can get about 30m2 for about $10. Cheap test

those melanine foam tiles seem ok. But I'd prefer to lay down something for more vibration reducing than for sound absorption. As you can see, I designed this case to be quiet at the components, the only thing I need worry about are the stock casefans (which might be replaced later, depending on annoyance level) and the HDD(s).

Since I'm planning to drill out the 8cm in the back for a 92mm, I can run that at lower speeds, but the front intake fans may pose a bit of trouble seeing as open grating is between the noise and I. I'm definately going to dremel off the grills on the front intake (why need grills when the front bezel is covering it? oh well). I'd be more concerned with HDD and fan vibrations than too much noise at this point.

I like the idea of adhesive-backed rubber sheeting. This will greatly reduce/eliminate case vibrations and will provide some sound absorption. On top of that, maybe a simple 1" layer of wedge studiofoam (i can get 36sq. ft. very cheaply) to complete the package and make the interior look a little better.

Nothing at first. Design/build a system that uses quiet components and you'll notice very little difference by adding dampening materials. If you use it for a while and feel like tweaking things a bit, then you can play with dampening materials.

Some greatest things that helped me besides fan replacements were hanging that hard drive in a bungie and tied on top with elastic cord, using ear plug foam for spacers/washers on fan mounts and roofers tape.

Roofers taper really made a noticeable change in sound, maybe I am missing some high pitched sounds, cos I am old, but I could not tell foam doing much for me.

Goodluck

I'll be moving my computer around at least once a month to LANs, so the bungie idea may work against me. However:


will this work? It still decouples the HD from what I'm seeing.


I made a silent system so I guess dampening wouldn't do anything from what you're saying. Even so, with all the silent components, don't aluminum cases have a tendancy to resonate? I'm sure I'll be having that humming problem sooner or later.

Dos_Junkie -

That looks like yet another incarnation of the NoVibes device. Do you not read the reviews and articles on the main site? Please check the Article Index, the top link in the main menu, which has a summary of each article:

http://www.silentpcreview.com/article_index.php#storage

I was asking how well it would COMPARE to suspension. I always read the reviews btw

Oh ok... Just from the tone of your previous comment, it seemed like you had not seen one of those before...

The softest elastic suspension does a better job -- but just barely. If you use only 2 of the O-rings and stick the device on the bottom of the case (at the front) using thick double-sided sticky tape or velcro, it's about as effective as any home brew job.

Putting it in the 5" bay is not good -- usually HDD temp rises by 5~10C

IC, tho I'm not particularly wooried with HDD noise/rattle just yet.

HOw about the stock fan mods? Any suggestions for a cheap isolation? rubber washers, gaskets, leave em be and save up for panalfos?

ok, here's the finalized system without stock fans replaced yet:

KINGWIN SILVER All Aluminum 10-Bay Mid tower case, Model "KT-424-S"
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.a ... 11-170-015

Samsung 52X32X52X16 DVD/CD-RW Combo Drive, Model SM-352NRNS
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.a ... 27-151-043

Arctic Silver 5
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.a ... 35-100-007

ZALMAN CNPS7000A-AlCu
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.a ... 35-118-108

SAMSUNG 160GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model SP1614C,
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.a ... 22-152-015

Kingston 184 Pin 512MB DDR PC-3200
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.a ... 20-141-424

SAMSUNG SyncMaster 997DF-Ivory 19" DynaFlat CRT Monitor
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.a ... 24-001-169

ASUS "K8V SE Deluxe" K8T800 Chipset Motherboard for AMD Socket 754 CPU
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.a ... 13-131-490

Logitech Blue Performance Optical Mouse PS2/ USB, Model "MX510"
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.a ... 26-104-151

Fortron Source 400W Power Supply With 12CM Fan, Model "FSP400-60PNU-R1
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.a ... 17-104-962

AMD Athlon 64 3000+, 512KB L2 Cache 64-bit Processor
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.a ... 19-103-424

Logitech Z640 5.1 Speakers
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.a ... 36-121-104

High Tech ATI RADEON 9800PRO Video Card, 128MB DDR, 256-bit, DVI/TV-Out, 8X AGP, Model "EXCALIBUR R9800PRO ICEQ "
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.a ... 14-161-109

PCCHIPS PCI TV/FM Tuner Capture Card, REMOTE
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.a ... 15-117-201
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I figure a simple belkin standard keyboard will work just as well for gaming as for schoolwork. saves money too.

I kinda turned a high-end rig into a value PC (from $1850-$1260), oh well

Gonna eventually get another HD, dvd burner, ram upgrade (1 more 512 stick if kingston works well enough for me), and panaflos for the front and a 92mm panaflo m1 in the back (mod the case hole)

IMO, this system assembled as is, even with HDD rubber grommets or such, will be about 32-35 dBA/1m. IE, it will not really be quiet. The main issue:

** aluminum case resonance excited by fans & HDD **

The Fortron PSU fan has enough low freq noise to make the whole case resonate, along with the HDD. Even the VGA Silencer at low speed will make for some case resonance.

Suspending the drive will probably drop it to 30~32 dBA. Swapping the Fortron PSU fan for a Nexus will drop another 3 dBA or more. (But the cost of the fan is enough that it's probably worthwhile to just buy the Nexus PSU.)

A steel case will probably drop the overall noise by only a dB or 2 but the hummmm difference, subjectively, is usually dramatic.

Have fun.

If it does hum, could a simple rubber mat on the two sides help at all?

Probably, if it could be bonded tightly to the panels. Means finding and using the right kind of adhesive. (One reason why pre-stickied damping sheets are sold.)

one word: DYNAMAT

I heard that leaves a tar smell in your case...also adds a couple 10-pound blocks to the overall weight. I prefer getting rid of audible hum and focusing on any further sounds at the source. thanks anyways (also, dynamat's too expensive for me....almost broke my wallet on the stuff for my car)