My computer..

Show off your quiet rig.

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niels007
Posts: 451
Joined: Mon Nov 22, 2004 2:18 am

My computer..

Post by niels007 » Thu Jan 20, 2005 1:53 pm

Edit: Pics should work now!
Edit2: language improved.. I don't enjoy vibrating side panels and when sleeping I wouldn't hear a loud pc as well :)

Update 1:
Added a 20x20mm aluminium profile heatsink to the harddisk, lowering temperatures by around 6 degrees!

Got rid of the 80mm PSU fan. Now there is a 80..92mm adapter made out of foam on the outside of the psu and a MUCH better Nexus 92mm fan at approximatly 500RPM.


Hi all,

During my recent 'pc rebuild' I took some pics with my state of the art €50 camera. It actually makes good pictures when there is this thing called 'daylight'. Poor quality pictures then.. Here goes!

The specs:
------------
- Duron 1400
- Asus a7n8x-x
- 512MB DDR400
- Geforce 4 ti 4600
- SBlive Player
- NuTech 8x dvd writer
- Qtec 300W PSU

The mods:
-----------
- Duron is a 100% Athlon XP after re-enabling the L2 cache. Does ~2Ghz at 1.5v at 199mhz FSB. Performance better than a 2600+ for €35 when the 2600+ costed at least €135. Deal of the year 2004!
- the Qtec PSU is very cheap. One died when I pushed it too far with too little cooling. The heatsinks where glued on the second Qtec to help it stay cooler

The (mostly poor) pics:
---------------------------

Image
cheap skived fin, copper insert AMD socket A heatsink, bended 'flower style' with M3 screws secured to the Geforce 4. With invisible backplate to ensure forces apply only at the core, not on the PCB.

Image
A shot of the mainboard side of the case, just to show the damping material on the left, absorbing harddisk noise


Image
Most things in place. You can see the backplate on the Geforce. Pritex damping foam on the bottom. Harddisk suspended using temporary wires, I had no elastic cords anymore!


Image
AKASA fan controller, pretty nice as it does 5..12v. For the 120mm fans I've soldered a 100ohm resistor in line to slow the fans down even more! The 4 temperature probes go to:
- PSU heatsink 1
- PSU heatsink 2
- VGA heatsink (between the 2 rows of fins, taped to copper insert)
- HD

Image
120mm Papst fan and the Ghetto Cardboard adapter for an exact fit on the Thermalright SLK900A heatsink. Soon to be replaced with an even better Nexus fan.

Image
Old pic with old hardware, showing the cardboard duct a lot better

Image
A cardboard 'ramp' for the second 120mm fan to be more effective on the geforce. (which at 40W can't be cooled passively with this heatsink) This helps a LOT! I hadn't tidied up the wires yet..


Image
Mounting the lower 120mm fan using 2 M3 bolts. Note the bits of foam to dampen most of the fan vibrations. A vibrating 40x40cm side panel is not pleasant..

Image
The outside. (just take my word for tyding the wiring on the inside! :)) Don't pay attention to the top 5.25'' bay, It was an experimental air outlet with the PSU fan blowing air into the case. That didn't work at all..


Image
The back, all holes covered except the one below the gfx card, helping temperatures slightly. A 80mm Nexus fan mounted on the outside of the PSU and some tape to cover all left over gaps. Note the brilliant 60mm fan grill. This is a very high quality case! (€29 including the Qtec 300W psu)

The results:
-------------
Top 120mm fan runs at ~400RPM. Max CPU temp ~65 degrees (Prime95)
Bottom 120mm fan runs at 330RPM. Max GPU temp ~60 degrees (3dmark)
PSU fan runs at 870RPM. Sink1 temp ~65 max, Sink2 temp ~40
HD somehow slightly warm: ~42 .. ~46 SMART, ~44.. 48 taped sensor. Must look into it as this is at least 4 degs hotter than before..

The Nexus fans are very impressive. I can't hear the computer unless I put my ear to it. The slight buzzing of my CRT screen is more noticable. There are no HD vibrations and I can't hear any high pitched noises.

A VERY quiet system!



PS:
----
http://members.home.nl/taselaar/niels/DSCW0036.JPG
Klick that to see that this 50 euro camera CAN make surprisingly good pictures if light conditions are better :)
Last edited by niels007 on Mon Mar 14, 2005 2:56 am, edited 3 times in total.

slipknottin
Posts: 235
Joined: Tue Jan 18, 2005 7:55 pm

Post by slipknottin » Thu Jan 20, 2005 2:03 pm

pictures dont work, it tries to get me to log in.

pdf27
*Lifetime Patron*
Posts: 264
Joined: Wed Nov 12, 2003 12:59 pm
Contact:

Post by pdf27 » Thu Jan 20, 2005 2:37 pm

Nice job on the silencing, but that's one of the ugliest cases I've seen in a while :shock:
Still, accoustics come first!

niels007
Posts: 451
Joined: Mon Nov 22, 2004 2:18 am

Post by niels007 » Thu Jan 20, 2005 5:42 pm

Its not pretty but really that bad? Its probably a love thing, love makes blind.. I love my case! :lol: (that's sad isn't it..)

burcakb
Posts: 1443
Joined: Tue Mar 09, 2004 9:05 am
Location: Turkey

Re: My computer..

Post by burcakb » Fri Jan 21, 2005 12:20 am

niels007 wrote: PS:
----
http://members.home.nl/taselaar/niels/DSCW0036.JPG
Klick that to see that this 50 euro camera CAN make surprisingly good pictures if light conditions are better :)
I initially took that PS as Power Supply and not PostScript :) I'd say that Power Supply :shock: is WAAAY too noisy and WAAAY too powerful :wink:

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