I'm tempted to abandon my own build-a-quiet-PC project and buy a Dell Optiplex GX260 ready-built instead -- considering that these systems seem to be engineered for low noise. However, he Optiplex comes in three case styles: small form factor (SFF), small desktop (SD) and small minitower (SMT), with significant differences between the three: for one, the power supply is 160/180/250W.

Any comments on the noise aspects of these three designs...

-Peter

One of the problems with Dell systems (why I don't recommend them) is that they use proprietary motherboards and PSU's. They don't conform to the ATX spec (or any spec for that matter). They are an upgraders nightmare.

Sure they're quiet. But they lack the upgradeability of a home built system.

Build your own. You'll be happier.

Unless of course you don't want to bother with skinned knuckles or bashed fingers or pesky void-warranty issues. Not to mention chasing that elusive "silent" thing.

and they arent all quiet. my aunt bought one of the small tower ones with a celeron processor in it, and it was LOUD. The only other computer I ever heard that was louder was my friends HP.

GamingGod, you happen to know what model Dell your aunt had? Was it indeed a recent Optiplex?

As for the advice to build it myself: I've tried to improve the noise level on some of my own systems with aftermarket components, without much success (Molex Radial Fin proc cooler, 'quiet' power supply, etc). My current take is that noise reduction is a part of system design/integration, not just selecting the right parts. While anyone can build a system in the "taiwanese miditower-box" tradition (as even I have), it's not so easy to *integrate* the different components well, from a heat/noise management perspective. At least I feel that this is beyond *my* level of competence.

Also, I'd like my system to be significantly smaller than the typical tower case -- and practically nobody attempts to build their own notebook PC from scratch either... Hence my interest in, well, an integrated Dell box...

So for now, I'll stick to my question: anyone have experience with the different Optiplex cases?

-Peter

Well we have Dell Optiplex GX150's here at work and they're damn near impossible to hear. They've got the thermistor controlled NMB fan in the duct to cool the Pentium3.


To take away the guesswork of building your own, just find a nice quiet system reviewed on this site (KatanaMan's D8000, or Ralf's Antec 3700) and copy everything they did. That way you are 99% sure of duplicating their perfection.

It's all about having fun.

We have both the small desktop (SD) and the small minitower (SMT) Pentium 4's at work. The SD is quieter in my opinion. I've had both in my office/workroom at the same time (part of my job is hardware and software installation at the bank) and I was able to hear the SMT--noticeably. I think it has two fans (maybe a 80mm and a 92mm) out of the back while the SD has just the one NMB duct fan blowing out the back. But don't quote me on that.

My day-to-day computer is the SD and I usually notice the flourescent lights hum more than the fans from the SD. (Sheesh, this quiet obsession makes you notice the most annoying of ambient noises that I used to be able to ignore.)

The SD has less room for customization/upgrades than the SMT, but if that's not an issue for you, all other things being equal, I find the SD quieter. Probably quiet enough for your average consumer. Too loud for those who dwell in these forums. FWIW.

Well its a mid tower, I think it has 2 or 3 cdbays. She bought it about 4 months ago. I know it was a celeron.

It was my HP Pavillion that got me to this site in the first place. Ugh, that thing is loud. I had to fire it up the other day to finish a few things on it before I ebay it. The delta fan and Maxtor drive whine drove me nuts. Anybody want to purchase a silencing-challenge project?

Noticed the other day when I had one of our Dell Optiplex GX260's open at work that they have Seagate Barracuda IV's inside. Popped another case, just to check, and yup, another 'cuda IV.

They may not be easily customized, but we have to give Dell some credit for their attempts at a quiet PC.

At work we have an SX260 and it is dead silent except for the CDRW spinning up.

oh by the way I saw my aunts computer again yesterday. It is a metal midtower (not one of the plastic clam cases) i think it was a 2650? not sure on the number. And it is loud.

I've seen a ton of Dells in the past few days. My g/f's house has 2. One is a T500 and the other is a 4100. Both are crazy loud compared to my silent rig. The 4100 had some massive HD whine (compared to the Cuda IVs), while my g/f's must had at least 2 fans in the rear that were quiet and at 12V or were louder ones at less than 12V. I ran into another Dell at the office that I took a skills assement test on, that was on a carpeted floor, under the desk, and I could still hear it! I think it had at least two fans in it as well. Talk about getting sensitive, I always thought Dells were seriously silent until I finished my setup! Makes you think you're done ... almost

LOl i know what you guys mean. I'm almost done silencing my PC. When you first have a noisy 60db thing, you wish for someting thats 30 db. Once you get there, you just want to get lower and lower until no noise. Were all paraniod lol

Thanks to all for the valuable feedback. I'll have to see if I can persuade Dell to tell me the HD drive make and model before I order... Also, special thanks to aphonos for the SD vs SMT info. I was already leaning towards the SD model, this decides it.

My brothers dell had a Samsung hardrive, until the mobo died and the only replacement one you could buy is through dell. And my moms dell has a western digital 400bb. So it just depends on what drive they can get cheapest I think.

Sure, although they're supposed to be a bit more conservative with the Optiplexes than with the Dimensions, right? Anyway, I'll report back how far I can get.

-P

dell suck more than u want your dream girl to. bulid your own

Whoa.

Not everyone has the desire or time to build their own. I know all the issues with Dell (both their hardware's lack of ability to customize/upgrade and their big-corporate nature at least evil from many people's point o' view), but if you are not a DIYer, it is nice that at least someone in the retail market is paying attention to the noise factor.

Part of what we are after here is the promotion of quiet computing, and by golly, somebody is listening (get it?).

BTW, did you have a bad experience with a Dell as a child?

I've had bad experiences with Compaq (no way to upgrade), HP (stability issues at a University setting), HP again, stability issues at an Office setting, Dells, mostly laptops that wouldn't connect to networks, and yes, dozens of DYI computers also. Surprisingly, about the only thing that I haven't had a problem with ANYTHING thrown at it was an IBM PS/2 386sx16. We tossed viruses on that and it didn't fail.

dells are a WHOLE LOT better than compaq and hp in my eyes. But building your own is the very best way to go if you know what your doing

>> But building your own is the very best way to go if you know what your doing <<

I've just read the 'vicious circle' thread, and to a certain extent, that reflects my own DIY experiences with noise reduction -- although I (obviously...) haven't gone to the same lengths as rusty et al...

Put another way: I cheerfully acknowledge that DON"T know what I[m doing when it comes to noise reduction!

-P

We had some of the slim desktop dells at my last office, and they were impossible to hear unless you put your ear an inch from the case. The difference in volume of a quieter system would be insignificant (apart from for the purposes of posterity, of course!)

got a dell laptop, its ok i guess. but if u bought a dell and it was to loud, well your more fvcked than said dream girl .

Hi, I have a question about the Optiplex.

My parents are using a notebook at home right now but they want to use that on other locations so they want to replace it by a silent pc.
Would the Optiplex actually be as silent as the notebook or would they be happier buying another laptop (which they are planning right now)?

Tnx in advance

1. That depends on the laptop and how loud it is. What is the laptop model?

2. I guess you've read the rest of this thread about how Dell's are nearly impossible to upgrade yourself?? Search these forums on Dell--I just read another thread with someone complaining about this very thing.

3. The Optiplex SD is not "silent," (and, btw, the tower is easy to hear) but I've found it rather quiet compared to the ambient noise at my office, even late at night when everyone else has gone home. But the noise it makes might be more noticeable in a home environment.

Just some stuff to think about.

I know you're probably sick and tired of people saying, "don't do it!" but I have to give my 2 cents.

First of all, I understand what you're saying about wanting to have it pre-built. Not everyone wants to DIY. That's cool.

But what I've gathered from this and other posts on Dells, is that there is no guarantee. I kinda get the impression that the company tries to keep their computers quiet, but they don't make it an absolute necessity. Dell sell so many computers, what do they do if Seagate/Sumsung can't fill their demand for Hard Drives? Do they say to their customers, "we can't sell you a computer for two weeks." They probably don't because that would be bad business. They must just pop in what they can get. At least that's how it seems. I would be extremely tempted to buy a Dell if I knew I could get their absolute quitest model, researched by the biggest computer retailer in the world and the R&D budget that comes with it. But as this thread shows, who knows what you'll get.

If you want a pre-made system, why not try something like a Stealth Arm Systems, Signum Data Future Client, Hush Technologies' Silent Mini-ITX PC, etc. At least you're sure these are going to be quiet and a lot more upgrade friendly too.

The Dimension 2350 and 4550 that I've worked with are pretty quiet. They have the fans set back into the case a little and apparently are speed controlled and ducted. The insides look all weird though, just not used to it I guess the way the case opens up.

Hey, you must be posting as me!

the dell optiplex small form factor pc is REALLY quiet...i used one of these at a college store, and its the real deal. the system i saw (2.53 GHz P4, 512MB DDR) was not that hot either. i was drooling to open the system right there in the middle of the store to figure out its cooling design, i held back the urge.

Do you think your perception of the noise-level of this system was impacted by the ambient noise in a retail environment? Just wondering?