My lightly modded Sonata

Show off your quiet rig.

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ultrachrome
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My lightly modded Sonata

Post by ultrachrome » Sun Apr 16, 2006 8:23 pm

I've been using a Sonata with the following for about a year:
  • Asus A8V Deluxe
    Clawhammer 3500+
    4 x 512MB
    WD800J
    6800GT
    2 x optical drives
    floppy
It was quieter than the system it replaced but still wasn't as quiet as I would like.

I slapped a Zalman VF700-Cu on the GPU which had a nice effect. However, it just made the OEM heatsink fan standout.

Today I stripped the system and installed a Scythe Ninja and SeaSonic S12-380. I spent much more time with the cable layout, like routing the floppy cable under the motherboard.

The hard drive imparted significant vibration into the case. I suspended it using some heavy duty rubber bands. Overall, case vibration was eliminated. I feel a tiny bit but that could be the PSU fan.

For CPU cooling I constructed a duct to couple the Ninja to the case fan. I tried using the Scythe fan in the case position but it was no better than the stock Antec fan. I ended up using one of the Antec TriCool fans from my NSK2400 on low.

The duct is tapered slightly to match the width and height of the Ninja which which sould allow warm air from the motherboard, GPU, and pci WiFi card can go under or around the duct for extraction by the SeaSonic fan.

I've been running CPUBurn for over 30 minutes with rthdribl also running for the last 5 minutes.

My temps:
  • room temp: 19.4C
    temp1: 24C
    temp2 (CPU): 51C
    temp3: 32C
    local temp: 33C
    remote temp (GPU): 44C (Nvidia app says 52C)
    HD0: 21C
Some Pics:
ImageImage

End result was positive. I can just barely hear it with most household noises drowning it out. I don't think the SeaSonic was a huge benefit as its fan makes a bit of mechanical noise.

My next steps might be dampening interior surfaces, try a Nexus on the case and maybe in the power supply.

Thanks to SPCR and all those who've contributed their ideas in the forums.

Critiques welcome.

Trunks
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Post by Trunks » Mon Apr 17, 2006 3:08 am

Great temps.
19.4 C seems like a nice cool room.

Obviously that duct is obstructing the PSU fan? Have you tested with the duct off and the case fan on the HS.

ultrachrome
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Location: Pacific Northwest

Post by ultrachrome » Mon Apr 17, 2006 8:04 am

Thanks. It's usually 65 down in the basement and might get up to 75 in the summer. 70's 2-level tract home.

Unfortunately, I haven't tried any other config nor do I have temps from my old oem setup to compare to.

The top of the fan is about an inch higher than the top of the Ninja so the duct slopes down toward the motherboard leaving a gap between the top of the duct and the case door.

The idea is that heat from the cards could pass over the duct. However, that heat could just as easily be sucked into the duct which could be a problem during extended gaming sessions.

Although, when I started rthdribl, my CPU temp went down a degree to 50C.

qviri
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Post by qviri » Mon Aug 21, 2006 7:36 pm

I like it; it's certainly a lot cleaner than my half-an-hour duct on a Katana.

I have to ask though, isn't the Seasonic a bit starved for air? From the two pictures, it seems that the duct is almost right against it.

ultrachrome
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Location: Pacific Northwest

Post by ultrachrome » Mon Aug 21, 2006 10:05 pm

Thanks. The top of the duct is 1" away from the face of the PSU. The side of my new duct is 1.25" away from the case door.

I wouldn't put that kind of restriction on the rear fan but the PSU fan spins so slowly it only cooling itself.

The single rear 12cm Nexus running at 12V is cooling the CPU and everything else in the case. I haven't yet had the motivation to see how far I can lower the voltage.

Here's a pic of the current duct:
Image

HammerSandwich
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Post by HammerSandwich » Tue Aug 22, 2006 9:38 pm

ultrachrome wrote:The single rear 12cm Nexus running at 12V is cooling the CPU and everything else in the case. I haven't yet had the motivation to see how far I can lower the voltage.
My money's on "a lot!"

mb2
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Post by mb2 » Wed Aug 23, 2006 1:17 pm

i don't know why more people don't duct their ninjas.. especially with a p180.. its only 5 mins and a couple of bits of cardboard/tape or something. as the fans take air from a large area on the intake side, u'd think it would make quite a difference.

nemo
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Post by nemo » Thu Aug 24, 2006 12:05 pm

have you thought about installing a fanless psu?
I run a SeaSonic S12-380 in a very silent environment and find it pretty loud.

In my next system i aim for a Silverstone Nightjar ST30NF.

ultrachrome
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Post by ultrachrome » Thu Aug 24, 2006 9:44 pm

I'd likely drop the VF900 and Nexus voltages before a quieter PSU.

The only noise from the S12 is a very slight ticking.

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