Hi, I'm looking at putting together a quiet PC, while i would love silence its unlikely with a high end graphics card.
I list my build below and i wonder if any one could suggest any improvements that would make it quieter/cooler. I am looking at
Overclocking the i5 CPU to a reasonable level, at least 4.6GHz and maybe adding a second Graphics card later on. So I do wonder
if the case could accommodate the heat load on it.

Cheers,

Build:

Fractal Define R3 £84.98
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/show [...] =CA-008-FD

Core i5 2500k £167.98
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004FA8 [...] B004FA8NX2

Asrock Extreme 4 p67 £131.43
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/261255

Corsair XMS 8GB £71.88
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/247674

MSI twin frozr HD6950 2GB £214.50
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/261138

XFX Pro 750W Core Edition PSU - Single Rail 9x SATA 4x PCI-E £70.36
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/241552

Samsung F3 1TB £38.95
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/show [...] =HD-082-SA

DVD-RW 14.99
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/show [...] =CD-002-OK

Scythe Mugen 2 £38.81
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/158603

Total Cost: £833.88

Would an Antec p183 be a better choice or indeed the NZXT H2, although i saw an extremely scathing review of the H2, although he didn't test it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHcyWTorjdU

MSI twin frozr HD6950 2GB, does seem like a good card but i've been reading quite alot about how the GTX 560 Ti with the same cooler on is a better deal and i'm no longer so sure.

XFX Pro 750W Core Edition PSU, Would i do better getting the Corsair TX750 V2, they're both made by seasonic and in this article it suggested that the only real difference was that the corsair had better port selection.
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/ ... ew/1227/10

Scythe Mugen 2 i'm relatively happy with, although i do wonder if the Coolermaster Hyper 212 plus could do a similar job at half the cost and around the same noise level, with a new fan. Also the scythe ninja 3 looks like it could be better. Although with the 2 scythe i am a little worried about RAM clearance, although that is why i went with the smaller Corsair modules. SPCR rates the Mugen 2 as the best but hasn't reviewed the ninja 3 altough the ninja 2 comes below both of the other 2 solutions

http://www.silentpcreview.com/Recommended_Heatsinks
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/ ... view/956/9
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/ ... iew/1090/1
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/ ... view/822/5

I Have "moved" this topic to system advice/trouble shooting, so could a Mod delete this. Thanks

The MSI Twin Frozr cooler is designed to produce lower CPU temps rather than silence, so it might be worth considering the Gainward GTX 560 TI Phantom. There is both a 1GB and 2GB version of this card. It is a mildly overclocked card and as its name suggests is weighted more towards quietness. There is a review here http://www.fudzilla.com/reviews/item/21708-gainward-gtx-560-ti-phantom-1gb-tested/21708-gainward-gtx-560-ti-phantom-1gb-tested?start=8.



The Coolermaster Hyper 212 Plus is indeed a bargain at current UK prices, at around £20. For a replacement fan I would suggest you look at the Sharkoon Silent Eagle SE, from sources such as this http://www.scan.co.uk/products/120mm-sharkoon-golf-ball-silent-eagle-se-fan-quiet-case-fan-inc-4x-speed-cable-set. But there is the issue that the cost of a 212 plus a decent replacement fan starts to get close to other complete packages, and even the Mugen 2 is then not too far away price-wise.

I just had to create account this time around, as your build is very similar to mine.

>Mobo:
MSI P67A-C45
>PSU:
OCZ MODXSTREAM 600W PRO
>Hard drive:
Samsung HD103SJ (Spinpoint F3 1TB)
>GPU:
SAPPHIRE Radeon HD6950 (2GB - old production unlockable model)
>CPU:
Intel® Core™ i5-2500K
>Cooling:
NZXT Sentry 2
Arctic Silver 5
Scythe Mugen 2 Rev. B SCMG-2100
Scythe 120MM Fan Clip SCY.12FC-Type.A
Scythe 120MM Slip Stream 1200RPM (x3)
Arctic Cooling Accelero XTREME Plus (if it's possible to remove a drive cage from the R3, else a Gelid Icy Vision)
>Case:
Diverse Fractal Design Define R3 Black Pearl
>Drive:
Samsung SH-B123L (Blu-ray/DVD-RW combo)
>Ram:
G.SKILL F3-12800CL9D-4GBNQ (2X2GB DDR3 1600)
>Monitor:
Dell UltraSharp U2311H

Total cost?
Less than yours if you exclude the monitor, but that might be due to different import taxes between our countries (UK/Holland)

My advice?

Keep the HD 6950, especially if it's the unlockable model.

Comparison between the stock HD 6950 and the stock 560Ti - keep in mind that an unlocked and OC'd 6950 performs at the same level as a 6970.

Reduce the amount of RAM you're going to buy to 4GB/6GB.

8GB is useless unless you feel the need to open a thousand programs and can't be bothered to shut down Photoshop before you run Crysis.

The MUGEN 2 is a great cooler.

But get a second Slipstream 1200 for a push/pull configuration.

The MSI Twin Frozr II is usually the better option to get, but not in this case (pun not intended):

It's only barely less audible than the reference HD 6950 cooler. Take a look at the VGA coolers I've listed above - they're both recommended by SPCR. #1 #2

Yes, but to pick figures out from your comparison reference:

Load noise levels
6950 50.5
560 46.7

This is with the reference 560 and its cooler, the Phantom would be somewhat quieter although as noted it is a touch over-clocked. Sure, the performance figures look better for the 6950 at the 2560x1600 res, but if this is not a requirement it won't be an issue. Unlocking a 6950 and upgrading it to a 6970 with a 6950 cooler will lead to higher load temperatures and more noise. So it's just a question of personal priorities - either a relatively quiet gaming setup, or taking on a hotter and noisier system in order to maximise gaming performance.

In the interests of maybe saving you a bit of cash, could I point out some potential savings on the Scan Today Only list (which will last all weekend) http://www.scan.co.uk/todayonly/index.aspx.



Scan today only:

Core i5 2500K Unlocked, OEM (no cooler) £155.99

MSI GTX 560 Ti Twin Frozr II/OC 1GB £179.99

Gainward GTX 560Ti Phantom 1GB £191.99

Can't you read, son?

Wow, and there was me thinking i'd never get a reply!

Never heard of the phantom model before, thanks for that might make a change. The 2GB one is tempting, i know no real point yet but i plan to keep this build for a while and upgrade it such as another 560 and better cpu, also better case cooling.

Having read enough forum posts on Toms hardware about the difference between 560 and 6950 to make eyes bleed, i've come to the conclusion performance wise they're practically the same with slight gains for both in different games. While the 6950 can be unlocked i'm not sure i'd want to with the practically zero experience i have.

I would prefer not to have to fit an aftermarket VGA cooler mainly because it would seem like a waste to buy a decent card and then through away the cooler, although it probably would be easier to fit a VGA than a CPU cooler? Clearly in this build the graphics card will be the noisiest part and i hope the Fractal will go some way to dampen it.
At idle i would like it to be silent but when i'm gaming i'm not so bothered about noise.

As to the coolermaster 212+ i reckon its worth spending the extra £10 to get the Mugen 2, however my choice of RAM was based on getting the Mugen, i.e. smaller modules, was going to get ripjaws before, and the 8GB so i don't have to bother putting more in and messing with heat sink again as i'm told its a bugger to put on.

ffha i'm impressed at you managing to keep the price lower than my build especially with all the after market cooling you're buying. But i can see where you have cheaper options. MB,RAM for example.

Lodestar thanks for the links to cheaper parts.

You could get a stock 560 or 6950 graphics card (not aftermarket cooler) for cheaper and then add an aftermarket cooler on to it. That way you dont' waste money on the amazing cooler.

Unfortunately i can't find a cheap stock card that keeps the after market cooler economical

Does anyone have any experience with the HIS IceQ cooler? I have been looking at the HIS 6950 IceQ X and looking at other forum posts it sounds like the cooler in general could be a good balance between noise and cooling, for a high end card anyway.

SPCR have been kind enough to produce an R3 review which was great, looking at the fan profile they don't seem too bad and i may leave them as they are. If i was to replace them i suppose the best thing to do would be replace them with NEXUS REAL SILENT CASE FAN D12SL-12?

I assume their placement is optimal.

IIRC he HIS Radeon HD 6950 IceQ Xs have been released on the 14th of april: so it's a bit too early to already have some trustful information, IMO.


There are lots of good candidates, but if you swap the stock fans just don't use any sleeve bearing fan horizontally (to prevent possible clicking issues).