Hi there.

I have absolutely no experience with Silent PCs. I haven't seen one in person, so please bear with my noob questions.

I run a recording studio with my mic and computer in the same room, and I'm trying to minimize system noise.

My system:
i7 2700 running stock (not K)
ASUS P8H67M LE Mainboard
Coolermaster Elite case (not sure about the model, vents are similar to this)
Basic Asus 1GB nVidia card (only need it for dual monitor out, don't use the GPU on load)
8 GB RAM on Win7 Ultimate 64
Cubase 5

My problem is that my CPU idles in the range of 40-45 C, and under load, gets distressingly close to tjMax (measured via CoreTemp). I have seen temperatures close to 95 C after running prime95 for 5 minutes. I have already replaced thermal paste according to googled instructions, but I see no improvement in temperature. I'm scared to use my CPU under full load.

I would like to install an aftermarket cooler, and my priorities are:
1. Should be quieter than my stock fan
2. Should be effective enough to run my CPU at full power without getting
3. Would like it if it was available/warrantied in India, but if no such luck, I'm okay with getting a reliable one from the US.

My research tells me watercooling can be quieter than air, so I've narrowed it down to the Corsair H100:
http://www.theitdepot.com/details-Corsa ... 13537.html

Reviews indicated that the radiator may not mount on some cases. Will it fit my case? My other choice was the H80, with a smaller radiator:
http://www.theitdepot.com/details-Corsa ... 13451.html

Do you guys think that I'm doing the right thing? Should I rather upgrade my case?

I am overwhelmed with the amount of information on the net, so your experience is much appreciated. Thank you!

Hi. I'd advise taking a systematic approach rather than just replacing the stock cooler (and it does need to be replaced). You have a live mic in the same room as the PC, so your silencing needs are as demanding as it gets. Once you replace the CPU cooler, you'll find the PSU fan is loud, then the case fans, then hard drive seek noise is audible (not to mention - is the gpu fanned?).

Some questions:
- How much money do you want to spend on this?
- What ambient (room) temps do you see in the warmest weather?
- What are you using for storage drives?

- I don't think that case is optimal for silent computing. Airflow looks restrictive, hard mounts for hard drives. By getting an optimal case, the internal ambient temp will be much lower and the CPU will see less temp rise. Antec Solo II, Corsair 550D, Fractal Define R4, Antec 280, Antec 183 V3 are all good choices.
- CPU cooler: Stay away from watercooling if you want to minimize noise. The recently reviewed Prolimatech Panther would work well for your system. Especially with a fan replacement.
- Don't know why you have the GPU card unless you are using monitors with greater resolution than 1080p. The motherboard should be able to drive two 1080p monitors. Delete the GPU card and get rid of some watts/heat.
- PSU: You are the ideal candidate for a passive or semi-passive power supply. The Seasonic x-400, x-560, Kingwin LZP-550, or Superflower Golden King 500 are all good choices.

Ok, that's enough for a first post. There's more that can be done. After this, your HDDs will be the noisiest components.

What about a Scythe Mugen 3? I even think that a Scythe Katana 3 can cope with the i7 2700 since this CPU has the same TDP as the one that SPCR used when they reviewed the Katana 3.

http://www.silentpcreview.com/article957-page4.html

Have in mind that the CPU you have is very efficient and therefore dissipates little heat compared to its performance. Also, you will probably never push the CPU as much as a CPU benchmark program.

I second the Scythe Mugen 3, the slipstream on i can be drop down to 250rpm, at such low speeds is inaudible, or you can ramp it to 1300rpm if you were to need more cooling. It should handle the i7 2600 easily. Just crosscheck that your case has enough clearance for it.

I would first upgrade the cpu cooler and in time, i would upgrade the case, Fractal Design R4 and Antec Solo II would be my top pics for a PC like yours.

Thanks all for your quick and helpful replies!


Nope, was a budget silent card.


It happened because of some connector/cabling issues with my TV and monitors, and now I continue with it for the sake of simplicity.. I will check right now to see if I can wire them up so that I don't need the extGPU.


Well, I would like this to be as silent as it can get, but I guess I'll have to put an upper limit to it. I could probably upgrade incrementally, like you suggested. For now, lets say around $200? Over the next six months, maybe another $300 would be justifiable.


My room is air-con'd, and I'm usually comfortable with it at 22-24 C.


2 500G Barracudas in software RAID 1. My audio drives are external, though - a 500G Maxtor, a 1 TB Seagate, and a 2 TB WD. They are placed out of the way and don't contribute too much to noise. My main problem is the constant mechanical hum from the cabinet.


That's a great jumping-off point for me. A cursory search online showed only the Antec 183 available here. I found the Cooler Master Silencio 550 online for a decent price, and I see it has good reviews. I will look for the Antec Solo II as well, I have multiple recommendations for it.

@kuzzia, Abula: Thank you for your inputs. Again, Scythe products don't seem to be available locally, but I can have a friend bring the Mugen 3 down from the US in December. I will also read about the Panther, it looks good. Any recommendations for the fan?

So for now:

- I will change the cabinet - prefs are Antec Solo II, Antec 183, CM Silencio 550 in that order.
- If necessary, replace PSU as well.
- Change the CPU cooler to either a Panther or a Scythe Mugen 3.

A correction: In my OP, I had said i7 2700, I actually have the 2600. Pretty much the same apparently, apart from the 100 MHz clock difference.

I have ordered the Antec Solo II. A bit pricey, but I hope it will be worth it. I'd like to buy an additional 120 mm case fan, can someone tell me if this is alright?
http://www.theitdepot.com/details-Sunbe ... P3050.html

SLF-12-R probably means Silent fan 120mm, Red. There is also a Cooler Master alternative for the same price.

Hi guys, I just wanted to revive this thread as I am looking at doing something similar in my studio.

What do you all think of these two sites:

buildsilentpc.com
endpcnoise.com/cgi-bin/e/quietpc.html

???

....especially buildsilentpc.com. I'm just wondering how accurate they are.