Search found 129 matches

by hofffam
Tue Feb 23, 2010 7:19 am
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: Hard drive noise in Antec 300?
Replies: 4
Views: 5539

Thanks. I don't think vertical suspension will work for me because I will need more drives than I can fit with a vertical orientation. I would be happy with a rubber grommet type of mounting - except the drive cage on that case doesn't have the extra width for them (just 1/8 of an inch!).
by hofffam
Mon Feb 22, 2010 2:28 pm
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: Hard drive noise in Antec 300?
Replies: 4
Views: 5539

Hard drive noise in Antec 300?

I am thinking of buying an Antec 300 to use for my Windows Home Server system. It is inexpensive, has washable filters, and enough drive mounts. But the hard drive mounts are straight-to-steel. This system could have 4-5 hard drives eventually. Will this case produce a lot of hard drive noise? Is it...
by hofffam
Tue Jan 06, 2009 8:13 am
Forum: Power Supplies
Topic: Question about power supplies - multiple +12V rails
Replies: 1
Views: 1508

Never mind! I'll read the sticky (that I somehow didn't see).
by hofffam
Tue Jan 06, 2009 8:05 am
Forum: Power Supplies
Topic: Question about power supplies - multiple +12V rails
Replies: 1
Views: 1508

Question about power supplies - multiple +12V rails

I am confused about multiple +12V rails, which are common. I have a S12-380 with two +12V rails. How do I distribute the power load across the rails? Or do I even try? I am replacing the S12-380 with a S12-550 soon - and it has 4 18A rails. The owners manual says nothing about how to distribute the ...
by hofffam
Mon Dec 08, 2008 10:26 am
Forum: Video Cards & Monitors
Topic: No gaming - ASUS EAH3650 Silent Magic or MSI N95GT MD512Z
Replies: 9
Views: 5244

I see now that those two cards are apparently called the Silent and the Silent Magic. The Silent has the V-engine heat sink design.

Any idea if the Silent Magic (cheaper) is close to the reviewed unit?
by hofffam
Mon Dec 08, 2008 9:53 am
Forum: Video Cards & Monitors
Topic: No gaming - ASUS EAH3650 Silent Magic or MSI N95GT MD512Z
Replies: 9
Views: 5244

Do you know if that ASUS card was released with two different heat sink designs? The Newegg phot has a very different heat sink from the unit reviewed by SPCR and the unit listed on ASUS' website.
by hofffam
Mon Dec 08, 2008 8:55 am
Forum: Video Cards & Monitors
Topic: No gaming - ASUS EAH3650 Silent Magic or MSI N95GT MD512Z
Replies: 9
Views: 5244

Hmmm....gotta admit I have been looking exclusively at LGA 775 motherboards. Haven't bought yet but I'm thinking about the Gigabyte EP45-UD3R.
by hofffam
Mon Dec 08, 2008 7:22 am
Forum: Video Cards & Monitors
Topic: No gaming - ASUS EAH3650 Silent Magic or MSI N95GT MD512Z
Replies: 9
Views: 5244

No gaming - ASUS EAH3650 Silent Magic or MSI N95GT MD512Z

Hi.... I'm upgrading my aging Athlon based system over the holidays. I do not game. I edit video, photos, and other standard stuff. So I'm looking for a passively cooled video card. The ASUS was reviewed well here, although the photos of the unit carried by Newegg and Zipzoomfly show a much differen...
by hofffam
Sat Jan 06, 2007 8:07 pm
Forum: SPCR Article Discussion
Topic: Zalman's HD135 HTPC case: Gasping for air
Replies: 59
Views: 47677

SPCR did a fair review as usual. Was Zalman invited to provide a manufacturer's comment on this case? It would be very interesting to read their comment's on the problems identified by SPCR. Why does Zalman continue to use such crappy fans? Why do the vents have so much obstruction? Most here assume...
by hofffam
Mon Jan 16, 2006 1:59 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Front USB Doesn't Work Properly
Replies: 5
Views: 3167

I have a 3000B case with an ASUS A7N8X Deluxe MB. The front USB ports work fine. I know exactly what you mean about the keyed connector. I can only guess that the problem is with the MB or its configuration. Try another connector if you can. It seems unlikely the ports or the cable are actually bad.
by hofffam
Wed Jan 11, 2006 11:21 am
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: Which is most important: Absorber, Barrier, or Damper?
Replies: 9
Views: 5657

It should be fairly easy to determine if damping will help on a metal panel. If pressing your fingers or hand on a panel reduces or changes the noise and vibration, damping will probably make a difference. Almost any metal will be opaque to higher frequencies. Unfortunately most noise in a PC is at ...
by hofffam
Tue Jan 10, 2006 1:40 pm
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: noise cancellation headphones
Replies: 22
Views: 15695

I have a pair of Sennheiser PXC250 noise cancelling headphones and I think they are very good. I have used Bose on American Airlines flights - if you fly business class internationally they issue them for use during the flights. I admit to a bias against Bose. No ridiculously expensive clock radios ...
by hofffam
Tue Jan 10, 2006 1:31 pm
Forum: Fans and Control
Topic: Nexus Real Silent case fan vs. Yate Loon D12SL-12
Replies: 22
Views: 12936

I can only say that the 3 Orange YL I bought from Tekgems are identical and very quiet. I was surprised how much quieter they were than the Enermax 120mm fan I had.

A bargain at the price.
by hofffam
Mon Jan 09, 2006 11:47 am
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: What large-capacity HDD for file server?
Replies: 12
Views: 5758

Why do you say Samsung and WD are the only choices for 200Gb and up? I have two Seagate 200Gb drives in my system. I recently moved my WD 160Gb drive out of the system into a USB box and it confirmed my suspicion that the obnoxious whine I heard in my system was the WD drive. My WD was not one of th...
by hofffam
Fri Jan 06, 2006 5:00 pm
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: The P180 simply isn't a quiet case - expectations too high?
Replies: 84
Views: 38894

Aris - you say "trust me" as if you are the source of all truth about what PC users want. How can that be? I've been in the software business for 20+ years and work with every kind of end user. I will never say "trust me" even on my areas of knowledge because I don't know it all.
by hofffam
Fri Jan 06, 2006 2:04 pm
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: The P180 simply isn't a quiet case - expectations too high?
Replies: 84
Views: 38894

Aris - I think your basic point is really about the definition of "good enough." I think the general market moved to "good enough" long ago. A lot of people have already chosen a SFF disguised as a laptop. I am not a laptop fan but I use one everyday at work. Many desktop buyers have in fact rejecte...
by hofffam
Thu Jan 05, 2006 3:05 pm
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: The P180 simply isn't a quiet case - expectations too high?
Replies: 84
Views: 38894

Aris - I agree with some of the basic points you make. That is - don't most PCs have way more capacity for expansion than required? The discussion started with the P180. Your points for many should drive them to a mini-Mac, which is even smaller than your new system, and has almost no internal expan...
by hofffam
Thu Dec 22, 2005 7:18 pm
Forum: SPCR Article Discussion
Topic: Thermalright HR-01 CPU Heatsink
Replies: 55
Views: 50940

Another fine review overall as usual. I have a few nits - that I hope you guys don't think are petty. 1. SPCR often uses the word "impedance" when SPCR writes about resistance to airflow. Impedance has a very specific meaning in electric circuit theory and acoustics. One way to look at impedance is ...
by hofffam
Fri Oct 28, 2005 6:47 am
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: Damping Panels
Replies: 5
Views: 3026

I don't understand your question about heat dissipation. Do you want the material to absorb heat or reflect it? Or is the concrete warm and you want to insulate it. The don't know about that blue foam. How good it is depends on the size of the pores. If it looks like the kind of foam they sell for l...
by hofffam
Fri Oct 28, 2005 6:31 am
Forum: CPUs and Motherboards
Topic: High Definition Processor Speeds?
Replies: 11
Views: 7050

Dual core cpus have two, slightly slower cores than the fastest single core systems. They work best with workloads that can execute tasks in parallel. I'm hardly an expert on the decoding of mpeg video, but my guess is that current dual core processors might be marginal for this task. The dual core ...
by hofffam
Sun Oct 16, 2005 9:06 am
Forum: Fans and Control
Topic: Are 25mm and 38mm fans any different?
Replies: 4
Views: 2711

I believe the thicker fans have the same number of blades, but the blades have a steeper pitch (or angle). If all else is equal (mainly RPM), the steeper blade will push more air, and cause more turbulence. The tradeoff then is a more powerful fan at reduced RPM vs. a less powerful fan at higher RPM...
by hofffam
Mon Oct 10, 2005 7:48 am
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: Is the SLK3000B finish inferior to that of the3700BQE?
Replies: 13
Views: 8198

I bought a 3000B from Amazon when they sold them with shipping for about $45. Although I don't have another Antec case to compare to - I was very pleased with the case. I think the workmanship was as expected. My only issue with it is that I seem to be getting USB 1.1 from the front ports and I'm po...
by hofffam
Sun Oct 02, 2005 6:46 am
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: What are you listening to right now?
Replies: 4309
Views: 2479640

R.L. Burnside - It's Bad You Know
by hofffam
Thu Sep 29, 2005 11:48 am
Forum: Power Supplies
Topic: Anyone else have heat issues with the Seasonic S12 series?
Replies: 66
Views: 42063

I have a one month old S12-380 in my new SLK3000B. I was so impressed by the S12 at first. I thought: "wow - it isn't blowing any air at all - the fan must be really running slow." It was VERY quiet. I paid no attention to it until I read this thread. I opened my case - what do you know - warm air l...
by hofffam
Thu Sep 29, 2005 11:00 am
Forum: Power Supplies
Topic: Effect of extension cables
Replies: 13
Views: 8470

chirs - what I meant to say was that resistance doesn't change with voltage or current. You are correct - the voltage across a resistor will change as Ohm's law says. So if a connector adds .05 ohms of resistance it will cause a greater voltage drop at high current. Thanks for pointing that out.
by hofffam
Tue Sep 27, 2005 5:02 pm
Forum: Power Supplies
Topic: Effect of extension cables
Replies: 13
Views: 8470

I think you guys are not really applying the simple principles of electricity to this issue. Wire has resistance - it is related to the material it is made of, the diameter, and the length of the wire. The effect of length is VERY small at the distances you are talking about here. I don't have a Bel...
by hofffam
Fri Sep 23, 2005 8:47 am
Forum: Fans and Control
Topic: 2 Antec 3ways - 1 spins longer after powerdown
Replies: 4
Views: 2557

Hmmm....There could be other reasons the fans slow down at different rates. 1. the voltage isn't shut off to the fans at the same time or rate 2. the fans sit in a location where the blades have different airflow. One fan might be operating in an area with air already pushing on the blades. But you ...
by hofffam
Fri Sep 23, 2005 5:44 am
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: Blowhole covers?
Replies: 9
Views: 5602

Buy some acrylic/lexan/plexiglas sheet - Home Depot sells it. Cut it the size of the matching fan. Cut it with a jigsaw, band saw, table saw, or even a hacksaw. Drill holes in exactly the location of the fan mounting screws. The holes should be the size to take fan screws. Spray paint the panel what...
by hofffam
Tue Sep 20, 2005 2:25 pm
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: HDD Suspension with Nexus DiskTwins
Replies: 4
Views: 3276

Why do you want to quiet the floppy drive? It seems like a lot of work for something used rarely. Or maybe you use it often..?
by hofffam
Tue Sep 20, 2005 10:26 am
Forum: Fans and Control
Topic: Looking for affordable, quiet 120mm fans (in the US)
Replies: 29
Views: 16033

Glassvial - it seems to me you are trying to find a reason not to buy the YL D12SL-12. Why? It is clearly the favored 120mm fan at SPCR, either under the Nexus brand or its native brand. You can buy them as Nexus for $18 or so or as Yate Loon from Tekgems for $11. No one here trusts the manufacturer...