Who said ALUMINIUM cases cannot make a silent PC?

Show off your quiet rig.

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PCGUY
Posts: 129
Joined: Mon Mar 01, 2004 11:36 am
Location: USA

Who said ALUMINIUM cases cannot make a silent PC?

Post by PCGUY » Sat Jul 17, 2004 9:32 am

Here is my configuration:

1. LIAN LI PC-61
2. ZALMAN ZM400B-APS PSU
3. SAMSUNG SATA 160 GB X 2 in RAID 0 array
4. ATI AIW 9800 PRO video card
5. Audigy zs platinum sound card
6. PCI card modem
7. ASUS P4C800-E Deluxe mobo
8. 1 GB memory CORSAIR XMS
9. TOP and BACK fan PANAFLO L1A fan
10. All fans and HDD are mounted using EARS grommet

The pc is pretty quiet!.

The loudest part is the PSU fan woosh sound :-)

All the common myth that the aluminium case vibrates is not true. When I keep my hand at the top of the case I do not feel any vibrations. But remember that all my mountings are isolated with EAR grommet.

See all the pics at http://home.earthlink.net/~udb123/

flyingsherpa
*Lifetime Patron*
Posts: 475
Joined: Fri Sep 26, 2003 6:28 pm
Location: CT, USA

Post by flyingsherpa » Sat Jul 17, 2004 10:00 am

sure it can be done (you obviously just did it), but Al cases are definitely more susceptible to vibe hum issues than steel. factor in that they are usually more expensive and do not offer any cooling benefit and most of us will choose steel.

having said that, a lot of Al cases look damn nice. and they are lighter if you're going to move them a lot. i just made an Aopen EZ65 which is a SFF Al cube. It's a really light, small, fairly quiet, and aesthetic PC. it also does not have any case hum with my setup (and i didn't even suspend the HD), so sometimes you get lucky.

btw, your lian li looks really good... except for those non-matching white drive fronts. doesn't that drive you nuts? i used spray paint on all my drive fronts and it worked out well, was dirt cheap, and was easy to do. maybe i'm just anal.

PCGUY
Posts: 129
Joined: Mon Mar 01, 2004 11:36 am
Location: USA

Post by PCGUY » Sat Jul 17, 2004 10:08 am

btw, your lian li looks really good... except for those non-matching white drive fronts. doesn't that drive you nuts?
Thanks for your comments. I tried - read my sad story at http://forums.silentpcreview.com/viewtopic.php?t=14321

My next project is to paint the stuff black. Do you know of a brand and color that matches the LIAN brushed aluminium look?

flyingsherpa
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Posts: 475
Joined: Fri Sep 26, 2003 6:28 pm
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Post by flyingsherpa » Sat Jul 17, 2004 10:33 am

PCGUY wrote:
Thanks for your comments. I tried - read my sad story at http://forums.silentpcreview.com/viewtopic.php?t=14321

My next project is to paint the stuff black. Do you know of a brand and color that matches the LIAN brushed aluminium look?
gah, that sucks. you know i just used one of those mitsumi drives in the aforementioned EZ65 and worked great for me. too bad you've had such bad luck.

hmm, thats the problem with brushed aluminum: it looks REALLY good buts its also really hard to match. i'd probably just use a semi-flat black spray paint (prime it first) and most people wouldn't even notice. and i assume the other drive fronts (hiding the ports in the 5.25 slot) are probably just black and not brushed anyway, right?

PCGUY
Posts: 129
Joined: Mon Mar 01, 2004 11:36 am
Location: USA

Post by PCGUY » Sat Jul 17, 2004 10:37 am

and i assume the other drive fronts (hiding the ports in the 5.25 slot) are probably just black and not brushed anyway, right?
YES

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