Better sound dampening product?

abyssinianson · Post by **abyssinianson** » Fri Sep 29, 2006 1:22 pm

hi there! I am currently in the process of planning a new build. Can anyone recommend the better product?

Sonex Willtec or AcoustiPack for the Antec SOLO?

Tibors · Post by **Tibors** » Fri Sep 29, 2006 7:56 pm

Those products each target a different problem. The main strenght of the Acoustipack is mass loading. It's foam layer is rather thin. The Sonex Willtec on the other hand is completely concentrated on damping airborne vibration (aka sound).

Since we don't know which problem you will have with your not yet existing system, I would say: Don't buy either product ATM.

abyssinianson · Post by **abyssinianson** » Fri Sep 29, 2006 9:40 pm

ah, thanks for differentiating the two products - now I can troubleshoot potential problems much better.

Bluefront · Post by **Bluefront** » Sat Sep 30, 2006 1:36 am

It's an easy matter to layer two different products.....a layer of acoustic foam over a layer of Dynamat for instance. Then you get the benefits of both. But you also have to be aware of the size limitations. You certainly might think of this before you purchase a particular case. Just how thick will your dampening material(s) be? How much extra space will you have with the internal components in place? And so on......

abyssinianson · Post by **abyssinianson** » Sat Sep 30, 2006 2:13 pm

my plan is this: the PC is actually going to be for a music recording PC that I need to be as quiet as I can get it because it is going to live in the control room where I might plan on doing recording as well. the PC is going to serve two purposes: music recording and music post-production work.

I will consider the dynamat extreme option for load oriented muffling of sound because I plan to stuff the PC in an iso box to further deaden the sound. i imagine I will be using the Sonex Willtec to line the inside of the iso box itself. i am still working out the build plans for the box but i know, for sure, that it will be made out of 3/4" MDF.

Currently, i have plans to use an Antec solo for the build. as such, my iso box dimensions are centered around that specific case.

gentrinity · Post by **gentrinity** » Fri Oct 06, 2006 6:43 pm

Wow, this topic kinda helped clarify what I should get to help my PC with noise dampening. Especially since I might get a Raptor 150 RAID 0 config. But im sure that with the Sonix Willtec ill be able to make them pretty inaudible considering Im already getting a P180.

I do have one question, what do you mean by mass loading?

You clarified that the Sonix will kill db levels, but I didnt really understand what that mass loading thing is.

Thanks for the help!!!

Erssa · Post by **Erssa** » Fri Oct 06, 2006 9:24 pm

gentrinity wrote:what do you mean by mass loading?

I think what he meant, that the acoustipack foam is heavy. When you apply it on the panels, it will reduce the vibrations transmitted through the panel/case. The shape of Sonix Willtec is better for breaking high frequancy noise, that's why I would choose Sonix Willtec for P150/180 (they already have the vinyls) and cases that are in danger of cavity resonance and use Acoustipack on some aluminium cases...

NigelM · Post by **NigelM** » Sat Oct 07, 2006 1:57 am

Hi Abyssinianson

I read with interest your plans to enclose the case in a box, as I have always thought that this method could potentially eradicate all the noise problems at a stroke without agonising for months over cpu/northbridge/vga/hdd cooling, case/psu fans etc etc etc. Assuming of course you can live with the practical downsides. So I'll be watching this thread to see how it goes.

I'm not an expert by a looooong way, but i read a post on a uk forum about mdf in PC environments (the guy built the actual PC case from scratch) and he did suggest (you may already be aware - I wasn't) that you seal the mdf thoroughly with a primer, not just to protect from particles of fibre/resin caused in the construction, but also from minute fibres which can become detached and airborne just from constant air movement over the surface of otherwise clean mdf.

Good luck

gentrinity · Post by **gentrinity** » Sat Oct 07, 2006 7:44 am

Erssa wrote:I think what he meant, that the acoustipack foam is heavy. When you apply it on the panels, it will reduce the vibrations transmitted through the panel/case. The shape of Sonix Willtec is better for breaking high frequancy noise, that's why I would choose Sonix Willtec for P150/180 (they already have the vinyls) and cases that are in danger of cavity resonance and use Acoustipack on some aluminium cases...

So adding the acoustipack would probably be a waste of money considering the already excellent sound reduction from the p180 case?

Ill go with just the Sonix Willtec then.

Erssa · Post by **Erssa** » Sat Oct 07, 2006 10:47 am

gentrinity wrote:
Erssa wrote:I think what he meant, that the acoustipack foam is heavy. When you apply it on the panels, it will reduce the vibrations transmitted through the panel/case. The shape of Sonix Willtec is better for breaking high frequancy noise, that's why I would choose Sonix Willtec for P150/180 (they already have the vinyls) and cases that are in danger of cavity resonance and use Acoustipack on some aluminium cases...
So adding the acoustipack would probably be a waste of money considering the already excellent sound reduction from the p180 case?

Ill go with just the Sonix Willtec then.

I wouldn't recommend that you take my word for it, because I don't own neither P180 or acoustipack, but yes, I would buy the Willtec for the reasons I stated, plus it's much much cheaper.

Dirty-Harry · Post by **Dirty-Harry** » Sat Oct 07, 2006 12:03 pm

Where can you purchase some Sonix Willtec?

I starting a new system build using an Antec Solo.

Post by **Ralf Hutter** » Sun Oct 08, 2006 8:20 am

Dirty-Harry wrote:Where can you purchase some Sonix Willtec?

From here. Bill's good people to deal with.

Erssa · Post by **Erssa** » Sun Oct 08, 2006 8:50 am

Ralf Hutter wrote:From here. Bill's good people to deal with.

God, I wish we had a shop like that in Finland

.

John Reid · Post by **John Reid** » Wed Oct 11, 2006 1:31 pm

If you have a car audio store in your town, go there and buy some dampening mat.

I've been heavy into competition car audio since the early 90's, far longer than quiet cases, and with my car system having 4 10" subs being fed 1k watts, there's a lot of vibration to deal with. I applied mass dampening material (which makes resonant sheet metal heavier, and less prone to sympathetic vibration) to my whole car back in '92, and it has done wonders. With sound pressure levels making my arm hair move and my nose itch, the various panels of my car are pretty much silent.

Apply that (in a much reduced level, obviously) to HD and fan vibration, and you can be rest assured that it will help. How much for such a relatively small level of vibration, who knows. But it will do something; it may just not be a night and day difference. As some have already stated, thicker acoustic foams are better at killing high frequency noise than mass loading.

Good luck, but i'd buy a sheet or two of audio mass dampener first, before going with the computer specialty places...

abyssinianson · Post by **abyssinianson** » Sun Oct 15, 2006 4:35 pm

NigelM wrote:Hi Abyssinianson

I read with interest your plans to enclose the case in a box, as I have always thought that this method could potentially eradicate all the noise problems at a stroke without agonising for months over cpu/northbridge/vga/hdd cooling, case/psu fans etc etc etc. Assuming of course you can live with the practical downsides. So I'll be watching this thread to see how it goes.

I'm not an expert by a looooong way, but i read a post on a uk forum about mdf in PC environments (the guy built the actual PC case from scratch) and he did suggest (you may already be aware - I wasn't) that you seal the mdf thoroughly with a primer, not just to protect from particles of fibre/resin caused in the construction, but also from minute fibres which can become detached and airborne just from constant air movement over the surface of otherwise clean mdf.

Good luck

Nigel, yes, I am aware of the need to primer and seal MDF, not just for the fibers that come loose but also to decrease the amount of formaldehyde that is apparently used as part of the fiber binding process in making MDF. I don't know if formaldehyde is still used given the fact that it is a carcinogen but the smell I get from it when I am at the hardware store is a lot like formaldehyde/ formalin. I have been researching other alternatives to use apart from MDF but I haven't come up with something as cheap. A different particle board was available briefly at my local hardware store but I dont think it would have kept its shape better than the 3/4"MDF I picked out for the project.

Currently, I have all the dimensions of the box made out and will be posting them here (along with pictures of the process) once i complete the project. The box will be made around an Antec SOLO case, and I've picked out the most quiet components I could get. I worked out the ducting solution for the air, and the wire pass thru design after scanning the web for other similar boxes which are available commercially. I hope all of this works. But here is what I have worked out, tentatively, for the PC and its box so far:

Antec SOLO
Seasonic S12 500W PSU
XFX 7950GT GPU
Scythe Ninja
--Case cooling is provided by a Nexus 120mm fan
--Case mass dampening with Duramat Extreme
--Case will have a fake bottom which should decouple any "rogue" case vibrations further.

ISO box interior will be lined with Sonex Willtec foam. Air flow exhaust will be driven by either an 80mm Zalman fan or a 120mm Nexus fan. Doors will be lined with rubber weather stripping to prevent excessive sound leakage.

Let me know what you guys think. The XFX 7950GT is a newcomer to the GPU game but since it is passively cooled, and getting some pretty good reviews, it went straight to the top of my prospective components list. My previous choice was a BFG 7900GT cooled by a ZalmanVF900.

RAFH · Post by **RAFH** » Mon Oct 16, 2006 5:50 am

I have the SOLO with a 4400 cooled by the Zalman 9500 and with an SLI Pair of 7900GTs, 2 x 74GB Raptors and 2 x 250GB Samsung Spinpoints and 2 x optical drives (Plextor 716 slot load and a Samsung tray load), all cooled by 2 x 92mm Nexus RealSilent intake fans and a Nexus 120mm RealSilent exhaust fan. The Nexus fans make a huge difference even over the Antec TriCool at its lowest setting.

Its very quiet, not silent but very quiet. For the most part I get a soft higher frequency whrrr from the various fans and the drives. There is some seeking noise from the Raptors. When the opticals are running there is a louder slightly lower frequency whrrr from them. Normally, during the day, I barely notice the rig running, if at all. Late at night when its very quiet, its noticeable but not intrusive. I have it installed on the other side of a pass through into another room which helps with the sound levels, its about twice the sound level in the other room, but I am also then directly exposed to the exhausts which makes a big difference.

I do have one of the 5.25 bays open as I installed a baffle to separate the PSU and 5.25 bays from the rest of the main area. That definitely lets some sound out my way. Covering that opening drops the sound level by about half.

I don't think further muffling of the case walls will accomplish much, though of course, everything will help some. I would concentrate on the sound channels, ie - the intakes and exhausts. I would suggest providing a duct from outside the room to intakes and, similarly, a duct out of the room from the exhausts. I believe this would deal with 90% of the sound. The exhausts would not be difficult at all, but the intakes could be. The bezel on the SOLO has slots all around its perimeter for the intake air, hard to get a duct to such a spread out area. Might be easier to cut a hole in the bezel in front of the intake fans down low and make a rectangular duct translation piece that would fit one or more of the 5.25 bay openings.

Alternately, you could enclose the front of your exterior box around the SOLO providing ducting to it. At the back, it should be possible to install some baffle boxes on the exhausts to muffle those. I would suggest at least twice the cross sectional area of the outlets from the SOLO and a minimum of 3 full 90 degree bends in the path with the interior of the baffle path being lined with the Sonix Willtec material.

Regardless of whether you go with baffle boxes or full ducting, I would provide additional fans to assist the Nexus's. Quiet is important but keeping cool is more critical. With the ducting, the additional fans could be outside the room so no problem. With the baffle boxes, you would have to deal with the additional noise of the added fans. I would suggest upping the fans supplying the front to 120mm or even larger.

Oh, yeah, also, cut away the fan grilles. That will reduce friction and impedence as well as cut down on noisy turbulence. Its relatively thin and soft metal, I snipped out all three of mine in maybe 10 minutes tops, including rest breaks and clean up afterwards.

Please post your efforts, would love to see how it turns out.