Silent Case for Large GPUs

noveyak · Post by **noveyak** » Fri Mar 27, 2009 1:46 pm

After taking a look at the recommended case section the p182 does seem to be a nice pick and reading many posts there seems to be a lot you can do to silent it and it probably will fit any GPU just fine but I was taking a look at some cheaper (and smaller solutions).

I was wondering how loud is the p180 mini exactly, the review numbers made it sound quieter than the p182 (in terms of DBA) but then they did mention the fan on top. Will there be sufficient cooling for say a GTX 260 or Radeon 4870 if I were to undervolt the 200mm fan on top? And does anyone have one and can say from experience how it sounds from say a meter away?

In addition I also see that the P150/Solo seem really popular here. So I was wondering if it was noticably quieter than the p180 and also how was it in terms of cooling. I know it cannot fit the GTX 260s and 280s without the use of a dremel but can it fit a Radeon 4870 and potentially a quieter VGA cooler without this modification? And if so, are the 2 92mm fans in the front enough to cool it and say a core i7 assuming I have a decent PSU and fan/heatsink for CPU?

In addition 2 other cases I liked were the LIAN LI Lan cool PC-K1B (found on newegg) which offers a 140mm/120mm intake and a 120 mm exhaust which might beat out the Solo in terms of cooling. It says its made out of steel but other people were talking of aluminum sides so im not exactly sure, but would like to know if anyone has experience with how loud this case would be if i did a simple fan swap or even added sound dampening material on sides and bottom. Same with the PC-K7B, seems like a nice case but some people have complained about vibrations so not sure.

Finally how good is the Antec 3480 or 6580 in terms of cooling and silence in terms of housing large graphics cards and.

If there are any more cases I did nto mention that you guys think would be nice feel free to mention them, I am currently struggling between picking one of these cases (mostly the p180 mini and lian-li) or just buying the bullet and going with the p182 even though it is more expensive, and unfortunatley bigger.

Ch0z3n · Post by **Ch0z3n** » Fri Mar 27, 2009 3:52 pm

All cases are 0 dB, they have no moving parts. How quiet the system is means matching a case with the components. A P182 can be a very quiet case, but it isn't designed for a lot of high wattage components. If you want a quad-core with a couple of high end GPUs it would be better to get a gaming case and just try to put massive heat sinks and slow fans on everything.

Pliskin · Post by **Pliskin** » Fri Mar 27, 2009 4:00 pm

Simply based off of my experiences. I just built a computer with 3 hard drives and a Sapphire 4870. I originally bought a SOLO but once i got all the drives, the graphics card, and the wires in, i found it was just too cramped for my liking. Not to mention the 4870 took up one spot of my HD cage. I also have a modular PSU and i had a hard time finding places to put cables. Don't get me wrong, I thought the SOLO was a great case, and very well built. I just think it is suited for more discreet systems.

The next day i went out and got the P182 and from opening it up, i loved it. There is no cable clutter now, all the power is behind the motherboard tray. Only 4 SATA Cables and a floppy drive ribbon cable are in the main chamber, and they don't restrict airflow at all. Take some time to properly route the cables and set it up right and you will love it too. I also found the removable hard drive cages to be a blessing. There is so much room to work in the case. I know it seems expensive, but you could always order B-stock from antec, they are pretty much half price if your concerned about that.

noveyak · Post by **noveyak** » Fri Mar 27, 2009 5:41 pm

All cases are 0 dB, they have no moving parts. How quiet the system is means matching a case with the components. A P182 can be a very quiet case, but it isn't designed for a lot of high wattage components. If you want a quad-core with a couple of high end GPUs it would be better to get a gaming case and just try to put massive heat sinks and slow fans on everything.

My bad, I believe i meant a case that would allow me to have a pc =). I do only plan on using probably 1 GPU though and 2 HDs probably) so tried to avoid going with a full fledged full tower. I also see posts where people have stuck 2 GTX 295s in a silverstone TJ08 (mid tower mini-atx case) so I was hoping to see if there were any more compact choices that would fit my needs.

Pliskin so the 4870 will fit, but will be cramped? Hmm Ill have to see, thanks for your advice

Ch0z3n · Post by **Ch0z3n** » Fri Mar 27, 2009 5:55 pm

I knew what you meant, I was just giving you a hard time. I didn't think they made any SLI mATX boards. So you are going to use a 4870?

noveyak · Post by **noveyak** » Fri Mar 27, 2009 7:04 pm

yes most likely a umm 4870 was potentially considering a gtx 260/280 though

actually there is at least one. DFI made a really nice LGA1366 micro ATX motherboard which has has both crossfire and SLI for a very good price. Was looking into that somewhat (even if I wasnt going to get xfire/SLI becuase its just a good board)

Ch0z3n · Post by **Ch0z3n** » Fri Mar 27, 2009 7:19 pm

Going with a Core i7 too?!

I wish I had that kind of money. I think the Solo could work but you would be really tight on the back end of the cards, you might have to hack a piece out of the hard drive cage.

swoody · Post by **swoody** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 4:05 am

I would highly recommend going with the GTX 260 or 280 over the ATI card. I have a 260, and it's overclocked pretty well right now. Even with the overclock, it runs extremely cool (38* idle), and I have the fan set to 40% which is really quiet, and barely noticable over my 120mm Nexus fan, and my Nexus 430 PSU

NewEgg has a great deal on them, too, for $160 after mail-in-rebate:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814127409

I also just picked up a Phenom II 920, which I hear comes with a very quiet fan on it's heatsink. But I am looking for a compact case that can fit the GTX 260 without modification, so I'll definatly keep my eyes posted here

noveyak · Post by **noveyak** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 8:32 am

swoody would you like to tell me what case you are using =)?

Aris · Post by **Aris** » Tue Mar 31, 2009 3:38 pm

NSK3480. Other than needing a micro-atx motherboard, it is perfect in every other way. Separated thermal zone for the PSU region, and plenty of room for extra long video cards. With a 120mm exhaust fan.

swoody · Post by **swoody** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 7:02 pm

noveyak wrote:swoody would you like to tell me what case you are using =)?

I'm just using some cheap Rosewill case. I had to modify it a little bit to get my GTX 260 to fit