Antec 3480: maximizing air flow / minimizing noise

Enclosures and acoustic damping to help quiet them.

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ficod
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Antec 3480: maximizing air flow / minimizing noise

Post by ficod » Mon Jul 12, 2010 6:24 am

Hi guys,

I'm completing my pc which will be hosted inside an Antec 3480.

-Asrock 890GM Pro 3
-Athlon X4 630 (to buy)
-2x2GB DDR3
-1 HD (to decide)
-1 DVDRW
-EarthWatts 380W (built-in)

Can you suggest me some options for vents and cpu cooler? I want them to collaborate to reach max silence and minimize heat.
I've heard that stock cooler is good but NOT quiet :(

Now there's 1 antec tricool (120mm) at back and room for 2 x 92mm fans on the front. I'm on a medium-low budget but I'd like to have a silent system.

Thanks!

RoGuE
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Post by RoGuE » Mon Jul 12, 2010 7:45 am

As for the case fans in the front, I would consider buying one or two of these to go in the 92mm holes. Don't skimp on these fans as the smaller size of the 92mm can make some models VERY annoying. These noctuas ought to be silent, but you may have to hook up some speed controllers (or motherboard) to keep them tame. But I digress, I really do think you should put at least one fan in the front of the case, as push/pull configuration is far more efficient than a single fan in the back of the case. (even if your fan in the front is spinning very slow!)

As for the CPU cooler, I'm not too familiar with AMD sockets, however SPCR has reviewed many CPU coolers that are compatible, so check that out.

Do to your budget limitations let me suggest the following ideas:

Leave the tri-cool in the back, but pop it on lowest setting. Consider cutting out the back grill behind the fan to maximize airflow while still keeping this fan quiet.

For your hard drive, I would recommend getting a nice 1TB drive. For most users, they offer ample storage at pretty much an unbeatable price.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6822136534
If you really want to cut down noise at the expense of slightly longer transfer rates, check out the Caviar Green models and some of the lower RPM models from Seagate. Both are great options.

As for vents, other than the front 92mm fans I suggested and cutting out the back grill, I wouldn't do too much messing around with this case. It's already a great quiet PC platform, so I would leave it alone for the most part. I would probably block that side vent by the way...to me it's just a source of sound leak and doesn't offer much advantage unless you put a fan there. Block it off with some dense material followed by foam ideally.

speedkar9
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Re: Antec 3480: maximizing air flow / minimizing noise

Post by speedkar9 » Mon Jul 12, 2010 10:49 am

ficod wrote:I'm on a medium-low budget but I'd like to have a silent system. Thanks!
To make the system quiet on the cheap, I would:

Scythe Ninja or Katana 3 with Asus Qfan
Cut out rear fan grilles
No need for front fans atm since there isn't a graphics card
Swap left side panel with right side panel
Swap out rear fan for a quieter one and soft mount using elastic
Suspend hard drive in 5.25 bay (I second a WD 1TB Green or Blue)
Line the side panels with packing foam or other sound dampening material
Fan swap the PSU

psyopper
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Post by psyopper » Mon Jul 12, 2010 11:04 am

Many AMD coolers will only orient top/bottom and NOT front/back. Be SURE that you get a cooler that orients front/back. The 3480 does not exhaust case air upward through the power supply like a normal ATX case.

I'll second getting at least 1 Nexus 92mm fan up front, and while you're buying that one, buy a Nexus 120 to go in the rear. Oh, and since you are already buying two Nexus fans, buy an 80mm fan to put in the power supply. If you overclock and/or add a graphics card I would think about a second 92mm fan up front.

You will definitely want control for the case fans (let the PS run that one on it's own) and you could likely get away with running them about 600 rpm which will keep them nice and quiet while still moving enough air to keep things from over heating.

Don't be afraid to mod you 3480 with some cable management holes behind the motherboard tray - there's enough room between it and the side panel to fit the majority of your cable excess. If you can get away with it, do without the optical drive, or find a short bodied drive as things get really tight in the upper chamber. You may also want to think about suspending your hdd in the upper chamber to save room down below for your front fans and/or video card.

ficod
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Post by ficod » Tue Jul 13, 2010 2:24 am

thx psyopper, speedkar9, RoGuE...

As I am on a low budget, I think I'll go gradually... and get the most with less :-)

Option 1:
- tricool lowest speed
- swap left side panel with right side panel
- do some cable management to minimize cable mess around the mobo
- for the HDD, i'll go wd green or samsung ecogreen
What I'd love is to put it in a 5,25" dock to make it removeable, but don't know if it will help or worsen noise:
Image

-cpu cooler: Do you think it will be good to get one with a "tower" form factor, with a big fan pushing air outside, in the direction of the case fan which will push air outside too?

RoGuE
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Post by RoGuE » Tue Jul 13, 2010 3:07 am

ficod wrote:
-cpu cooler: Do you think it will be good to get one with a "tower" form factor, with a big fan pushing air outside, in the direction of the case fan which will push air outside too?
This is typically the most effective configuration. There are some nice budget CPU coolers on the market that will get the job done nearly as well as the $60 ones.

ficod
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Post by ficod » Tue Jul 13, 2010 11:58 pm

RoGuE wrote:
ficod wrote: -cpu cooler: Do you think it will be good to get one with a "tower" form factor, with a big fan pushing air outside, in the direction of the case fan which will push air outside too?
This is typically the most effective configuration. There are some nice budget CPU coolers on the market that will get the job done nearly as well as the $60 ones.
Will a Noctua NH-U12P do the job?!? Maybe I can get a second-hand one with a good price...

Image

I'm wondering if it's correctly oriented...
psyopper wrote:Many AMD coolers will only orient top/bottom and NOT front/back. Be SURE that you get a cooler that orients front/back. The 3480 does not exhaust case air upward through the power supply like a normal ATX case.

ficod
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Post by ficod » Thu Jul 15, 2010 3:13 am

Noctua NH-U12P can be mounted to make air flow to the back of the case... It's possible ordering a (free) kit from Noctua :D

Any idea if it's possible to mount a 120mm fan to the front of the case? This way I could make an "horizontal airflow" from the front of the case - passing through the cpu cooler- to the back...

what do you think?

nutball
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Post by nutball » Thu Jul 15, 2010 3:25 am

ficod wrote:Any idea if it's possible to mount a 120mm fan to the front of the case?
It's possible if you're willing to mod the case.

RoGuE
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Post by RoGuE » Thu Jul 15, 2010 7:57 am

nutball wrote:
ficod wrote:Any idea if it's possible to mount a 120mm fan to the front of the case?
It's possible if you're willing to mod the case.

Is this a serious question? There are fan cutouts on the inside-front of the case specifically designed to mount fans there. No mod needed! (unless you're talking about the absolute front of the front bezel which would be retarded ;)

Ficod, the configuration you are talking about / desiring is singlehandedly the most popular and most implemented cooling configuration in tower cases. What more, your case is one of these, as it is designed to suck air in the front, and push it out the back.

ficod
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Post by ficod » Thu Jul 15, 2010 8:33 am

thanks so much for your suggestions...I'll try adding a fan at a time and see if it's enough....

RoGuE
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Post by RoGuE » Thu Jul 15, 2010 9:06 am

With your components, I would recommend just one fan in the top fan position. You will most likely not need two in the front.

nutball
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Post by nutball » Thu Jul 15, 2010 9:19 am

RoGuE wrote:
nutball wrote:
ficod wrote:Any idea if it's possible to mount a 120mm fan to the front of the case?
It's possible if you're willing to mod the case.

Is this a serious question? There are fan cutouts on the inside-front of the case specifically designed to mount fans there. No mod needed! (unless you're talking about the absolute front of the front bezel which would be retarded ;)
The fan mountings on the front of my NSK3480s are for 92mm fans, not 120mm fans. So it's not just a standard "screw the fans using the existing holes" operation.

Moreover given the cutouts in the inside-front are sized for 92mm fans, you won't get much benefit from mounting a 120mm fan there unless you dispense with some of the metal.

RoGuE
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Post by RoGuE » Thu Jul 15, 2010 10:53 am

oh! i looked over the case too fast. You are right..they are 92mm fan mounts.

You can definitely get some quiet 92mm fans. They aren't as great as 120mm, but can be just as quiet with the right fan and slow enough RPM.

BlackWhizz
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Post by BlackWhizz » Thu Jul 15, 2010 11:13 am

RoGuE wrote:oh! i looked over the case too fast. You are right..they are 92mm fan mounts.

You can definitely get some quiet 92mm fans. They aren't as great as 120mm, but can be just as quiet with the right fan and slow enough RPM.
What a dremel/jigsaw cant do ;) At least, thats what i would do.

ficod
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Post by ficod » Mon Jul 26, 2010 9:39 am

Do you have any quick n dirty suggestion for a replacement to the REAR FAN of his case? Maybe some models that are clearly better than the Antec Tricool (more air, less noise)
I've heard that tricool is silent only at "low" setting but that way it doesn' move much air........

thanks.

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