Thoughts on high-end air cooling parts, ~$300-400

[OtZman]

First off, I just want to say hi to everyone, this being my first post and all. . I'm fairly new to SPCR, have been looking around here quite a bit lately for reviews on silent parts.

I bought new computer parts a month or so ago, and eagerly put it together. After the initial adrenaline rush I realized that my new friend was not a very quiet one. Before I go any further, let me post my computer specs:

Motherboard: Asus P5Q Pro Socket 775
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3,0GHz
Graphics card: SAPPHIRE TECHNOLOGY Radeon HD4850 - 512 Mb GDDR3 - PCI-Express 2.0
Memory: Corsair DHX 2x2048MB Kit DDR2 TWIN2X4096-6400C5DHX

I also bought three Noctua NF-R8 (80mm that is) upon recommendation from a friend.

Those are the new parts. Stuff I have from before:

PSU: Corsair HX620W
Hard drives: Three HDDs of varying sizes, one Seagate and two Samsung drives.

I'm running the CPU and graphics card with stock coolers, so I was expecting my computer to generate quite some noise. Good news are that I'm going to fix it, and that I'm willing to spend some money on it. I want my computer to be as quiet as possible, without too much hassle, or having to spend a fortune. I want to be able to run my computer normally to slightly overclocked.

Initially I was considering water cooling, but after discussing this option a bit on another forum I've come to the conclusion that water cooling probably isn't for me. I've no past experience with this cooling method, and I'm not going to heavily overclock my computer.

That leaves me with some form of air cooling. I've come up with the following parts:

Chassis: Antec P182
VGA cooler: Arctic Cooling Accelero S1 rev2 (compatible with HD4850 according to Arctic Cooling's website.)
CPU cooler: Thermalright HR-01 Plus
Chassis fans: Noctua NF-S12-1200 120mm

and possibly

Fan controller: Zalman ZM-MFC1-Plus

I'd like the CPU and VGA to be passively cooled.

These parts will cost somewhere between $300-400 depending on where they're available, and how many fans I buy. (If the price sounds unreasonably high, it's probably because of the unreasonably high VAT in Sweden. )

Don't know if this is a high-end system by SPCR standards, but to my fairly thin wallet, being a poor university student and all, this is quite an investment. I'd love to hear some opinions and thought on everything and anything in my post, especially my shopping cart.

As mentioned above, I want a system that is as quiet as possible, without too much hassle. I'd be willing to shell out up to around $600 (again, remember the 25% VAT!) but that is my absolute limit, and my system would have to be nearly dead silent to warrant such a price tag. I'd rather pay less than more, and I suppose I can get almost the same performance for much less, say around $300-400, like my cart above.

Some questions on the top of my mind:

• 1. Will I be able to passively cool the CPU and GPU with these parts, even when gaming or heavily straining my computer?
  
  2. Can my shopping cart be improved somehow, given my budget?
  
  3. How quiet will this system be? Your subjective opinion please!
  
  4. Does anyone know how good the Zalman ZM-MFC1-Plus is? I haven't been able to find much info on it.

Thanks for reading what turned into quite a monster post!

[Xuestor]

I'll have to say that the harddrives will be your akilles-heel. They will be the noisiest components, but also generate quite some heat, that may ramp up the PSU-fan. for the rest of the system, I'd recommend to slam on a noctua 120 mm each on the cpu and GPU, and run them with the supplied volt-regulator. They will be noiseless when the side door is closed. Then use the remaining 120mm noctua as exhaust in the back, at 600 rpm aswell.

[OtZman]

I'll have to say that the harddrives will be your akilles-heel. They will be the noisiest components, but also generate quite some heat, that may ramp up the PSU-fan. for the rest of the system, I'd recommend to slam on a noctua 120 mm each on the cpu and GPU, and run them with the supplied volt-regulator. They will be noiseless when the side door is closed. Then use the remaining 120mm noctua as exhaust in the back, at 600 rpm aswell.

My hard drives are 200 GB, 250 GB and 500 GB, so I could buy a 1 TB disk and replace all the others. As for the rest of the system, I should have one 120 mm fan in the bottom compartment as well, right? That would mean four fans, one exhaust, one on the CPU and one on the GPU, and one in the bottom compartment.

I've been thinking a bit about putting one fan in the bottom compartment and two exhaust fans in the back, but perhaps going with four fans is much better?

Your suggestions are improvements that can be carried out after buying all the other parts, which is good. I think I'd rather try running with my three old HDDs at first, and then replace them with one HDD if I find them too noisy.

[Xuestor]

Well, If going for one Harddrive, the bottom fan is not neccessary. I'm running my lower compartment empty, with the PSU alone, and I have my Harddrive suspended in elastics in the top 5.25" slot instead. This wrks good for me. Experiment a bit first and see what you think.

EDIT: Välkommen till SPCR förresten Hoppas att du kommer trivas.

[OtZman]

Well, If going for one Harddrive, the bottom fan is not neccessary. I'm running my lower compartment empty, with the PSU alone, and I have my Harddrive suspended in elastics in the top 5.25" slot instead. This wrks good for me. Experiment a bit first and see what you think.

EDIT: Välkommen till SPCR förresten Hoppas att du kommer trivas.

Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. I think I'll try with two or three chassis fans at first, and then throw in one or two more if I need to.

I'm a bit unsure about whether or not I should buy a fan controller. If I have just two or three fans, a controller wouldn't be of much use. The p182 has two switches on the back that can set the speed of the back and top exhaust fans, right?

If I have fans on the CPU and GPU coolers, on the other hand, a controller might be useful. I'm not sure if I'll ever need to run the CPU and GPU fans any faster than 600 RPM though, so a controller just might be a waste of money.

And it seems like the Zalman ZM-MFC1 only can regulate the voltage output down to 5 V, but not entirely stop the fans, so I'd guess the same goes for the Plus version, which I haven't been able to find any reviews on, so I will not be able to stop fans entirely when I feel like using the controller.

Tackar. Såg inte att du var från Sverige, trevligt.

[Faster_Madman]

I have 3 harddrives in the lower compartment and my rig is next to inaudible, to me, when surfing and other none demanding tasks, even late at night when there's almost no noise from the environment.
I haven't suspended or made any other silencing mods to the drives, yet, but i probably will at some point in the future, just because i can, not because it is necessary.
I haven't changed any of the fans either yet, but i am going to one of these days, just waiting for the fans to arrive in the mail. I would say the fans are most noisy components of the system and they are all running at low (tri-cool), unless i'm gaming.

Hej til mine svenske brødre

[OtZman]

I have 3 harddrives in the lower compartment and my rig is next to inaudible, to me, when surfing and other none demanding tasks, even late at night when there's almost no noise from the environment.
I haven't suspended or made any other silencing mods to the drives, yet, but i probably will at some point in the future, just because i can, not because it is necessary.
I haven't changed any of the fans either yet, but i am going to one of these days, just waiting for the fans to arrive in the mail. I would say the fans are most noisy components of the system and they are all running at low (tri-cool), unless i'm gaming.

Hej til mine svenske brødre

Hej på dig, många nordbor här .

Sounds good. How do you cool the CPU and GPU? Some sort of passive solution?

[Faster_Madman]

Sounds good. How do you cool the CPU and GPU? Some sort of passive solution?

Atm i'm running it all on stock cooling. It's pretty quiet in non demanding 2D tasks but not so in 3D apps.
I have some Nexus and Scythe fans on the way plus an AC Accelero S1, just waiting for the mailman to show up on monday.
I also have a Noctua NH-C12P for the CPU but i'm waiting for the rest of the stuff to turn up before i install it all.
I've put together this system very recently so i'm still evaluating it, but i'm definitely very satisfied with the overall noise level, the rest is just tweaking.

Let me add though that the 4870 runs very hot and it definitely needs an aftermarket cooling solution. The Intel stock HSF is also not satisfying in the long run and needs to be changed IMO.
Also the P5Q series mobos are very demanding regarding RAM and i had a hard time finding some modules that would run, i went through 3 pairs before i found some that were compatible but i understand that you already have that aspect covered satisfyingly.

[Xuestor]

I'll have to add that the switches for top and rear fan at the back will not function when you switch out the stock fans. It's hardwired to each fan, so those gets useless.

[OtZman]

Sounds good. How do you cool the CPU and GPU? Some sort of passive solution?

Atm i'm running it all on stock cooling. It's pretty quiet in non demanding 2D tasks but not so in 3D apps.
I have some Nexus and Scythe fans on the way plus an AC Accelero S1, just waiting for the mailman to show up on monday.
I also have a Noctua NH-C12P for the CPU but i'm waiting for the rest of the stuff to turn up before i install it all.
I've put together this system very recently so i'm still evaluating it, but i'm definitely very satisfied with the overall noise level, the rest is just tweaking.

Let me add though that the 4870 runs very hot and it definitely needs an aftermarket cooling solution. The Intel stock HSF is also not satisfying in the long run and needs to be changed IMO.
Also the P5Q series mobos are very demanding regarding RAM and i had a hard time finding some modules that would run, i went through 3 pairs before i found some that were compatible but i understand that you already have that aspect covered satisfyingly.

Yep, my RAM modules worked on the first try, luckily. I think my graphics card HSF is making the most noise in non demanding 2D tasks (could be because I'm running dual monitors?) but when I play UT3 (the only demanding 3D applications I've tried so far) the CPU fan definitely is the culprit. The funny thing is that the stock CPU HS and fan doesn't do a very good job of cooling the CPU either, despite the noise. I have idle temps around 50-60 degrees Celsius, and around 60-68 degrees when playing UT3 with the fan on maximum speed.

Sounds like your machine still is acceptably quiet. Could it possibly be thanks to the p182? It certainly seems to be an incredible case, I've heard and read only good things about it.

I'll have to add that the switches for top and rear fan at the back will not function when you switch out the stock fans. It's hardwired to each fan, so those gets useless.

Oh, that's too bad. Guess I'll have to go with some sort of fan controller then, or just connect the voltage regulator and run the fans at 600 RPM. I think I saw a guide somewhere, think it was here on SPCR, about how to build your own switch for speed regulation. It might be possible to somehow mod the switches and aftermarket fans to work together. Not sure if I'm handy enough for that though.

[OtZman]

Just thought about something. Say I mount a Thermalright HR-01 Plus with a 120 mm fan on it, and an Arctic Cooling Accelero S1 rev2 with a 120 mm fan on, into a P182. Will there be enough space between the HR-01/Accelero and the case wall to put some noise-dampening mats in there, like this one? Seems like the mats are between 1 and 2 centimeters thick, and I guess it's not too good if the CPU heatsink is in direct contact with the foam/mat material. Don't want my PC to catch fire while I'm sleeping.

Even if I might not buy dampening mats right away I want to be able to add them later on if I want to.

[Faster_Madman]

If you are going to need dampening mats, you could just leave that piece of the case where the cooler gets too close, if indeed it does, without any dampening material.
That would be my suggestion.

A bit ghetto maybe?

[discopig]

I don't know if it is available in your area, but for a fan controller I use the Scythe Kaze Master. It has 4 variable controls and 4 temp probes (no additional switches like the Zalman one). It can turn fans right off and up to their limit. In some cases it would be nice to have a switch for a couple fans - like 12V for gaming and 5V for web surfing... - but I have managed to find a pretty happy medium with it.

I have it plugged into 4 Scythe Kaze Jyuni Slipstream fans (all the 1900RPM models) and they all start at about 500RPM with this controller.

Good luck!

[npp]

Hi OtZman,

I'm using a notebook since a year and a half now, so take my advice with a grain of salt; I never managed to fulfil all the things I'm going to talk about, either, but never mind, I hope they will be of some use to you.

1. First of all, don't take it for granted that one of the most expensive cases around is necessarily also the best one; personally, I find the P182 too bulky and expensive. I would recommend you take a look at the Antec SOLO, it's also a very well-built case which in most of the time will serve no worse than the P182. I'm inclined to believe that you can achieve better airflow with fewer fans if the case is smaller; on the contrary, a P182 simply demands more fans, given its large volume.

2. Try swapping the hard drives for a single one. As you manage to silence the rest of the system, you will inevitably notice that HDDs can be very annoying, especially when there isn't any other noise around to mask their own. As for the heat generated by a HDD - given that unlike CPUs, a vast amount of the power consumed (15W max.) is transfered into movement, the heat dissipation isn't that big, actually negligible, compared to that of you video card, for example.

3. This may sound funny, but avoid using too much fans. I would suggest sticking to something like 3, it should be possible with the components you choose. Since the PSU can be eliminated as heat source (given that you choose a dual-chamber case, which I recommend), you're left with a relatively cool CPU and a hot GPU... I wouldn't dare running the GPU entirely without a fan, so one goes there; you may want to use another one on the CPU heatsink, and a third one as an outtake. Only practice will show how efficient this would be, but it sounds possible on paper.

4. Don't chase impossible objectives. If you want a really silent system, you may have to live with higher temperatures of the components. Personally, I don't understand people chasing, say, 40 degrees idle CPU temperature, when there has been very few evidence that 50 degrees will kill your CPU faster. I guess you'll replace your CPU far before it degrades, anyway.

5. Don't bother too much with fan controllers - you said you want as little hassle as possible, right? Then simply wire your fans to 5 or 7V, and you'll be fine. It's not very probable that you would like to run your fans at exactly 6, or 8V or something like that - cooling efficiency wouldn't differ too much from 5/7V, anyway. I know many people won't agree with this point... But I preffer the simple approach

6. Think about sound proof materials after you've accomplished everything else, you'll see it takes time

As for the heatsinks you've chosen - as far as I can tell from what I've read around, you can't do any better.

Good luck

[OtZman]

Sorry I haven't replied sooner, school has been taking up quite some time lately.

If you are going to need dampening mats, you could just leave that piece of the case where the cooler gets too close, if indeed it does, without any dampening material.
That would be my suggestion.

A bit ghetto maybe?

Yeah, that sounds like a plan. I guess the reduced dampening won't be noticeable? I guess I could put a piece of mat on the outside of the case right where the CPU cooler and the hole in the mat on the inside is, and overlap it that way. Will not be that pretty with a piece of dampening mat on the side of the case though. Well, anything for silence, right.

I don't know if it is available in your area, but for a fan controller I use the Scythe Kaze Master. It has 4 variable controls and 4 temp probes (no additional switches like the Zalman one). It can turn fans right off and up to their limit. In some cases it would be nice to have a switch for a couple fans - like 12V for gaming and 5V for web surfing... - but I have managed to find a pretty happy medium with it.

I have it plugged into 4 Scythe Kaze Jyuni Slipstream fans (all the 1900RPM models) and they all start at about 500RPM with this controller.

Good luck!

Thanks .

It's available over here, in two different sizes as well, 3.5" and 5.25". They look great, and it seems like temps and speeds can be read directly from the controller. Being able to turn off the fans completely also sounds great. I'll have to look for a review of this one, thanks for the advice! A bit expensive perhaps but if it does a good job it's certainly worth it. I think 4 controls would be sufficient for me.

Hi OtZman,

I'm using a notebook since a year and a half now, so take my advice with a grain of salt; I never managed to fulfil all the things I'm going to talk about, either, but never mind, I hope they will be of some use to you.

1. First of all, don't take it for granted that one of the most expensive cases around is necessarily also the best one; personally, I find the P182 too bulky and expensive. I would recommend you take a look at the Antec SOLO, it's also a very well-built case which in most of the time will serve no worse than the P182. I'm inclined to believe that you can achieve better airflow with fewer fans if the case is smaller; on the contrary, a P182 simply demands more fans, given its large volume.

2. Try swapping the hard drives for a single one. As you manage to silence the rest of the system, you will inevitably notice that HDDs can be very annoying, especially when there isn't any other noise around to mask their own. As for the heat generated by a HDD - given that unlike CPUs, a vast amount of the power consumed (15W max.) is transfered into movement, the heat dissipation isn't that big, actually negligible, compared to that of you video card, for example.

3. This may sound funny, but avoid using too much fans. I would suggest sticking to something like 3, it should be possible with the components you choose. Since the PSU can be eliminated as heat source (given that you choose a dual-chamber case, which I recommend), you're left with a relatively cool CPU and a hot GPU... I wouldn't dare running the GPU entirely without a fan, so one goes there; you may want to use another one on the CPU heatsink, and a third one as an outtake. Only practice will show how efficient this would be, but it sounds possible on paper.

4. Don't chase impossible objectives. If you want a really silent system, you may have to live with higher temperatures of the components. Personally, I don't understand people chasing, say, 40 degrees idle CPU temperature, when there has been very few evidence that 50 degrees will kill your CPU faster. I guess you'll replace your CPU far before it degrades, anyway.

5. Don't bother too much with fan controllers - you said you want as little hassle as possible, right? Then simply wire your fans to 5 or 7V, and you'll be fine. It's not very probable that you would like to run your fans at exactly 6, or 8V or something like that - cooling efficiency wouldn't differ too much from 5/7V, anyway. I know many people won't agree with this point... But I preffer the simple approach

6. Think about sound proof materials after you've accomplished everything else, you'll see it takes time

As for the heatsinks you've chosen - as far as I can tell from what I've read around, you can't do any better.

Good luck

Thanks .

Lots of great points!

1. This is a very interesting point. I'm not familiar with the Antec SOLO, but I take it it's a bit smaller. I'll have to look for some reviews etc on it. Some of the things I like with the p182 is how spacious it is, and the cable management capabilities seem really neat. The spaciousness might be a disadvantage when it comes to airflow, that sounds fairly logical when thinking about it.

2. This is something I might do in the future, but I think I'll switch the other parts first, and then switch to just one big HDD if I'm not satisfied with the results.

3. Sounds very reasonable. I want as few as possible, and three fans might be a good balance between silence and performance. I've also been thinking about putting just two fans, both as exhausts, in the back and top of the chassis, but the GPU might be too hot for that. I think I'll buy 2 or 3 fans and then play around trying to find the best solution!

4. I think I can live with hotter components, as long as they are fairly silent. Just like you say, I'll probably be replacing the CPU/GPU anyway before they break down.

5. Actually, I think a fan controller would be more fun than hassle. It's always nice to ... control stuff . I'd like to be able to easily change the fan speeds depending on what I'm using my computer for.

6. Yeah, I suppose so.

Good to hear the heatsinks are good choices! Thanks for all the advice!

Btw, I dropped by a friend of mine and had a look at his p182 with a Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme mounted on the CPU. Although I didn't measure the distance between the heatsink and the wall of the case I'd estimate the distance was somewhere around 0.5 - 1 centimeter. The Thermalright HR-01 Plus is around 1 mm smaller. I might be able to put some dampening mats in there, although it's not the end of the world if I'll have to leave a hole in the mat around the CPU heatsink.