quiet office/gaming machine

simeli · Post by **simeli** » Mon Nov 09, 2009 2:52 am

hi all. after a couple htpc builds that turned out nicely thanks to everyone on the board for sharing your experiences, i have another quest.

i need to put together a new machine for my friends father. he wants to do mostly office work, some moderate image editing and some gaming, mostly ms flight simulator. he asked for a system that ought to be quiet - not dead silent as by our measures

and have enough power for the next few years.

i was thinking of putting together an i5 based system with an gtx260 video card. my advice for the case was once more the antec p180/2/3. but i think he aint too happy with the door.

do you have any other cases you would recommend for such a build? what do you think regarding the video card? is that reasonably quiet during 2d loads? i don't want to rip up anything in this build, i.e. put on aftermarket coolers and the like. also, i have no idea if that card will suffice for ms flight sim on a 24" screen. if i build something new i want to be able to run on full detail at least with the current games...

Kyocera · Post by **Kyocera** » Mon Nov 09, 2009 2:54 am

Lian Li PC-B10 175euro
Lian Li PC-B25 200euro
Lian Li A71 200 euro

simeli · Post by **simeli** » Mon Nov 09, 2009 4:10 am

like the lian li's a lot. especially the b10 looks nice. however it also has the problem of the door that i have to avoid. but the a71 is also available w/o a door it seems. that may be a good option. any ideas how quiet the included fans are? since there's not so many 140mm aftermarket models to choose from. i'd also like to avoid any blue-red-green lighting for that build

many thanks!

SebRad · Post by **SebRad** » Mon Nov 09, 2009 5:29 am

Hi, if you choose an ATI 5770 I believe it performs similarly to the GTX260 while consuming less power and also being shorter it would fit in an Antec Solo (and P150 and Sonata derivatives) that doesn't have a door.
The Solo is a great base for a quiet PC; it breathes quite well and has lightly damped panels to keep noise in. It also has very good built in HDD suspension, the only case I know of that does.
The HD4980 is also a great video card and more readily available for than the new HD5xxx series. It has the advantage of having existing aftermarket cooling solutions that might be more difficult with the new HD5xxx series and very difficult with the GTX260 in the event the stock cooler isn't quiet enough.
Regards, Seb

Kyocera · Post by **Kyocera** » Mon Nov 09, 2009 7:19 am

simeli wrote:like the lian li's a lot. especially the b10 looks nice. however it also has the problem of the door that i have to avoid. but the a71 is also available w/o a door it seems. that may be a good option. any ideas how quiet the included fans are? since there's not so many 140mm aftermarket models to choose from. i'd also like to avoid any blue-red-green lighting for that build

many thanks!

Well, you can regulate the fans on lower speed if you find them bothersome.

One of the best cases is Cooler Master ATCS 840 for 200 euro; you hair only the air rushing in.
However it's huge.

If you want a premium case, that is not too big then Lian Li or Silverstone.
http://www.silverstonetek.com/

http://www.lian-li.com/v2/en/contact_us/index1.php

Tell me which case suits you most and then we can talk.

Be aware that a case with fans you can see is not silent, however it cools better.
You must decide performance/noise wise.

I would go for a GTX 275 for 180 euro oder GTX 260 fÃ¼r etwa 135 euro.
I have one and I'm very satisfied what noise goes!!!!
You can always fit it afterwards with a custom cooling solution!!

hybrid2d4x4 · Post by **hybrid2d4x4** » Tue Nov 10, 2009 7:55 pm

I second SebRad's recommendation of the 5770. You can't beat the idle power/temps without dropping down into the ultra-low-performance cards. The performance is near the 4870/GTX260, but with the benefit of a newer feature set and a LOT better thermals.
The 4879/90 might be relatively good bargains right now but they are power hogs. The 260 is better at idle, but worse at load. With silence in mind, I'd spring for the newer 5770.