Some of you may have read my DAW build 2011 post. If not here it is… DPC latency is less than 20
Now that I have the system running great, I have decided to tackle the noise problem that some of us face. especially those of us new to the pc building game. If you want info on keeping things quiet check out this site
http://www.silentpcreview.com/ They keep up to date on quiet components, I am referencing that site to help me on my quest for quiet.
I recently already changed my case to the obsidian D650 it is much quieter, than the previous case simply due to the better front design and hard drive holders that reduce vibration but I would not consider it quiet case as is, it seems to be more of a gaming case with a bit of a wide open design especially on top. Cooling is what this case cares about most not noise reduction.
So here are my choices.
1)Mod the obsidian D650
2)Return the D650 and buy a case geared towards being quiet
3)Put the PC in a another room using extension cords
- I could do this, the top of the case can be sealed with noise reduction material, as well as the botton and sides but the front design is still a bit loud although as I understand that airflow does not need to be high so a fan controller forcing the front noctua fan I added to the lowest speed would work wonders and give plenty of air flow.
-some sort of fan controll method is key, I like hardware options to avoid having to run software in the background
-I better more quiet power supply
-Something to decouple the PC from the ground.
That’s all I would need to do really and this thing would get very quiet.
-oh yeah and suspending the harddrives with elastic would help as well, it’s okay to do this in a case that has a fan blowing on the drives to reduce heat.
So the basics are…
-Quiet components to start with. Fans, HD’s, Power Supply
-Quiet mounting systems like rubber around screws elastic hard drive mounting, anti vibration under the pc to decouple from ground.
-Fan speed control to get the fans on low barely audible level (monitor temps to figure the best level for the fans)
-and Finally acoustic material lining the case wherever possible, do not cover critical vents.
Remember I am going for quiet not totally silent, some noise is expected but the goal is lowest noise possible with the knowledge and skills I currently have.
onto option 2 return the D650 and get a quiet case to begin with.
-the key here is that you still need quiet components to start of with but this case will be more geared towards quiet not looks or overclocking super graphics card cooling.
-I would still get a quiet, better power supply and a fan controller but I should not have to ad acoustic material and the case should be overall much more quiet do to a better design for quiet systems. The pain here is that I have to transfer to another case and I cannot imagine a case ever being as easy to deal with as the obsidian D650 it is a great desing for builders and moding it would be easy.
Option 3 PC in a another room
-This is an automatic silencer. Just put my PC in the hallway or living room, goto my local PC shop and by all the extension cords I need run em through a hole in the wall = problem solved.
So you think this would be an easier decision, but it really is not. I like the idea of moding the D650 it’s such a cool case and a pleasure to work in I could see the mods working out very well. getting a case geared towards silence is the most tempting option some of these cases are very well designed for that purpose and would save me a ton of work and research and also resolve issues that I may not be able to resolve with a mod. The last is probable the most ideal for audio work. If your set-up makes this possible I would do it and this way you can use any case you like and have to worry less about noise, although an external CD/DVD Blue ray my be a good idea so you don’t have to leave the room to burn and install .
Unfortunately it is not very practical for me to put the PC in another room and I believe the best results will be achieved by starting with a case specifically designed for quiet operation.
So I go with option 2 buy a new quiet case.
I like the
Fractal R3 or
Antec P183
Are there any suggestions on a case. I’m off to put my PC back into my old case and return the obsidian D. I will post as I work on this for you guys to read and measure results with a db meter.