Quiet PC/Spec Help

[PJFry]

Hi Everyone, I'm looking to replace my old out-of-date 'personal' computer with a new one, my first build. I'm really wanting it to be quiet though... if it isn't it'll probably end up on eBay within the week.

It's primarily going to be for Maya/zBrush but I can't afford a quadro/firegl so I've just opted for the 8800GT and hope it will be OK. Max budget is ?800 and intend on OC'ing the processor to around 3.0GHz. I've kind of chosen the following at the moment but I have little to no idea about hardware so if somebody could suggest quieter/better alternatives and/or confirm it will all be compatible/fit in the case that would be great!

Case:> Antec P182 - Replace stock fans with: 3x Noctua NF-S12 1200RPM running @ 7.5v (~600RPM)CPU:> Intel Q6600 G0 Retail + Noctua NH-U12P CPU Heatpipe Heatsink Incl Noctua NF-P12 FanGPU:> PoV 8800GT 512MB GDDR3 256bit Dual DVI + Thermalright HR-03GT Heatsink + Scythe Kaze Jyuni 500RPM Slip Stream 120mm Fan (Attached via Zip-Ties)PSU:> Corsair HX 520WHDDs:>2x> Western Digital WD5000AAKS 500GBMobo:> Asus P5K-ERAM:> 4GB (2x2GB) Corsair TwinX XMS2 DDR2 PC2-6400 CAS 5-5-5-18DVD:> Samsung SH-S203D

Hopefully I'm not missing anything. Any suggestions on what I could change to make it quieter would be appreciated, thanks.

Edited May 9, 2008 by PJFry

[Mindovermaster Global Moderator]

Noctua FTW.

might want a Cosmos 1000, though. it has padded sidings for better sound dampening.

[+Mystic MVC]

Wow, that is eerily similar to what I'm building for my quiet gaming computer this summer. I have basically the same hard drives (320gb though), etc.

Have you considered the Seasonic M12 or the M12 II for your PSU instead?

[+shift. MVC]

I recommend PC Power & Cooling Silencer 610W or Seasonic M12 or M12II if you're looking for a quiet PSU.

[PJFry]

Thanks for the replies I hadn't even heard of the Cosmos 1000 so I'll definitely look into that (even though it puts me ~?30 over my budget and it seems bigger/heavier than I ideally wanted) if it's going to make it quieter.

About the PSUs, we have a "PC Power & Cooling Silencer 610W" in a few of the ones at work and while they're very quiet under moderate load if you put it under heavy load (i.e overclocked q6600 rendering for several hours like this is going to be doing) they get pretty loud - I saw a few reviews mention this too. I hadn't heard about the M12 II either but I did read that the original Seasonic M12 is essentially the same as the Corsair 520W but with an extra 60mm fan which only turns on occasionally, but when it is on makes it quite a bit louder than the Corsair. Aparantly the M12 IIonly> has the 120mm fan though so I'll have to look into that also.(As you can probably tell most of what I'm saying is just what I've read in reviews, if I'm talking rubbish please ignore:pp)>

Thanks again. Anything Else?:))

[+PeterUK MVC]

No need to change your PSU despite the suggestions above. :blink:

[hawker1986]

Hi PJFry,

I just recently bought the Antec case for a friends build and its very quiet, I dont think moving to a cosmos will make much difference, the antec isnt as sturdy, but has sound dampening built into the sides like the cosmos, so i wouldn't be much quieter if you ask me. you might consider a zalman VF-1000 rather than the thermalright for your 8800GT. i have one on mine, on lowest speed its totally silent and keeps the GPU at less than 45oC full load in my SFF case. It will use less slots than your thermalright as its stupidly large and save you a little money. The noctua is definately the way to go for silence and performance on your Q6600. That samsung drive is also nearly silent from personal experience. Also personally I might go for a gigabyte P35-DS3R just because its a bit cheaper than the asus and has RAID which im not sure the Asus does, just a thought, nothing wrong with the mobo of course.

Hawker

[chconline Veteran]

Thanks for the replies I hadn't even heard of the Cosmos 1000 so I'll definitely look into that (even though it puts me ~?30 over my budget and it seems bigger/heavier than I ideally wanted) if it's going to make it quieter.

About the PSUs, we have a "PC Power & Cooling Silencer 610W" in a few of the ones at work and while they're very quiet under moderate load if you put it under heavy load (i.e overclocked q6600 rendering for several hours like this is going to be doing) they get pretty loud - I saw a few reviews mention this too. I hadn't heard about the M12 II either but I did read that the original Seasonic M12 is essentially the same as the Corsair 520W but with an extra 60mm fan which only turns on occasionally, but when it is on makes it quite a bit louder than the Corsair. Aparantly the M12 IIonly> has the 120mm fan though so I'll have to look into that also.(As you can probably tell most of what I'm saying is just what I've read in reviews, if I'm talking rubbish please ignore:pp)>

Thanks again. Anything Else?:))

You're right about the PCP&C, but the Corsair PSU is not necessarily a simple rebranded Seasonic M12. Either way, I would go for a M12II.