up vote 1 down vote favorite
share [g+] share [fb]

I have bought an "affordable" core i7-2600 PC with AsRock h67m Motherboard, SSD disks and a crappy case. However the fans' noise are way too high and there is no way to somehow adjust the fans speed.

So I am wondering how to deal with this noise problem? I know that one can use some Supermicro motherboards with passive cooling on servers but not sure of the available passive cooling motherboard/cases for Desktops.

link|improve this question
Your best bet is to get non-crappy fans. Passive cooling sounds very tricky in this case. You could possibly underclock the cpu too, but that'd be pointless. You've identified the actual problem, go get em tiger! – Doc Sep 28 '11 at 21:03
.. and a flimsy case is probably making the noise matters worse... Just saying.. – Doc Sep 28 '11 at 21:09
You could also try lining the inside of your cabinet with foam to bring down noise levels. You can try the fancy acoustic stuff, but I just put on regular foam and it helped. YMMV. – George P. Burdell Sep 29 '11 at 14:57
feedback

3 Answers

up vote 0 down vote

Most non-factory-installed cooling setups are much quieter. I have a midrange Thermaltake cooler, and it makes effectively no noise, even under load. Putting a DVD in the burner is shockingly loud by comparison.

link|improve this answer
feedback
up vote 0 down vote

Search for 'Speedfan' on the web. Can't guarantee it will work for you but it is a useful utility that will often allow you to change fan speeds, and cut-in/cut-out temperatures. it also allows you to check the S.M.A.R.T status of your hard drives, which is what I use it for. (A lot depends on your motherboard what facilities it provides, basically suck-it-and-see) Obviously if you do adjust the fans, you need to also make sure you don't overheat!

link|improve this answer
feedback
up vote 0 down vote

This was something i was looking into at work a while back. There are fanless i7-rated heatsinks out there, but they are HUGE (example).

I've found the Zalman CNPS7500 to be a nice balance between cost and noise-level - its not the quietest on the market, but you find that once you've quietened your CPU, you start to notice the noise of other components..

link|improve this answer
Passive heatsinks are not necessarily huge. Look at this for example: provantage.com/supermicro-snk-p0046p~7SUP91Y1.htm – Bashdom Sep 28 '11 at 22:39
I would be rather reluctant to use a cooler of that size with an i7 without a fan somewhere providing a good air-flow. Thanks for the link though.. – Remy Oct 5 '11 at 9:51
feedback

Your Answer

 
or
required, but never shown
discard

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.