Looking for a quiet case that does not vibrate

The Asgard · 25 Aug 2009 at 19:59

Can anyone recommend a nice quiet case that does not vibrate?

I have had several Lian cases with my old water cooled rig sitting in a V2000. They were all prone to vibration especially when the DVD drive spun up. My I7 is sitting in a Cosmos 1000 which I'm fairly impressed with though the HD cages do vibrate with 3 HD's.

I am possibly buying either a I5 or another I7 and was wondering if anyone could recommend a decent case.

I have been looking at the new Corsair 800D, 02 Raven, FT01, HAF 932.

Not keen on the looks of the HAF but probably looks better in the flesh.

Not sure if I can be bothered with water cooling but the 800D would give me the option.

Any other cases that I should be looking at?

Cheers

beefybarn · 25 Aug 2009 at 20:36

I would go with the Corsair or a NZXT Tempest as they are built rock solid and a darn bit cheaper than the Corsair. Then again the Corsair does look good.

EsaT · 25 Aug 2009 at 20:46

Antec P18x/193.
They are only cases which have actually vibration resisting and noise containing panels at stock.
Sheet metals need mass damping... and soft mounting is always mandatory.

The Asgard said:
My I7 is sitting in a Cosmos 1000 which I'm fairly impressed with though the HD cages do vibrate with 3 HD's.

Something loose in there... Rubber grommets don't help if they're then attached to relatively light part loosely on its place.
Best is having no light parts (=caddies/trays) involved HDD mounting and soft material between HDD and case structure.

The Asgard said:
Not keen on the looks of the HAF but probably looks better in the flesh.

Plastic trays in there...
So no wonder that I once read someone complaining about noisyness of HDDs in it.

Mal X · 26 Aug 2009 at 01:19

you need to kill the vibration, i've used clear silicone sealent on most of the joints, between the case and the internal panels....but you need to try and kill the vibration at its source as well.... so if the fan is set up to run quiet you'll be ok.....it goes fan....silicone sealant....panel, the fan does not touch the Ally.... there's a 1mm bed of sealent on all 3 case fans

but the trouble is, yes i have no vibrations, but i can still hear the fans moving the air, the trick is to reduce the fans intake RPM, because it'll only needs to be high on the cpu cooler and exhaust.....

even so, i can definitely hear my pc, but it's a different sort of noise to my Thermaltake..... it's not like a hairdryer..... it's flipping miles quieter, it sounds more like a breeze blowing outside

but i might buy this :- AcoustiPack Multi-Layered Material Kit.

the trouble with a pc is.......... it's all lightweight thin Ally, so it rattles like flipping crazy, it's bound to; you cant expect anything else!

The Asgard · 26 Aug 2009 at 08:35

beefybarn said:
I would go with the Corsair or a NZXT Tempest as they are built rock solid and a darn bit cheaper than the Corsair. Then again the Corsair does look good.

Thanks. I will have a look at the NZXT Tempest.

The Asgard · 26 Aug 2009 at 08:38

EsaT said:
Antec P18x/193.
They are only cases which have actually vibration resisting and noise containing panels at stock.
Sheet metals need mass damping... and soft mounting is always mandatory.

Something loose in there... Rubber grommets don't help if they're then attached to relatively light part loosely on its place.
Best is having no light parts (=caddies/trays) involved HDD mounting and soft material between HDD and case structure.

Plastic trays in there...
So no wonder that I once read someone complaining about noisyness of HDDs in it.

With the Lian's its mostly down to the thin ALU and usually its the side panels that rattle. Nice cases but not very practical with regard to noise.

May be I will have a look at the Antec P193 again.

Cheers

Apem · 26 Aug 2009 at 08:41

The most quiet case ive owned is the Silverstone Fortress as for the HAF that wasnt very quiet and its a nightmare for dust.

The Asgard · 26 Aug 2009 at 08:43

Mal X said:
you need to kill the vibration, i've used clear silicone sealent on most of the joints, between the case and the internal panels....but you need to try and kill the vibration at its source as well.... so if the fan is set up to run quiet you'll be ok.....it goes fan....silicone sealant....panel, the fan does not touch the Ally.... there's a 1mm bed of sealent on all 3 case fans

but the trouble is, yes i have no vibrations, but i can still hear the fans moving the air, the trick is to reduce the fans intake RPM, because it'll only needs to be high on the cpu cooler and exhaust.....

even so, i can definitely hear my pc, but it's a different sort of noise to my Thermaltake..... it's not like a hairdryer..... it's flipping miles quieter, it sounds more like a breeze blowing outside

but i might buy this :- AcoustiPack Multi-Layered Material Kit.

the trouble with a pc is.......... it's all lightweight thin Ally, so it rattles like flipping crazy, it's bound to; you cant expect anything else!

The Cosomos uses sound absorbant material and does a pretty good job.

I have spent many a hour trying to sort the vibration issue out on the Lians. Used BluTak a fair amount but ended up running with the side panels off which sorted the sound issue out but created other issues. Dust....

Thanks everyone for all the input. Appreciated

The Asgard · 26 Aug 2009 at 08:46

Apem said:
The most quiet case ive owned is the Silverstone Fortress as for the HAF that wasnt very quiet and its a nightmare for dust.

Thats on my list but looks a tad tight for space. Thinking about trying two cards at some point again. Is there any issue with card length?

I would probably use 3 hard disks. One would be a SSD.

Apem · 26 Aug 2009 at 08:55

No m8 plenty of room for cards and you can take the top HD rack off if you get close and just use the bottom one.

The Asgard · 26 Aug 2009 at 09:25

Apem said:
No m8 plenty of room for cards and you can take the top HD rack off if you get close and just use the bottom one.

Cheers for the info

EsaT · 26 Aug 2009 at 11:56

Mal X said:
but you need to try and kill the vibration at its source as well.... so if the fan is set up to run quiet you'll be ok...

If fan's vibration can be felt when keeping it on hand then it's simply bad and not fit to quiet PC.
That's why it's better to have strictly standard size fans in case because case manufacturers aren't even interested about finding actually quiet fans. (which possibly don't even exist for fashionable oversizes)

AcoustiPack's problem is lack of heavy mass damping base layer. (what it had earlier but not in current mats)

The Asgard said:
Thanks. I will have a look at the NZXT Tempest.

Forget that.
You'll never get that to any quieter than noisiest component inside it thanks to direct noise escape paths to every direction. (just like HAF)
Then HDD mounting is hard and even uses plastic rails also adding potential for loose rattling. Also 5.25" bays use plastic mounting rails.

The Asgard said:
May be I will have a look at the Antec P193 again.

P193 solves many of P18x's space problems... new door of "3-models" just looks like cheap crap toy:
http://www.overclockersonline.net/?page=articles&num=2831&pnum=5

The Asgard said:
I have spent many a hour trying to sort the vibration issue out on the Lians. Used BluTak

Use bitumen mat, not BluTak. But all these are just patching the roof of totally rotten building if HDDs are hard mounted and case not fit to quiet PC. (or use BluTak for mounting those vibrating component)
Also optical drives have some kind balancing mechanism and if that's not good/is broken then they're going to cause lot more vibration than they should.

And thin steel panels vibrate equally, worst vibrations/resonances I've heard has been from combination of Sonata II and its Tri-crap... err Tri-cool fans.
Most steel cases are 0.8mm or even thinner and vibration resisting is also as much about thickness as weight. That's why Antec P-serie uses thick multilayer panels... which are actually alu-plastic-alu sandwhiches for keeping weight reasonable.
When HDDs are soft mounted, design is noise containing and mass damping is added aluminum case is lot quieter than some generic leaky case using fashionable plasticky HDD mountings.

Mal X · 26 Aug 2009 at 14:24

The Asgard said:
The Cosomos uses sound absorbant material and does a pretty good job.

I have spent many a hour trying to sort the vibration issue out on the Lians. Used BluTak a fair amount but ended up running with the side panels off which sorted the sound issue out but created other issues. Dust....

Thanks everyone for all the input. Appreciated

on lian fan mount base plate... on mine it's the top intake fan and also HD base plate tray above, these are held in place with 4 screws at either corner... but they rattle like crazy.... ALLY is way too thin...but on the underside of this, you can put a ``fillet`` of silicone sealant, just like you would on a bath surround

, now this kills the vibration completely........

lian cases have great reputation.........yea' right

..... take care, they need loads of working on to kill noise.

The Asgard · 26 Aug 2009 at 14:34

Mal X said:
lian cases have great reputation.........yea' right ..... take care, they need loads of working on to kill noise.

Totally agree. End of the day you shouldn't need to do anything to have a rattle free case. It's not like these things are cheap.

The Asgard · 26 Aug 2009 at 14:37

EsaT said:
If fan's vibration can be felt when keeping it on hand then it's simply bad and not fit to quiet PC.
That's why it's better to have strictly standard size fans in case because case manufacturers aren't even interested about finding actually quiet fans. (which possibly don't even exist for fashionable oversizes)

AcoustiPack's problem is lack of heavy mass damping base layer. (what it had earlier but not in current mats)

Forget that.
You'll never get that to any quieter than noisiest component inside it thanks to direct noise escape paths to every direction. (just like HAF)
Then HDD mounting is hard and even uses plastic rails also adding potential for loose rattling. Also 5.25" bays use plastic mounting rails.
P193 solves many of P18x's space problems... new door of "3-models" just looks like cheap crap toy:
http://www.overclockersonline.net/?page=articles&num=2831&pnum=5

Use bitumen mat, not BluTak. But all these are just patching the roof of totally rotten building if HDDs are hard mounted and case not fit to quiet PC. (or use BluTak for mounting those vibrating component)
Also optical drives have some kind balancing mechanism and if that's not good/is broken then they're going to cause lot more vibration than they should.

And thin steel panels vibrate equally, worst vibrations/resonances I've heard has been from combination of Sonata II and its Tri-crap... err Tri-cool fans.
Most steel cases are 0.8mm or even thinner and vibration resisting is also as much about thickness as weight. That's why Antec P-serie uses thick multilayer panels... which are actually alu-plastic-alu sandwhiches for keeping weight reasonable.
When HDDs are soft mounted, design is noise containing and mass damping is added aluminum case is lot quieter than some generic leaky case using fashionable plasticky HDD mountings.

I think at the end of the day its either a great looking case with sound issues or a cheap looking plastic case.

I suppose I'm trying to find the middle ground.

EsaT · 26 Aug 2009 at 16:27

The Asgard said:
I think at the end of the day its either a great looking case with sound issues or a cheap looking plastic case.

And if that's not enough then they nearly compete in who finds the worst fan...
Even these otherwise acoustically excellent Antec P-serie cases have acoustically lousy fans! And reason why case is otherwise acoustically good is because they had "outside help".
(and now lack of outside help is visible in door of "3"-models)

Mal X said:
lian cases have great reputation.........yea' right ..... take care, they need loads of working on to kill noise.

Most Lian Lis lack quiet design but instead have direct noise escape paths and especially older ones lacked soft mounting.
And now that well working (with mass damping) rubber grommet soft mounting has again had to make way for fashionable hot/quickswap systems in many models...

Mal X · 26 Aug 2009 at 16:31

The Asgard said:
Totally agree. End of the day you shouldn't need to do anything to have a rattle free case. It's not like these things are cheap.

i actually quite enjoy improving it, it gives me something to do... they consider weight important, but i don't.. i'd make the case far heavier.

this light weight case is like a loud speaker, noise is amplified inside and thrown out the front, it's odd because to kill the noise is quite easy and it's easy to design silent too, you just have to use common sense...

manufacturers dont do this....no, it'd be too expensive.

the Lian is a beautiful case assembled and the Ally looks nice and shiny, but by God it's manufactured cheap and nasty...the large A71 looks the same too, but it's huge advantage is :- it's got a solid front door panel and this kills the noise escaping through the fan grills.

the trouble is, the glossy photos fool us all.....

The Asgard · 26 Aug 2009 at 16:52

Mal X said:
i actually quite enjoy improving it, it gives me something to do... they consider weight important, but i don't.. i'd make the case far heavier.

this light weight case is like a loud speaker, noise is amplified inside and thrown out the front, it's odd because to kill the noise is quite easy and it's easy to design silent too, you just have to use common sense...

manufacturers dont do this....no, it'd be too expensive.

the Lian is a beautiful case assembled and the Ally looks nice and shiny, but by God it's manufactured cheap and nasty...the large A71 looks the same too, but it's huge advantage is :- it's got a solid front door panel and this kills the noise escaping through the fan grills.

the trouble is, the glossy photos fool us all.....

I used to enjoy messing around but 3 kids and running a business pretty much stopped that dead. How I long for the old days..... Or do I. Ummm ....

Mal X · 26 Aug 2009 at 16:52

EsaT said:
And if that's not enough then they nearly compete in who finds the worst fan...
Even these otherwise acoustically excellent Antec P-serie cases have acoustically lousy fans! And reason why case is otherwise acoustically good is because they had "outside help".
(and now lack of outside help is visible in door of "3"-models)

Most Lian Lis lack quiet design but instead have direct noise escape paths and especially older ones lacked soft mounting.
And now that well working (with mass damping) rubber grommet soft mounting has again had to make way for fashionable hot/quickswap systems in many models...

yes the thermaltake is EXACTLY the same, quick release hard plastic HD clips, quick release HD interchangeable cages......quick release hard plastic PCI slot clips....quick release side panel door with plastic hinges...bloody hell!

all of these are a recipe for disaster... because they're manufactured cheaply and they thus rattle because the engineering tolerances are too slack..

you put an HD cage right in front of a 120mm fan, it'll make a hell of a noise, this is simply because you can hear the air turbulence all around the metal structure.... it then shoots into the case, is amplified like a loudspeaker and thrown out the front...

if like me, you only have one or two SATA's, do not mount them in a noisy cage...on the bottom of the SATA are 4 screw holes on the frame casting...use 1/2 '' standoff rubber washers and screw the SATA directly into a base plate, this kills all vibrations............. mount the SATA inside a tunnel and on the inside of this tunnel stick Acoustic material....

now mount a 70mm fan directly to the back of the SATA's narrow rear face ( via silicone sealant ) you dont need any fancy adaptor kit, just think about your design...this fan will blow air lengthwise on either side of the Sata, might not need a 70mm fan, i might be able to do this with only 60mm.

this HD setup i'm going to make next week, will probably need a bit of fine tuning; i've just noticed something with the fan, it'll hang down too far, and interfere with the 120mm intake below, the SATA needs more than a 1/2'' standoff, this needs to be raised to 1'' .....where will i get a 1'' standoff from.....right i need to go to our Hardware store tomorrow, they'll have something.....

The Asgard · 26 Aug 2009 at 16:55

EsaT said:
And if that's not enough then they nearly compete in who finds the worst fan...
Even these otherwise acoustically excellent Antec P-serie cases have acoustically lousy fans! And reason why case is otherwise acoustically good is because they had "outside help".
(and now lack of outside help is visible in door of "3"-models)

Most Lian Lis lack quiet design but instead have direct noise escape paths and especially older ones lacked soft mounting.
And now that well working (with mass damping) rubber grommet soft mounting has again had to make way for fashionable hot/quickswap systems in many models...

Noticed that with the fans. Makes you wonder how much in real terms it would add to the price. I suspect very little with the deal they could possibly make.

The P193 seems to have issues with tall heatsink. Never straight forward.