What cases are best to reduce noise levels?

OzZie

OzZie

OzZie

Soldato
Joined
9 Jul 2004
Posts
4,522
Location
Nottingham
Hi,

Not posted in this section before so go easy ;)

I'm after a new case that will reduce the noise levels of my CPU and GPU fans primarily. At the moment im running on an OcUK Value case

EstarBenzSilver.jpg


Eww.

I dont have any fans on my case either (if you could recommend some that would also be great). I'm also ordering the Artic Cooler 64 Pro too, so would that effect how the airflow is managed? (because of the way the fan is upside down compared to the stock cooler which is looking straight at you when you into into the case)

I'm looking to spend a relatively small amount due to the fact i'll probibly need fans and the AC64 Pro. Idea price is about £60, can be persuaded to go a little high should it be worth it, but at the end of the day it is only a case. :cool:

What can you recommend? :)

Thanks.
 
OzZie said:
{snip}
I'm after a new case that will reduce the noise levels of my CPU and GPU fans primarily. At the moment im running on an OcUK Value case {snip]
Click to expand...
One effective way to do that is change the fans and or heatsinks on them not the case :rolleyes:

Other, is to buy a case with good airflow/cooling (120mm fans, etc) then reduce the speed (RPM) on the CPU & GPU fans to an acceptable level. Be warned though, the quieter you make your rig, the more quite you'll want it to be only to find other noises (e.g. hd) irritating you. & before you ask, apparently sound proofing is bs :D

I'm looking at the Lian-Li PC-7 PLUS Silver as my next case (when funds flow-in).
 
hp7909 said:
One effective way to do that is change the fans and or heatsinks on them not the case :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Hence the Artic Cooler 64 Pro? :rolleyes:

I've been looking at the Antec P-180 and Artic Cooling cases. They both state they can reduce noise levels somewhat but to how much extend i don't know. A little pricy but i can live with that. :)
 
The case will hardly make a diffrence in noise levels. I have the P180, and its no quieter than any other case. To reduce your noise levels, your better off changing your cpu HSF(As your doing) And also change your GPU HSF with something like the Zalman vf900. As for the case.. what sort of budget you looking at?
 
Lian-Li PC-7 PLUS Black Aluminium Midi-Tower Case (No PSU) (CA-054-LL) Price: £48.95 (£57.52 Including VAT at 17.5%)

Antec Super LANBOY Aluminum Super Mini Tower Case - No PSU (CA-012-AN) Price: £28.95 (£34.02 Including VAT at 17.5%)

Those two are decent cases, especially for the price.
 
messiah khan said:
Lian-Li PC-7 PLUS Black Aluminium Midi-Tower Case (No PSU) (CA-054-LL) Price: £48.95 (£57.52 Including VAT at 17.5%)

Antec Super LANBOY Aluminum Super Mini Tower Case - No PSU (CA-012-AN) Price: £28.95 (£34.02 Including VAT at 17.5%)

Those two are decent cases, especially for the price.
Click to expand...

Silver > Black.

Don't get the LANboy, it's designed for a blind 5 year old. :o
 
for quietness I'd get a P180 - if your P180 is noisey then you are doing something wrong - its a fantastically quiet case.

New CPU HSF goes without saying.
 
A case can not be quiet, it is what you put into it!

Yes the P180 can in some occasions elimate fan hum when your running 5v, but it only really comes into play when you are running really really really low noise.

Any case can be made silent, it is what you put into it that makes the noise, so components that make less noise = less noise from the case.

P180 is a good case, but it is marketing that it lowers down the noise, yes it will do slightly but for most noisey PC's you wont notice, and it most certainly will not perform miracles.

PC7+ and Silver get my vote for the budget, using the left over money to get some decent fans for volt modding. :)
 
The P180 comes with all this inluded. the fans are adjustable, and on the low setting are damn quiet, the PSU has a silicon-padded mounting cage, and the HDD rack comes with silicon gromets also. not to mention the panel construction is more sound proofed than normal 1.5mm aluminium ones.

The build quality which everyone bangs on about isnt much of an issue anymore, and even if you do get an old revision one with the 2-layer door, Antec will replace with a 3-layer one for free.

As long as you fork on a good quiet CPU/VGA cooler, the P180 is the bees kness for quiet air cooling "off the shelf"

IMO only of course.
 
I completely agree it has the most already done to it off the shelf. :)

But for the money you can get almost any case to the same level as it or better in the Super Lanboys case, making the whole silent case idea a bit of a marketing trick.

It offers the most off the shelf, but you can also get any case to the same level with of the shelf components. :)
 
the Lanboy is the Citroen Saxo of the PC Case market tho, small and functional but looks tackier than Hi-Tec trainers.

I would strongly reccomend the P180 for the OP, as it will be much quiter than his current setup, whilst with its 120mm configuration, including the top exhaust that will provide above average cooling for the CPU. Not to mention the siliconised mountings for PSU and HDD's

p.s. just checked the new Antec range here on OcUK, and Im loving the look of those new NSK cases! especially the desktop, I can feel a HTPC coming on.
 
Agree with you on the Saxo comparisson, what a good one to make! :)

Yeh that desktop one looks ace, would not say the same about any other Antec case really, the P180 thing just does nothing for me, yet I like a CM110 so I can't every work it out, just dont think I like it as it is to much of a unbroken front.

The mountings for the PSU and HDD do not really make a huge amount of difference, but as your implying, having them is better than not. :)

Never made a noticeable difference to me though.
 
I found the vibration dampeners hugely effective.

so much so I had to invest in some for my WD raptor when I moved from P180 to TJ-03.
 
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