Anyone recommend a seller of soundproof box that would fix around a computer?
Or how about the plans and materials to build one?
thanks
asabase
01-13-01, 08:09 PM
Just unplug all the fans. http://talk.dvdtalk.com/ubb/smile.gif
But try here:
http://www.tweakmeister.com/info/soundproof/soundproof.htm
TriGGaMan187
01-13-01, 10:11 PM
The Dynamat is pretty expensive, but there is an alternative that is relatively cheap. It can be found at McMaster-Carr http://www.mcmaster.com/. Just do a search for Acoustical Barriers. The Accoustical Damping Sheets Items 9709T18,9709T26 are on par with Dynamat Regular and cost about half as much. Good Luck!
drooth, let's me know if these damping sheet working good. Thanks. My email, drti2@hotmail.com
asabase
01-14-01, 02:55 AM
I wouldn't cover my harddrive in foam though. You need to keep them cool or they fail much sooner.
ghankerson
01-14-01, 03:53 AM
I just bought extension cords and put my computer box in the freezer.
JimB
01-14-01, 09:50 AM
Thanks for the tip, my car has too much noise in the hatchback area. I've never found anything other than attic insulation.. This will be much better ... will let you know how it works out when my order comes.
TriGGaMan187
01-14-01, 10:37 AM
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR><font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">asabase I wouldn't cover my harddrive in foam though. You need to keep them cool or they fail much sooner. </font><HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I wouldn't recommend this move either. I would just lay the sheeting on the large areas of your case such as the walls. When working with the McMaster Sheeting, I have found that it is more pliable if first heated with a hot air gun or hair dryer, then applied. It takes to odd shapes better this way. Good Luck!
MythSpell
01-14-01, 12:07 PM
Just buy a Macintosh Cube. They are silent.
Tweakmeister
01-14-01, 01:43 PM
Just to clarify...
There was an update to the article: http://www.tweakmeister.com/info/SoundProof2/soundproof2.htm
Also, expect to see the artices shift from DIY (do it yourself) to more Plug and Play products. (one such example would be the SP case... www.sp-usa.com (http://www.sp-usa.com)
Feel free to email me any questions/thoughts/ideas you may have.
------------------
http://www.tweakmeister.com
mikeeve
01-14-01, 03:26 PM
I've tried to quiet my computers. I bought some heavy carpet padding and installed inside the case, built a padded deflector for the exhaust fan. Not worth it. On the otherhand, I bought a cheap case from ComputerGeeks which has a really quiet powersupply/fan and added an IBM GX (?) quiet drive, and now I can just barely hear the machine. Really nice. Makes me miss my Apple 2!
daledude
01-15-01, 11:24 AM
I wanted a silent pc, so the first thing was to track down everything that made noise.
I has a 235 watt powerman powersupply that was actually very quiet, but I bought an enermax 330 watt power supply that was supposed to be the quietest on the market. While it was definitely quieter then most power supplies, it wasn't a real improvement over my old 235 watt power supply which was quiet already. Cost about $70 locally. Check www.pricewatch.com (http://www.pricewatch.com) for prices.
The next thing I tried to quiet was my hard drive. I found that the silent drive enclosure made by Molex worked wonders. It's basically a plastic box with rubber pads linning the inside, but there are metal plates that fit between the hard drive and the foam which allows it to cool the drive effectively. I use it on an IBM deskstar 75 GXP running 24/7 with no problems. It requires a 5.25" bay for the enclosure, but defenitely worth it for the noise dampening. Cost $35, but only sold by one place in the U.S. and they only ship 3-day fed-ex, make sure to get an e-mail estimate before ordering as they have a funky ordering system. www.nedcomp.com (http://www.nedcomp.com)
I also ordered the radial fin cooler for my P3700@933. It does an ok job of cooling the cpu, but it is by no means a performance cooler. Very quiet, and if you don't overclock then worth the $16 at nedcomp.
If you want to overclock your cpu, then you can't beat water cooling. I once used water cooling, it's not bad once you adjust to the idea of having water in your computer (much safer then you would think), but the water pump made a little to much noise for me (but quieter then most computer fans). Check out the water cooling section at www.overclockers.com (http://www.overclockers.com) for great tips.
After all the above mentioned components, the only sound is that of the power supply. Considering that the power supply also has two fans, it's extremely quiet. When I'm sitting at my desk (computer underneath desk) the hiss from my soundcard over the speakers is actually lounder then my computer. Overall, the only system that I've heard that is quieter is the previously mentioned G4 fanless computer.
succubiss
01-15-01, 02:33 PM
Yes, the Power supply is probably the loudest noise source. anything around 28db and down is quiet, 29db and up will be noticeable.
PC Power and Cooling power supplies are pricey but the silencer line is around 26-27db.
Try the Golden Orb cpu coolers, their fans are around 26-27db and very decent performance.
for Hard drives, if you arent worried about performance, fujitsu hard drives are pretty darn quiet, of course 5400 is much more quiet than 7200's by a long shot.
and carpet is a cheap way to soundproof your case.
Otto
01-15-01, 03:17 PM
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR><font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by MythSpell:
Just buy a Macintosh Cube. They are silent.</font><HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
Well, naturally. So is my coffee table. And I can put drinks on my coffee table. http://talk.dvdtalk.com/ubb/biggrin.gif
GeoffK
01-15-01, 11:45 PM
Moving to PC Hardware Forum.
Thanks for the great info!
Geoff
X
01-16-01, 01:05 AM
Check this baby out. I got one as a home theater computer enclosure with the 330W power supply and it's virtually silent. Solid and cool looking with two low RPM fans in the power supply and a front mounted fan too.
If you want to get your system as quiet as possible (i.e. in a recording studio situation with sensitive microphones) and you're willing to pay some money, check out
http://www.quietpc.com/
They've got power supplies & fans that are designed to be as quiet as possible. Also, they have a "sheath" of sorts for your hard drives to act as a muffler.
Buy: