Soundproof a computer

drooth · 01-13-01, 09:03 PM

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, 09:09 PM

Just unplug all the fans.

But try here:
http://www.tweakmeister.com/info/sou...soundproof.htm

TriGGaMan187 · 01-13-01, 11:11 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 · 01-14-01, 02:08 AM

Awesome, awesome sites!

With much gratitude,

drooth

01-14-01, 03:25 AM

quote:
Originally posted by drooth:
Awesome, awesome sites!

With much gratitude,

drooth

drooth, let's me know if these damping sheet working good. Thanks. My email, drti2@hotmail.com

asabase · 01-14-01, 03:55 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, 04:53 AM

I just bought extension cords and put my computer box in the freezer.

JimB · 01-14-01, 10:50 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, 11:37 AM

quote:
asabase I wouldn't cover my harddrive in foam though. You need to keep them cool or they fail much sooner.

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, 01:07 PM

Just buy a Macintosh Cube. They are silent.

Tweakmeister · 01-14-01, 02:43 PM

Just to clarify...

There was an update to the article: http://www.tweakmeister.com/info/Sou...oundproof2.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

Feel free to email me any questions/thoughts/ideas you may have.

------------------
http://www.tweakmeister.com

mikeeve · 01-14-01, 04:26 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, 12:24 PM

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 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

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 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, 03:33 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, 04:17 PM

quote:
Originally posted by MythSpell:
Just buy a Macintosh Cube. They are silent.

Well, naturally. So is my coffee table. And I can put drinks on my coffee table.

GeoffK · 01-16-01, 12:45 AM

Moving to PC Hardware Forum.

Thanks for the great info!

Geoff

X · 01-16-01, 02:05 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.

http://www.digitalconnection.com/Pro...s/DC350BXM.htm

Dan Wellman · 01-17-01, 11:50 AM

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.

Hope this helps,

Dan

------------------
http://www.mp3.com/edgetolife

01-14-01, 03:25 AM	#5
drti Guest Posts: n/a	quote: Originally posted by drooth: Awesome, awesome sites! With much gratitude, drooth drooth, let's me know if these damping sheet working good. Thanks. My email, drti2@hotmail.com

01-14-01, 11:37 AM	#9
TriGGaMan187 Member Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Orlando, FL Formerly Gainesville, Fl ..... GO GATORS!!! Posts: 237	quote: asabase I wouldn't cover my harddrive in foam though. You need to keep them cool or they fail much sooner. 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!

01-15-01, 04:17 PM	#15
Otto Banned Join Date: Sep 1999 Location: Memphis, TN Posts: 11,544	quote: Originally posted by MythSpell: Just buy a Macintosh Cube. They are silent. Well, naturally. So is my coffee table. And I can put drinks on my coffee table.

01-13-01, 09:03 PM	#1
drooth New Member Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: new york, ny, USA Posts: 7	Anyone recommend a seller of soundproof box that would fix around a computer? Or how about the plans and materials to build one? thanks

01-13-01, 09:09 PM	#2
asabase DVD Talk Limited Edition Join Date: Jul 2000 Posts: 5,481	Just unplug all the fans. But try here: http://www.tweakmeister.com/info/sou...soundproof.htm

01-13-01, 11:11 PM	#3
TriGGaMan187 Member Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Orlando, FL Formerly Gainesville, Fl ..... GO GATORS!!! Posts: 237	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!

01-14-01, 02:08 AM	#4
drooth New Member Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: new york, ny, USA Posts: 7	Awesome, awesome sites! With much gratitude, drooth

01-14-01, 03:55 AM	#6
asabase DVD Talk Limited Edition Join Date: Jul 2000 Posts: 5,481	I wouldn't cover my harddrive in foam though. You need to keep them cool or they fail much sooner.

01-14-01, 04:53 AM	#7
ghankerson Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Phx, AZ, USA Posts: 294	I just bought extension cords and put my computer box in the freezer.

01-14-01, 10:50 AM	#8
JimB Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2000 Posts: 415	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.

01-14-01, 01:07 PM	#10
MythSpell Senior Member Join Date: Jul 1999 Posts: 443	Just buy a Macintosh Cube. They are silent.

01-14-01, 02:43 PM	#11
Tweakmeister New Member Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: USA, The Earth Posts: 1	Just to clarify... There was an update to the article: http://www.tweakmeister.com/info/Sou...oundproof2.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 Feel free to email me any questions/thoughts/ideas you may have. ------------------ http://www.tweakmeister.com

01-14-01, 04:26 PM	#12
mikeeve New Member Join Date: Nov 1999 Posts: 8	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!

01-15-01, 12:24 PM	#13
daledude Senior Member Join Date: Nov 1999 Posts: 392	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 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 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 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.

01-15-01, 03:33 PM	#14
succubiss DVD Talk Gold Edition Join Date: Sep 1999 Location: Dublin, CA Posts: 2,102	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.

01-16-01, 12:45 AM	#16
GeoffK G! Join Date: Jan 1999 Location: Portland, OR Posts: 6,920	Moving to PC Hardware Forum. Thanks for the great info! Geoff

01-16-01, 02:05 AM	#17
X Administrator Join Date: Oct 1987 Posts: 5,503	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. http://www.digitalconnection.com/Pro...s/DC350BXM.htm

01-17-01, 11:50 AM	#18
Dan Wellman New Member Join Date: Jan 2001 Posts: 2	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. Hope this helps, Dan ------------------ http://www.mp3.com/edgetolife