Parts for a SILENT HTPC (1 Viewer)

[lsandini]

I my experience, the simpler the machine, the more silent it is.

My office & gaming computer has a E6600 CPU cooled with a Scythe Infinity huge cooler, and 12cm Noctua fan at minimal speed, almost inaudible. GeForce 7800GTX, with a Zalman VGA cooler, very silent and running always at minimal rpm, even during long gaming sessions.

The 500GB HDD is in a Scythe enclosure and can barely be heard during seeking, otherwise is silent. The PSU is an old BeQuiet Dark Power Pro with 2 little fans, that stay very silent even under heavy load, much better than the various Seasonic and Corsair, Antec,... 12cm fans versions I have tried. The whole thing is in a CoolerMaster Stacker case, with no case fans (1 that I can switch on in summer when it gets hot here).

While I am tempted sometimes to upgrade this or that, this machine fulfills all my need in terms of gaming and working.

For the HTPC, the situation is similar. I keep it minimal. If it allows me to watch HD content, TV, listen to my music and watch the family pictures, it's fine. I was a watercooling user for a long time, but I'm quite happy with the current air coolers nowadays.

Lorenzo
(if it ain't frozen, you're not living in Finland)

 

[IceHappy]

Lorenzo
(if it ain't frozen, you're not living in Finland)

HiYa Lorenzo

I don't care who you are or where you are from that was funny....

Years ago looking on the internet how some people (early years of watercooling) were silent running (before Zalman) and one guy from Finland had a air ducting from a cloths dryer sticking outside of his window which had a hole for said ducting looking like a professional job and all and the other end was in his computer with a 120 mm fan sucking in outside air. By the way the window showed snow outside....
Sure cheaper that what I paid for koolance technology!!!!
IceHappy
Nearly frozen but still trucking

 

[Spragleknas]

For harddisk, have a look at the new WD GP-series.

Review: WD Green Power: A New Benchmark in HDD Acoustics & Power | silentpcreview.com

Conclusion:

It's the quietest desktop drive we've ever tested. It's the most efficient drive we've ever tested. And it comes in capacities up to 1 TB. What more do you want? As far as SPCR is concerned, this could be the perfect drive — at least until flash media takes over.

We didn't think we'd ever find a drive to replace our trusty Barracuda IV — but then, we never expected a manufacturer to release a mainstream 5,400 RPM drive either. We are pleased and surprised to discover we were wrong on both counts.
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