[ericlikeseatin]

my rig here, nothing too fancy. dell 2005fpw, klipsch promedia 2.1s, sr60, cmoy, d22 eggos, self built tower underneath a jerker. $500 acer aspire 5600 (labor day sale!) to handle non critical tasks (email, communications).

 

[Iron_Dreamer]

I just bought the parts for a new system today, my first upgrade since mid 2004. It'll be interesting to see how fast these C2D's are, at least based on the Tom's Hardware CPU charts, my target speed completes most tasks in 50% or less of the time as my current CPU (A64 3200+ Clawhammer). Not to mention the fact that this will be my first Intel system, after 7 years of AMD only. I'm going for a minimalist setup, trying to see if I can get by with only two fans in the system (exhaust and PSU). I'll be sure to post some pics next week once things come in. Here's the full set of goodies for the meantime:

CPU: Intel E4300
Cooler: Thermalright Ultra-120
Mobo: Gigabyte P965-DS3
RAM: Corsair Value Select 2GB DDR2-667
GFX: Gigabyte X1600 fanless, dual-DVI
HDD: (2x) Samsung T166 500GB
PSU: Seasonic S12-330
Case: Antec Solo (swapping rear fan to Scythe S-Flex)

The plan is to hike the E4300's FSB up to 333, which would put the RAM at the right speed. It seems this kind of overclock to 3GHz is practically a given for the E4300, and usually at stock voltage. I'll use RMclock to put 'er back down to 2GHz at idle, where by my research it seems I should be able to back the voltage down to around 1.0V. I'm hoping this will result in an obscenely quiet and fast rig in all conditions. My current system is very quiet at idle, but under load it's fairly loud, the must be ran at medium noise levels in the summer to keep the HDD's cool enough. With the better airflow of the Solo, and lower heat of the Samsungs as compared to my current Seagates, I think I should be able to avoid that problem.

 

[willtothewong]

^nice setup

im looking into getting a core 2 duo system up and running by this summer but my main goal is to get the dell 2407 w/ the jerker like how everyone else has it

=)

 

[Jetlag]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iron_Dreamer /img/forum/go_quote.gif I just bought the parts for a new system today, my first upgrade since mid 2004.

Want to know how lame my PC is? I have not upgraded the CPU or MOBO since 2000! Yes, I am running a VERY early P4, here are the numbers:
P4 (0.18) 1495 Mhz
L1 cache 8
L2 cache 256
Intel i850 (ECC) chipset with 99Mhz FSB
512 MB RDRAM @ 1062 MB/s

Your Grandmas PC is faster than mine!

Once I complete 2 major projects I am working on I plan to build myself a new Intel quad-core system with 4GB RAM, 3 750GB SATAII HDDs in RAID5, either an 8800 or else the new ATI card and Lian Li case. I have a new HDV camcorder and need a PC that can edit the HD video and 5.1 sound easily. I also have a new killer desk made from real cherry wood, and yes, I will post photos when I am done. Oh, and either a 30" monitor or perhaps a 37" 1080P LCD HDTV instead (good for previewing video).

So, do you think I willl notice much of a performance boost?

 

[Patu]

Nice setup Iron_Dreamer. You shouldn't have any heat problems with Solo. I have A64 3000+ slightly overclocked and only one 18dB Papst fan pushing hot air out (+ one fan in PSU which is dead silent but useless when it comes to cooling down the system). I also have 3x Samsung P120 250gt HDD's in there + Ati X800GTO which runs as X800XT. I have Zalman CNPS-7700Cu for CPU cooling and 770Cu for GPU.

Still my system runs extremely stable and cool. Solo is also so much more quiet than my previous Antec Sonata. That rubber band system for HDD's is awesome.

 

[Orestes]

i forgot to post my system specs when i posted a pic:

antec sonata ii | antec trio 650w | asus p5w dh deluxe | intel core 2 duo e6300 @ 2.8ghz | ati x1900xtx | westinghouse 22" widescreen lcd | patriot ddr2-533 @ 400mhz | western digital raptor 74gb | western digital 320gb sata2 16mb | creative xfi platinum | nec 3540 dvd burner | klipsch ifi | microsoft ergonomic keyboard 4000 | microsoft intellimouse explorer 3.0 | logitech momo steering wheel | sandisk cruzer micro 4gb (readyboost)

 

[jeanius]

I was thinking about pimping it up a bit but it works so why bother?

 

[jmmtn4aj]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeanius /img/forum/go_quote.gif I was thinking about pimping it up a bit but it works so why bother?

Can you spell fire hazard?

 

[DocHamm]

Quote:

Originally Posted by flecom /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have been spending money upgrading all of my folding boxes and media servers a peek :

Eeek! Eeeek! Run!! Flee!! No-no Nanoooo!!! I Shrek you!!!

 

[wanderman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iron_Dreamer /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'll use RMclock to put 'er back down to 2GHz at idle, where by my research it seems I should be able to back the voltage down to around 1.0V.

dude just turn on speed step and it will down clock processor and lower the multiplier and voltage at idle. I have a shuttle and my box is pretty loud but I blame my raptor.

cpu: e6600 @ 3.2
gfx: evga 8800gts 640 mb @ 600mhz core 1750 mem
ram: 2gb corsair xms2 pc6400 @ 2volts cl4 timings
hdd: wd raptor 74gb 10k rpm
display: sceptre 20.1 5ms 1680x1050
case: (also my mobo) shuttle sd37p2

I wish I had a camera. The only upgrade I am planning is dropping a quadcore q6600 when intel cuts the price to $266 in the summer so that should rock but that will increase my temps a bit and I will probably get a worse oc.

This box help my newbie source clan get to the playoffs lol hopelfully we can win out cal-o and move up to cal-m.

 

[drews]

Here's mine...

 

[jmmtn4aj]

Just a tip to you guys with bookshelfs of studio monitors, the best arrangement for speakers is a triangle where you are the apex that is taller than it is wide:



speakers-------------------------------speakers
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you

 

[ekinwang]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmmtn4aj /img/forum/go_quote.gif Just a tip to you guys with bookshelfs of studio monitors, the best arrangement for speakers is a triangle where you are the apex that is taller than it is wide: speakers-------------------------------speakers | | | | | | | | | | | | | you

great suggestion, but i must say, it is hard to have that distance placement on a desktop computer setup... unless your desk is really square shaped

 

[NeoVibe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeoVibe /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hey there, as promised, here is my shiny new Antec SOLO, is that shiny enough for you? System specs are no big deal: Athlon XP2800+, 1Gb Ram, Radeon 9800, 3 hard drives (total 570Gb). I only play two games, GT Legends and GTR2 so my system is more about silence. In that respect, here are the real silent-specs: »» VGA Silencer for Radeon 9800 (it's that big cooler on the graphics card; has a 2 speed selector, low is inaudible and fast is good enough for gaming) »» Antec Tricool fan (came with the case and it's already rattling in it's 2nd day!! anyway, inaudible on the low speed setting; will get a silent Noiseblocker or Scythe to replace it) (by the way: the cable arrangement was not finished, it's much better now, and the CPU cooler is a crappy one from arctic, I'll only change it when I upgrade the cpu and then will get a fanless one) »» Antec SOLO case with suspended hard-drives (fabulous case, fantastic hard-drive solution... more on this later; the 'suspenders' are not rubber as they used to be - they snapped apparently - they're a kind of elastic nylon or something; in case you're wondering, the drive are very stable and I can move the case around with no problem) »» BeQuiet 350W PSU (nearly 2 years old but pretty silent; will only change it for a fanless one; used soft silicone for damping between the case and the PSU - check the pics) Antec SOLO I cannot tell you how much this case has improved my listening experience. I think this subject hasn't been discussed in this forum as much as it should. Silence, (even for head-fiers) is should be top priority, a basic ingredient for a proper listening experience. Hard-drives by themselves, sitting on your hand while idling sound like 'wooshh'. True!! just like a fan. But they vibrate A LOT. that vibration does not cause the drive to emit any noise. however, when it touches the case chassis (just barely touching it will do) those vibrations are transmited to the entire case which will vibrate and do a lot of 'HUUUMMMM'. with this system there is NO 'humming' and resting my hand on the case doesn't reveal any vibration. another thing worth mentioning: grabing the side panel with one hand and knocking it with my 'highly calibrated fingers' produces a dry "thump" instead of the normal "pooow" with kind of an echo that the old case did. I believe it's because it has a vinyl layer on it but the metal itself doesn't seem like metal...more like plastic... but it is metalic. This case is everything I could want from a 'silent' case. The perfect starting point for a silent system. My advice to anyone into silent computing is either an Antec P180 if you need extreme cooling besides silence, and a P150 or Solo if you have normal/moderate cooling needs. (P150 is a white Solo with PSU).

Time for an update on my now-tricked-up-Solo-case.
(sorry for the crappy cellphone pics)

My CPU fan is temperature controlled. It's an old Athlon XP 2800+ so I'm not going to spend 70$ or so on a fanless cooler for it. Maybe I'll upgrade to a Core2Duo in a few months. For now this will have to do.
Being temperature controlled it speeds up whenever ambient temp rises and the summer isn't far away, so I started thinking about what I could do.

First thing is improving airflow. Providing a better, unresticted path for cool air is very efficient because it improves cooling without generating more noise. As you can see, I removed 3 CD/DVD bay covers to create a kind of tunnel for fresh air. The effect was dramatic! The CPU fan imediately reduced it's RPM by some 200RPM (1500 to 1300). But this solution had 2 problems: one is dust entering the case and that was solved with that home-made air filter; the other is that opening the case generally means more noise getting to the outside: in this case I didn't feel that plus the fact that it was open made CPU fan spin slower so the overall effect was very positive. Cost: about 1$ for the 'filter'

Just one important note: simply 'opening' a case doesn't reduce the temperature of the components; in fact, removing the side cover of my case makes tempratures rise! to reduce temperatures you need a proper 'duct' effect. what I did was just remove stuff from that duct so that air could flow easily.

But then I thought about another thing: undervolting! this CPU is locked si I can't reduce it's speed. However I can change the voltage supplied to the CPU. This is very important as the amount of heat generated by the CPU depends on the voltage *squared*, so a small reduction of the Vcore reduces the heat produced and so the fan speed. The stock value is 1.65Volt; I now have it at 1.50V and it's still stable. CPU fan RPM's dopped 300RPM!! It is now at ~1000RPM and as far as I know it won't go below that but it's almost inaudible. I'll have to try playing the only game I use (GT Legends) but so far so good. I might try reducing it further.

The stock case fan got replaced for a Noctua fan. It's been rated by Silentpcreview.com as one of the best fans concerning noise-airflow ratio. For the same airflow it is clearly much more silent than the stock fan (at low speed). currently it's running at ~850RPM and is inaudible, even with the front of the case open. the controler is a Zalman Fanmate2 as you can see in the picture.

And by the way, my BeQuiet PSU died so I got a another BeQuiet one from the DarkPower line, the 430W one. It is noisier than my old one (there's a little 'clicking' noise) but it is still very good. Once the RPM of the PSU fan depends on the load (how much stuff it has to power) a future upgrade to less power-hungry CPU such as Core 2 Duo may allow it to spin slower. But that's a few months away...
However, I might soon replace my 3 hard drives with just one 500Gb Samsung. It's supposed to be one of the most silent units around. The 2 samsung's I have are definitely very silent. The 500Gb one is supposed to be even quieter... On the other hand, the 160gb seagate I have, even suspended, still makes the Solo case vibrate... can't wait to get rid of it!

Well, it's all for now. Rembember, silence is golden

 

[ekinwang]

lets hug it out =)

that is one of the BEST show ever for guys... it is just great!