[pk_volt]

Is there such PC that can run doing small tasks without any fan at all, with the exception of the power supply I guess.

I really hate fan noise more than anything else.

[superman]

Yes, but you would have to seriously sacrifice performance.

[MSP]

Liquid cooling is about your only feasible option, unless you run one of those wimpy Via or Intel low energy chips. I think Transmeta is back in the game now too.

[-Sevendust-]

They make fanless powersuplies too. Its pretty easy to make a silent pc. Just dont plan on doing intense tasks.

[pk_volt]

Originally Posted by -Sevendust-

They make fanless powersuplies too. Its pretty easy to make a silent pc. Just dont plan on doing intense tasks.

which is exactly what I'm looking for. Most of time time, I"m only using matlab, word, excel/browsing etc.

and even if I do intensive work, i wouldn't midn the fan toggling on.

now... where!

[-Sevendust-]

typing in a search engine isnt hard

Antec.com - Phantom

[namelessentity]

My PC is nearly silent. I bought a pre-built though, since it ended up being the same price as building. Anyway, as far as I can tell it throttles the fans, so it's nearly silent idle or just doing simple tasks. When I bought it and first turned it on all the fans came on full speed and then the machine throttled them. It was so quiet I was sure the machine died until I noticed the Windows logo on my screen. It's definitely possible to have a quiet/silent machine, even for gaming.

[pk_volt]

Originally Posted by namelessentity

My PC is nearly silent. I bought a pre-built though, since it ended up being the same price as building. Anyway, as far as I can tell it throttles the fans, so it's nearly silent idle or just doing simple tasks. When I bought it and first turned it on all the fans came on full speed and then the machine throttled them. It was so quiet I was sure the machine died until I noticed the Windows logo on my screen. It's definitely possible to have a quiet/silent machine, even for gaming.

what computer do you have?

Dell, which model etc?

[funkgab]

mine is silent, fans running on low, + fan controller, passive chipset cooler, and uh artic cooling 7 i think? + an antec 180, pretty silent here even for heavy tasks such as gaming, its very minimal sound, although if your ears are really good, go with a passive cooled system, meaning fanless

[namelessentity]

Originally Posted by pk_volt

what computer do you have?

Dell, which model etc?

I bought a computer from Ibuypower, but it was sold through Newegg. They still actually offer pretty affordable systems on their actual website compared to something like Alienware. Plus all the parts aren't proprietary, so you know you have an ASUS board, a PNY video card, etc.

Even a new Dell is going to be damn near silent though. The systems we have at work are only like 9 months old and you can't even tell they're on.

[superman]

Check out silentpcreview.com | Everything about Silent / Quiet Computers

[pk_volt]

well, I still have an athlon 3200 XP+ at like 2.2 ghz. Although this PC is really old, it's still super fast for the work I do - 8-10 second bootup to windows xp (no joke).

I put a zalman heatsink on it and it's really quiet, but the entire pc is still pretty loud. I think it's either the video card (geforce 4200) or the power supply, or most likely, both.

I now know that silent power supplies exist, but what kind of video card should I get? I don't really play games much, but i wouldn't mind having something better than the geforce 4200.

[WoodButcher]

Are you buying prebuilt or build your own?
Lots of good ways to run silent if you build your own.

[pk_volt]

Originally Posted by WoodButcher

Are you buying prebuilt or build your own?
Lots of good ways to run silent if you build your own.

hello, please read my replied thread above your post. I want to use my existing setup.

[WoodButcher]

Originally Posted by pk_volt

hello, please read my replied thread above your post. I want to use my existing setup.

I type slow it wasn't there.
I'll do some research and give some links, what kind of budget? The 8600 cards give you DX10 so you can keep the card when you upgrade. A 400w PSU w/ a 120 mm fan would do you fine, I'll look.

[WoodButcher]

Newegg.com - Antec NeoPower NeoHE 380 ATX12V 380W Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, CUL, TUV, CE, FCC, CCC, CB, C-tick - Retail

($19.99 after $50.00 Mail-In Rebate)
specs say 1 x 80mm super-silent fan

[ninefivezero]

Originally Posted by superman

Check out silentpcreview.com | Everything about Silent / Quiet Computers

I was just about to post this as well

My computer is almost silent. I only have 2 fans, a Panaflo 80mm on the CPU and the 80mm in my PSU. My HDDs are mounted with rubber grommets so the vibrations are not transfered to the case (this actually makes a pretty big difference) and I modded my graphics card for passive cooling.

Its not hard.

[WoodButcher]

PCIE x16?
Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GV-NX86T512H GeForce 8600GT 512MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
if you want quiet I would go this way, put a 120mm Yates through the bottom of your case blowing in or on the side panel. The low speed Yate Loonsare dead quiet and do the job. What are you using for a CPU heatsink?

[pk_volt]

my motherboard only has agp slot

[funkgab]

so is mine, i use the zalman vf900

[WoodButcher]

Originally Posted by pk_volt

my motherboard only has agp slot

Ok what make and model is the mobo, besides limiting your choices I'd be concerned about price. I wouldn't spend more than $50 because when you upgrade the PC this card won't. You can silence it as 950 suggested. Remove the fan and use a larger fan attached w/ zip ties or mount it to the case if you can find a spot. I have 80 mm yate loons I've used for this and they are real quiet. You can make a bracket to hold it w/ a strip of sheet metal about a 1/2" wide and 6" long. Drill 2 holes to screw into the fan and one more at the end to attach to the case, hang it like a flag on a pole and you can aim it anywhere you need. In fact you can replace the fan in your PSU if your handy and save the hassle of playing w/ the rebate I pointed out.

I'd do the mods for silence if every thing works as is and save the money for a new system.

Snooping at the egg I found this which is not much of an upgrade but silent and this which is better but 3 times the price. Not sure if they are compatible w/ your board, need the make and model of the board.

[Bear]

I thought this was pretty innovative: ::: Zalman, leading the world of Quiet Computing Solutions :::

[-Sevendust-]

That thing is fuckin slick.