Loud Fans! = :(

[independantvariable]

I essentially have this case http://www.techimo.com/photo/data/3/4xp_case800a.jpg althought it is not mine. I have four fans, two 90's in the front, and two in the rear. Basically the noise generated by these fans is fairly high, and fairly annoying. I have tried swapping out other fans I have but they all generate the same amount of noise. I don't want to have to buy like "awsome-o super quiet elite gaming fans" or something of that nature.

I was just wondering if anyone had any tips/tricks to reduce the noise generated by the fans from inside the case.

 

[sarbz]

run them at a lower voltage. You can do this by rewiring them, or purchasing a fan controller.

If you want to adjust them easily and often, and you are not comfortable reworking wiring, buy a fan controller.

If you want the cheap way out, rewire them to 7v or 5v.

5v is inaudible on most fans, but dramatically reduces airflow. Some fans won't start up at this voltage as well.

7v usually still moves a good amount of air, and is very quiet. Every fan I've seen will start up at this voltage.

Rewiring instructions:

molex connectors contain 4 wires- 2 black, a yellow, and a red.

red=5v, yellow=12v, blacks=ground

-fan positive to red & fan ground to ground gives you 5v
-fan positive to yellow & fan ground to ground gives you 12v
-fan positive to yellow & fan ground to red gives you 7v

 

[Lsv]

i found pvc piping at canadian tire, cut very thing strips and place it between the fan and the case

 

[freddiepm61]

fan controllers, rubber gromets for the entire fan and screws, silencing foam
f

 

[Ozone77]

Rewiring the fans to 7V is a great solution.

Given that you have 4 fans, you may want also to look into a fan controller, ask in the FS/FT forum and see if anyone is selling theirs. (i could sell you mine, but it is black)

 

[sarbz]

You could also make a fan controller. I made one for my case with some rheostats from radio shack. They don't provide enough resistance to get down below 7v, but they work great for the fans I have them running with (a 120mm silenx, and my ati silencer 5).

I'll post some pics tonight. It looks very clean & professional, and cost me a whole $7.50.

 

[Susquehannock]

Personally, I'd go with the 7V mod as sarbz suggested in post #2.

You could also make a fan controller. I made one for my case with some rheostats from radio shack. >>>>>

What wattage rating are those rheostats? The biggest I've seen at Radio Shack is 3w
which seems bit on the weak side to me. Guess they would be OK for a single small fan though.
Just would hate to see another scenario like this :

 

[sarbz]

Personally, I'd go with the 7V mod as sarbz suggested in post #2.


What wattage rating are those rheostats? The biggest I've seen at Radio Shack is 3w
which seems bit on the weak side to me. Guess they would be OK for a single small fan though.
Just would hate to see another scenario like this :

Any other damage than what was done to the rheostats?

I'm running one fan per rheostat right now. I'm not planning on increasing the load.

 

[Susquehannock]

^_^ - no other damage. It was hooked to a case fan & not the CPU fortunately. He said it
worked fine a for a few weeks before the fan stopped working.

AllElectronics.com used to sell some nice 15w ceramic rheostats for $1.65 each
but all they have now are the large 50w models. Too big for a front panel that's for sure.

Since a rheo is basically a continuously variable resistor, & dumps the extra current as heat,
the slower you make the fan the more heat is produced. As you probably already know.