Quiet gaming build

[Nidryn]

Hi guys (and lifeforms of the female persuasion),

I'm currently looking to start afresh with a mini-ITX gaming system after having a rather noisy mid-tower build. I was originally eying up Necere's case, but I realised that might be another year away, so I decided to go with what's available right now.

1. What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming, Photoshop (or other intensive programs), Web browsing, strictly HTPC/Playback, etc.

Gaming, web browsing, a little Photoshop.

2. Will you be overclocking?

Maybe. I have a spare 2500k, so I could if I wanted to. Silence matters more to me, though.

3. What's your budget?

~AU$1500 (roughly US$1580)

4. Where do you live?

Melbourne, Australia. There are plenty of small computer shops here, and even a few chains – nothing on the scale of Microcenter, though.

5. What exact parts do you need for that budget?

Motherboard, GPU, case, potentially an optical drive if a slim one is required, power supply (if SFX is required),

6. If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing?

Intel 2500K, Samsung 830 256GB SSD, WD 2TB 3.5 inch HDD, 5.25 inch Liteon DVD drive (if needed), Corsair HX650, and whatever RAM I can dig up. I might end up cannibalising my current build for parts.

7. What specific features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? etc.

Required: wireless, SATA 6Gb/s, sound.
Want: USB3.0

8. What resolution output do you need?
2560X1440 when I'm gaming, plus a 1050x1680 secondary display.

9. Does this system need to fit into a particular space and do you need an optical drive?

No space requirements, but I'm trying to get as small as possible. Optical drive isn't essential, but a case with space for one would be looked on favourably. I still have a few physical copies of games, so if a build didn't have an optical drive, I'd want an external option instead.

10. How comfortable are you with custom case design/modification and electrical wiring?

No experience whatsoever, but I'm definitely willing to give it a try. I have a set of screwdrivers, but that's about it. Where I'm living at the moment doesn't have much space for that sort of work, anyway.

11. How important is the noise/silence of this sytem?

Ideally, I wouldn't be able to hear the system through closed back headphones while gaming. I can hear the whine of my current build through them, so I'm trying to cut down on noise as well as reduce the size.

12. How mobile does this system need to be?

Portability isn't an issue, but almost all mini-ITX cases are portable by virtue of their size.

13. Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?

No current license – I've just been extending the Windows 7 trial, then reinstalling when I can't do it anymore. I have Windows 7 64bit installation media.

14. When do you plan on building/buying the PC?

Probably if the next month or so if possible. I'm willing to wait if there's something good coming out fairly soon, though.


This is what I was thinking of:

Intel Core i5 2500K
16GB GeIL DDR3-1600
AMD HD 7970 3GB (I think I might need a blower-style cooler for some of the cases I'm thinking of)
ASRock Z77E-ITX
Samsung 830 256GB
WD Caviar Black 2TB 3.5inch

and either:

SG05, SG07/08, FT03 Mini, Node 304 or the Q08. I'm pretty fluid on the case, though, so feel free to make suggestions.

PSU and optical drive really depends on the case, so I left those out.

I'm not quite sure how to get the build to run more quietly, so suggestions there would be helpful.

 

[Zap]

SG05 would be the smallest, but it may not fit the graphics card. Best you can do would be one of the shorter GTX 680. AFAIK the other cases don't have this limitation. All of them can probably handle all your other parts.

That whining you hear in your headphones... is it plugged into rear ports or front ports on the case? I've found many case front ports to pick up that noise.

 

[Quartz-1]

How about one of the Shuttle boxes?

 

[Zap]

How about one of the Shuttle boxes?

My first SFF systems were shuttle boxes. Heck, I owned a couple of the original model SV24.

I looked up the current models on Newegg. They consist of...

SH61R4 - H61 chipset with 250W PSU $200

SH67H3 - H67 chipset with 300W PSU $240

SZ77R5 - Z77 chipset with 500W PSU $350

The one of greatest interest for use with a gaming graphics card would be the most expensive model. Let's compare that with putting together our own, with no modding of either.

SZ77R5
$350
Can hold 11" graphics card.
500W PSU
"ICE" cooler for CPU better than stock Intel cooler, but not as good as big aftermarket units.
Can overclock, but mediocre results (from some reviews).
four RAM slots
two unpopulated mini PCIe slots
Proprietary form factor (many say these are ITX, but AFAIK that is incorrect).

SG05-450 and Z77E-ITX
$270
Limited to 10" graphics cards.
450W PSU
Limited to low profile coolers.
two RAM slots
Can overclock to the limits of your cooling.
Better ventilation than Shuttle R5 case (120mm intake versus 92mm exhaust, more vents next to graphics card).
WiFi standard

Neither is perfect. Shuttle box looks a bit better, but can pay $40 more for the SG06 if aluminum face is important. I do have to admit that the cheaper Shuttle boxes may make for really nice HTPCs with their cheap cost and good looks, plus multiple (single slot) PCIe slots.

 

[JohnleMVP]

A lot of the blower style GPU's really aren't that quiet when gaming.

 

[Nidryn]

SG05 would be the smallest, but it may not fit the graphics card. Best you can do would be one of the shorter GTX 680. AFAIK the other cases don't have this limitation. All of them can probably handle all your other parts.

That whining you hear in your headphones... is it plugged into rear ports or front ports on the case? I've found many case front ports to pick up that noise.

Good to know about the SG05 - I remember hearing someone got a 7950 in; it must've only just squeezed in.

I gave the 680 some consideration, but from what I've read the 7970 is better at resolutions higher than 1920x1080?

The whine isn't from the headset - the noise is there even when I'm not wearing the headset. Plus, the noise gets worse when the fans spin up.

~ shuttle stuff ~

Looks interesting - I hadn't considered a Shuttle case. If I was to get a 7970 with a non-blower cooler, would it affect temps terribly? There doesn't seem to be much ventilation (at least for the Z77 case)

 

[JayJapanB]

Pccasegear is a reasonably priced, reliable Australian seller, fyi.

 

[Quicksilver_]

MSY > all. I'd also recommend a closed loop cooling for the CPU, it certainly reduced the sound on my friends PC.

 

[JayJapanB]

MSY > all. I'd also recommend a closed loop cooling for the CPU, it certainly reduced the sound on my friends PC.

MSY are great though my issue, personally, with them is they don't stock a lot of things I want.
Silverstone cases, Corsair AX psu's, fancy slot load bays, Watercooling etc.

They are great and I recommend if you aren't that picky and they have what you want and they have it in stock. Melbourne might be better than Adelaide in that regard.

Edit: Psu's are definitely something to be wary of, along with the obvious Gpu issue. I've unfortunately built quite a few builds where the psu is the loud component.
I've used a HX650 before though I forget how loud it was :S
My HX 850 was too much noise for me but I'm a bit of a silence freak.

The fan on the SFX 450 will probably be noticeable if you hit it with too high a load though that is an assumption as I haven't used one.
People have managed to fit a fanless Seasonic ATX psu in an FT03 mini. There might be some ideas on that case's thread.

 

[Zap]

Good to know about the SG05 - I remember hearing someone got a 7950 in; it must've only just squeezed in.

I gave the 680 some consideration, but from what I've read the 7970 is better at resolutions higher than 1920x1080?

The whine isn't from the headset - the noise is there even when I'm not wearing the headset. Plus, the noise gets worse when the fans spin up.

Looks interesting - I hadn't considered a Shuttle case. If I was to get a 7970 with a non-blower cooler, would it affect temps terribly? There doesn't seem to be much ventilation (at least for the Z77 case)

Many mod the SG05. A lot of cards barely won't fit, so the hot ticket is to cut out a slot on the front of the case for the card to extend into. The plastic face still covers it so not obvious on the outside. An even hotter ticket is to get the SG06 version. Costs more, but even more space behind the front face for a card to extend into once the chassis is modded.

Yes on the 7970, especially if you get the GHz edition (is that only one available now?). It also depends a bit on the game. And of course, how small you want to make your computer. Sometimes you need to make sacrifices. I know, first world problem, "OMG I get 5% less framerates at 5760x1200 resolutions!"

I'd like to know if you can pinpoint where the whine is from, since it isn't coming through the headset. If it goes with the fan speeds, can it actually BE the fan? Which fan? GPU?

IDK about temperatures in the Shuttle case with a non-blower graphics card, but indeed looks as if ventilation isn't the best.

 

[Nidryn]

Already tried controlling fan speeds and so forth - had some success with the GPU fan speeds, but the ambient noise is still too much.

Anyway - I'm thinking of going in a different direction now - more silence focused. Here's my new proposed build

i5 2500k
16GB DDR3-1600 RAM
Gigabyte HD 7970 GHz edition (using the windforce cooler)
Fractal Design Define Mini
ASRock Z77 Extreme4-M
256 GB Samsung 830
2TB WD Caviar Black
+some kind of optical drive.

I've switched to mATX as it seems to have more silent options. I also realised I'll still need multiple PCI/PCI-e slots for expansion cards.

Is the Define Mini a good choice? What about the motherboard and the GPU? I like the looks of the FT03, but I'm not sure how quiet it is.

Also - is it worth it going all-out and getting new case fans, an AIO cpu cooler, fanless PSU, etc reduce ambient noise? Does it make much of a difference?

 

[Dangman]

Is the Define Mini a good choice?

The Define Mini is a solid choice:
http://www.silentpcreview.com/fractal-define-mini

What about the motherboard and the GPU?

No comment on the motherboard. As for the GPU, due to how long that card is, you will have to remove the upper HDD bay for the Fractal Design Mini. But that card is fairly solid IMO.

I like the looks of the FT03, but I'm not sure how quiet it is.

It's not that good of a case:
http://www.silentpcreview.com/silverstone-ft03
http://www.silentpcreview.com/silverstone-ft03-redux

Unless space is at a premium in your home, no point in getting the FT03 for practical reasons.

Also - is it worth it going all-out and getting new case fans, an AIO cpu cooler, fanless PSU, etc reduce ambient noise? Does it make much of a difference?

Whether or not it's worth going all out is largely dependent on sensitive to noise you are. So if you really sensitive to noise, then yes go all out as that would make a difference. But if you're not that sensitive, no reason to go big as the perceived difference may not be worthwhile.

Also note that those AIO liquid coolers are actually noisier than their air-cooling counterparts on account of the included water pumps. As for the fanless PSU, from what I've heard, Australia is fairly hot. So unless Australia is lot colder than what I've been led to believe or you keep the AC running constantly, I'd err on the side of caution and go with a fanned PSU. I recommend the Seasonic X650 Gold 650W PSU. It's a fairly quiet PSU and is of high quality. In fact, some of Seasonic's fanless PSUs are basically just fanless versions of the Seasonic X650.

 

[Zap]

i5 2500k
16GB DDR3-1600 RAM
Gigabyte HD 7970 GHz edition (using the windforce cooler)
Fractal Design Define Mini
ASRock Z77 Extreme4-M
256 GB Samsung 830
2TB WD Caviar Black
+some kind of optical drive.
...
Also - is it worth it going all-out and getting new case fans, an AIO cpu cooler, fanless PSU, etc reduce ambient noise? Does it make much of a difference?

Stock case fans are fine. AIO - see below. Fanless PSU not needed because if your PSU is the noisiest thing in your rig with your WD Black and your GPU choice, then you choose the wrong PSU (do they still sell Turbocools?) or the fan controller is broken in the PSU.

Speaking of WD Black, it is a decent choice as long as you don't mind hearing seek noises. Will you be running stuff from it? If it is just for pure storage, consider a WD Red.

Also note that those AIO liquid coolers are actually noisier than their air-cooling counterparts on account of the included water pumps.

I just want to add in that while this is true, actual results may vary. If your noise floor is not that low, then you won't notice the pump noise while you may be able to run a slower fan RPM on the radiator itself. So it depends... but if you are not crazy overclocking and your case fits a big tower cooler, and you are going for super quiet, then usually a big air cooler with super low RPM fan will be quieter. If you want to spend the money, look for something like the Thermalright Macho.