Topic Title

Greetings,

I've just built a pretty nice computer system for a fellow DBUG member, and I thought that I should pass along what I learned. Here are the specs:

Intel Core2Duo 6420 2.13gHz w/ 4MB L2 cache:

Thermalright SI-128 heatsink, with GlobalWin 120mm fan:

Asus P5N-E SLi motherboard:



2X 1GB Corsair DDR2 SDRAM 533 (PC4200)


Antec Solo case:



Fortron Source "Green" 300watt power supply:


Gigabyte GeForce 8600GTS 256MB video card:


Western Digital SE16 320GB SATA hard drive, with 16MB cache:


Sony DVD-RW burner:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6827131038
(You can also get a SATA version of this for about $5 more.)

The cost of the hardware including shipping was almost exactly $900.

Three alternatives to major components would be a Gigabyte GA-N650SLI-DS4 motherboard, which is very similar to the Asus:


A different heatsink that would be better in low velocity air flow (i.e. quiet); Scythe Ninja (that might not even need the fan):


And a very similar Asus video card that has a different passive cooling heatsink:


The system is very fast (right, Dick? ), and it can be upgraded to 4GB (or even 8GB) of RAM (with a 64bit version of Windows). It can have a second video card added for faster support of two monitors, or support for a total of up to four monitors. You can have three hard drives (suspended in the Solo's awesome drive cage) or four hard drives with the silicon-grommeted sleds.

The Solo is an excellent case -- the best I have ever used: air flow is excellent, the 0.8mm thick steel is also damped with applied sheets on the main panels, the drive mounting is also great, and the cable management (hooks behind the HD cage) is also great. It has room for up to four 5.25" drives, or three with one 3.5" (floppy/zip) drive.

It has two (front) USB 2.0 ports, and one Firewire and front audio ports. There are 8 USB ports in total, two Firewire ports, one eSATA port (for a very fast external HD), and one 1000/100/10 LAN port, as well as multiple "HD" audio channels. The motherboard lacks only a serial port (used for a pen tablet) that requires a inexpensive PCI card to be added to the system.

The video card is the fastest video chip available in a (stock) passively-cooled video card, and it has two DVI outputs. If you want even more speed, and can live with a little fan noise, and you can afford the $150 higher price tag, the GeForce 8800GTS is the card to consider.

You'll notice there is no floppy in the system -- I had to use one temporarily to install the SATA driver at the beginning of the Windows installation, but it did not stay in the system. We used WinXP SP2 -- I cannot recommend Vista at this time.

This system easily ran a 20% overclock (with an easy BIOS setting), and it stayed quiet, and ran 10-12C hotter for the CPU. It maxed at 65C, which is fine.

Neil's suggestions are great for a workstation. What would be a good spec for a new notebook/laptop. I am mostly concerned in getting a good graphics card for running DataCAD and SketchUp. The SketchUp people recommend a good OpenGL card. Will a good GeForce do or should I go to the trouble/cost to get a Quarto card? I want to get more into 3D in the future so a good card will be necessary.

Hello,

has updated their computer buyer's guide:



Their and lists are equivalent to my 75% and 90% spec
lists, respectively. Their is well, over the top...

As for laptops, I would recommend a 17" model, with an extended keyboard, like .

Hello,

A shameless plug for an excellent computer forum, that I happen to help moderate:



The articles are top-notch, and the forums are a lot like DBUG and these forums: very helpful, civil, and most members are quite knowledgeable, too. Visit SPCR, browse -- enjoy!

Neil,

First of all, thanks for all of the time and effort you put into helping others. I'm sure that you enjoy it, but you should know that it is also a big help to all of us.

I just built my first (quiet) computer using some of your recommendations, inlcuding going to silentpcreview.com, arstechnica.com and buying everything from Newegg.com. I am really happy with everything with the exception of the Antec Solo "tri-cool 120mm fan" in the rear of the case.

I guess that I just didn't read closely enough, but when I got the case and looked at the fan, it didn't have a connector (4-pin or 3-pin) that would allow the fan speed to be controlled by the bios, speedfan, etc. Instead, it has a molex connector for power and a little 3-speed control (hence the "tri-cool", duh!) for low, medium and high. Am I missing something here? I'm a little disappointed in that one little detail, but VERY happy with everthing else.

I just hung the control out the back so that I could change the speed manually if necessary. Have you been replacing the rear case fan with one that is bios/motherboard/software controllable based upon case temperature or something? Or just sticking with the stock fan. Any recommendations?

G'Day Tico,

You're very welcome.

I like the GlobalWin NCB fans -- they are very quiet, and they have 3-pin plugs, that you can either use on the mobo headers with control using the BIOS, or you can also get Zalman FanMate2 controllers.



Or, you could try the Nexus, or the low speed Yate Loon fans.

Hi Tico:

I'm running in a couple computers I built at home. They have their own built-in thermostats and vary their speed based upon ambient temperature. I run a pair (front and rear) in Antec Solo cases and have been very pleased with their performance and relatively low noise level. I noticed some of the user reviews mentioned some sort of humming noise, but I have not experienced this. I do have mine mounted with silicone isolating grommets, so that may be the difference.

Dave

Neil and Dave,

Thanks for the suggestions. I will look into both.

Hello,

I have not used the 120mm "SmartCool" Antec, but I see it's maximum RPM is much higher than the fans I'm suggesting; and usually RPM = noise level.

Hello,

There has been a lot of discussion of the Noctua fans on SPCR -- the bottom line is they work well with very low restriction/back pressure, but not so well if they are working against back pressure. Their blades are very narrow and very steeply pitched.

The Nexus RealSilent and the the GlobalWin NCB are both more conventional, with broader, forward swept blades, that work better against a little more back pressure. The NCB has ceramic bearings which should work well in hot conditions for a long time -- that is why I like them.

Another quiet fan is the Scythe DF.

If the BIOS has fan control by temperature of the CPU (many do!), then that's your best bet. I have my Athlon 64 X2 4200+ "passively" cooled with the Scythe Ninja (Rev A) and the Scythe DF rear exhaust only runs about half of the time. Here's a post with some pictures.



The Corsair 450VX fan runs very slowly indeed: ~4volts up to almost 250watts output, which is just 21-22dBA. It is also very efficient -- 80-84% in the critical range of 64-200watts output.

Greetings,

There is a better cooler that I would recommend over the Thermalright SI-128 heatsink; called the Scythe "Ninja":



There is also a "Mini Ninja", that is only slightly less effective, and might be better if the system gets moved around a lot:


The one caveat with it on the Socket 775 is that the standard mounting
system (four plastic push-pins that twist to lock) is barely adequate
for a big cooler, so you should use it with this Thermalright backplate,
with it's spring-mounted screws:



You can use a long-ish screwdriver on the screws down through the corner
slots on the Ninja's fins, and this is a much more secure --and much
more effective way to hold on the heatsink. The pressure against the
CPU is important for good heat transfer, and the backing plate spreads
it out on the back of the motherboard. You need to mount it before
putting the motherboard into the case!

Here's a thread on the SPCR forum, where this combination is discussed:


The Ninja probably would not even need to fan on it, since the PSU and
the case fans are very close by.