How Do You Deal With Noise From the Computer?

W

Walter Tore

New member
I have been looking into going to my computer for recording and the thought just hit me-how do you keep the computer quiet when recording? Everyone I have been around, including mine, has that fan noise. I have to turn it off when I record(with my DAT machine) in the same room as it . Thanks for all your help so far guys! Walter
 
There are insulations that you can use....
there are quiter fans that you can purchase...
there are liquid cooled systems as well....

there are a lot of posts concerning the subject...you could do a search on "fan noise" and get a ton of results....

or....run your mic out to another room....that's what I do....
 
$30 Total Computer Silencer:

Get a set of keyboard/video extention cables and throw the CPU into a closet or into the next room.

Personally, I have an office on the other side of the wall from my recording room. I cut a 2"x4" hole in the wall and snaked all the cables through.

No noise and no heat problems.
 
I just replaced my power supply with a Quiet PC 400W rated at 20db. Doesn't get any quieter than that.

You can also replace your processor fan, put sound cases on your drives if need be.

All is here - http://www.quietpcusa.com/
 
thanks for all the responses. I am going to put it in the closet. We live a house built in the 30's and it has a small window in it, so it will keep cool. We live in Sonoma county, Ca, where it never gets too hot! Walter
 
I actually read an article not long ago where someone detailed how to tame the computer noise by taking scraps of the padding from under carpet, cutting it and hot gluing it to the inside of the computer wherever there is space. This will absorb the noise inside. I tried it and while it didn't completely get rid of the noise, it did significantly reduse it. Cost me nothing (found padding) and actually worked fairly well.

Just thought I'd throw in an odd one.
 
What about that stuff that you can get from Crutchfield.com for your car?
Can you stick that on the inside/outside of your case?
I thought I saw that done before somewhere.
 
i think when he said it doesnt get to hot, he was talking about the proccessor...that thing gets to rediculous temperatures. haha.
 
Yeah, every recording room should have a closet with a window handy.

Get the machine out of the room.
 
dont mean to hijack but this should help people(i hope) I like the cpu in the other room idea. but i have a cpu card and all my chord would ha ve to reach it. im using a 6 ft 8 ch. 1/4 to rca snake. could i just connect the rca ends to 15 foot extenders? would this give any problems sound quality wise.
 
Putting the computer in another room is a good way to avoid the noise, but it doesn't eliminate it. Here are some things you can do, so you don't have to get up and walk to your computer when the time comes.

Get a G5 Mac.

OR

Get a silent (anything rated below 25db) power supply, CPU fan/heatsink, cut back on the number of fans installed, use dampening pads, lower the voltage on fans.

I've got a watercooled system (only has two fans, for the radiator and power supply) right next to my Mac.
 
Putting the computer in another room is a good way to avoid the noise, but it doesn't eliminate it. Here are some things you can do, so you don't have to get up and walk to your computer when the time comes.

Get a G5 Mac.

OR

Get a silent (anything rated below 25db) power supply, CPU fan/heatsink, cut back on the number of fans installed, use dampening pads, lower the voltage on fans.

I've got a watercooled system (only has two fans, for the radiator and power supply) right next to my Mac.
Click to expand...


So, spend a little money and only have the sound of your monitor to deal with(unless you have an LCD), or spend a butt load of money and still have the sound of your monitor, plus everything else. :confused:

Doesn't make any sense to me. Buying cables seems like the cheaper/easier/quicker/better solution.
 
I've got water cooling too. Very quiet plus better performance due to overclocking. I'm also using a LCD monitor.
 
mbenny123 said:
So, spend a little money and only have the sound of your monitor to deal with(unless you have an LCD), or spend a butt load of money and still have the sound of your monitor, plus everything else. :confused:

Doesn't make any sense to me. Buying cables seems like the cheaper/easier/quicker/better solution.
Click to expand...

Jeez, what kind of monitor are you using? That's not normal to have sounds coming from it. If you do "spend a butt load of money" on a Mac, Apple monitors don't make noise.

Just some more useful tidbits... the Power Mac G4 tower is known to create a ton of noise due to a flaw in engineering the intake slots in the front panel. Apple allowed consumers to get replacement fans that dampen the problem. I've been talking about G5's prior to this.
 
noodles2k5 said:
Jeez, what kind of monitor are you using? That's not normal to have sounds coming from it.
Click to expand...

Probably a CRT. CRTs can make a lot of whine. It probably means the filter caps in the monitor's power supply are defective.... Try setting the monitor's refresh rate to be the same as your country's power (e.g. 60 Hz in the U.S.) and the problem should go away.
 
The only CRT that should be making noise is a broken one. However, the strong magnetic fields in a CRT screws with magnetic guitar pickups, which is incredibly annoying.
 
I highly recommend a zalman CPU heatsink, and Aurora PSU from www.quietpc.com. ArcticSilver thermal compound between the heatsink and CPU will help you run cooler with less air circulation too. Also a 120mm case fan with a speed control is not a bad idea either. I have my fans up during most applications, but turn down/stop all the fans while recording. My Athlon64 runs around 50C even with all the fans stopped or as low as they go.
 
Seasonic S12 for your PSU. They are the quietest on the market and run at 80% efficiency...you'll save on your electric bills in the lnog run. They are pricey, but well worth it.

http://www.ewiz.com/query.php?categry=0&s=seasonic+s12&Go+Search!.x=0&Go+Search!.y=0

Panaflo or Silencer fans are quiet for 80mm fans.
You could also undervolt your fans to make them run slower.
Does your motherboard have a chipset fan? Those are known to be noisy along with video card fans.
 
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