Where do you put your PC?

[Kingofpain678]

People have built elaborate ventilation systems to quite their PC's in their studios, People have made long cable runs to separate their PC's from their control rooms, switched to laptops, etc.

What solutions are you guys using?

 

[Mo Facta]

I have a Carillon AC1 in my rack right next to my studio chair. I've found you don't even need to have an elaborate setup to reduce noise if you take a few things into consideration.

Firstly, using a graphics card with a heat sink instead of a fan is a good idea.
Second, use a super quiet power supply like a Zalman or a Kingwin fanless.
Third, swap out your cpu fan with something like a Zalman 7000C or a Nexus something or other.
You can also swap out your stock case fans with quieter ones but I have found that it's often not necessary to have any at all if your CPU fan is a good one. Some cases need them, some cases don't.

The only noise that you'll experience after all that is HDD noise so it's a good idea to only have the minimum amount in your main recording machine, i.e. system drive, recording drive, and sample drive. I would put your backup drives either in external enclosures or in another computer networked either wirelessly or in another room via ethernet.

One more thing is that often the case has a lot to do with how much noise you get. One of the quietest cases I have ever heard is an Antec P182. With the above components it was WHISPER quiet. We had one with a rezorator CPU water cooler and it was virtually silent.

Cheers

 

[ditroiamusic]

That's a great question. Sadly it's something I haven't paid enough attention to. I'm interested in hearing replies as well!

 

[somegeezer]

I have a Carillon AC1 in my rack right next to my studio chair. I've found you don't even need to have an elaborate setup to reduce noise if you take a few things into consideration.

Firstly, using a graphics card with a heat sink instead of a fan is a good idea.
Second, use a super quiet power supply like a Zalman or a Kingwin fanless.
Third, swap out your cpu fan with something like a Zalman 7000C or a Nexus something or other.
You can also swap out your stock case fans with quieter ones but I have found that it's often not necessary to have any at all if your CPU fan is a good one. Some cases need them, some cases don't.

The only noise that you'll experience after all that is HDD noise so it's a good idea to only have the minimum amount in your main recording machine, i.e. system drive, recording drive, and sample drive. I would put your backup drives either in external enclosures or in another computer networked either wirelessly or in another room via ethernet.

One more thing is that often the case has a lot to do with how much noise you get. One of the quietest cases I have ever heard is an Antec P182. With the above components it was WHISPER quiet. We had one with a rezorator CPU water cooler and it was virtually silent.

Cheers

I agree with all that. Though I my GPU does have a fan as part of the rest of the cooling system. But it doesn't have a case fan blowing directly onto it, which reduces a lot of noise. The most noise I get are from my rear fans and water pump. But the case itself does a good job of bringing it all down to a dull hum.

Even then, I can be recording just a foot away from the case, without picking up much of the noise at all. When I record properly, I'm generally further away than that and manage to get dead silence.

My hard drives don't seem to have any noise outside the case. Even with 3 of them running.

It can all come down to just the right combination of parts. Quieter fans would be my first choice.

 

[VomitHatSteve]

I've found that I'm a lot more likely to get noise from electronic interference if my guitar is too close the the computer. I usually put the microphone on the opposite side of the room and forget about it.

Of course, if you talk to me about "noise floors," I'll probably just stare blankly!

 

[Steenamaroo]

This is something I've though about a lot.
My pc isn't ridiculously loud but it's loud enough to present problems.

I've had the loan of a 3.2 octo mac pro lately, and wow this thing is amazing.
It's genuinely so quiet that i discovered my monitors have a little constant hiss.

I'd never heard it before over my old computer.

 

[grimtraveller]

I use a standalone DAW and although it's always made a little noise, it's only since using an external preamp that the noise has sometimes leaked onto a recording {and, the ticking of a clock on the other side of the room}. By putting a couple of cushions on it, no more noise !

 

[somegeezer]

I use a standalone DAW and although it's always made a little noise, it's only since using an external preamp that the noise has sometimes leaked onto a recording {and, the ticking of a clock on the other side of the room}. By putting a couple of cushions on it, no more noise !

I think my clock gives me the most problems too. But between it and my computer, I'm glad it's the much simpler one to just move away whilst recording.

 

[Hakea]

I've had the loan of a 3.2 octo mac pro lately, and wow this thing is amazing.
It's genuinely so quiet that i discovered my monitors have a little constant hiss.

+1

I didn't want to be the first to mention it, but noise problems were something that I really haven't thought about much since switching to a mac for music. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a PC basher. I've had 25 years of fun with PCs, including nearly 20 assembling my own from parts. I've built gaming rigs with big hunky heat sinks that still sounded like tractors. I had an old Pentium 100 that in summer had to have the side of the case off and a big desk fan constantly hosing it down with cooler air, or it would sulk and crash.... But my Macs have been surprisingly quiet even when the day warms up. It's almost like they don't have a fan, except that one of them used to occasionally get a glitch where the fan came on full bore at start-up and had to be rebooted. You knew it then.

But, as Steenamaroo says, you then get to hear other things via the monitors. If I listen closely I can even get a very small sound as the mouse cursor moves across parts of some web-sites, etc. But nothing yet that seems to interfere with recording.

It might be something to check out next time any of us upgrade? However, if you are committed to a PC and you can't simply shift it away from the critical spots then all the things that Mo Facta suggested can certainly help. Good luck.

Chris

 

[grimtraveller]

I think my clock gives me the most problems too. But between it and my computer, I'm glad it's the much simpler one to just move away whilst recording.

Oh, before recording with mics in any room with a ticking clock, I disable the clock.

 

[Hakea]

Oh, before recording with mics in any room with a ticking clock, I disable the clock.

Good idea.

I have a special clock disabler that works for all sort of annoying noises. Also good for applying a bit of "Percussive Maintenance" to things that need a good thumping when they play up.... Looks a bit like this

 

[CapacityWKS.]

I built a cabinet to house my CPU and it's been great! I put some whisper fans on the back and it some foam on the sides and the top and it seemed to do the trick just nicely.
Now if I can figure out how to breath quieter while recording my acoustic guitar, I'd be a happy camper!