Loud Server in Performing Arts Center

[Reagan Reese]

Hello! I would like some honest opinions about this little issue. In a performing arts auditorium, silence is key. Especially if you are in a booth far away from the stage and audience. The hall was build somewhere around 2005-2006. It had the original computer in there until last year, when a new server was put in. Why a server? "We need something super reliable and fail proof." My boss says. The school district had one that they were going to throw out so it was installed here. One problem. IT'S SO LOUD. Mr. Boss built a box around with baffles around the 3 PSUs. Guess what? Most of the sound comes out of the front where the hard drives go. Just tell him to get rid of it! That's the thing. He insists on having it, to play with audacity and a sound cue program from 2006. The hardest work this thing does, is playing YouTube videos. The noise is a problem because when you try to listen to something, it's there. When you are tying to EQ something, it's there. When you try to listen to someone shouting at you because the hall is so big, it's there. and many other unlimited reasons in a professional setting. He just will not even move it away. I asked him several times why he doesn't spend $600 to build a near silent computer with about the same power, but he's got to have a SERVER because the name sounds way better. You can hear this jet in the entire hall as well.

 

Think of this; you own a professional recording studio, and your computer dies. Instead of buying something sensible, you buy the loudest computer you can. Your recording studio sucks now.

 

So what i would like, is your honest opinions on what should be done. I've included a Straw Poll of some possible options.

 

http://strawpoll.me/7346495

[2FA]

It's likely the fans that are just behind the hard drives. They aren't supposed to be quiet, they are supposed to be high performance.

[RobinHood5]

As long as its in a pretty well ventilated area, open it up and pull half of the hot swap fans that are cooling the hard drive bays. As long as you are leaving the ones directly cooling the CPUs and its in a pretty well ventilated area you will be fine without some of them.

[Huntsman]

The thing about enterprise grade hardware is that they are never intended to be quiet. I would replace the fan if I were you. Pull out the fans and put something like a Noctua with low speed.

[DXMember]

wanna get an Intel Compute Stick or BRIX?

[Reagan Reese]

2 minutes ago, Huntsman said:

The thing about enterprise grade hardware is that they are never intended to be quiet. I would replace the fan if I were you. Pull out the fans and put something like a Noctua with low speed.

 

4 minutes ago, RobinHood5 said:

As long as its in a pretty well ventilated area, open it up and pull half of the hot swap fans that are cooling the hard drive bays. As long as you are leaving the ones directly cooling the CPUs and its in a pretty well ventilated area you will be fine without some of them.

 

5 minutes ago, DeadEyePsycho said:

It's likely the fans that are just behind the hard drives. They aren't supposed to be quiet, they are supposed to be high performance.

 The things is it has 3 power supplies, that is 90% of the volume. To make fans quieter would mean replacing the PSUs.

[2FA]

4 minutes ago, Huntsman said:

The thing about enterprise grade hardware is that they are never intended to be quiet. I would replace the fan if I were you. Pull out the fans and put something like a Noctua with low speed.

The fans are most likely of the hot swappable variety where it has a connector on the frame of the fan that you push into a connector directly on the motherboard.

[soup]

"Accidently" fall on it/hit it with the fire axe/spill coffee on it.

 

Basically do a BOFH on it

[Reagan Reese]

1 minute ago, DeadEyePsycho said:

The fans are most likely of the hot swappable variety where it has a connector on the frame of the fan that you push into a connector directly on the motherboard.

This is a pretty old server. I can't check since my boss is a total control freak.

[scottyseng]

@Reagan Reese

 

Yeah, the servers aren't meant to be quiet. What server chassis is that? It looks like a Norco. You can remove the hot swap fans and hot swap assembly to replace them with silent fans (I put Be Quiet Pure Wings in mine). The other major source of noise is the PSU...if it's a 80 Plus unit, it's probably loud as a jet. A Platinum 80 plus unit is way quieter (At least for SuperMicro stuff it is).

 

What motherboard is in it? Note that SuperMicro fixes the min fan speed to 50%...I found this out with my motherboard.

[2FA]

2 minutes ago, Reagan Reese said:

This is a pretty old server. I can't check since my boss is a total control freak.

I put together a Dell server from 2006 that had these.

[Huntsman]

2 minutes ago, Reagan Reese said:

 

 

 The things is it has 3 power supplies, that is 90% of the volume. To make fans quieter would mean replacing the PSUs.

You could buy a normal PSU and plug it in if the mobo accepts normal ATX connectors. But that would mean "less reliable" in enterprise environment standpoint.

 

Hmm.. could get cheeky and swap it.. hope your boss doesn't notice it isn't running on redundant PSUs

[manikyath]

tell the idiot this:

 

theres a reason why a SERVER is in a SERVER ROOM. they're loud, ugly, and not supposed to be plugged into directly either way.

 

theres also a reason why a lot of companies in the biz (sennheiser, intel, and so on) have a 0db room to test the sound their products make.

 

in the audio world a 100% quiet system is a must, if not possible (imax for example) the device will be put in a 0db room to block all its sound from the audience.

[Reagan Reese]

1 minute ago, Huntsman said:

You could buy a normal PSU and plug it in if the mobo accepts normal ATX connectors. But that would mean "less reliable" in enterprise environment standpoint.

 

Hmm.. could get cheeky and swap it.. hope your boss doesn't notice it isn't running on redundant PSUs

They are redundant. He even believes that turning the PC on and off will kill it!

[manikyath]

1 minute ago, Reagan Reese said:

They are redundant. He even believes that turning the PC on and off will kill it!

sounds like someone needs to be beat with a stick and let IT do its job properly...

[Huntsman]

4 minutes ago, Reagan Reese said:

They are redundant. He even believes that turning the PC on and off will kill it!

He isn't wrong ya know... Strictly speaking, on/off equates wear and tear. The power button might come loose and you won't be able to turn it on. LOL!

[manikyath]

1 minute ago, Huntsman said:

He isn't wrong ya know... Strictly speaking, on/off equates wear and tear. The power button might come loose and you won't be able to turn it on. LOL!

back in the olden days (talking before 386 here) it was generally accepted that the thermal cycles of turning on and off a computer put unnecessary wear on solder joints, and (back then) would often be the killer of a computer.

[Huntsman]

7 minutes ago, manikyath said:

back in the olden days (talking before 386 here) it was generally accepted that the thermal cycles of turning on and off a computer put unnecessary wear on solder joints, and (back then) would often be the killer of a computer.

lol that would be an epic facepalm way to kill a computer.. glad we're so far away from that era

[manikyath]

Just now, Huntsman said:

lol that would be an epic facepalm way to kill a computer.. glad we're so far away from that era

luckily technology has improved, and so has soldering technology.

[clarkmcc]

I put a fan controller on my fans. Just open it up and plug it in. Other option is to put in silent fans but my best choice is to get a silent computer. Tell this guy the he needs something THAT WORKS. He's an idiot if he just wants something that sounds cool while compromising quality.

[clarkmcc]

The other option is to liquid cool the server 

[Reagan Reese]

2 hours ago, manikyath said:

tell the idiot this:

 

theres a reason why a SERVER is in a SERVER ROOM. they're loud, ugly, and not supposed to be plugged into directly either way.

 

theres also a reason why a lot of companies in the biz (sennheiser, intel, and so on) have a 0db room to test the sound their products make.

 

in the audio world a 100% quiet system is a must, if not possible (imax for example) the device will be put in a 0db room to block all its sound from the audience.

I think that would be best. He is so hard to deal with. I've offered to buy a 1,200 Watt Corsair PSU but he needs that "reliable server". At this point, modern consumer PSUs are so good it's fine for a performing arts center.

[clarkmcc]

1 hour ago, Reagan Reese said:

I think that would be best. He is so hard to deal with. I've offered to buy a 1,200 Watt Corsair PSU but he needs that "reliable server". At this point, modern consumer PSUs are so good it's fine for a performing arts center.

Give me his number so I can tell him that he's an idiot and you wont have to... That thing is old enough that it's less reliable than a custom consumer computer

[Reagan Reese]

49 minutes ago, clarkmcc said:

Give me his number so I can tell him that he's an idiot and you wont have to... That thing is old enough that it's less reliable than a custom consumer computer

 

5 hours ago, manikyath said:

luckily technology has improved, and so has soldering technology.

 

5 hours ago, Huntsman said:

lol that would be an epic facepalm way to kill a computer.. glad we're so far away from that era

 

5 hours ago, scottyseng said:

@Reagan Reese

 

Yeah, the servers aren't meant to be quiet. What server chassis is that? It looks like a Norco. You can remove the hot swap fans and hot swap assembly to replace them with silent fans (I put Be Quiet Pure Wings in mine). The other major source of noise is the PSU...if it's a 80 Plus unit, it's probably loud as a jet. A Platinum 80 plus unit is way quieter (At least for SuperMicro stuff it is).

 

What motherboard is in it? Note that SuperMicro fixes the min fan speed to 50%...I found this out with my motherboard.

 

5 hours ago, DeadEyePsycho said:

I put together a Dell server from 2006 that had these.

Thanks for all the support, I'll leave these suggestions to him. I'm seriously thinking about quitting this class, just the cringiness is to much for an enthusiast like me. Again, thanbks for all the support! 

[clarkmcc]

4 minutes ago, Reagan Reese said:

 

 

 

 

Thanks for all the support, I'll leave these suggestions to him. I'm seriously thinking about quitting this class, just the cringiness is to much for an enthusiast like me. Again, thanbks for all the support! 

It sounds like this guy has a high impression of himself... maybe we should all send in our resumes so he can see the truth from some real people who know what they're talking about...