How to achieve silent performance with CM HAF X case

[crispyfrybits]

Hello Everyone,

 

My first post, from Victoria BC, and love the linetechtips videos.

 

My desktop PC sits close to my TV and I want to reduce the overall noise and specifically the noise while under load so I can enjoy movies and games without having to wear headphones. I am using the Cooler Master HAF X case, which I love, but I find the challenge to be that I am limited by my fan options because they have a 230mm front intake, 200mm side intake (which I am not using currently), and a top 200mm exhaust. There are not many manufactures for these fan sizes so options are limited, and the top fan does have some whining to it (not a tonne but noticeable to me). 

 

Specs

Cooler Master HAF X case

Intel i5 2500k with Corsair H55 liquid cooler

Nvidia N670 2GB Video Card (dual fan)

256GB Samsung 840 EVO

1TB WD Blue HD

16GB DDR3 Memory

Corsair 750 700w power supply (120mm fan mounted on bottom)

1x 230mm front intake fan (stock)

1x 200mm top exhaust fan (stock)

1x 140mm back exhaust fan (yate loon)

 

I think there is a lot of whining coming from the power supply fan during load, so I am thinking of replacing that fan. I need to remove or replace the top 200mm fan as that is making some passive noise that is audible to me. What I would love to do is replace the 200+mm fans with better quality fans that have rubber mounts, but I don't see any good choices for something like this. The other factor is likely the video card which will spin up the RPMs under load, but I don't know how to deal with this without going to a water cooled solution.

 

Anyone have any tips or suggestions to help quiet this case + build? Ultimately I might consider getting a new case as this one is a few years old and some parts are starting to show their age (like front panel, has broken USB etc).

[WoodenMarker]

Have you tried lowering fan speeds?

[crispyfrybits]

Have you tried lowering fan speeds?

 

The 200mm and 230mm are already fairly low RPM as they are. I could try lowering the fan speed on the GPU I suppose, but I haven't tried doing that since I don't know what temperature the card should safely be at. It is an MSI card, I have been using afterburner to monitor the temps and voltage. I know I can lower the fan speed but I am not sure if I can set it to automatically compensate if it gets too hot.

[WoodenMarker]

The 200mm and 230mm are already fairly low RPM as they are. I could try lowering the fan speed on the GPU I suppose, but I haven't tried doing that since I don't know what temperature the card should safely be at. It is an MSI card, I have been using afterburner to monitor the temps and voltage. I know I can lower the fan speed but I am not sure if I can set it to automatically compensate if it gets too hot.

The point of a fan curve is to do just that and compensate for higher temps with a higher fan speed.

[dfsdfgfkjsefoiqzemnd]

When building my Storm Trooper, I had already donated the LED fans to a friend's HAF X and used the PC for 2 or 3 weeks with only the front fan to provide all the cooling. 

Even though I had set it to a fixed 300RPM (it does 660 maximum IIRC), it kept the entire PC cool.  That's with an OC-ed and overvolted CPU and a pair of 770s in SLI.  No issues even during prolonged gaming sessions, in fact the difference was only a couple °C. 

Granted, I did remove the hard drive cage from mine, so there was nothing to interrupt the air from that front fan.  Still, it shows that you don't NEED a ton of fans to keep a HAF case cooled. 

 

The thing is, you don't have to use the 230mm and 200mm fans.  There are holes a 120 or 140mm on the front. 

As for the top fans, grab an aluminium/iron/wooden plate and make your own fan bracket so you can bolt 3x 120mm or 2x 140mm in the top.  With the mounting holes for the 200mm fans already being threaded, you only need 2 metal strips of the right width really.  Drill some holes where the fan screws need to go through, and you're all done.

 

On mine I simply drilled out the threaded mounting holes for the top 200mm fans so I could mount the fans using rubber grommets.  If I were to build a HAF X again, I'd be ditching the stock fans and using 140mm fans instead.  I might keep a 200mm for the side panel though, it's perfect for providing plenty of fresh air to the GPU(s).