Passive PSU recommendations

[Yatys 93]

Building a HTPC so I don't have to boot up the full tower to watch films at night or do some quiet research, was originally going to go with the corsair CX430M, still considering that as an option, but also curious to the idea of a passively cooled psu to help keep noise down, as the CX does not have a fanless mode. Any opinions? 

[WoodenMarker]

You don't need a passive psu to keep noise down unless you're aiming for an extremely quiet system and planning to passively cool the entire system.

The fan in the cx430m shouldn't be loud and most newer psu fans aren't. That being said, a passively cooled psu shouldn't make any noise. 

[Yatys 93]

10 minutes ago, WoodenMarker said:

You don't need a passive psu to keep noise down unless you're aiming for an extremely quiet system and planning to passively cool the entire system.

The fan in the cx430m shouldn't be loud and most newer psu fans aren't. That being said, a passively cooled psu shouldn't make any noise. 

so you would say not bother?

[WoodenMarker]

1 minute ago, Yatys 93 said:

so you would say not bother?

It depends on how sensitive to noise you are. I personally replaced the fan in my V850 with a NF-P14 PWM but I find that most people are fine with the fan noise from the cx430m unless the fan is going bad.

[Yatys 93]

1 minute ago, WoodenMarker said:

It depends on how sensitive to noise you are. I personally replaced the fan in my V850 with a NF-P14 PWM but I find that most people are fine with the fan noise from the cx430m unless the fan is going bad.

I'm honestly not that fussed, was more of an idea after going a little digging online, was gonna swap it for the CS450 as its a 80+ gold over the bronze CX model, but the reviews all seem to point to it sounding like a hoover so went back to the CX, since there is no GPU going in this, gonna pull less than 100w normally, since the idea it to use this in place of the LED lit gaming tower for late night work, keep power bills down too

[quan289]

The new CX450M or Corsair Vengeance 400w should be in the same price point as the older CX430M. They are based on a more modern and superior design, so I would recommend have a look at them instead.

 

If your system doesn't have a GPU in it, then the fan in the CXM / Vengeance shouldn't be ramping up hard enough for it to be noisy. Then again, I have met people that is awfully sensitive to noise...

[WoodenMarker]

4 minutes ago, Yatys 93 said:

I'm honestly not that fussed, was more of an idea after going a little digging online, was gonna swap it for the CS450 as its a 80+ gold over the bronze CX model, but the reviews all seem to point to it sounding like a hoover so went back to the CX, since there is no GPU going in this, gonna pull less than 100w normally, since the idea it to use this in place of the LED lit gaming tower for late night work, keep power bills down too

The CS450 is actually relatively quiet and shouldn't sound like a Hoover. If you're looking at customer reviews, keep in mind that people with issues (often defective units) will leave feedback while those who were satisfied with their product stay quiet. 

[Energycore]

3 minutes ago, Yatys 93 said:

I'm honestly not that fussed, was more of an idea after going a little digging online, was gonna swap it for the CS450 as its a 80+ gold over the bronze CX model, but the reviews all seem to point to it sounding like a hoover so went back to the CX, since there is no GPU going in this, gonna pull less than 100w normally, since the idea it to use this in place of the LED lit gaming tower for late night work, keep power bills down too

What you can do is take a look at SPCR's recommended PSUs list.

 

http://www.silentpcreview.com/Recommended_PSUs

 

The X-Series Fanless stands out, although it is expensive.

[STRMfrmXMN]

4 hours ago, quan289 said:

The new CX450M or Corsair Vengeance 400w should be in the same price point as the older CX430M. They are based on a more modern and superior design, so I would recommend have a look at them instead.

 

If your system doesn't have a GPU in it, then the fan in the CXM / Vengeance shouldn't be ramping up hard enough for it to be noisy. Then again, I have met people that is awfully sensitive to noise...

I find the fan in my EVGA GS to be too loud for me - I'm definitely one of those noise sensitive sorts. Right now it's fairly chilly in here so none of my systems fans are running, the EVGA 970 is dead silent since it's not hot nor under load, and my GS hasn't spun the fan up yet. It's nice

 

4 hours ago, Yatys 93 said:

Building a HTPC so I don't have to boot up the full tower to watch films at night or do some quiet research, was originally going to go with the corsair CX430M, still considering that as an option, but also curious to the idea of a passively cooled psu to help keep noise down, as the CX does not have a fanless mode. Any opinions? 

At that price point you won't get a tremendously quiet PSU but an EVGA B2 has a fanless mode so it may work for you.