I'm planning on building a new computer around Christmas time (little treat from Santa let's just say) and I would like a case that helps noise reduction. I believe I fell into the n00b computer builder hole by purchasing a massive case that gave me loads of cooling options because I was terrified of overheating.
From what I've seen on the market there are two great options in the Fractal Design R4 or Corsair Obsidian 550D. What do you guys think?
Fractal Design R4 for sure.
have a look at
Keep in mind to put quiet components in the case ...
Like a good Noctua d14 air cooler and avoid AIO water coolers as they tend to be loud with the stock fans
Use a quiet PSU with an intelligent fan
and a quiet GPU like the Asus Strix GTX970 or the Sapphire R9 290x Vapor X
use a mobo that has fan control in the UEFI or a software fan controller solution ... maybe even an aftermarket analog fan controller
the Fractal Design R4 is a fan favorite here on Tek Syndicate, That being said, there are lots of choices to consider. The Corsair 550D is also a very good case it's Corsairs answer to the Fractal; the cases are nearly identical in setup and in what they can house. Nzxt makes the very cool H440 which comes in a range of colors and has good options for airflow and watercooling.
All that being said, cases in and of themselves don't really make a system quiet. Better fans, quiet CPU coolers and, in my experience good aftermarket GPU coolers are what make a system quiet. I have a Corsair vengeance 70 with replaced fans (Corsair SP120QE) which is fairly open and has no sound damping material and you can't hear it if you put your ear to the side of the case. You would never think there was a overclocked system with a decent graphics card in there. As a counter argument I spent lots of extra money for it to be that way.
If you want to go with a noise reducing case and want the best there are many available in addition to the ones listed above. For extra suggestions check out the Nanoxia deep silence 2 and even the Lian Li V2130 if you are feeling spendy. Best is a matter of opinion and what you are going to be using it for; even high end systems would be happy to be in any of these for-mentioned cases.
As a final thought, when it really comes down to it; a case is as loud as its components. Just don't expect that a case can meaningfully deaden any kind of loud components.
Yup.
I have H440 and currently the side is off the case for part swapping reasons, but it is still very quiet. I am running a NH-D14 and a Sapphire Tri-x 290. With the open case it is quiet, I game with headphones, which helps as well but even without them it is okay. With the side on is is quite good indeed.
i am sure there is better but for me this is more than reasonable.
Yeah I plan on upgrading the fans in the case and having a pretty decent CPU cooling fan as well, will probably end up getting a Noctua.
At the moment the noise of my computer is horrible considering when I have my headphones on I can clearly hear that it is running. Which is why I'm so determined to make my next build a quiet running one.
This. HardOCP has a review up.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=z89osSU-p9k
You can easily make that case quiet. Either new fans like you say or first try running the existing ones at a lower voltage. Maybe even remove the side panel fan. Those 200mm fans at full pelt are noisy but quite silent at 40% (unless they're stuffed). If you do swap the fans out - 1000rpm should be enough. Also moving hdds to the 5.25 bays and removing that entire hdd cage, frees up a lot of airflow.
You've also got a few radiator options as well for when you change that cpu cooler. I couldnt agree more though - Noctua, something like a U12S /U14S ftw. Silent and efficient.