RE: [OT] Noise (was: Leaving the computer on)

[Manuel Antonio Camacho Quesada]

> > Hm, I'm still wondering how/if any machine with a spinning
> hard drive in
> > it can be noiseless - with my machines, in three out of
> four cases the
> > drives make more noise than the fan(s)...

Of course, you will not get 0dB, but almost noiseless can be obtained. It is
just a matter of design. Nowadays, cases and systems are designed for space
efficiency, rather than sound acceptance. Make a test: change your disks and
power supply from one case to another, completely different shape, and you
will notice (or better measure, if you have a sound metering device)the
change in the noise produced.

On the other hand, noise is not limited only to the box, but it is an
environmental issue (I used to work with this kind of analysis for machine
shops some years ago). So it is not how much noise is produced by the
computer itself, but how sound waves behave bouncing around in the room
where the box is located.  I have seen situations where you eliminate noise
drastically just putting an object in a corner of a room, as well as I have
seen dot matrix printers working silently on a room, but producing noise 200
ft away (noise amplification phenomena). In other words, noise is a
complicated science by itself.

A very simple thing you may try out is to place your computers, specially
tower cases, over a thin styrofoam base. This will usually free stresses
produced on the case due to vibrations and surface imperfections (the case
is usually located on a floor not perfecly leveled).

-Manuel.


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