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Shoebox9 · 09-05-2005, 03:47 AM

Hi All,

INTRO:
I suffer from some sort of increased susceptibility to tinnitus. Whenever I’m around fan heaters, PC fans, fluro lights (they tend to emit a high pitched noise as the ballasts in them age), etc, I get a loud ringing in my hears for hours afterwards.

Because of this I have strong motivation to build a really silent system, but the system also needs to beefy (ie X2 4800+), as I'm a photographer, and editing large photos is part of how I make my living.

Q) So, why not just passively water cool the hot bits & leave the case open? A) h/drive noise, and the high pitched whistle/scream most PSUs & mobos seem to give out.

Stability is important. Mobo condensation insulating, and play-till-it-pops, has low appeal at this stage.
Portability is not important, and I can fabricate stuff out of wood where needed.

MY GOAL: To build a powerful, but totally inaudible system, that will be reliable & stable.

MY PLAN:

* Cool the CPU (& maybe NB, GPU?) using water blocks, a pump, & a large copper/brass car water radiator, with no fans, attached to a wall. I'll use 2 radiators if needed, but plan to start with one.
* Use an old bar fridge as a case. Advantages- it is air tight (I presume), offers reasonably good sound dampening, and is free. Disadvantages- it is big, and I'll need to cut off the external gas cooling pipes & lie it on it's back, so it will fit under my desk.
* Cool the h/drives, PSUs, maybe NB/GPU, plus any other hot things inside the "case" by actively lowering the air temp using a 350w TEC (as opposed to the fridge's compressor based cooling system). The hot side of the TEC will be added to the CPU water cooling loop- to be passively cooled externally.
* Use the fridge's thermostat & a relay to control the air temp, by switching the peltier on/off. Peltier to be powered by a 3-15v 40A variable switching PSU (already ordered).

Now, the tricky bits-

1) How to cool the air inside the fridge, in a way that removes condensation from the air. My current idea is to create a second water loop from the cold side of the TEC, and use copper pipe soldered to a large, thin, sheet of copper. There would be a drip tray under this, with a hose exiting the case. Because the TEC is only providing case air cooling, and not placed directly on the CPU, condensation should not be a problem as the case cools. The sheet of copper would act as a water vapour condenser, in addition to being an air cooler.

2) I guess I'll need a fan (away from the cold plate so it doesn't disrupt condensation) so that localised over heating doesn't occur during the system warm up/case cool down period. Maybe NB & GPU should be in the CPU water loop to take some of the strain out of this part of the cycle?

3) What will happen as the system re-warms, after shut down? Could circut boards that weren't really warm anyway, now attract condensation as the air temp warms up faster than they do?

Opps, hadn't really thought about this...?
Would adding a cold "bank" (ie large block of metal) inside the case to slow air rewarm, help?

All ideas & refinements welcomed.

Shoebox9

09-05-2005, 03:47 AM	#1
Shoebox9 Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Down Under Posts: 23	TEC as a case cooler for total silence Hi All, INTRO: I suffer from some sort of increased susceptibility to tinnitus. Whenever I’m around fan heaters, PC fans, fluro lights (they tend to emit a high pitched noise as the ballasts in them age), etc, I get a loud ringing in my hears for hours afterwards. Because of this I have strong motivation to build a really silent system, but the system also needs to beefy (ie X2 4800+), as I'm a photographer, and editing large photos is part of how I make my living. Q) So, why not just passively water cool the hot bits & leave the case open? A) h/drive noise, and the high pitched whistle/scream most PSUs & mobos seem to give out. Stability is important. Mobo condensation insulating, and play-till-it-pops, has low appeal at this stage. Portability is not important, and I can fabricate stuff out of wood where needed. MY GOAL: To build a powerful, but totally inaudible system, that will be reliable & stable. MY PLAN: * Cool the CPU (& maybe NB, GPU?) using water blocks, a pump, & a large copper/brass car water radiator, with no fans, attached to a wall. I'll use 2 radiators if needed, but plan to start with one. * Use an old bar fridge as a case. Advantages- it is air tight (I presume), offers reasonably good sound dampening, and is free. Disadvantages- it is big, and I'll need to cut off the external gas cooling pipes & lie it on it's back, so it will fit under my desk. * Cool the h/drives, PSUs, maybe NB/GPU, plus any other hot things inside the "case" by actively lowering the air temp using a 350w TEC (as opposed to the fridge's compressor based cooling system). The hot side of the TEC will be added to the CPU water cooling loop- to be passively cooled externally. * Use the fridge's thermostat & a relay to control the air temp, by switching the peltier on/off. Peltier to be powered by a 3-15v 40A variable switching PSU (already ordered). Now, the tricky bits- 1) How to cool the air inside the fridge, in a way that removes condensation from the air. My current idea is to create a second water loop from the cold side of the TEC, and use copper pipe soldered to a large, thin, sheet of copper. There would be a drip tray under this, with a hose exiting the case. Because the TEC is only providing case air cooling, and not placed directly on the CPU, condensation should not be a problem as the case cools. The sheet of copper would act as a water vapour condenser, in addition to being an air cooler. 2) I guess I'll need a fan (away from the cold plate so it doesn't disrupt condensation) so that localised over heating doesn't occur during the system warm up/case cool down period. Maybe NB & GPU should be in the CPU water loop to take some of the strain out of this part of the cycle? 3) What will happen as the system re-warms, after shut down? Could circut boards that weren't really warm anyway, now attract condensation as the air temp warms up faster than they do? Opps, hadn't really thought about this...? Would adding a cold "bank" (ie large block of metal) inside the case to slow air rewarm, help? All ideas & refinements welcomed. Shoebox9 Last edited by Shoebox9; 09-05-2005 at 04:11 AM.