Dynamat

[samtesla]

As a follow-up, my P4/2.4 system with 8 fans was a bit loud (the guinea pigs in the other side of the room were complaining ) so I decided to add some Dynamat. A friend had 3/4ths of a roll and I got it for nothing (nice) so a couple hours later it is MUCH quieter. I did both sides and the top. You don't really need to use Dynamat as it was expensive, but places like Parts Express have a generic which works as well.

ST

 

[Lonemagi]

been thinking about insulation of that type. What did i o to your temps?

<font color=red>*</font color=red><font color=white>*</font color=white><font color=blue>*</font color=blue>
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[LtBlue14]

can you post a link to your exact dynamat? and did it help the high pitched noise from the fans? or mostly absorb low pitched noises? how about your hard drive whine? (or do you have a really quiet seagate?)

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[samtesla]

The Dynamat clone can be found at www.parts-express.com. I've bought many a thing from them but they're a couple hours drive away from me in Dayton, OH. Do a search on Dynamat. There are other varieties but more expensive too. It is asphalt based but easy to work with. Looks like 1/8 or less real dense foam or neoprene. But HEAVY.

It quieted down all frequencies, I would say, with more emphasis on the med and lows (higher pitched whines from fans and such still come out but not as much). CD Rom vibration was reduced as well, good for all these Windows re-installs . Thermally it is in the same territory but I did not apply it near any air passages.

Drive noise was not a major issue to begin with (A WD 60 gig and an IBM 15 gig.

I noticed the case is 'stiffened' and that's a T-10 Elan Vital case, bunker material, not aluminum foil variety. Watch out as you may NOT be able to apply the material edge to edge because of sliding lock pieces, tabs, etc. It is also quite heavy. Make sure you have clearance on the RIGHT side of the case if it is like the T-10, i.e. with a mainboard tray. Takes a bit of planning.

ST

 

[Teq]

...and here I've just been running off to the hardware store and getting that heavy frosted vinyl "mactack" that people put on their bathroom windows. Stuff works pretty well too.



--->It ain't better if it don't work<---

 

[error_911]

actually I can get this stuff called "BrownBread" - do a search for it, can't remember who has a review on it, but its the same thing as Dynamat, and its way cheaper... msg and I'll try to find my price list for it... the manufacturer also makes a rubber-backed foam accoustic absorber which is great too, and thats about 1/2" thick... or here we go, just fouond my sample package from them.. its <A HREF="http://www.b-quiet.com" target="_new">http://www.b-quiet.com</A> - like i said i can buy wholesale from 'em, so if anyone's interested i can probably price it for less than they're asking on their site... but anyways, check it out, they make some good absorption materials

<b>people are only idiots when they don't realize - when they do it just gets funnier, like a dog chasing its own tail, or like george bush's public address(es)</b>

 

[samtesla]

1/2 inch thick would not do it in my case; On the cover that we usually take out to work on the guts of the system it might, but not on the other side, there's not much space there for that much. Also, same situation on the top. Bottom is OK. I am not sure foam would work as well for cutting down vibration.

I could ask the audio engineers at work...

ST

 

[error_911]

thats why its good to use different materials for the different parts of the case... and actually, i just checked it again, i was wrong, its not 1/2" thick, its 1/4" thick - the 1/2" thick absorption material i have is made of a layer of open cell foam (1/4"), a thin sheet of aluminum and then a 1/4" layer of foam bonded to a rubber backing (thats the best one available).

The beauty of the foam i'm talking about (the 1/4" one) is that its bonded to a rubber backing - basically the rubber kills the vibrations, and the foam (open cell foam) quiets down the higher pitched vibrations/sounds... encasing the hard drive cages in a system with this dampening material helps as well.. and then for the spaces where room is more limited, Ive got some thin (2 milimeter thick) tar/asphault based sound absorption material with a really thin lining of aluminum on the outer side of it.. Ideally, combining everything would quiet down a case the most, but nonetheless even putting a little sound absorption will make a difference.

<b>people are only idiots when they don't realize - when they do it just gets funnier, like a dog chasing its own tail, or like george bush's public address(es)</b>

 

[LtBlue14]

the thick rubber stuff cuts down deep bass vibrations, the soft foam cuts down high pitched whines. a combination of the two works well. that's what it sounds like brown bread is, and that's why i was wondering what kind of dynamat you used. the dynamat i've seen is pretty solid heavy rubber stuff that helps for case vibration (perhaps due to a water pump) but doesn't really cut down on the high pitched whines of: hard drives, fast fans, switching power supplies

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[samtesla]

It's the thick leathery rubber stuff. Indeed it cuts down the lows and vibrations but most of the highs are there. Fans and P/S are good quality Antec's, 2700rpm and 1300rpm for the P/S, hard drive is a bit noisy.

ST