Shutting up and upgrading my computer

sandertn

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Sep 17, 2014
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I`ve become accustom to sitting in my room late at night with my noisy computer. Whether I am browsing chrome or playing a heavy game the fans in my computer is making enough noise to drown whatever media I am consuming at the time. Im tired of this!

My plan is to upgrade my computer in July. I am aware that the new pascal structure cards might be out on the market by then, but for the sake of it, lets say they wont be.

I`ve saved up for a while now so a gtx 980ti is the way im going, but I dont know which one. Im looking for something fast and quiet. I also want to get a bigger case, new fans, and a new cpu fan(?). Do you have any recommendations? The main purpose of the upgrade is getting a computer that pull Fallout 4 better while remaining quieter.

My current computer specs: (From late 2013)
Gtx 770 gpu
16 GB ram ddr3
I7 4770 cpu with stock cooler
Cm storm scout 2 case
Msi LGA1150 B35M motherboard
Corsair CX 750w psu
+ 120gb ssd, 1tb hdd and 3tb hdd

I would presume that my CPU, PSU, ram and motherboard will be subject to keep unless you tell me otherwise.

So to sum it all up: Can you recommend a new GPU, Case and some fans that can make my computer "great again"?

 
Solution


ok then. while it's not an advanced and expensive motherboard, it does the job, and if you didn't have problems with it up until now, you should keep it.

as for a PSU, the Seasonic S12II 620w would be ideal for you:
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/seasonic-power-supply-s12ii620bronze

Case:
option 1 (Define r5):http://pcpartpicker.com/part/fractal-design-case-fdcadefr5bko
option 2 (Enthoo pro): http://pcpartpicker.com/part/phanteks-case-phes614pbk
option 3 (h440): http://pcpartpicker.com/part/nzxt-case-cah442wm8


What is your actual motherboard model? There are many MSI B85 chipset micro ATX motherboards, and they won't all have the same features, chiefly, whether or not they use predominantly 3 or 4 pin case fan headers and how many many of them there are, plus, if they support fan voltage controls on any 4 pin headers that may be present. This can significantly affect fan selection.

 

CBender

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All my choices have been centered around performance and silence. Thank god those two usually go hand in hand these day.

Case: My personal choice for a completely silent build would be the Define r5 (or even better the XL)

http://www.phanteks.com/Eclipse-P400S.html

http://www.fractal-design.com/home/product/cases/define-series/define-r5-black

http://www.bequiet.com/en/case/546

PSU : Anything from EVGA (g1,g2,gq), BeQuiet or seasonic 550W (depending the gpu) and up.

CPU cooler : is one of the greatest upgrades you could both for performance and silence. Since the cpu is not overclockable I think a good single tower 140 would do the trick with room to spare

http://noctua.at/en/products/cpu-cooler-retail/nh-u14s

http://www.bequiet.com/en/cpucooler/483

As for the gpu be patient since the summer is near. Either you get a new card or a 970/980 on a premium. The MSI 4G series and the Asus Strix line offer pretty good performance and low noise output.
 

davidarad02

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I would replace the PSU for some seasonic unit, as well as your GPU.
the new pascal GPU coming out around computex (June) will be (accourding to rumors) on par with the 980ti, with that 500-550 price point.

if you need a new case and cooling components, I think that a case like the Fractal Design Define r5 would be really good, with the Phanteks enthoo pro and NZXT h440 coming as general good cases.
 

davidarad02

Admirable


ok then. while it's not an advanced and expensive motherboard, it does the job, and if you didn't have problems with it up until now, you should keep it.

as for a PSU, the Seasonic S12II 620w would be ideal for you:
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/seasonic-power-supply-s12ii620bronze

Case:
option 1 (Define r5):http://pcpartpicker.com/part/fractal-design-case-fdcadefr5bko
option 2 (Enthoo pro): http://pcpartpicker.com/part/phanteks-case-phes614pbk
option 3 (h440): http://pcpartpicker.com/part/nzxt-case-cah442wm8


 
Solution

sandertn

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Sep 17, 2014
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Im going for the Define R5, looks like the best option. About the PSU... I live in Norway and SeaSonic isnt sold here at all. Any other options to go for? Why is it a good idea to upgrade my current one btw?
 

davidarad02

Admirable
because the corsair one you already have is a Tier 3 unit (which is not that good), and is well known on this forum for being bad.
can you provide a link to some website so we can look for a good unit that actually sells in your country?
 
So, you have minimal fan headers on that board, which will make powering and controlling existing fans, and fan selection, a little more difficult. There is one 4 pin system fan header and one three pin system fan header in addition to the single 4 pin CPU fan header. And that four pin header doesn't do voltage control on that board. PWM only. That means you can use one of each type fan, or, get a hub or controller. I'd suggest something like this, if low sound pressure levels are the main goal, while maintaining the best possible performance.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU Cooler: be quiet! Shadow Rock Slim 67.8 CFM Rifle Bearing CPU Cooler ($44.90 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Video Card ($607.50 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Case Fan: Noctua NF-P14s redux-900 49.3 CFM 140mm Fan ($14.95 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Noctua NF-P14s redux-900 49.3 CFM 140mm Fan ($14.95 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Noctua NF-P14s redux-900 49.3 CFM 140mm Fan ($14.95 @ Amazon)
Total: $787.24
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-16 18:06 EDT-0400


Along with this:

https://store.nzxt.com/products/grid-v2
 



S12II 620 does not support Haswell C states. It can be used with Intel low power state CPUs but requires turning off C6/C7 in the bios. There are better choices if the PSU is to be replaced. EVGA B2 750 or G2 750 come immediately to mind, and aren't that much more. They are also quieter and have ECO mode capability so they are silent when not under load.
 

sandertn

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Sep 17, 2014
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I dont have a link, although most of the brands that are sold in Norway are Corsair, Cheiftec, Cooler Master, Fractial Design, EVGA and BeQuiet.
 

davidarad02

Admirable


I actually didn't know that, thank you!

anyway, those EVGA units are still great choices for PSUs.
stay away from Corsair CX and CS units.
 
That MSI GPU card I linked is the quietest one on the market according to three separate major site reviews and is less expensive than any of the other non-reference card models anyhow. Second up would be the ASUS Strix. Those Noctua Redux fans are very quiet at only 13db, and since you're not overclocking, you could use two of them as intake, and the additional one as the rear exhaust. Any fans that come with the R5 could be repurposed elsewhere or you could use those as well.

The Grid+ v2 will allow you to power up to six fans, create any profiles you want for each fan individually or all of them on one profile, and allows you to run them at a starting point of only 20%, which is much lower than most BIOS profiles allow for resulting in much quieter operation that can be tailored any way you want and controlled from the desktop. No hassling with front panel knobs or LCD displays and everything is done automatically according to the profile that you design and control using the CAM software.
 

davidarad02

Admirable


AND according to me. I have the msi GTX 970 gaming (which has the same cooler), and it's absolutely silent.
 

sandertn

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I`ll be going for that then. Its almost 100$ cheaper than the strix here so if its the best choice its an easy choice :D
 

sandertn

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I read over it. The Grid+ v2 sounds like a great answer to the problem. Its a litte bit hard to come by in Norway, but i can buy it overseas while Im on vacation.
 
I'd almost be willing to bet that the change of GPU card and swapping out the stock CPU cooler for something like that BeQuiet Shadow rock slim, Noctua NH-U14S, Cryorig H5 or H7 or Deepcool Gammax 400, would probably cut the sound level in half by themselves.

Certainly the CX power supplies and the stock fans on that CM case are louder than what's desirable though, so those upgrades are entirely up to you. Maybe replace the stock CPU cooler and swap GPU cards first, and see what happens with the noise levels, and then move on the other parts if it's still louder than you'd like.

Personally, I really like the Noctua NF-A14 PWM, NF-A15 and NF-A14 variants, but they're 4 pin fans and you don't have enough 4 pin headers, plus most of the controllers and hubs use 3 pin headers. You might consider the Aerocool DS140 3 pin fans though. I've tested them in my current machine and they are very quiet. Not quite as high quality as the Noctua fans, but still very good. The fans I listed above with that build are quieter than any of those though, they just don't have the same high end performance, but you don't really need it with that configuration since you're not doing any CPU overclocking. They'd offer plenty of airflow for the 4770 and a single GTX 980TI.
 

sandertn

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Okey I tried to make an overview:

Upgrading PC Summer 2016
PSU: EVGA SuperNOVA 750 G2 80+ GOLD 1.199 nok
GPU (Subject to change if Pascal): MSI GeForce GTX 980 Ti 7490 nok
Case: Fractial Design Define R5 1299 nok
Fan: Noctua NF-P14s redux-900 49.3 CMF 140mm x3 750 nok
Fan controller: Grid+ v2 350 nok
CPU Cooler: Be Quiet! Shadow Rock Slim 67.8 CFM Rifle Bearing CPU Cooler 591 nok
Totalt 11679 nok or 1415 usd

I didnt change the fans as Darkbreeze mentioned in the last answer, but I will do it in 5. The price is the same anyways. How does it look?
 

davidarad02

Admirable


I would go with the noctua nh-A14, they are slightly better.