Personal computing discussed

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by bitcat70
Sun Dec 06, 2020 4:50 pm
Forum: General Hardware
Topic: Computer making chirping noises
Replies: 2
Views: 15891

Computer making chirping noises

Hi! My computer started making chirping noises recently. It happens when it's idling or when I'm just browsing. I don't know if it does the same under load as i haven't tested that yet. The machine is using ASRock B450M Pro4 motherboard, AMD Ryzen 7 3700X CPU and a Thermalright Le GRAND MACHO RT hea...
by bitcat70
Fri Jan 24, 2020 3:22 pm
Forum: Gaming
Topic: Quiet keyboard and mouse?
Replies: 8
Views: 4542

Quiet keyboard and mouse?

Hi! I recently put together a quiet computer. Pretty happy with it. I'd like to add a quiet keyboard for my gaming to it. I recently saw an article describing some new quiet Cherry switches but I can't find it now. In any case can someone recommend a quiet gaming keyboard? Could be tenkeyless and li...
by bitcat70
Fri Jan 24, 2020 3:13 pm
Forum: General Hardware
Topic: Reputable vendors of lithium batteries (14500, 18650, etc.)?
Replies: 17
Views: 7905

Re: Reputable vendors of lithium batteries (14500, 18650, etc.)?

Try zebralight.com. They're a flashlight manufacturer but they also sell batteries. I think they used to offer more but now it's only 18650. They are sourced from Panasonic, Sony or Sanyo. Very happy with mine.
by bitcat70
Fri Jan 03, 2020 9:32 am
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

I'm pretty happy with this build as is but if I can bring down the noise a bit more I'd be even more happy with that plus it will give me something to play with. Yeah, sounds like going ahead and indeed getting the NF-A12x25 PWM for rear case fan would be the next step. Congrats on your build, glad...
by bitcat70
Tue Dec 31, 2019 12:12 am
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

Got all the parts and built the machine. Jeez! That heat sink is huge! Yeah, the "whacking huge hunk of metal" approach is quite popular these days. It works though and helps keep the fans speeds down, so I'm good with it. Same here but it is the biggest heat sink I ever put my hands on. ...
by bitcat70
Tue Dec 31, 2019 12:03 am
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

Pulse Width Modulation generally allows a lower throttled speed (and therefore a lower noise floor) than you can achieve with voltage control of your fan speeds. If your ASRock motherboard is anything like mine, you’ll need to run the motherboard’s fan calibration routine before it will let you use...
by bitcat70
Mon Dec 30, 2019 3:09 pm
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

bitcat70, how did the build turn out? Got all the parts and built the machine. Jeez! That heat sink is huge! Thank goodness for modular power supply cables. Otherwise I wouldn't be able to make the CPU power connection as the sockets were under the heat sink. With modular cables, though, I plugged ...
by bitcat70
Thu Dec 26, 2019 10:02 am
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

DrCR wrote:
bitcat70, how did the build turn out?

Still waiting for the case. Should be here today. I'm planning to put it together over the weekend.
by bitcat70
Fri Dec 20, 2019 3:17 pm
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

Cool. The Le Grand Macho should serve your needs nicely. Did you give the RT i.e. is your Le Grand Macho coming with a fan included, or is it just the heatsink and you going to need to buy a fan for the Le Grand Macho? Yes, the RT. From what I see the TY-147B fan is pretty good and there would be l...
by bitcat70
Thu Dec 19, 2019 2:16 pm
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

Would a 120 mm rear fan be better than a 140 mm in the front? Yes. For a quiet build, you don't want front fans. And actually for normal builds, I still wouldn't recommend front fans. (An exception, for example, would be going hard down the front fans path with a custom air filter to general a posi...
by bitcat70
Thu Dec 19, 2019 11:33 am
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

JustAnEngineer wrote:
The 650-watt Focus Plus Platinum is on sale again at Newegg for $127 -10MIR. If you're efficiency-obsessed, the 650-watt Prime Ultra Titanium is $149 -20MIR.

Thanks for the heads up! Went for the Titanium as it allows a wider range of fan-free operation and it's a pretty good price.
by bitcat70
Mon Dec 16, 2019 11:00 am
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

Would the two fans in front be overkill? For a quiet build, it certainly would be. Just one case fan, placed in the rear, should be fine, Would a 120 mm rear fan be better than a 140 mm in the front? For the CPU cooler, though I'm biased to Thermalright, Noctua should certainly be fine, I've heard ...
by bitcat70
Fri Dec 13, 2019 5:05 pm
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

I don't think you'll hear any Seasonic running. I can't recall them ever making a noisy PSU. Thanks! I took a look at the Cybenetics website and all the Seasonic models have pretty good numbers as far as noise is concerned. Am I right in assuming that the fan draws the air in and exhausts out the b...
by bitcat70
Tue Dec 10, 2019 5:15 pm
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

I don't think you'll hear any Seasonic running. I can't recall them ever making a noisy PSU. Thanks! I took a look at the Cybenetics website and all the Seasonic models have pretty good numbers as far as noise is concerned. Am I right in assuming that the fan draws the air in and exhausts out the b...
by bitcat70
Tue Dec 10, 2019 4:12 pm
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

Updating some things: - PSU: Seasonic FOCUS-PX-650 (unless their Snow Silent Platinum 650 model is quieter since it has a bigger fan. Does anyone know? Or: did someone use them?) - Case fans: Noctua because it's the tits and since the mobo supports three case fans: rear: 1 x NF-A12x25 PWM; front: 2 ...
by bitcat70
Tue Dec 10, 2019 4:10 pm
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

A 650 watt Focus Plus Platinum power supply from SeaSonic would be more than stout enough for your proposed build. I only mentioned the 750-watt version as I linked to a thread where that model had very recently been on sale for an excellent price. SSR-550PX : $109 (was $101 on 10/7) SSR-650PX : $1...
by bitcat70
Tue Dec 10, 2019 4:09 pm
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

Captain Ned wrote:
The 650 will power that build with no issues. The only reason for going with a 750 is to provide headroom for a beefier GPU down the road.

I hear you but I'm planning on staying withing the RX 5700 (XT) power envelope for the foreseeable future.
by bitcat70
Tue Dec 10, 2019 12:25 pm
Forum: Cases and Power Supplies
Topic: PSU longevity question
Replies: 35
Views: 8254

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

Igor_Kavinski wrote:
bitcat70 wrote:
Igor_Kavinski wrote:
So what's the longest running and still performing great Seasonic PSU anyone's ever had here?


Please don't hijack my thread.


I'm sorry. That was not my intention. I was just curious.

No problem. You might get better answers for this question in the "Cases and Power Supplies" subforum.
by bitcat70
Tue Dec 10, 2019 10:38 am
Forum: Cases and Power Supplies
Topic: PSU longevity question
Replies: 35
Views: 8254

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

Igor_Kavinski wrote:
So what's the longest running and still performing great Seasonic PSU anyone's ever had here?


Please don't hijack my thread.
by bitcat70
Mon Dec 09, 2019 6:10 pm
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

Most power supplies highest efficiency occurs at ~40-50% of load, This used to be the conventional wisdom a decade or so ago, but newer PSU designs purportedly have a much flatter efficiency curve. It's still a good idea to not run a PSU right at its limit, but the "aim for double the wattage ...
by bitcat70
Mon Dec 09, 2019 1:50 pm
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Re: Putting together a quieter computer

Thank you for the great suggestions! So I'm pretty much set on: - CPU: Ryzen 7 3700X - Mobo: ASRock B450M Pro4 - Case: Fractal Design Define Mini C - Video card: for now I'll transfer Radeon HD 7870 and upgrade later. I don't plan on getting anything faster than Radeon RX 5700 or so since for gaming...
by bitcat70
Wed Dec 04, 2019 4:10 pm
Forum: System Builders Anonymous
Topic: Putting together a quieter computer
Replies: 42
Views: 9074

Putting together a quieter computer

Hi! I want to put together a new computer. Looking to pull the trigger sooner rather than later as the looming tariffs have me concerned about pricing. One of the considerations is making it quieter than the current one as wifey says it's too loud. I want to build it around Ryzen 7 3700X and a video...
by bitcat70
Mon Oct 07, 2019 10:16 am
Forum: Networking
Topic: Wireless router recommendation
Replies: 16
Views: 7322

Re: Wireless router recommendation

I also recommend the Asus rt-ac88U or 86U. I have a 66u at home and wish I had gotten the 68u or upgraded to 88/86u. The 66u is OK don't get me wrong, but going up a level has some nice QOS features the lower levels don't have. What does one give up with the 66u? Not too much... a small bit of rang...
by bitcat70
Fri Oct 04, 2019 1:42 pm
Forum: Networking
Topic: Wireless router recommendation
Replies: 16
Views: 7322

Re: Wireless router recommendation

Hi! I'm looking for a wireless router that needs to be kept under $200 for residential use. Of course I'd like it to be reliable. I like Unifi but I don't see anything they have that would end up under $250 at the least so that rules it out. One router I've seen mentioned here is the Asus AC2900. I...
by bitcat70
Thu Oct 03, 2019 4:18 pm
Forum: Networking
Topic: Wireless router recommendation
Replies: 16
Views: 7322

Wireless router recommendation

Hi! I'm looking for a wireless router that needs to be kept under $200 for residential use. Of course I'd like it to be reliable. I like Unifi but I don't see anything they have that would end up under $250 at the least so that rules it out. One router I've seen mentioned here is the Asus AC2900. Is...
by bitcat70
Thu Oct 03, 2019 10:34 am
Forum: Storage
Topic: M.2 2280: SATA SSD in NVMe port?
Replies: 4
Views: 6443

M.2 2280: SATA SSD in NVMe port?

Hi!
I'm looking to get a Dell Inspiron 3671 desktop and upgrade the HDD. The computer has an M.2 interface but it is specified as "PCIe/NVMe AHCI". Will the Crucial MX500 M.2 SSD, which is a SATA device, work in this port?
by bitcat70
Wed Sep 18, 2019 1:49 pm
Forum: Storage
Topic: SSD for a new build
Replies: 8
Views: 4468

SSD for a new build

Hi! I'm pondering a new build. All my previous ones were mostly middle-of-the road. For this one I want to go a little bit upscale. I pretty much settled on CPU and GPU but still going over storage. With the prices of SSD's being at all time lows I'm looking at a Samsung 970 Pro 1 TB NVMe which goes...
by bitcat70
Tue Aug 06, 2019 11:12 am
Forum: Storage
Topic: Drive for DVR
Replies: 6
Views: 2661

Re: Drive for DVR

After doing some more research it looks like the WD Purple should be fine. It's analog cameras now so the bandwidth is not a concern. When they're upgraded to higher definition IP cameras and assuming 10 mbps per camera it would be 320 mbps for all of them. That seems well within what the network ca...
by bitcat70
Tue Aug 06, 2019 9:32 am
Forum: Storage
Topic: Drive for DVR
Replies: 6
Views: 2661

Re: Drive for DVR

It's a 32 channel DVR.
by bitcat70
Mon Aug 05, 2019 2:41 pm
Forum: Storage
Topic: Drive for DVR
Replies: 6
Views: 2661

Drive for DVR

Hi!
I want to upgrade the HDD in my multi-camera DVR. Are the WD Purple Surveillance drives really better for that purpose than any other drives?
GZIP: On