Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

If it works but really you should investigate why its getting hot, what are yoru temps?

Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

Maybe not, the fans are designed to drag air through a route, taking a side off will change those airflow dynamics. Bit like putting a bigger hose on a hoover, it will pick up less stuff.

Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

To be honest, i have no idea what the temp is! One of the blades in the fan thats cools the chipset broke. Ever since i leave one panel out,just in case....

---------- Post added at 23:26 ---------- Previous post was at 23:25 ----------

Thats a good point! Didn't realy think of that! :doh:

Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

well most machines ive seen thats had a cooling problem has seen benefits from the removal of the side of the case side.A good few of the problems with overheating are caused by poor air flow so removing the side gives an instant vent

Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

Also a good contact with the cpu to the heatsink helps.

Before my upgrade my AMD64 3000 at it's stock clock speed of 1.8ghz, on its socket 939 motherboard, would sit at about 50c without load and touch 60c when under load.

This I took as normal, during the upgrade we removed the heatsink which was thermally connected via a heatpad, we cleaned this off and used Artic Silver paste, this now has made my cpu sit about 40c without load and barely touch 55c when under heavy load.

Of which I am very happy about.

Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

i have got one of those things.

Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

Be careful when touching a motherboard, any static can botch the system right up.

Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

Don't buy fans with sleeve bearings. When they are new they can be quiet, possibly more so than ones with ball bearings, but they tend to have a much shorter lifespan than fans with ball bearings, & when the bearings go they get MUCH louder. As to how to quieten them, as a temporary fix you could try peeling the label off of the centre of the fan [if it has 1 on each side, run your finger nail over them & look for a dip/hole in the middle], & putting a few drops of oil [WD40 will do in a pinch, but 3-in-1 would be better] into that hole. It's worked for me in the past, but there's always the chance it could go wrong for you, so it's up to you whether you want to do that or just buy a better fan.

I've had 1 of these running 24/7 for over 2 years in my case & it's just as quiet now as it was when I got it. The only reason I don't have another in the front of my case is, as mentioned in another thread, I needed something a bit more powerful to overcome the reduction in flow caused by the dust filter. They do other sizes of those fans as well, in case you need something different [60, 70, 80, & 92].

You could also use some acoustic insulation. I've not actually tried that method of sound reduction as with my air conditioning on in the same room it would be a bit silly to go all out for silence, & besides I'm so used to having the sound of my PC on 24/7 it's a rather weird feeling when the sound is absent [due to powercuts or during hardware upgrades]. :disturbd:

They work, or at least the ones I've got do [look for the clear ones on the site I linked above, by the same make as the fan], but you have to make sure that the fan is completely isolated from the case - if the side of the screw thread happens to touch the side of the hole in the case that it passes through then it negates the advatage of using the vibration dampeners.

Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

Good guide, Anti-static isn't really worth it. :D

Unless you do a lot of computer work for a computer repairing company etc.

Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

you could not be more wrong mate. If you search the forums ive argued this point and given plenty of evidence

Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

Yes an Anti static wristrap is definately recommended, static charge can be transferred without you even feeling it.

Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

and it can do damage without you knowing it. It can damage performance and longevity of the hardware also. Anyone who does not take precations are not worth their salt in IT and should leave well alone for those who want to do a proper job like it or lump it

Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

Actually, I'd have to disagree with you there, 'cos it generates work for us that DO know what we're doing and do a proper job :) :tu:

Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

lol I spose lol

Re: Time to Spring Clean
 

People are still actually using ZoneAlarm? It's been overbloated garbage for about the last 5 years. Ever heard of Comodo?