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Alan
23-06-2003, 00:59
Zalman PSU
Since over reducing the cooling in my rig and adding a 3GHz CPU and the Abit IC7-G mobo with its north bridge fan, the noise levels have risen quite a bit - not nearly to the level I once had when I started my silence thread several months ago but still noticeably higher than before.

After some concentrated gaming however there is an increase in noise level which is coming from the Zalman PSU. So it clearly works as temperatures go up.

What I'm pleased to report is that it quietens down quite quickly unlike some other variable speed devices about the market so it "does what it says on the tin"

Zalman ZM80-HP
Due to my kids PC not being able to take their old graphics card on their new mobo, I'm giving them mine, complete with Zalman Heatsink. With this, I have found that if you put a Zalman bracket with a fan to aid its cooling, the temperatures on the Zalman ZM80-HP cetainly drop significantly but unless you have some decent air flow through the case, the heat gets blown onto the north bridge and CPU. In the case of the north bridge on the IC7-G temperatures were about 5°C higher with the fan than without.

As a rule of thumb then, I would suggest that, provided you have some air flow through the case, you don't need fan assisance for the ZM80-HP up to about a 9700 Pro. If you want to overclock a 9700 Pro on a regular basis, some form of fan assistance should be used.

I'm told the 9800 Pro is too hot for a ZM80A-HP on it's own and really should have fan assistance.

So, goodbye to a silent PC but I only need to get used to a loudly murmuring one!!

P.S. I chose the Hercules 9800 'cos it's fan is supposed to be under 28dBA. I know it looks great with its LED fan and all, but who can see it... and Jack, I'm not putting a mirror in the bottom , it's taken me all this time to get the chequer plate in !!!!!!!

Fat Jez
23-06-2003, 01:44
Originally posted by Alan
Zalman PSU
After some concentrated gaming however there is an increase in noise level which is coming from the Zalman PSU. So it clearly works as temperatures go up.


Uh-oh. I just ordered one of those from Kustom in the hope it would be quieter than my Enermax 365W PSW that I have at the moment. The Enermax is quiet, but the internal fan is starting to rattle (either that or something is arcing inside :eek: )

Cheers,
Stephen

Creosote
23-06-2003, 13:12
Originally posted by Fat Jez
Uh-oh. I just ordered one of those from Kustom in the hope it would be quieter than my Enermax 365W PSW that I have at the moment. The Enermax is quiet, but the internal fan is starting to rattle (either that or something is arcing inside :eek: )

Cheers,
Stephen


I must confess to being a tad dissapointed in the Zalman Silent PSU. The rest of my system was almost silent but the Zalman did make a continual drone which was more noticable because the rest of the system was so quiet. The Zalman IS quiet, very quiet compared to any bog standard PSU, but it is far from silent. I measured the air in and out temps to the PSU at 27C and 35C and according to the Zalman website it should be silent at those temps. I also found it impossible to silence the Zalman even with the case side off and air temps at almost room temp inside the case.
Graeme and Thomas are now swapping the Zalman out for a fanless PSU, will be interesting to see how it performs.
The Zalman Silent PSU IS a good product, I personally just dont feel it meets up to the makers claims of silence at certain temps.

Alan
23-06-2003, 19:09
Creosote, it must just be bad luck - or my hearing isn't as good as yours! I have had a fan controlled Enermax, a Quiet PC PSU and the Zalman and the Zalman has been the best one so far. The Quiet PC PSU didn't have any speed control so it remained quiet but when you've been gaming, you usually have sound up so you don't notice the fan noise. The point I made about the Zalman is that it quickly went back to quiet when the gaming stopped.

Fat Jez, it certainly is quieter than the Enermax - I have both.

Fat Jez
23-06-2003, 19:12
Originally posted by Alan
Fat Jez, it certainly is quieter than the Enermax - I have both.

So do I now :D

Cheers,
Stephen

Creosote
23-06-2003, 19:13
Alan: maybe I just have delicate ears :)
But both Graeme and Thomas have agreed that its far from as quiet as it should be. Hopefully the fanless PSU thats going in there now will be as quiet as a mouse, a dead mouse.

Alan
23-06-2003, 19:40
You must have had a bad one but do I understand that Kustom have that German fanless PSU available now?

Creosote
24-06-2003, 02:37
Originally posted by Alan
You must have had a bad one but do I understand that Kustom have that German fanless PSU available now?

Yep, thats the one being fitted in my system as we speak.

Alan
25-06-2003, 00:51
Could you let us know what you think of it once you've had it a while - from the point of view of changes in temperature inside the case and on components?

Fat Jez
25-06-2003, 03:25
I have certainly found my Zalman to be pretty quiet in operation, certainly quieter than my Enermax.

Admittedly, the only way to get a trully silent PSU is to buy one with a massive heatsink, but I would worry about whether that would be sufficient to cool itself properly, and also whether it would affect case temps.

Let us know how you get on.

Cheers,
Stephen