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Which PSU is more silent?


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Both power supplies will be "noisy" at full load but it's fairly subjective, one persons noisy is somebody elses quiet.

 

The Corsair fan is rated at 40dB full load but I can't find a figure for the Mushkin but then they have always come up short in that area but I imagine they'll be on a par.

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Both power supplies will be "noisy" at full load but it's fairly subjective, one persons noisy is somebody elses quiet.

 

The Corsair fan is rated at 40dB full load but I can't find a figure for the Mushkin but then they have always come up short in that area but I imagine they'll be on a par.

 

Well to you which do you think is quieter?

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Well to you which do you think is quieter?

silentpcreview.com keeps a pretty thorough list of quiet PSUs. My SeaSonic X-Series has not once been audible to my ears (and I'm very picky about PC noise, near-silence was a top priority for my current build), but they are pricey.

 

edit: http://www.silentpcreview.com/Recommended_PSUs

 

You might pop over and just ask in their forums, too

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I don't have any sound measurement devices and I've slept since writing the reviews so it's really difficult to say which is the quietest but there can't be much in it?

 

I have to agree with broooooooce (got enough o's in there mate :lol:) about the Seasonic X Series. I have the 760W version and the fan doesn't even start turning until about 20% loading and when I have two GTX460's folding it can't be heard. They aren't cheap but they're probably one of the best power supplies available at the moment.

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i have the seasonic 650 and i can't even hear it when it's pushed to full load. on top of that the fan doesn't kick in until 50% load or a certain heat level (don't remember). personally the only time i ever wanted a really quite psu was with watercooling, other than that you won't be able to normally hear any psu over a video card noisy fan.

 

yeah they aren't cheap you looking at $150 for a 750watt

Edited by hornybluecow

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i have the seasonic 650 and i can't even hear it when it's pushed to full load. on top of that the fan doesn't kick in until 50% load or a certain heat level (don't remember). personally the only time i ever wanted a really quite psu was with watercooling, other than that you won't be able to normally hear any psu over a video card noisy fan.

 

yeah they aren't cheap you looking at $150 for a 750watt

 

Okay cheers guys.

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You could always do what I do... mod the PSU fan with a Noctua NF-P12. You won't be able to keep the variable fan speed, but even at full speed, it's really quiet. I just put the 7V resistor on it and you'll never hear a sound from the PSU, and it'll keep very well cooled off. You just void the warranty is all. :P

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one thing I will add is to have a quiet psu we would have to know what kind of system its going in. for instance a psu will always be quieter if it never sees 80% or better load then a psu that hovers around 90 to 100% of its capacity.

 

I would honestly do the math and or use a KiloWatt (or any kind of plug in watt/amperage meter) to see what the system is Drawing under gaming and full load and figure to have at least 200 watts more then what the system is capable of. this will be the quietest way to go as the power supply will never have the opportunity to actually heat up or raise above its efficiency curve on the lower end therefore producing less heat.

 

From what I know an the OCZ game x-stream 850 psu is load at idle (the fan is kind of junk IMHO)

 

My coolermaster Silent pro gold is inaudible in a silent fan set-up at gaming load BUT its kinda loud at 100% load.

 

A corsair TX850 that i used in my brothers build was silent throughout all loads it could handle. I figure we only got 80% at best given the system we were using.

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one thing I will add is to have a quiet psu we would have to know what kind of system its going in. for instance a psu will always be quieter if it never sees 80% or better load then a psu that hovers around 90 to 100% of its capacity.

 

I would honestly do the math and or use a KiloWatt (or any kind of plug in watt/amperage meter) to see what the system is Drawing under gaming and full load and figure to have at least 200 watts more then what the system is capable of. this will be the quietest way to go as the power supply will never have the opportunity to actually heat up or raise above its efficiency curve on the lower end therefore producing less heat.

 

From what I know an the OCZ game x-stream 850 psu is load at idle (the fan is kind of junk IMHO)

 

My coolermaster Silent pro gold is inaudible in a silent fan set-up at gaming load BUT its kinda loud at 100% load.

 

A corsair TX850 that i used in my brothers build was silent throughout all loads it could handle. I figure we only got 80% at best given the system we were using.

 

Wow, he is just asking which one is more silent. TMI Boink....

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i reckon the corsair will be quieter, just becuase i have the TX650 and it is freakin silent :biggrin:

 

You aren't really stretching it and I doubt you ever go beyond 50% loading on that Corsair TX650 so it will be fairly quiet. ;)

 

There are in reality very few silent power supplies when fully loaded. If you really want silent then approximate your worst case power draw, double this figure to give you a power supply wattage and go for one with 80 Plus Gold rating. This is the only practical way to keep cooling fan speeds and hence noise to a minimum.

 

A case with a bottom mounted power supply that draws cooler room in will also help.

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