Tom's Hardware > Forum > Overclocking > Water Cooling > [Solved] Silent, or Cool?

[Solved] Silent, or Cool?

Forum Overclocking : Water Cooling [Solved] Silent, or Cool?

I am going to water cool my computer, and I am wavering about whether to make my loops silent (or at least quiet), or as cool as possible. The primary use for the computer will be gaming, so I definitely don't want the noise to interfere with the gaming at all. I want to cool an fx-8150 and two evga gtx 560 tis. I want to overclock as far as I can just for maximum performance. I want to use a hardware labs gtx 480 radiator with four fans.

Just how loud are four fans at 3600rpm? How much of a difference will there be performance-wise between a quiet loop and a cool loop? Will I be able to cool my components efficiently and overclock without a performance oriented loop?

As this is my first time water cooling, any and all advice is welcome.

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Reply to Acolyte_64

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Acolyte_64 wrote :

A 3,600 rpm fan is very loud hence it's a high rpm fan. Always use a fan grill with that kind of fan cuz you might get a cut if you accidental touch the fan blades when it's running. I've used several 2,500 rpm silent fans in the past. Even those advertized as silent are not really silent at all. A 2,500 rpm fan can get very loud (particularly if you're gaming & those fans running at full speed) that my wife was complaining that she can't sleep. If silence is a big factor in your build, I suggest you get a slower rpm fan (1,800 rpm or lower).

Message edited by Cheaptrick on 01-23-2012 at 03:16:44 AM

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