[Marcinprv]

I have reached my goal of building the fastest HTPC for less than £800!
I was able to overclock the CPU up to 4.8GHz on modded HTPC air cooler!
For a daily use I lower the CPU speed to 4.725GHz.

My YouTube video:



What do you think about noise level?

Full Specification:

• Antec Veris Fusion Remote HTPC Media PC Case
  
• Asrock Z68 Pro3-M LGA 1155 Micro ATX
  
• Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz LGA1155
  
• Palit NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 (Batman Arkham FREE)
  
• Corsair Vengeance Blue 4GB 1600MHz CL9 DDR3
  
• OCZ ZS Series 750W ATX 80+ Bronze
  
• Scythe Shuriken HTPC Quiet Low Profile CPU Cooler
  
• Thermaltake A2018 120mm Blue LED Case Fan
  
• Coollaboratory Liquid Pro
  
• Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB HD103SJ HDD
  
• Samsung SH-S222AB/BEBE 22x DVD Writer
  
• Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Desktop 7000 WTA-00013
  
• Plastic Coca-Cola Bottle

All parts bought on eBay!
Total Price (incuded P&P): £755.00 ($1205.00 / €860) - 27/09/2011

Take a look at my other project!

Water Cooled 'Christmas Tree' (2006)



1K+ CFM Project 'Blower' (2008)



The Fastest HTPC 'Noise Killer' (2011)

This post has been edited by Marcinprv: 21 December 2011 - 06:24 PM

[LiveBrianD]

Wait, don't you usually underclock HTPCs, not overclock them, to reduce noise?

[Marcinprv]

LiveBrianD, on 21 December 2011 - 06:48 PM, said:

Wait, don't you usually underclock HTPCs, not overclock them, to reduce noise?

Really?

[MLStrand56]

Marcinprv, on 21 December 2011 - 06:16 PM, said:

Antec Veris Fusion Remote HTPC Media PC Case

What's goin' on with that case? It looks like the front of the case is open about a quarter inch.

I like the Lian Li PC-C60 Desktop / HTPC Case. It can hold 6x 3.5" HD's + 2x 2.5" HD's + an optical drive. That could be 12TB for media + seperate HD's for OS & other data.

MLStrand56

[RobertSmithrlp7]

How well does it play say swtor or skyrim I wonder?

[MLStrand56]

LiveBrianD, on 21 December 2011 - 06:48 PM, said:

Wait, don't you usually underclock HTPCs, not overclock them, to reduce noise?

What does overclocking have to do with noise? Since when does a CPU make noise when overclocked?

I would think that the more important issue would be ensuring that you bought the quietest cooling fans possible?

MLStrand56

[LiveBrianD]

If you overclock, more heat is generated, and then the fans have to run harder, thus making more noise...

[waldojim]

MLStrand56, on 06 February 2012 - 11:56 AM, said:

LiveBrianD, on 21 December 2011 - 06:48 PM, said:

Wait, don't you usually underclock HTPCs, not overclock them, to reduce noise?

What does overclocking have to do with noise? Since when does a CPU make noise when overclocked?

I would think that the more important issue would be ensuring that you bought the quietest cooling fans possible?

MLStrand56

More importantly than all that, is that with mild UNDER-clocking, you drastically reduce the heat generated by the CPU, and thus reduce cooling demands. Thus allowing for LARGE, SLOW SPINNING fans to cool with little to no noise produced at all.

I used to own an Antec case very similar to the OP's. It was OK, but had fairly poor air flow, and did nothing to keep noise down. The Silverstone design is MUCH improved on both aspects. I never hear my media center, even with my 550Ti mildly overclocked.

This post has been edited by waldojim: 12 February 2012 - 07:35 PM

[LiveBrianD]

Heat increases exponentially the higher the clock and voltage you use, right? Or is it simply that the stock voltage is more than is needed to keep the card stable at that speed?

[waldojim]

Heat increase is directly related to the power demands. Power demands should increase exponentially. But much of that is relative. Processors are very relative. EG: My Intel i5 may have a 1.2V nominal voltage (from the factory), but that doesn't mean that 1.2 is NEEDED to stay stable there. In fact, mine will run at about 1V even at stock clocks. So while the increased clock SHOULD mean increased voltage, and thus heat. In my case 3.2Ghz is possible with no voltage change, and thus little, or no heat change.

[LiveBrianD]

But, for instance, will the lowest voltage able to keep your i5 stable at 3.73GHz generate 33% more heat than the minimum needed to keep it stable at 2.8GHz (NOT the default voltage)? Or is it more than that?

[waldojim]

LiveBrianD, on 12 February 2012 - 08:25 PM, said:

But, for instance, will the lowest voltage able to keep your i5 stable at 3.73GHz generate 33% more heat than the minimum needed to keep it stable at 2.8GHz (NOT the default voltage)? Or is it more than that?

Give or take. Remember that I don't really have a good way of testing, or proving this. Apart from watching what Kill-O-Watt tells me.