cheap, quiet psu?

[dgr]

hi

i'm building a download box, mATX, K6 500, 128mb RAM, HDD, NIC. no need for a cd drive obviously and i'll KVM to get to it. Got everything but PSU already.

most probably I'll leave it on 24 7 with the case consisting of an (insulated) metal box.

my idea is to use a dual fan psu, no case fan - that way i have only got 3 fans in the box and it should be quiet.


given the spec of the (free) machine, all i need is a cheap, quiet PSU.


any recommendations?

cheers

dgr

[Lambbuster]

check out OcUK's range of QTEC Psu's.

I have one for my crappy rig and its pretty silent for the money.

400W is only like £20.

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/acatal...Q_Tec_139.html

[Ravens Nest]

Here's a cheaper price for the Q-Tec's but i wouldnt touch them with a barge pole..

QTEC 400 Watt PSU P4 ready Twin Fan Retail Boxed
£14.99
http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/produ...duct_uid=51095

Q-TEC 550 Watt PSU P4 ready Twin Fan Retail Boxed
£19.97
http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/produ...duct_uid=34825



Now this is the one i'd go for, for peace of mind

450W CWT + SATA Quiet Dual Fan AMD/P4 App Active Fan Control Active PFC (Is rumoured to be Antec PSU's rebadged )
£42.30 this include delivery
http://web6.scan.co.uk/Products/Info.asp?WPID=59491

[Austin]

Yep that would be my choice ... or save an extra £10 and grab the 360W(ish) version which is still a top performer and should easily take anything your mATX box can throw at it. If you want to go very quiet whilst maintaining good quality then I'd look at a good branded PSU (Antec, Enermax, ThermalTake, ToPower, S.Flower/TTGI or Sparkle) with manual speed control otherwise the ThermalTake and Antec ones are known to be great and quiet but will cost you.

[dgr]

little worried by the last two posts - i have an antec 430w and its a noisy beast!

oh and this would put the quality of the psu above my main rig. don't intent on spending more than £15 on a psu for a pc that cost nothing.

thanks for the input

dgr

[blockers]

Can you not get a passivly cooled PSU from some where? im sure that i have seen one about...

Will

[Ravens Nest]

Originally posted by dgr
little worried by the last two posts - i have an antec 430w and its a noisy beast!

oh and this would put the quality of the psu above my main rig. don't intent on spending more than £15 on a psu for a pc that cost nothing.

thanks for the input

dgr

Well i've got the 450W CWT + SATA Quiet Dual Fan, and it is quiet especially for a dual fan PSU also the fans change speed depending on how hot the case is..

Not going to get much for £15 i dont think, unless someone else knows different

[dgr]

might have to consider buying the CWT for my mail rig and moving the 430w antec (read over £70!) down to the DL box.

dgr

[Number5]

kustom sell the fanless psu but its damn expensive and users have had mixed reports of 'buzzing' from the transformer, so hardly silent. I almost got one of these myself.

I ended up getting a 'Hiper' (new brand) 480W from elsewhere and it was extremely quiet, but blew up after 2 weeks so not a brand Id recommend..

[Agent]

Dont get a Q-tec. USe the search and there is 2 threads without enough reasons in to put you off forever

Look at the branded ones. In this case, if go for a Thermal Take.

[darkside]

I recently bought myself a good quality cheap PSU for my server that runs 24/7.

It is an Enhance (300W for £21) from www.tekheads.co.uk and their claim that it is whisper quiet would seem true. When I got it back to work I shorter pins 14 and 15 to turn it on and it was absolutely silent - I had to put my ear to the exhaust vent to hear it running.

Of course, when you fit it to the case it generates more noise simply because it is pulling air past more obstructions - you cannot remove this turbulence (without some serious airflow modifications) but it is quiet - quieter than my hard drive!

Single fan also keeps the case cool enough (my view with a server - if it is 100% stable, it's cool enough, why chill it?)

I posted more info here -
http://forums.hexus.net/showthread.p...521&perpage=15

[dgr]

cheers guys

oh and i was NEVER going to get a qtec

[joshwa]

this looks pretty good : 400w £29 (big inside fan)

http://www.kustompcs.co.uk/product.p...7293540eb39646

[dgr]

hmmm

nice suggestion,s but considering the only components will be a 500mhz (!!) cpu, mb, hdd, RAM and nic (no cdrom, no extra hdds, no fans), is 400w really necessary?

oh and thats a BEAST of a fan!

dgr

[Stylez]

Originally posted by Ravens Nest
Well i've got the 450W CWT + SATA Quiet Dual Fan, and it is quiet especially for a dual fan PSU also the fans change speed depending on how hot the case is..

Not going to get much for £15 i dont think, unless someone else knows different

Yeh i got the same aswell mate and its very quiet and has brill rails . Well worth the money tbh, seing as its cheaper than enermax and antec etc .

[Ravens Nest]

Originally posted by Stylez
Yeh i got the same aswell mate and its very quiet and has brill rails . Well worth the money tbh, seing as its cheaper than enermax and antec etc .

Hey Stylez, just wondering what rails do you get on +5V?