Thank you for being a valued part of the CNET community. As of December 1, 2020, the forums are in read-only format. In early 2021, CNET Forums will no longer be available. We are grateful for the participation and advice you have provided to one another over the years.

Thanks,

CNET Support

General discussion

How would you describe the noise level of your computer?

Jul 20, 2006 6:42AM PDT

How would you describe the noise level of your computer?

Very noisy (how so?)
Noisy (how so?)
Acceptable (what's acceptable?)
Quiet (describe it for us)
Very quiet (like nothing is on?)
Other (please explain)

Discussion is locked

- Collapse -
Why did you not have this question fromatted by brand ?
Jul 22, 2006 3:53AM PDT

The question by itself is virtually meaningless. You should have asked folks to name the brand and what they did or would do to fix it.

Noises can come from many different sources. For example; pre 2006 DELL Dimension 8000 series are well known for LOUD cooling fans. Dell's replacement in late 2205 & early 2006 - the E510 - is so quiet you cannot even tell if it is on. However, the top line DELL XPS Desktop sounds like a jet engine in reverse thrust since it has multiple fans trying to cool down all the dual core et al gaming processors and processes.

The question is: what can be done about it - whatever the source and what should you buy if "quiet operation" is a priority for you.

- Collapse -
(NT) (NT) Formatted not Fromatted/sorry for spell error (NT)
Jul 22, 2006 3:56AM PDT
- Collapse -
(NT) (NT) macbook: quiet/hot | dimension: loud/hot
Jul 22, 2006 4:46AM PDT
- Collapse -
2 computers
Jul 22, 2006 6:32AM PDT

I own 2 computers, one that's an extreme air system and is full of Vantec Tornado 80mm fans, EXTREMELY noisy, I recently converted to a WCS and a new case so I moved the fans into a smaller case and it's still noisy. so noisy in fact that I finaly decided to move my bed into the spare room, sure I can sleep in here when they are both on but I don't sleep as sound as I do in a quieter environment. FYI I live in montana and it can get very hot here in the summers, I have a southern exposure room which also adds to the heat.

Best regards,


Maverick

- Collapse -
Compaq Dekpro,absolutely quiet
Jul 22, 2006 8:50AM PDT

Mine Pc is absolutely Quiet.
I have A Compaq Deskpro EN Series 500 Mhz,192 Mb Ram,Seagate 40 GB hard drive and i hav been using this box from 4 years .and it still works perfect and runs so quietly like ,nothing is running Silly

- Collapse -
Compaq Deskpro's rule.
Jul 22, 2006 2:30PM PDT

Yeah, Deskpro's rule. I got my first one back when the Pentium 166 MHz was out and used that for 4 years and then upgraded to a Compaq Deskpro EX Celeron 600 MHz back in 2000. Both of those computers were very powerful for the time, very well-made, and provided years of trouble-free service.

Of course now that HP owns Compaq, they don't make Deskpro's anymore, so I bought a brand new Dell Optiplex GX620. The Deskpro EX still works flawlessly, so I'm keeping it around as a backup.

- Collapse -
Acceptable
Jul 24, 2006 5:22PM PDT

The only noise I get is a clicking sound right before my Norton Security comes on.

- Collapse -
Liquid cool by Thermaltake. Install by me. Pin drop Quiet
Jul 25, 2006 5:44PM PDT

P-4 805,Nvidia 6800, 1 fan, two heat-sinks, under 35 degrees Cel. without O.C. At lowest fan speed.
My first fridge build out of ten or so. I was going to replace fan with an 18db model, but ambient noise of the world going on was louder. Spent 100 and a couple of extra hours on build.
Worth every penny and extra time.
Allows for very high clock speeds and voltages.
But alas, gotta turn up the fan.
Todays question-O.C.ing/low noise. hmmmm

- Collapse -
Only noise I get is a 3 tone ring in background
Jul 27, 2006 3:00PM PDT

I don't know what program in the background is ringing about once a minute on my computer. If anyone does have an idea what it may be, PLEASE MAKE A SUGGESTION on how to stop it. Other than that,my Dell Demension 4600 is very quiet. Five years old & have had many other problems, but never a ''constant'' noise problem.
By NO means is this an ''endorsement'' of Dell. Like I said,many other problems, & their support really sucks!

- Collapse -
I think the "3 tone ring" is the result of a hardware proble
Jul 27, 2006 4:58PM PDT

On many computers, including some Dell's, a beeping/chirping noise may be heard periodically to indicate an overheating problem. Of course when a certain temperature is exceeded, the computer should power off, unless it's a cheap model with no CPU protection, or the user foolishly disabled that feature in the BIOS.

To see if the noise is being generated by software on the computer, or a problem with the speakers, try unplugging the speakers and see if it goes away. If it does, then it could be the result of a virus/malware, a device driver problem for the audio chipset, or a problem with the external speakers.

If the noise does NOT go away, then it's coming from the little "speaker" soldered to the motherboard, which is only used by the BIOS to signal a successful POST or hardware problems. If that is the case, you might consider turning off the computer, lifting up the green plastic shroud over the heatsink/fan assembly and seeing if the heatsink is clogged with dust or the fan has defective or stuck bearings.

If the heatsink is totally clogged with dust/dirt, then get a can of compressed air and blow it all out. If the fan is worn out, then you can use a standard case fan, but will have to get the adapter to plug it directly into the power supply, as the connector on the motherboard will only take a genuine Dell fan.

Hope that helps.

- Collapse -
The Dell GX620 chirping noise
Sep 5, 2007 11:02PM PDT

My DEll GX620 makes chirping noise and the pc is 100% dust free.
It is also Virus free(new os install)

I am wondering though how much heatsink compound is used as I never
took the heatsink off the CPU.

The chirps happen when booting and when logging back into the network.

I wonder why the developers thought this would be a good idea to make computers chirps like electronic birds. Other than the chirping everything runs fine.

- Collapse -
heat sink
Aug 20, 2011 1:10AM PDT

hay
my gx 620 hav also this problem any 1 tell me how to solv my problem..........

- Collapse -
You posted in a poll.
Aug 20, 2011 1:14AM PDT

Since you posted in a poll it's unlikely you'll get an answer.

Try a new post in a forum that matches your question.
Bob

- Collapse -
VERY quiet.
Aug 3, 2006 1:00PM PDT

Having 9 computer-controlled fans makes a huge difference. G5's rule.

- Collapse -
Noisy, too distraction. Silence should be the expectation.
Sep 13, 2007 4:03PM PDT

Monitor your fan noise carefully. When the CPU fan switches on it means the CPU is over heating. Over heating causes poor performance. I suspect most haven't a notion how hot there CPUs are running. Down load SpeedFan software and see for yourself. Notice how as the temperature goes up, during a demanding task like a virus-scan, performance goes down. The best solution would be to run all fans at 100%, all the time but the fans "should not" be heard. If the computer industry can make CPU chips, Hard Drives, Flat screen monitors, and Graphics cards then they can certainly make quiet PCs. It seems we can't ignore the humble $6.00 fan.

I am not affiliated with SpeedFan.com but I do use there free software.