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Sliencing my damn cabinet!
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darthbane2k:
I've had my arcade cabinet completed for a few years now,but one thing continues to bug me - the noise! The PC fan at the back of the cab is so loud, and playing a game late at night is annoying. Is there anything I can do to reduce the fan noise, other than replacing the fan itself?
If there is a product I can use, please consider that I live in the UK.,
BobA:
Look up PC Fan Controller on google and I am sure you will find a simple one that suits your needs.   You can also try a resistor in series with the fan controller.   Unfortunately this usualy is a trial and miss method.  Probably a 1W for power dissipation but the ohms depend on your current draw and what you consider a suitable sound level..  If you can find a power rehostat (variable resistor) you can set dial in the settin you need.  Another option is to use 1/2 amp diodes such as the 1n4001 in series with the controller.  Each diode will drop the voltage 0.7V.  You put them end to end until the fan slows and starts reliably at a lower sound level.

More complicated fan controlers are easily built but will take more time such as the link below.
DIY
Guaranos:
I ended up going fanless on one cabinet for that very reason.  Some of the mini-ITX boards are designed to operate without a fan.  That, combined with a laptop-style power supply and a compact-flash to IDE adapter led to a silent machine.  Check your specs.  Maybe you can get away with a gigantic heat sink instead of the fan.

Another thing, make sure your fan is attached securely.  If it's vibrating around, it's going to make more noise than it should.
Joystick Jerk:
Are you talking about a fan mounted on the cab itself, or a fan on the computer chassis inside. If it's the former, you don't need a fan on your cab. Monitors don't get hot enough to need one, and a computer has it's own fans, assuming it's still in it's case.

Which is another point. I really hate the advice that people take the parts out of their PC's case and mount them directly on the cab. WRONG! PC's are designed with the PC case in mind. The fans are placed in the case to promote proper airlfow. If you run a PC without the case, your certainly goint to shorten it's life as it'll get much hotter than normal. And adding a fan onto the cab itself won't help, as the inside is so large that airflow will disperse and won't be strong enough. The only reason arcades had bare mobos mounted on the cab was that they weren't very processor intensive, and the chips never got very hot.

If you must have a fan on your cab though, you might as well replace it with a quieter fan. SilenX makes some very quiet fans, as does Panaflo, Vantec, and Enermax. Search for "case fan shootout" or "case fan roundup", and you'll find loads of reviews on the net.
Buddabing:
Maybe look at the SPCR list of recommended fans or fan controllers.
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