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>The Mobile Celeron (1.2 GHz) generates about as much heat as the 800MHz C3 (which really runs at less than 400MHz).

You're talking about this processor, right?

Nice, but I'm pretty sure you could take a P4 3 Ghz and run it at 1.5 Ghz using a similar core voltage to the mobile chips... but that's just my guess based on experience with other CPUs...

So, basically the P4/Celeron Mobile does what the Cyrix does... but... they don't have a page like this or this (either that or I can't find it!). Bummer. Plus VIA claims the C3 is the coolest processor on the market. Which they may be lying about, at their peril.

[ And I really doubt your claim that C3s run at half the clock speed as advertised. I have run non Via/Cyrix made speed checkers on these chips and they run at the speed advertised, unless all CPU speed checkers are faulty, that is. Sorry 'bout that, but I think I'd need a little more evidence to sway me on that claim. ]

>The Mobile Celeron (1.2 GHz) generates about as much heat as the 800MHz C3 (which really runs at less than 400MHz).

You're talking about this processor, right?

Nice, but I'm pretty sure you could take a P4 3 Ghz and run it at 1.5 Ghz using a similar core voltage to the mobile chips... but that's just my guess based on experience with other CPUs...

So, basically the P4/Celeron Mobile does what the Cyrix does... but... they don't have a page like this or this (either that or I can't find it!). Bummer. Plus VIA claims the C3 is the coolest processor on the market. Which they may be lying about, at their peril.

[ And I really doubt your claim that C3s run at half the clock speed as advertised. I have run non Via/Cyrix made speed checkers on these chips and they run at the speed advertised, unless all CPU speed checkers are faulty, that is. Sorry 'bout that, but I think I'd need a little more evidence to sway me on that claim. ]

I think we'll start seeing all sorts of systems in the 10^2 to 10^3Mhz range over the next year or two. VIA in particular have some interesting products with their fanless C3 processors which operate at 500Mhz - plenty for most applications, and the Eden platform. People will be more interested in smaller systems which are quieter, cheaper, and which use less power. And when you can run things like Linux or Lindows you start seeing things like the Walmart PCs, which I figure is pretty much what they're after. Of course VIA aren't the only ones in this area, although I am more interested in supporting them (and Transmeta) than a certain other chip manufacturer with a virtual monopoly.

I think we'll start seeing all sorts of systems in the 10^2 to 10^3Mhz range over the next year or two. VIA in particular have some interesting products with their fanless C3 processors which operate at 500Mhz - plenty for most applications, and the Eden platform. People will be more interested in smaller systems which are quieter, cheaper, and which use less power. And when you can run things like Linux or Lindows you start seeing things like the Walmart PCs, which I figure is pretty much what they're after. Of course VIA aren't the only ones in this area, although I am more interested in supporting them (and Transmeta) than a certain other chip manufacturer with a virtual monopoly.

I think we'll start seeing all sorts of systems in the 10^2 to 10^3Mhz range over the next year or two. VIA in particular have some interesting products with their fanless C3 processors which operate at 500Mhz - plenty for most applications, and the Eden platform. People will be more interested in smaller systems which are quieter, cheaper, and which use less power. And when you can run things like Linux or Lindows you start seeing things like the Walmart PCs, which I figure is pretty much what they're after. Of course VIA aren't the only ones in this area, although I am more interested in supporting them (and Transmeta) than a certain other chip manufacturer with a virtual monopoly.

I think we'll start seeing all sorts of systems in the 10^2 to 10^3Mhz range over the next year or two. VIA in particular have some interesting products with their fanless C3 processors which operate at 500Mhz - plenty for most applications, and the Eden platform. People will be more interested in smaller systems which are quieter, cheaper, and which use less power. And when you can run things like Linux or Lindows you start seeing things like the Walmart PCs, which I figure is pretty much what they're after. Of course VIA aren't the only ones in this area, although I am more interested in supporting them (and Transmeta) than a certain other chip manufacturer with a virtual monopoly.

... if they want my support. I'd love to build a machine that uses less power and doesn't need a CPU fan; it'd be good for a router or a file server for my humble home office. I would use a Transmeta CPU in a heartbeat if it were available and relatively inexpensive. VIA actually offers some similar products; I used a CPU from their C3 line that advertises that it doesn't need a fan, but it isn't nearly as nifty as Transmeta's stuff. Anyway, why doesn't Transmeta start talks with competing motherboard manufacturers?

by VIA and Transmeta

The Cyrix processor Lacks a FPU.

Then what's the FP Unit and MMX/3D Unit in this block diagram? The pdf datasheet referenced in the Tom's Hardware review mentioned that the floating point unit runs at 1/2 the speed of the rest of the CPU. That's probably one of the reasons, they suck compared to a Celeron. But hey, it only dissipates 12W.

mini-itx form factor, integrated video/ethernet/fanless cpu - just add memory and storage. link

if you wanted to go all-out on skipping the moving parts, you could run the os on compact flash using an ide to cf adapter from pcengines.com and use a cupid case with a dc power supply. just make sure to disable writing, or you'll wear it out! use mfs or a (non-essential) extra standard hard disk for data.

5 seconds from start-up to movie
And some pics over here... Not bad hey?!?

Even more quiet than some Macs.

Buy a mobo with a VIA CPU on it. Take off 486 CPU Fan/HS combo. Replace with a large heatsink. Build/buy P/S with no fan (VIA CPUs take very little power, so building one is not hard for someone with some electronics knowledge). Load up O/S through the network, put in a lot of RAM, no hard drive.

There. Totally silent PC. And it probably only cost you $200 CDN. Wow. Hard to believe, huh?

Even VIA themselves know their CPU rules for this. Stop using Intel/AMD if you want quiet and lower power, with enough horses to power most modern OSes.

VIA's end-user Support site

VIA's Web site

VIA is onto a really good thing with the Eden series motherboards using their CPUs. The upcoming EPIA M-series motherboards are based on VIA's CLE266 chipset, which offers DDR RAM and on-chipset support for offloading DVD display operations from the CPU. If VIA delivers those features, the EPIA M will make an excellent living-room multimedia box.

Sudhian's Small Form Factor Forum is very active, and a good place to watch for more on EPIA hardware.

I'm using an Eden 5000 right now for my DSP work. Together with VIA's low power chipset, you can build a fanless system for less than $400.

General Eden information:

This is a good thing. Maybe the big chip vendors will stop focusing on Mhz numbers and start making smaller, cooler and more efficient chips.

If I have the choice between a giant-ass chip with multiple fans that takes 100+ Watts vs. a slightly slower, fanless, power sipping version, I'd definately take the latter. I'm definately keeping my eye on the Via C3...

Look at the mini-itx form factor, introduced by VIA.
Their EDEN platform runs with their C3 cpu.
Not incredibly fast, but does the job.
Also, they are supposed to introduce their new generation some time this autumn.

Look on the VIA website
and on this one mini-itx website

You said arguably the smallest, and I'm gonna argue.

First things first, the Lex system *is* neat because of the socket 370, but it edges out the Via Eden platform in one dimension by 10mm. Doesn't sound like a lot, unless you're making some really cool custom pc's.

In fact, I've built my own router (running Linux of course) in a 1/10th scale Celica using the VIA. 10mm more in either dimension and it wouldn't have fit. In fact, it looks just like the two projects I just now linked.

The via comes in 500 and 866 mhz flavors, and pulls VERY little power resulting in a low heat motherboard/processor solution. There's so little heat, they don't even put a fan on the processor, which is great when you have your 1/10th scale Celica routing your dsl in your living room where you want to hear other people and/or the tv instead of the computer.

So for those needing those extra mhz, the lex looks like a good solution. But for a Linux gateway/router and a couple other applications, the slower C3's do just fine, but pull less power and have the possibility of going completely fan free (if you can find a fan-free powersupply).

>I could find 500 MHz K6 CPUs, but that was about the lowest.

Well, no one forces you to run it at this speed.

I have a K6 400MHz running at 166MHz without a fan.
Front side bus reduced from 100MHz to 66MHz
and a multiplier of 2.5.

The CPU doesn't get very hot, since it is idleing most of it's time.

IIRC, there is even a patch for the Linux kernel out there, which let's the CPU idle when it gets too hot.

But maybe you'd prefer the VIA C3 processor.
Passive cooled, up to 866MHz, combined with VIA Apollo CLE266 chipset with integrated graphics, hardware support for MPEG2 decoding, integrated networking and audio, it might do the trick for your set-top box.

I'd suggest using a VIA Eden board. The 533Mhz one runs without a fan on the heatsink.

You can get very small cases for it on Caseoutlet.com and barebone systems there using it as well.

Using the case with an external (a la laptop) AC power adapter, you could have a system with no moving parts other than the drives. If you splurged and don't need lots of storage, you could even get a 512MB ATA Flash disk.

Put a filter on the fan on the back and that'll greatly reduce the likelihood of salt water getting in.

I plan on building myself something like this in the near future for a PC Set-top box. I hope that helps!

you can put that memory bandwidth to good use. Normally, the asus board , using the via kt333 chipset, runs the fsb at 133MHz DDR and the memory bus at 166MHz DDR (if you have PC2700 memory). In order to get that extra memory bandwidth to the cpu, you have to increase the fsb clock to 166MHz DDR. If you're not into overclocking you cpu 25%, then you have to lower the clock mulitplier to compensate. The asus board offers a 1/5 clock divider for your pci bus so all your other devices can run in spec. Have fun :).

P.S. The MHz stuff.
MHz only means millions of cycles per second. Exactly what that means depends on how you define "cycle". If you're using the accepted definition of a cycle, in terms of memory, then you're talking about a cycle bounded by the event which occurs every time your bus does this:

_
/ \_/

(I'm not the best ascii artist but you get the idea) and the memory bus operates at 166MHz. However, if you're calling a cycle the event that occurs every time the bus can put a bit on a data line, then the memory bus operates at 333MHz. Either way, you're still going to get a maximum throughput of 2.7GB/s.

P.P.S.
If you want to change your fsb from 133MHz to 166MHz then you have to get a cpu with a rated frequency into which 166 will divide nicely. That means the XP 2000+ (1666MHz) or the XP 1500+ (1333MHz). If you get any other processor, you'll have to overclock or underclock a little since the cpu multiplier can only be set to multiples of 1/2.

Funny, their web site seems to say their memory bus runs at 200/266/333MHz.

Based around the MiniITX spec, these integrated-solution PCs have a very small form factor (approx. 20cm x 20cm motherboard), and can be squeezed into whatever case you can find (or make yourself).

See here for more info
And here for some fully assembled product reviews

Based around the MiniITX spec, these integrated-solution PCs have a very small form factor (approx. 20cm x 20cm motherboard), and can be squeezed into whatever case you can find (or make yourself).

See here for more info
And here for some fully assembled product reviews

That fanless chasis would be a good match for VIA's Eden platform is an x86 motherboard/CPU/ethernet/sound/gfx combo that runs cool enough to only need a passive aluminum heatsink for cooling. Not only that, its going to cost around $100 for a basically complete computer! This means that the only noise generated by your computer would be the harddrive. Of course, if you wanted, you could use one of those solid state flash memory based harddrives, which would make for a totally silent computer.

Since the Eden platform has TV-outs, it would make a great set top box for playing emulated NES and SNES games, in addition to MP3s and DIVX movies.

Wow, talk about easy access rebellion. Maybe I'll drink a 7UP and STICK IT TO THE MAN who insists upon shoving cola down my pie hole!

It really is easy nowadays to build a very quiet, possible even only passive cooling (the only real hitch is the power supply), system: Use a fluid bearing 5400 RPM hard drive (totally silent. Even the 7200 RPM Fujitsu fluid bearing is totally silent), a small fab prior generation video card (like a passive cooling Geforce2 MX), and an AMD C3 x86 processor and you're in business. Of course, there are compromises that most people don't want to make: For instance the PC beside me has 3 case fans including the power supply, a video card fan, a CPU fan...hell, I think it might even have a chipset fan (on the KT333 chipset). The constant din is annoying, but my approach was moreso thinking of how I could build a sound insulated enclosure that still gave it the ideal room temperature source air and proper ventilation (which of course gets you into the realm of even more fans.... :-]).

Point one: the BIOS is distributed over several chips, not contained in one EEPROM.
Point two: the operating system itself is encrypted with strong crypto. It uses a species of crypto related to the EFS encryption infrastructure first released in Windows 2000. Since the OS is in ROM and thoroughly encrypted kiss the thought of booting the XBox with Linux goodbye.
Point three: their DVD-ROM has a reversable motor. XBox game DVDs spin BACKWARDS, and the content starts at the second layer.
Point four: Even the peripherals are non-standard. The XBox implementation of USB means that plain-jane USB periphs WILL NOT WORK with the XBox. There will be a keyboard and mouse for the XBox when hell freezes over.

Microsoft made DAMN SURE the XBox would not end up like the IOpener.

The better chance to get PCs to the 3rd World is the VIA Eden Platform. There are already products using the Eden Platform out, and more are on the way. VIA might not attract the power users (The nForce+Athlon is more appropriate for them) but they will 0wn China with this platform.

And no, not every poor fsck can afford a TV. Some can't even afford a bowl of rice. In places like this, technology is the least of the populace's worries.

Too true. Don't look to Russia in the future, look to Taiwan in the present. Where do many, if not most motherboards come from? Chipsets? Taiwan. I don't see Via knuckling under to the US Congress (Via still produces chips based on the Cyrix / Winchip cores). Sure, their CPUs do not boast as much performance as Intel's, but they are cheaper, and right next door to the largest markets in the world.

When stuff like this starts becoming part of international trade agreements (think prerequisite for WTO membership), then look out. Hopefully, self-interest and world demand for non-crippled hardware will keep the Taiwanese government from following the stupidity of the US Congress.

Maybe this will encourage new Linux for Dreamcast work with the greater possibilities it presents for a small SH6 based web server?

I can almost see dropping a floppy drive, but a ps2 keyboard and mouse? I use a USB keyboard and mouse on my laptop, but it does take a fair bit more CPU cycles to use the USB version over the ps2. Mind you, a few seconds longer to boot weblogic is not a huge deal, but like those silly winmodems - why waste it on something like a keyboard and mouse? It is not like this board is headed for "almost embedded" solutions like the 170mmx170mm mainboards I plan to toss in my car.

The funny part is that most entry level processor / media solutions these days have enough power to do more than just a couple tasks. The problem is that vendors *want* to offer a tiered product line for the sake of maximizing revenue/income.

Take a look at VIA's new mini-ITX reference board. It is only 170mm square and they claim fanless operation with minimal power consumption. Target price is under $100 including processor. If a talented *someone* could sit down with linux and design a quality open solution for Mp3 devices, then it wouldn't be long before others add TV time-shifting, DVD, HDTV and possibly even gaming (in the future, near 3D will be plenty cheap), then consumers would have an option other than the standard-issue MS product that will eventually fill the market. You think that Sony can afford to put millions into playstation developement when all that MS has to do is reach into the PC parts bin? Playstation will be dead or X86-based real soon. The economies of scale just don't favor non-x86 anymore.

My prediction:

The various/uncollaborated open source projects will sit in alpha and beta stages while Microsoft toils away at a mediocre standard that works at the consumer's expense of an increased stranglehold. They've already started. Soon, they will expand their technologies to the automobile and soon everyone will have a car capable of communicating wirelessly with their Windows household. Your car's GPS will track every aspect of its life. Was/is little Billy speeding? What was my fuel mileage on the vacation last summer? How did it compare with this summer's vacation? Ah - the car is due for an oil change. I'll just find a local provider via the provided MS software and the map will be uploaded into the car's navigation system. Microsoft gets a small percentage of the oil change cost, of course. What about road hazzards? The ABS & GPS systems in the car could warn others of potentially slippery roads. Airbag go off? Warn others and call for an ambulance. Linux *could* do this but it won't because MS will establish themselves before it happens. Enough about the cars...

My point is that while the linux community toils away at various different projects, they haven't a single focused effort in the new areas that will allow MS to continue their world domination. Back to the MP3 player:

So what's the deal? Why can't some talented (not me or I would have done it) entity come up with a stripped down, lightweight, open version of Linux for the purpose of having an open-standard for consumers? Sure - their isn't much money in it but it *has to* happen if MS is to be toppled. It would seem like VIA would put some money into LinuxBIOS for their new mini-ITX form factor - they could sell processors for financial gain and subsidize this development. Soon, people would be piecing together their own DVD/MP3/DivX media players - and VIA would have a piece of the action. The pieces are all there but nobody ever bothers to try and put them together...

Sigh...

Also on Via's site, the white paper describing this small wonder:

http://www.via.com.tw/en/VInternet/Mini-iTX.PDF

Some of the VIA C3 chips can run with just a heatsink. They even have a list of suggested heatsinks and other parts to build a quiet PC. They are probably the best x86 solution you can find without making this a major home project. You did mention that processing power wasn't a concern and the main drawback of the C3 is that it's FPUs run at half the processors clockspeed.

Some of the VIA C3 chips can run with just a heatsink. They even have a list of suggested heatsinks and other parts to build a quiet PC. They are probably the best x86 solution you can find without making this a major home project. You did mention that processing power wasn't a concern and the main drawback of the C3 is that it's FPUs run at half the processors clockspeed.

These suckers run cool, and generally can use an extremely quiet fan
Indeed, I think the 933mhz model requires a small, quiet fan. However, the 800mhz modelis a throwback to the days of the 486 requiring a passive-only heatsink. That's why it was my choice for my custom home theatre MP3/Ogg/DVD player. Plenty fast for all of that, and plenty fast for most computer users.

If you want something for the higher-end CPUs, Koolance has had a pre-built waterblock tower case for a few months now. Try one of those.

• Shuttle FV24 motherboard Flex ATX form factor, sound, video, network built on.
  
• VIA C3 processors. Not as fast as some other processors, but you can use a passive heatsink instead of needing a CPU fan to cool it down ( less moving parts to break, and less noise).
  
• Alpha U60-V25C passive heatsink.
  
• Disk on module. I couldn't get the Shuttle machines to netbook from their build-in ethernet, so I added a disk on module to store the boot code (for Etherboot). The disk on modules plug directly into the IDE slot on the motherboard and are recognized as IDE drives.
  
• A small case. I cant find the one I used, but there are several Micro-ATX or Flex-ATX cases out there.
  

The only way to build a really "silent" pc is to get or make one without any fans in it.

How come Apple can make computers that run completely fanless? G4 cube? iMac? I mean, PC builders should get their heads together and make a completely silent pc!

You could make an almost silent one by using the Via C3 processor(the ones running at 933Mhz of course ;-), or maybe even one of the more recent Celeron babies, but then you still have the noise generated by the PSU.

Someone: Please make me a fanless Pwer Supply!!! (or if they already exist: where can I find one??)

Do you already have all this equipment, or are you planning to kit out the room after you move in?

If you plan ahead, you ought to be able to set up with all the gear you need, without using too much power/making too much heat.

Start with one big Linux server. Equip it with a ridiculous amount of RAID storage: how about 3 or 4 80 GB drives in a RAID 5 configuration; that's 160 GB or 240 GB right there. Use a 2-processor SMP Socket A motherboard, and a couple of Athlon MP chips. (When the .13 micron version of the Athlon MP comes out, you can get a speed boost and a heat reduction in one go, so I'd get the cheapest Athlon MP chips available.) With that amount of CPU horsepower you can do Linux software RAID for free (just make sure each IDE drive has its own controller, i.e. only one drive per cable) and still have lots of power left over for running server software.

Now I assume you want some number of other computers for various purposes. At a minimum you want one firewall. If you want a server exposed to the net you really want two firewalls, with the net server behind one and your really big Linux server behind both firewalls (and the second one should be really locked down!). For these extra computers, you ought to look at using the Shuttle SV24, with a VIA C3 chip. The SV24 has little expansion capability, so it only has a little power supply, so it only makes a little heat. The C3 dissipates about as much power as a night light ( 7 Watts) typical and 11 Watts max according to the Via web site. You don't even need a fan on the heatsink: a simple passive heatsink is enough for a C3! For firewall use, put an extra net card in the single PCI slot on the SV24.

Because Linux can boot off a floppy (try that with Windows XP Professional Server sometime) you can set up the SV24 boxes with just a floppy and a whole lot of memory. If you can get a net boot working with the built-in 100 Mbps Ethernet, you don't even need the floppy.

Of course your personal workstation/gaming boxes can run hot with fast CPUs and fast 3D graphics cards and such, but those probably won't be in the server room!

Unless you are planning to invest in a render farm or Beowulf cluster, you should be able to get everything you need running, and it shouldn't get too hot.

steveha

It was a incomplete comparison

It really should have been a VIA KT266 vs VIA KT266A vs NVidia NForce vs AMD 760 vs SIS 735 vs SIS 745 vs ALI MAGiK 1 / M1647 (both revisions)
comparison.

It was a incomplete comparison

It really should have been a VIA KT266 vs VIA KT266A vs NVidia NForce vs AMD 760 vs SIS 735 vs SIS 745 vs ALI MAGiK 1 / M1647 (both revisions)
comparison.

Thats why we have the via c3.

It is supposed to run cool with no hsf.

"The VIA C3(TM)is the coolest processor on the market, saving energy and maximizing notebook battery life through its ultra low power consumption. The processor runs so cool that it can operate without a fan, making it an ideal solution for ergonomic Silent PC designs. "

It may at first seem odd that a chipset company would buy a processor company.

They say it can be frelly run with no fun attached. See low heat dissipation thanks to 0.13 and 0.15 micron processes

You an me both..

The closest I have found so far is the VIA InformationPC concept. It is based on their C3 processor, which at 800MHz only requires passive cooling.

http://www.via.com.tw/jsp/en/products/VInternet/ip c.jsp

Combine that with Linux on a CompactFlash card, or a hard drive and good power management/spindown, and you would have a good solution. If it has Sleep-to-RAM capabilities, it's pretty much instant-on. And, if you want to run Windows & Office Apps on it, it's fully compatible.

Well, it seem these days, most of the power user just care to get something like 200fps in Quake III. Why ? Beat's me ! I'm not on a quest to get the ultimate frame rate, I just want my box to be quiet as possibly can be.

To help you understand my take on the subject, here is the background :
My PC has the following components :

• A OEM case
• A 235W OEM power supply
• ASUS P3B-F
• Intel Pentium II rated 400Mhz @ 400Mhz
• A cheap OEM SECC2 Heat-Sink made of aluminum
• A 128MB CAS2 no-name DIMM
• Two 32MB CAS3 Samsung DIMM slowing down my memory timing, but preventing the appearance of the all mighty evil SwaP
• A ATI All-In-Wonder Rage128 16MB
• A Creative SoundBlaster Live! Value
• A Realtek 8139 Ethernet NIC
• My beloved USR 56Kbps ISA Real Modem. Sorry but to me a component that uses CPU power to do it's processing instead of taking the load off is not worthy of being in my computer. Not to mention the M$ Win part...
• A Creative 48x CD-ROM drive. It's the loudest damned thing in my computer when it's spinning
• A Quantum Fireball AS PLUS 40GB (7200RPM) in a removable tray
• A Quantum Fireball CX1 10GB (5400RPM) mounted inside the case
• Of course the stupid old 1.44 MB floppy drive only used for booting Tomsbrt in case of emergency

Soon to be :

• A Adaptec 2940UW
• A Diamond Monster 3D II for Glide games

It turn out that the Quantum Fireball AS makes less noise than the Quantum Fireball CX1. I still have to figure it out ...

I use my PC for :

• Running Linux and learning as much as time allows me (Jez I had so much time when I was a student... Think of all the time I wasted in High-School running the evil W monster)
• Doing some gaming i.e. : Diablo II, Unreal, UT, Undying (Although that thing is going to cost me a new box)
• Spending numerous nights filling my brain @ Slashdot, Tomshardware, Anandtech, Arstechnica, StorageReview, Developper.Intel.com, and most importantly, hounding the web for all the case manufacturers and their take at a quiet box.

As I'm writing this post, that is probably going to be the base documentation for my Silent Case Project, you're guessing that my sleepless night of browsing have not yielded the desired result.

I've check out many options such as water cooling, moving the PC to the closet, returning to the forest where a PC is pretty far from your everyday quest for survival. None of them suits me.

The objective of my project is to build a case that meets the following criteria :

• A silent as possible
• Accessible
• Provides sufficient ventilation to maintain all the components running within thermal specs
• Be light enough to be easily transportable (Let's not forget the Lan parties ;-)

To attain those goals I have to :

• Read all I can about noise, sound, aerodynamics, PC specs
• Find suitable materials : A case is not just a protection against unwanted fingers and dust ; it must provide EMI shielding, proper grounding, resist to impacts, and fit into my conception of the king of object you want in your bedroom (If you were thinking about plywood and a box of rusted leftover nails, forget it)
• Find the tools or the companies or individuals with the means to work the materials I choose to build the casing

For the sound isolation I was thinking about some kind of foam. Mineral lint would be affective but that takes too much space and it's not the kind of thing I want beside my bed. Form the casing itself, metal is almost inevitable if you want EMI shielding and grounding. And as for you who wonder why I have not mentioned water cooling yet, the greatest source of noise is not my CPU cooler and your just moving the problem out of the case (Nice ; you have water heating up but unless your reservoir is like a bathtub or something you will have to transfer the heat for the water to the air).

That about as far as I am. If you have any idea that might help me, please fell free to send me some bits forming ASCII characters at Prozzaks@operamail.com

To finish up, here is a list of thing that might help people wanting to achieve similar goals :

• http://www.formfactors.org/ You should be able to find all the documents regarding the ATX form factor and thermal design guides. A must if you want to build a quiet PC.
• http://developer.intel.com/ Intel has contributed a great deal to the ATX definition ; here you will find many relevant documents including thermal design guides for all Intel processors.
• Etract from my favorite's :
  
  

  Hardware\cases PC CASE
  Fong Kai
  PowerOn
  Enlight Corporation
  dir.yahoo Enclosures Manufacturers
  procase
  YY Computer
  Psi
  IN WIN
  Amtrade
  American Suntek
  Addtronics
  A-Top Technology, Inc
  Nikao
  Palo Alto Products
  Antec
  Lian-Li
  amaquest
  Koolance
  Quietpc
  PC Power & Cooling
  
  
  

  Hardware\Heat Sinks ALPHA
  Cooler Master
  AVC
  ekl
  GlobalWIN
  globefan
  RDJD
  Foxconn
  Spring Spread
  Sanyo Denki
  TITAN
  TaiSol
  ChipCoolers
  Orb a
  ElanVital
  
  
  

  Hardware\Info\Form Factor Platform Development Support
  SSI
  WTX
  
  
  

  Hardware\Info\Standards Fibre Channel Industry Association
  PCI SIG
  RAB
  serialata
  SPEC
  
  
  

  Hardware\Info\Storage RAID.edu
  
  
  

  Hardware\Info\Cours CS 252 - Graduate Computer Architecture
  
  
  

  Hardware\Info The PC Guide!
  Hardware Bible
  FullOn3D
  developer.intel.com
  HwB The Hardware Book
  United Overclockers
  Ars Technica
  Tech-Junkie
  HardwarePub
  Webopedia
  Illustrated Guide to the PC Hardware
  SysOpt
  2CPU
  Ace's Hardware
  Technical Support - RaidHelp v1.0 - Free RAID Technology Guide
  Computer Architecture
  OPENCORES.ORG
  TechFest
  MidWest Micro Support
  
  
  

  Hardware\Resalers GeekTek!
  Micro-Bytes
  ALCO
  ABC Micro
  2CoolTek
  Plycon Computers
  TCWO
  ABC Micro - Lprix
  Case Outlet
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  Hardware Freeboxen
  

>VIA Technologies VT 82C586 Apollo IDE

>VIA Technologies VT 82C686 Apollo Super ACPI

That doesn't sound promising... Here's the VIA page about your chipset.

It is a Via Apollo Pro Plus. So you are warned not to install it. Better luck next beta!

Actually, the VIA KT133 chipset for the Duron has had rave reviews.

__________________________________________________ ___

AMD Sledgehammer

SuSE Linux

VIA PC 266 chipset (64bit equiv.)

DDR SDRAM

Mobo for all of that

Overclocking tips from Tom's

SCSI controller and 4x45GB 10000RPM drives

A 3D supported LCD letterbox montor

THX surround sound

DVD burner

A DSL provider who actually delivers

100 lbs Kona Espresso beans, 500 lbs mixed Jelly Bellies (no apple, please) & a Thai delivery which stays open past 10 PM

Thanks!

Vote Naked 2000