Fan-less silent PC

[Roland68]

You're talking about a custom-designed computer case. I'm talking about a standard case and a standard cooling system. Perhaps using special fans and a custom-designed case would reduce the noise level. But I'd rather move the server to another room than spend a not small money on more silence.

All the parts were readily available at any large computer store, even 20 years ago, including the cases. There's always been a good selection in this scene. Cases and parts have sometimes been modified and improved, but it was never a major effort.
Large retailers like Mindfactory have over 600 listed cases and just as many fans, so you can find something reasonably priced there.

But we simply have different experiences.
Maybe you can do something with my suggestions.

 

[dasdoing]

you can def do it with a standard case using the chimney effect. you need an efficient CPU, a big passive cooler. case just has to be open on top and bottom

 

[dualazmak]

Just for your possible interest, yesterday I successfully upgraded two of my completely silent fan-less spindle-less audio-(visual)-dedicated officially-unsupported Windows 11 Pro 24H2 PCs to Windows 11 Pro 25H2; for the details, please visit my posts #1, #27 and #29 on my dedicated thread for such Windows upgrade to 25H2.

Spoiler: Inside photos of two completely silent fan-less spindle-less audio(-visual)-dedicated PCs

Ref. post #931 on my project thread.

The OS (Windows 11 Pro) SSD is now (as of September 2025) 512 GB in both PCs.

 

[Soniclife]

We've built a few hundred such silent PCs and workstations in the past, as well as over 30 concept developments for customers and companies. These included silent servers and silent server cabinets for office environments, which, while not inaudible, were whisper-quiet.
I can tell you from experience that a concept with three fans isn't effective. Typically, such a concept only has one fan, 120-140mm, that draws air very slowly through the device. This assumes optimal placement of appropriate passive heat sinks.
If you take advantage of the stack effect, fans can be dispensed with altogether, despite the relatively high heat dissipation.
Depending on the performance, we also installed an emergency fan for the CPU, which, however, started up depending on the temperature and was also temperature-controlled.

A low speed doesn't say much about the speed. There are inexpensive independent controllers, including DIY ones, that can throttle the fans to 30 rpm or lower.
It's important to know what's causing the noise. Besides the factors listed above, airflow noise from metal sheets, casings, fan mounts and suspensions, heatsinks, grilles, intakes and exhausts, etc., is often much louder than the actual fans.
It all comes down to a lot of little things.

Do you have any recommend builds or vendors for this sort of PC? My experience is that fanless or quiet isn't hard to do, if you don't mind the CPU throttling when the cooling solution isn't up to the job. The only UK vendor of pre built systems seems to specialise is systems that cannot cope thermally with modern processors.

My 12 year old silent machine is due a replacement, if I can find something I like the look of.

 

[Roland68]

Do you have any recommend builds or vendors for this sort of PC? My experience is that fanless or quiet isn't hard to do, if you don't mind the CPU throttling when the cooling solution isn't up to the job. The only UK vendor of pre built systems seems to specialise is systems that cannot cope thermally with modern processors.

My 12 year old silent machine is due a replacement, if I can find something I like the look of.

First, I'd look into HP Z workstations. They're quiet to inaudible by default.
You can save a lot of money with HP Renew devices or leased returns. HP Renew devices usually come with a full warranty. You'll be hard-pressed to find anything better in terms of quality.

Back then, we developed our own concepts because many of the silent PCs on offer weren't truly silent, but were often four times as expensive as the material cost.
The question is whether you're willing to build a silent PC yourself.

If you don't need Windows, just get a Mac Mini or Studio. My Mac Mini M2 Pro sits at head height right next to my monitor, and I've only heard it once, when I was running multiple 3D renderings in parallel. VMware Fusion is now free for occasional Windows needs.

 

[dlaloum]

Do you have any recommend builds or vendors for this sort of PC? My experience is that fanless or quiet isn't hard to do, if you don't mind the CPU throttling when the cooling solution isn't up to the job. The only UK vendor of pre built systems seems to specialise is systems that cannot cope thermally with modern processors.

My 12 year old silent machine is due a replacement, if I can find something I like the look of.

Running an AM4 4750G (a little long in the tooth) with a quoted thermal of 65W.... I have actually measured up to circa 89W in my passively cooled heatsink case...

The case specs state that it can dissipate 95W, but I think that to be optimistic... however, I have definitely seen it dissipate 80W+

So in terms of throttling - the HDPlex case handles a 65W APU with headroom for turbo and the onboard GPU. - I have not noted any throttling.

If you opt for this type of case and choose to run a CPU + GPU, with the GPU cooled by the heatsink on one side and the CPU by the heatsink on the other side, you have a thermal budget of around 85W for each of them - you do need to pick efficient designs for best results.... so picking a 200W GPU is obviously going to result in throttling....

If you are DIY handy with heatpipes, it would be theoretically possible to run an APU to the heatsinks on BOTH sides raising the dissipation to perhaps 150W... I considered doing that, but was getting excellent results without it, so I never bothered.

It is somewhat easier doing a low noise setup in a traditional tower ATX case, with good tower CPU heatsinks - but passively cooled GPU's disappeared off the market a few years back... I used to use this method, with low noise pwm fans providing a level of contingency... but ultimately the heatsink case proved the better option once the APU's became sufficiently capable.

 

[majingotan]

I recently replaced my old laptop with a newer clearance laptop 2 generations old Intel (since the new ones come with the AI Core ultra series extra stuff I don't need aka 16th gen CPU). The new CPU handle HiRes music playback effortlessly, not even breaking the 1 GHz barrier

And yes, the fans are turned off completely almost all the time and when they do turn on while watching videos or heavily browsing, they're extremely quiet. I think even with a $400 laptop like mine, you can get blazing fast performance

 

[respice finem]

As far as hi-res playback is concerned, even my 10 years old secondary fanless PC, with soldered N3700 can do it. It can even play UHD video, but IIRC only 30 fps.

 

[Keith_W]

I may need to coin a "Keith's Iron Law" for PC's: high power, small form factor, and low fan noise. Choose two.

 

[respice finem]

Correct. But, if one really needs high power in a media PC, the already postulated solution with fans only running on-demand is viable IMHO.
Or, a client-server solution. A third possibility would be what I did with my work PC some time ago - it sits in a small room behind a solid wall. Needs longer than usual cables, but there are solutions for this (HDMI-optical, USB extenders). Works.

 

[dlaloum]

Correct. But, if one really needs high power in a media PC, the already postulated solution with fans only running on-demand is viable IMHO.
Or, a client-server solution. A third possibility would be what I did with my work PC some time ago - it sits in a small room behind a solid wall. Needs longer than usual cables, but there are solutions for this (HDMI-optical, USB extenders). Works.

I keep my relatively loud NAS (6 x 16TB, in dual parity array) in my attic, on its UPS, and I replaced its default Drive Array fans, with Arctic P9Max fans - which are NOT quiet, when running at their default 4500rpm, but can be PWM controlled to run silently... as it is they run almost 10degrees C lower than the default fans did...
They are relatively loud, but hidden away up there, that doesn't matter....

The NAS server also acts as a multi-purpose VM host for various purposes, but its primary purpose is as a backed up file share, and the main storage for all of my ripped DVD's, BlueRays, CD's, and online purchased music.

I have not found any current need for CPU power greater than provided by an AMD Ryzen 7 processor - if my son gets into first person shooters requiring high FPS... maybe we will build him a gaming rig - but so far, my silent heatsink case media pc is running all the PC games he is interested in without any trouble at all.

Can I get a more powerful CPU / GPU, yes of course I can, would it improve anything of import - no, and it would be a pain in terms of cooling a higher wattage CPU/GPU, and keeping it silent... so, I'm happy where I am right now.

Keeping an eye on developments in CPU's and GPU's.... perhaps in a couple of years I will update.... but right now it isn't needed. (and I've been running this rig since circa 2020.... so it is aging quite well...)

 

[dualazmak]

Even though I have been being, and still I am, very much satisfying and relying on my rather outdated but completely silent fan-less spindle-less robust-stable audio-(visual)-dedicated two PCs (ref. my posts on this thread #28, #453, #523), I also have been interested in upgrading my audio-(visual)-dedicated PCs to more powerful ones which should be still almost-completely silent; I mean they should never be "heard" in my listening room/environment even all the SP drivers are resting.

On this perspective, in my post #274, I shared "my preferred recipe" for powerful enough (for audio-visual) and almost, usually completely, silent DIY PC as of July 2023 as follows under the below spoiler cover.

Spoiler

My preferred "recipe" as of July 2023; ref. #274
M/B: Asrock Z790 PG-ITX/TB4
CPU Cooler: Noctura NH-P1 fanless
CPU: Intel Core i7-13700T [1.4GHz/16-core 24-thread/UHD770/TDP35W] Raptor Lake-S
PS: Fractal Design ION+2 Platinum 660W (FD-P-IA2P-660)（semi-fanless Zero RPM compatible）
PC Case: Fractal Design Define 7 Mini
Case Fan: only one on rear; low rpm 12 cm Noctura fan; such as NF-P12 redux-900, NF-A12x25 ULN (900 rpm)
OS SSD: 512 GB M.2 PCI-E Gen4
DATA SSD: 4TB M.2 PCI-E Gen4
Graphic Card: none

Now, just for your possible interest and reference, I would like to update my preferred "recipe", as of September 2025, as follows.

M/B: ASUS PRIME Z890M-PLUS WiFi-CSM (LGA1851) _Intel Z890 chipset
CPU: Intel Core Ultra 7 265T [1.5 GHz/20-core+Ecore 12/Xe LPG graphics/TDP 35W] Intel Core Ultra, ultra-low power-consumption
CPU-Cooler: Noctura NH-P1 fan-less
MEM: 64 GB DDR5-5600 major chips
PS: ASRock Steel Legend SL-650 [650 W / 80 PLUS Gold] semi-fan-less Zero RPM compatible
PC Case: Fractal Design Define 7 Mini
Front Case Fan: Noctura NF-A14 FLX
Rear Case Fan: Noctura NF-A12x25 ULN
OS & Application SSD: 1 TB M.2 PCI-E Gen4 (Windows 11 Pro 25H2)
DATA SSD: 4TB or 8 TB M.2 PCI-E Gen4
GPU: None _or _NVIDIA GeForce RTX5060Ti 16 GB [HDMIx1, DisplayPortx3] ultra-quiet semi-fan-less Zero RPM compatible

 

[CFP]

I am going to build a completely silent PC to act as a music server. These folks will build you one for not much more than parts cost. https://www.quietpc.com/sys-sidewinder-i17
Decided to build my own because it will be fun and I am temporarily grounded by leg surgery. Yes, NUC’s are cheaper but they have fans and I want to retire the standard desktop I have in another room running Roon server for a cool looking one sitting in my audio rack. Gonna stick a couple of big SSD’s in it and use it as a file server too. I’ll take some pictures when I’m done.

I’m using late 2012 Mac Minis with 1TB SSDs .. no fans, stable & quiet, optical out to the DACs… $250 or so used.

How I stream Qobuz & my ripped media..

 

[Roland68]

I’m using late 2012 Mac Minis with 1TB SSDs .. no fans, stable & quiet, optical out to the DACs… $250 or so used.

How I stream Qobuz & my ripped media..

This Mac Mini even has a high-performance fan built in, but it's mostly inaudible.
There are also software tools that allow you to permanently adjust, control, or disable these. The latter, however, is not a good idea.

All Mac Minis of this type have an optical input and output, from mid-2010 to late 2014.
The older Mac Minis had optical inputs and outputs starting in early 2006.

It's also important to note that these are combo ports for analog 3.5mm TRS and optical, so you can only use analog OR optical.

 

[Oldson]

i am still very tempted by the Mac Mini M4 base model, but a couple of things still hold me back.
have recently started to play a few games again and from the reviews i have watched on Youtube the base model copes well with some and not so well with others.
the reviewers usually say "if you are more than a casual gamer go for the Pro model!" (no chance im paying that extra)
but i do wonder whether upping the ram to 24Gb over the stock 16 would help, anyone know?
(maybe a used xbox would suit better, as i could sell it on if/when i get fed up with games again)

the other thing holding me back is all the rumours of M5 Mac Mini as early as next year (though some say it may not happen at all and be shelved until M6 appears)

anyway the M4 mini seems good value and i could stretch to 24Gb ram .

have considered the Chinese mini pc's but dont want the hassle of returning it to China under any future warranty claim.
i know the Mac Mini is made in China, and i have no issue with that , but warranty work is dealt with locally.

 

[Keith_W]

 

[Roland68]

i am still very tempted by the Mac Mini M4 base model, but a couple of things still hold me back.
have recently started to play a few games again and from the reviews i have watched on Youtube the base model copes well with some and not so well with others.
the reviewers usually say "if you are more than a casual gamer go for the Pro model!" (no chance im paying that extra)
but i do wonder whether upping the ram to 24Gb over the stock 16 would help, anyone know?
(maybe a used xbox would suit better, as i could sell it on if/when i get fed up with games again)

the other thing holding me back is all the rumours of M5 Mac Mini as early as next year (though some say it may not happen at all and be shelved until M6 appears)

anyway the M4 mini seems good value and i could stretch to 24Gb ram .

have considered the Chinese mini pc's but dont want the hassle of returning it to China under any future warranty claim.
i know the Mac Mini is made in China, and i have no issue with that , but warranty work is dealt with locally.

Why not get a refurbished M4 Pro? It saves money and offers significantly more performance.
Refurbished retailers often even offer a full three-year warranty, which is more than with a new device.

Apple's quality standards and controls are so high, however, that it wouldn't matter where the devices are manufactured.

 

[Oldson]

Why not get a refurbished M4 Pro? It saves money and offers significantly more performance.
Refurbished retailers often even offer a full three-year warranty, which is more than with a new device.

Apple's quality standards and controls are so high, however, that it wouldn't matter where the devices are manufactured.

had not considered that as i thought they would still be too expensive.
will take a look
are you referring to "macbook" or "mini"

 

[Chr1]

Just to mention that one of the benefits of fanless PCs is actually their reliability. There's a lot less to go wrong with no moving parts. I currently have five. Four from Beelink and one from Minix. I have never had a single problem. Not to say that the Mac Mini is not a good option, but you can generally get a higher spec machine at the same price point with a MiniPC.

 

[Roland68]

had not considered that as i thought they would still be too expensive.
will take a look
are you referring to "macbook" or "mini"

That doesn't matter.
These devices are often less than a year old and usually come from returns, from companies, company liquidations, returns from retailers, incorrect purchases, etc., but of course also from users who have purchased a new device.
The devices are also thoroughly tested, so the probability of failure is even lower than with new devices.
My Mac Mini M2 Pro was even brand new with a full Apple warranty, but that was also just luck, of course. It was a little over €400 less than new.