Xbox 360 is a good video game console in many ways, but the noise it produces is anything but bearable. Both fans and the optical drive are way too loud in the original setup, which is something we really hope they have fixed, at least to some degree, with the newer models. There are many ways to silence the Xbox 360 and one of the more extreme and warranty terminating ways is to move all components into a new case. Lian Li PC-XB01 is probably the most professional alternative and it opens up the possibility for some more extreme cooling solutions.
Jan Ström, previously working at Creative, is nowadays involved in the site TystPC.nu (translates into QuietPC) which work closely with cooling manufacturer Noctua. Janne, going by the handle 3DBlaster, decided to see if he once and for all could quiet down his Xbox 360 Elite (HDMI) by installing it inside Lian Li's new case and use two beefy Noctua NH-U9DO heatsinks for the sweating circuits. Even though the space may not be the most optimal for this solution, he has managed to make the best of it.
Janne has posted a project log that has now been posted at Silentxbox.com along with high resolution pictures that illustrates how to silence an Xbox 360, as long as you're not afraid of coughing up some extra doe and through the warranty out the door. The result?
"I don't have a RPM reader but I would estimate the fans are spinning at 1100-1200 RPM and with 2 fan we're talking sound levels of 13-15dB when gaming.
Or to explain the level of noise in another, way I can't if the Xbox is turned on if my laptop is in the same room." - translated from Swedish.
Read the entire log at silentxbox.com (in Swedish but you can always look at the pictures).
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Noctua and Lian Li used to silence Xbox 360
Noctua
