New Slade is surprisingly loud

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I fired up my third Digial Storm computer a few days ago; a more or less stock i7 3930 based "Slade". <Insert standard praise for Digital Storm's products and support here> .
The stock configuation included Stage 2 cooling aka a "Vortex" CPU cooler. This sucker is loud, much louder than the machine described in signature file below. At least it's loud when the top panel is removed to expose the radiator and its two fans. Putting the case's top panel in makes the computer much quieter but kind of defeats the purpose of having those fans running. 
So, two questions.... First, are Slade owners running their machines with or without the top panel? I'm assuming that with the radiator installed, the panel has to be off. Second, is there some program to control the CPU cooler fan speed and cut the RPMs when the CPU isn't working hard, which is, of course, most of the time.

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Bill the Cat Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS Veteran Forum Bitch! Joined: 27 Aug 2007 Online Status: Offline Posts: 1150	Quote Reply Topic: New Slade is surprisingly loud Posted: 07 Nov 2012 at 6:18pm
	I fired up my third Digial Storm computer a few days ago; a more or less stock i7 3930 based "Slade". <Insert standard praise for Digital Storm's products and support here> . The stock configuation included Stage 2 cooling aka a "Vortex" CPU cooler. This sucker is loud, much louder than the machine described in signature file below. At least it's loud when the top panel is removed to expose the radiator and its two fans. Putting the case's top panel in makes the computer much quieter but kind of defeats the purpose of having those fans running. So, two questions.... First, are Slade owners running their machines with or without the top panel? I'm assuming that with the radiator installed, the panel has to be off. Second, is there some program to control the CPU cooler fan speed and cut the RPMs when the CPU isn't working hard, which is, of course, most of the time.
	3.6 GHz E6850, 4 GB RAM, GTS 250, TJ9, Win 7 64-bit 4.4 GHz i7 3930K, 16 GB RAM, GTX 670, 550D, Win 7 64-bit

bprat22 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS ELITE DigitalStorm East -- (Unofficially!) Joined: 08 Jun 2011 Online Status: Offline Posts: 20391	Quote Reply Posted: 08 Nov 2012 at 2:50am
	Hi Bill the Cat. The top panel has to be off while running or you will overheat your i7-3930 chip. There are two versions of the Vortex240, with and without built in fan control. Pop the side cover and see if the pump mounted to the cpu has a three speed button on it. If it does its a Corsair H100 cooler and the button is adjusted by pushing the button and you'll see the led shift. If no adjustment you can adjust the speed in Bios. DEL on boot gets you into Bios. Your mobo manual will be alot of help. You can download Speedfan and use that but you might have to go into Bios and set fans from PWM control, if fans have a 4 pin plug, to Manual setting. If fans have a 3 pin plug to mobo header than just adjust I believe. Not sure as some get it to work and others have trouble. Your mobo manual again is needed just to make sure. If you do adjust the speed make sure you check cpu temps under extended load with HWMonitor. Good luck. Edited by bprat22 - 08 Nov 2012 at 7:01am

Bill the Cat Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS Veteran Forum Bitch! Joined: 27 Aug 2007 Online Status: Offline Posts: 1150	Quote Reply Posted: 08 Nov 2012 at 9:47am
	There's no switch or LEDs that I can see.... I guess I should have done more homework. The Slade is shown as being the quietest Black Ops model by a wide margin. I assumed that a standard configuration offered by Digital Storm and promoted as being very quiet actually would be, you know, quiet. The machine is beautiful otherwise. I don't blame Digital Storm, but I am disappointed. As it stands, I could not recommend a Slade with liquid cooling to anyone expecting to use it in a home or office environment.
	3.6 GHz E6850, 4 GB RAM, GTS 250, TJ9, Win 7 64-bit 4.4 GHz i7 3930K, 16 GB RAM, GTX 670, 550D, Win 7 64-bit

bprat22 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS ELITE DigitalStorm East -- (Unofficially!) Joined: 08 Jun 2011 Online Status: Offline Posts: 20391	Quote Reply Posted: 08 Nov 2012 at 10:04am
	Try the fan adjust in Bios. DS might have the fans on max speed for cooling and a lower setting might do it. If you can, call DS and they will happily try to get things a bit quieter. They will walk you through settings. Yep, the top cover off is necesary for the Vortex 240mm cooler. The air coolers and the Vortex 120mm would've left the cover on with the air exhausting out the back but stage 1 oc would've been necessary I believe which is really not a big deal. The advantage of the Vortex 240 is the added case airflow but noise is increased. Give DS a call if you don't want to try Bios . Good Luck.

Bill the Cat Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS Veteran Forum Bitch! Joined: 27 Aug 2007 Online Status: Offline Posts: 1150	Quote Reply Posted: 17 Nov 2012 at 8:11am
	Apparently, people aren't particularly interested in this issue, but just for the record DS did come up with an acceptable solution. . The problem is that the Vortex 240 (aka Stage 2 cooling) is *insanely* loud when the fans are running at 100%. This flaw is made worse by the fact that, as the Slade is shipped, there is no way to control the fan speed. The good news (sort of) is that the fans don't need to run at full speed to keep even an i7 3930 cool in real world operation. DS sent me a set of fan power lead extensions that include a resister to reduce the power to the fans. This, of course, slows them down, reducing the noise to acceptable levels. So now the only problem is that if I ever need more CPU cooling, I'll have to open up the case and remove the extensions; a messy procedure once the computer is in its final location. . Apparently, most motherboards and BIOSs allow you to control fan speeds in software. I don't understand why a high end builder like DS doesn't take advantage of this by using fans with 4 wire power leads. It seems to me that DS should fix this design flaw in the Slade and probably in their other systems as well. How much could it add to the cost of a system? . Having said all that, I'm still satisfied with ultimate outcome. Nobody, including DS, does everything right the first time. The thing that makes DS special is the effort they make to correct problems when they do occur. I just wish it hadn't been a issue in the first place.
	3.6 GHz E6850, 4 GB RAM, GTS 250, TJ9, Win 7 64-bit 4.4 GHz i7 3930K, 16 GB RAM, GTX 670, 550D, Win 7 64-bit

bprat22 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS ELITE DigitalStorm East -- (Unofficially!) Joined: 08 Jun 2011 Online Status: Offline Posts: 20391	Quote Reply Posted: 17 Nov 2012 at 10:13am
	Hi Bill the Cat... Actually I was interested in the issue and was hoping that mobo could control, through voltage adjust, a 3 pin fan header. I guess not. Just another reason we recommend the air coolers if at all possible, with the Noctua D14 being quiet as-is and the Hyper 212 I believe coming with a 4 pin fan for PWM control through the mobo. This statement is more to help others reading this who might be wondering which way to go. Congrats on getting to a satisfactory place with the noise. DS does do whatever it can to help out. Thanks for the feedback. It might help others.

baldy0326 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 13 Nov 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 78	Quote Reply Posted: 18 Nov 2012 at 4:40pm
	Hi Bill the Cat, You made an excellent honest review. I wish there were more no BS posts ike you have there. I say this because no company is perfect. I just wish the people who have problems let everyone in the forums know what they are and how it was dealt with and what the result was.

Asangard Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS Veteran Joined: 21 Aug 2009 Online Status: Offline Posts: 2209	Quote Reply Posted: 18 Nov 2012 at 4:46pm
	Hi baldy0325, You are right no company is perfect. What sets DS apart from others is when there is a problem they will do what ever they can to take care of the problem. Customer service is a top priority for DS. If you hang around these forums you will find this to be true.
	All evil comes from within, Not from Without, Therefore, the 1st step on the Holy Warrior path, Is to recognize thyself as thy 1st enemy.

Alex Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Admin Group Digital Storm Supervisor Joined: 04 Jun 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 16314	Quote Reply Posted: 18 Nov 2012 at 6:49pm
	@Bill the Cat, Thank you for your feedback. I'm glad our team was able to help you and take care of your needs, but, the best solution is for us to learn from these situations and improve our customer builds. I will share your feedback with the team and we'll make some internal changes shortly. Thanks again also for being a repeat customer, we appreciate it!


Bill the Cat Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS Veteran Forum Bitch! Joined: 27 Aug 2007 Online Status: Offline Posts: 1150	Quote Reply Posted: 18 Nov 2012 at 11:13pm
	I've been re-reading the Sabertooth motherboard user guide, and I'm not sure I know what I'm talking about any more. Maybe you can control the fans from the BIOS. Also, I'm not sure now where I got the idea that 4 wire fans are controlable and 3 wire fans are not. This will require some experments. My posts on this topic may turn out to be "BS" after all. Stay tuned. . UPDATE: Well, I still don't know the significance of 3-wire vs. 4-wire fan leads. The Sabertooth connectors have 4 active pins . The fan leads have only 3 wires. What is clear is that the BIOS thinks it knows what the fan speeds are and has options to give you some control over (most of?) those speeds. I'm almost positive that those options have no effect on the Slade's Stage 2 Vortex cooler fans. So, I'm sticking with my original story until someone wiser reveals the truth. Edited by Bill the Cat - 19 Nov 2012 at 10:56am
	3.6 GHz E6850, 4 GB RAM, GTS 250, TJ9, Win 7 64-bit 4.4 GHz i7 3930K, 16 GB RAM, GTX 670, 550D, Win 7 64-bit

bprat22 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS ELITE DigitalStorm East -- (Unofficially!) Joined: 08 Jun 2011 Online Status: Offline Posts: 20391	Quote Reply Posted: 19 Nov 2012 at 11:26am
	All fans have the common(ground) and 12V leads. The three pin fan has a 3rd sense wire where the speed of the fan can be monitored and reported by the mobo. . The fourth wire is PWM, pulse width modulation, where the voltage stays the same, 12v, but is pulsed off and on rapidly to change speed. For a mobo to control a 3 pin fan it would need to control the actual voltage to the fan from say 6v to 12v and the speed accordingly. The Sabertooth, I'm assuming, maybe can't control and vary the voltage so 3 pin doesn't regulate but can regulate a PWM fan through PWM, pulsing the 12v on and off. PWM is a 4 pin connector. A fan control will vary a 3 pin fan by varying the voltage itself. 3 pin fans can be used in 4 pin headers but in this case won't be adjustable. Edited by bprat22 - 19 Nov 2012 at 11:30am

Alex Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Admin Group Digital Storm Supervisor Joined: 04 Jun 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 16314	Quote Reply Posted: 19 Nov 2012 at 11:33am
	If you still can't get the system to a noise level of your liking, let our team know so we may help you with a solution.


Bill the Cat Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS Veteran Forum Bitch! Joined: 27 Aug 2007 Online Status: Offline Posts: 1150	Quote Reply Posted: 19 Nov 2012 at 5:01pm
	@bprat22: Thanks for spelling it out. Now I finally get what's going on. . @Alex: I'm a little disappointed in the Slade's noise level, only because I had such high expectaions, raised by the product description and my own misconceptions of liquid cooling. With the resister leads, the noise level is not objectionable. It's about the same as my original air cooled DS machine. My only issue now is that it would be nice if such beautifully built systems included dynamic fan speed. It's not "cool" to be running the fans at the same speed regardles of the CPU temperature. Edited by Bill the Cat - 19 Nov 2012 at 5:02pm
	3.6 GHz E6850, 4 GB RAM, GTS 250, TJ9, Win 7 64-bit 4.4 GHz i7 3930K, 16 GB RAM, GTX 670, 550D, Win 7 64-bit

Alex Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Admin Group Digital Storm Supervisor Joined: 04 Jun 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 16314	Quote Reply Posted: 19 Nov 2012 at 5:06pm
	Sure, I agree, thank you for sharing your feedback, a majority of the cotent written up for the systems is based on the features of the chassis, as the Slade comes with noise reduction features such as sealable vents and noise dampening material built-in. We'll find a solution internally to ensure builds like the Slade are always quiet per customer orders.


John1017 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 21 Oct 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 59	Quote Reply Posted: 25 Feb 2013 at 10:50pm
	Hey Bill, It has been a few months now since we both recieved our slades and I have been loving it. However I think I've been living with a loud Stage 2 Vortex CPU cooler. I was wondering if you have found any way to fix that? I have tried thermal radar, and other cpu fan controller programs but it doesnt seem to change the speed or sound of the cooler... I was able to slow down the motherboards little fan, but as far as I can tell all the fans are almost silent, except for the big CPU fan, if I can slow down that, I think I would have a silent machine. Any thought? Thanks
	Digital Storm Slade Intel i7-3770K 3.5 GHz CORSAIR Vengeance LP 16GB SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 7950 OC 3GB 384-bit ASUS SABERTOOTH Z77 Corsair Neutron Series GTX CSSD-N240GBGTX

John1017 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 21 Oct 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 59	Quote Reply Posted: 25 Feb 2013 at 11:18pm
	I think I figured it out in Thermal Radar In thermal radar what I thought was the CPU fan is actually labeled Chassis Fan 3, which is the big fan that vents air out the back through the radiator. Even at 0% it still rotates and makes some noise, but it is going noticeably slower, and quieter Just so people know using Asus thermal radar I have it set to Chassis Fan 3 (CPU Cooler Big Fan) 0-40 degrees 40% 40-60 degrees 70% Chassis Fan 1 and 4 ( the two in the front of the case) Set to Standard Assist Fan 1 and 2 ( The two little fans on the sabertooth motherboard) set to standard Not silent but still better, thanks, plus I'm worried about dust so I can live with some fan noise. ( I've had the computer for a little over three months and looked inside and there are some dusty corners) CPU Idling at 26c so I think temp is good.
	Digital Storm Slade Intel i7-3770K 3.5 GHz CORSAIR Vengeance LP 16GB SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 7950 OC 3GB 384-bit ASUS SABERTOOTH Z77 Corsair Neutron Series GTX CSSD-N240GBGTX

New Slade is surprisingly loud

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