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Input Needed: Silent Ubuntu Desktop + Media Server

post #1 of 2
11/3/12 at 7:34pm
Thread Starter 
This is very preliminary and I have read a lot of good info from this forum, so I'm hoping to get some feedback.

I want a reasonably quiet box that plays well with linux. No games, just terminals, a few light virtual machines and lotsa tabs in Chrome. The machine will also download from Usenet and serve media to my XBMC boxes.

MB: ASUS F2A55-M LE FM2 AMD A55
CPU: AMD A10-5700 APU 3.4 FM 65W Quad-Core (Trinity)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4
SSD: 90gb Kingston HyperX 3K
HDD: 2TB Seagate Green ST2000DL003
PSU: SeaSonic X series SS-400FL (Fanless)
RAM: Samsung 4GB DDR3 1600 x 4
GPU: ?

$650 shipped from NewEgg (already have SSD)

Should I consider a CPU cooler? Stock Trinity cooler?

I am open to suggestions on everything, including mb/cpu.

I need to drive 1 27" IPS, will the APU (Radeon HD 7660D) + dvi out on F2A55 work for this without adding a video card?

Do I need additional fans or am I good to go?

Thanks.
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post #2 of 2
11/5/12 at 7:48am
You have one of those 2560x1440 27" monitors? You will want to do your research on that one. I'm not sure on the AMD side, but Intel's socket 1155 platform supports such resolutions using integrated graphics, but AFAIK only using the DisplayPort output.

My other suggestions are to go smaller with the case, as it will end up being just one big empty box. Take a look at the Fractal Design Define Mini.

For quiet, stock Intel coolers seem a bit quieter than stock AMD coolers. Note that ALL coolers (even aftermarket) can be noisy if the fan is running at full speed. Thus, you really need to set a quiet fan profile in BIOS. The stock coolers use PWM fans (4-pin to the motherboard). If you decide to go aftermarket, make sure whichever one you get also uses a PWM fan. For instance the Cooler Master Hyper 212+ uses one, but the Corsair A50 does not.

The other thing regarding "quiet" is to understand and accept the fact that CPUs (and GPUs) can run hotter than you think they can. It is perfectly normal for stock clocked CPUs and GPUs to run at 70-80ºC under loads. Once you accept that, you can lower the fan speeds appropriately.
Main home rig
(13 items)
  		  
CPUMotherboardGraphicsRAM
Core i7-2600K Asus P8P67 Pro GeForce GTX 560 Ti 8GB DDR3 
Hard DriveOptical DriveOSMonitor
Intel 120, TorqX 256, two Hitachi 3TB Samsung DVDRW Windows 7 Home Premium x64 Samsung 305T Plus, Dell 2005FPW 
KeyboardPowerCaseMouse
abs mechanical keyswitch BFG EX-1000 Lian Li PC-8FIR Logitech MX518 
Mouse Pad
Everglide Giganta with a teflon C4 cover 
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Main home rig
(13 items)
  		  
CPUMotherboardGraphicsRAM
Core i7-2600K Asus P8P67 Pro GeForce GTX 560 Ti 8GB DDR3 
Hard DriveOptical DriveOSMonitor
Intel 120, TorqX 256, two Hitachi 3TB Samsung DVDRW Windows 7 Home Premium x64 Samsung 305T Plus, Dell 2005FPW 
KeyboardPowerCaseMouse
abs mechanical keyswitch BFG EX-1000 Lian Li PC-8FIR Logitech MX518 
Mouse Pad
Everglide Giganta with a teflon C4 cover 
View all
  hide details  
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