Silverstone Accessories Roundup (Q4 2010)

Category: Accessories

Created on Tuesday, 05 October 2010 21:35

Written by Steve

Noise absorbing foam pad (SST-SF01) [$19.99CDN]

When you're building a PC for ultimate silence you can't skip a beat when it comes to modifying everything that can possibly create, amplify or reflect sound. It's easy enough to take care of basic components, fans, coolers, etc. but one area that's often overlooked is the case design itself. A computer case has a lot of large flat steel or aluminum surfaces which are great for reflecting sound. If you have an aluminum case, the thin metal of these panels will further add to just how much noise you hear outside the case. To battle this obstacle, all these surfaces need to be lined with something that will absorb and deaden the sound - such as foam.

The SF01 kit includes two large stick-on foam sheets made of fairly thin open-cell EPDM foam . Each sheet is only 4mm thick - making it easy to fit into tight corners and crammed PC cases. This is almost half as thick as the Nexus DampTek noise absorbing material I'm currently using in my silent rig.

You'll need to cut the foam pads into custom panels that will fit your PC - so have some scissors ready during your installation.

For some easy out-of-case testing, I'm going to use a same size piece of the SF01 against the Nexus DampTek to compare the noise reduction of a single fan when at a predetermined distance of around half a foot from the material. Comparison wise, I actually had a difficult time distinguishing any major difference between the two. The added thickness of the Damptek did make it a little more effective on louder fans, but for nearly $60 more than the SF01, it's hard to say if that's a cost I'm willing to put on an added layer of noise reduction in my case! For around $19.99 per pack, I'd have no problem covering the inside of my case from top to bottom with the SF01 - it's really a great buy at that price.