fan noise in new g5's
I can't tell from standing in the apple store (due to all the loud music) how much quieter the fan noise is in the g5 towers compared to previous g4 models. Can anyone shed some light on this? I know the fans speed up during intensive use, but what about ordinary word processing, web surfing, etc...
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That is unless you boot in target disk mode, use the hardware test CD, play a 3D game, or open the side. 8)
For now, it seems like the newer units (there is a certain range of serial numbers that have the faulty PSUs I guess) are much better in this regard. There are however, some noises that all G5 owners seem to experience, particularly under Panther. Expose for example, will cause a high-pitched chirp or squeak when activated on most people's machines. This too is supposedly caused by the PSU (even the less troublesome models).
Speaking for myself, I haven't had any major noise problems. In fact, I would say the machine is so quiet that I end up listening to my hard drive "gurgle" a lot more than I used to, because the drive itself makes more noise than the fans / computer.
Originally posted by MrSparkle
I have a MDD G4 at work and a G5 at home. The G5 is MUCH more quiet. The difference is huge. The only time the G5 is "Loud" is when you put it in firewire target disk mode. Try it. It's fun. All 9 fans will go on full blast.
I have the MDD G4 Dual 1.25 at home. Is there any way to quiet that sucker down?
And, yes, the G5 is quieter than the previous G4 model ... by a little or a lot depending on if you're running processor/hardware-heavy apps.
There has to be some way to get the Windtunnel to quiet down ... doesn't there?
Originally posted by rustedborg
I have the MDD G4 Dual 1.25 at home. Is there any way to quiet that sucker down?
And, yes, the G5 is quieter than the previous G4 model ... by a little or a lot depending on if you're running processor/hardware-heavy apps.
There has to be some way to get the Windtunnel to quiet down ... doesn't there?
I'm sure you've seen the discussion about replacing the power supply/ fan in the MDD's. I did that and it reduced the screaming sound from about the sound you hear while sitting on the wing of a jet liner to the sound you hear inside at aisle 20 on a jet liner. I'm looking to get the sound level down to "near Cube levels." A dream, I know, but such a beautiful one. Do the new g5's warrant selling my current ibook and g4 MDD dual 867? Or should I suffer a year of further hearing loss and get something next generation g5 later...
www.endpcnoise.com
very nice supplier of quiet parts fans psu's etc etc
well worth it & great service
I think it has to do with the GPU since when ever windows are moved around, the dock magnification effect or draging icons around the desktop.
Again, the noise is hardly noticable, but because the G5 is actually so quiet, I can hear it...
Anyway a buddy has a stock dual 2GHz, and his Xbox drowns it out completely, if that helps at all.
translation: it's damn quiet.
Originally posted by Clayton Magnet
Anyway a buddy has a stock dual 2GHz, and his Xbox drowns it out completely, if that helps at all.
Translation: Xbox sucks!
Originally posted by MrSparkle
I have a MDD G4 at work and a G5 at home. The G5 is MUCH more quiet. The difference is huge. The only time the G5 is "Loud" is when you put it in firewire target disk mode. Try it. It's fun. All 9 fans will go on full blast.
Yup. Tried that once, kind of scarry. Sounds like its going to blow.
As to answer the original question, I say that there is no simple answer. If the computer is being used it will make a fair amount of noise, but if your just surfing the web than it is among the quitest computers I've every had. The superdrive is a bit load when ripping etc. I often run SETI while doing stuff and that constant load results in a constant low fan noise that is acceptable but loader than my desktop G3 for instance.
As I posted in my initial impression of my dualie, I think the sounds from this computer are very organic. When you do something the fans and other parts of the computer let you know they are working. Think of it as an audio version of a CPU monitor. Overall the sound levels are very low and acceptable, but don't get the idea that these machine are silent. They are only silent when they are not doing anything.