What are the advantages of using a Silent PC?

By ·Categories: Tech Explained·Published On: May 18th, 2023·3.6 min read·

Silent PCs have become a staple in environments with sound limitations like recording studios, hospitals, and labs. But how do silent PCs work, and how are they used? Are all silent PCs fully silent? Keep reading to explore the ins and outs of silent computers.

Are silent PCs fully silent?

Silent PCs are computers that are specifically designed to produce little to no noise, making them ideal for environments where sound mitigation is key. A silent PC, or quiet PC, offers varying levels of noise reduction depending on how it’s constructed. While some are completely silent, others may only reduce the amount of noise the PC makes.

What makes a PC silent?

Silent PCs can vary in design depending on the application they’re built for, but generally, most fully-silent PCs use passive cooling over fanned cooling and have a solid-state design. Let’s dive into these technologies, how they work, and why they are important for maintaining a quiet environment.

Passive cooling

Silent PCs often have a fanless design rather than fanned cooling to prevent the system from overheating. This can help drastically with noise reduction since fans contribute to the overall amount of noise a computer makes. 

Fans are often a huge contributor to how loud a computer is. Along with producing noise while they spin, they can make loud grinding noises when they break or vibrate out of place. Dust buildup, another common problem with fanned PCs, can also cause issues with the fan, causing it to work harder and creating more noise in the process.

Not only does this add to the amount of noise a PC makes, but it can also cause the PC to overheat. This can lead to reduced performance, damage to the internal components, or even lost data. With fanless cooling, the noise level is reduced, and the PC is less vulnerable to overheating.

Solid-state design

Silent PCs often feature a solid-state design, meaning the PC has no moving parts. Many fully-silent PCs are built with SSDs (Solid State Drives) with no moving parts over HDDs (Hard Disk Drives) with moving parts to help control the amount of noise a computer makes. 

All those moving parts generate noise. You can read more about the features of SSDs and HDDs in our blog.

Want to learn more about fanless computers? Check out our whitepaper that explains the benefits of fanless computing and the 5 ways fanless computers can help your business.

A graphic with a download link to a whitepaper on fanless computing

Where are silent PCs used?

Silent PCs are used in a variety of settings that require or can benefit from a quiet environment. Settings like hospitals, labs, home offices, and recording studios are a few types of applications where quiet PCs can be beneficial. Recording studios, for example, often utilize silent PCs to help ensure the quality of audio recordings.

A computer for music production should ideally be fully silent. Most consumer-based PCs produce a humming sound while operating that can get louder if problems with the fan (such as a build up of dust) occur. Since microphones used in recording studios are very sensitive and can pick up on background noise easily, it’s important to help mitigate the noise in the environment as much as possible.

Even the noise from one PC running in the background can lower the quality of the audio significantly. With a quiet computer for audio recording, you are able to maintain a silent background without compromising the quality of the audio.

A photo of the Helix 401 from OnLogic

The Helix 401 from OnLogic offers powerful processing and silent operation.

How to choose the best silent PC

When looking for a silent PC, there are a few things to keep in mind. What are your sound level requirements? Are you looking for noise reduction or do you need a completely silent environment? With silent PCs, knowing your sound level requirements is essential in choosing the right solution for your application.

You’ll also need to consider the environment the computer will be operating in. OnLogic’s silent PCs work in a variety of environments for a wide range of applications. For healthcare applications, OnLogic offers silent medical PCs tested to 60601-1 standards.

Have any questions? Contact OnLogic and subscribe to our email communications today.

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About the Author: Claireice Mathai

Claireice Mathai is a content creator for OnLogic. When not writing, she enjoys playing guitar and gaming.