Antec P280 Case Review

1. Introduction2. Packaging3. Antec P280 Exterior4. Antec P280 Interior5. Testing Methodology and Performance6. Acoustic performance7. Closing thoughts8. View All Pages

We take the issue of noise very seriously at KitGuru and this is why we have built our test system to be as quiet as possible. We can eliminate secondary noise pollution in the test room and concentrate specifically on the individual components we are testing. It also brings us slightly closer to industry standards, such as DIN 45635.

Today to test the chassis we have taken it into our acoustics room and have set our Digital Sound Level Noise Decibel Meter Style 2 one meter away from the case.  This represents a real world situation and gives us an accurate reading of the noise level produced by the fans in the Antec P280 Super Mid Tower.

As this can be a little confusing for people, here are various dBa ratings in with real world situations to help describe the various levels.

KitGuru noise guide
10dBA – Normal Breathing/Rustling Leaves
20-25dBA – Whisper
30dBA – High Quality Computer fan
40dBA – A Bubbling Brook, or a Refrigerator
50dBA – Normal Conversation
60dBA – Laughter
70dBA – Vacuum Cleaner or Hairdryer
80dBA – City Traffic or a Garbage Disposal
90dBA – Motorcycle or Lawnmower
100dBA – MP3 player at maximum output
110dBA – Orchestra
120dBA – Front row rock concert/Jet Engine
130dBA – Threshold of Pain
140dBA – Military Jet takeoff/Gunshot (close range)
160dBA – Instant Perforation of eardrum

We are using a passively cooled HIS 5570 graphics card.

The P280 is a very quiet chassis registering below 30dBA in our acoustic testing.  There is no intake fan at the front which helps lower noise emissions, but the Antec branded ‘Quiet Computing Panels' really do seem to work.

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