| I have a relatively quiet, fan-cooled i-opener with NO drilling or cutting either the fan, the metal RF shield, or the io's plastic case. What was my solution? I went down to Ratshack, er Radio Shack, and purchased a package of "Self-Sticking Cushion Feet" (Radio Shack part number 64-2346). I used four of the puppies, sticking them to the top of the fan (after you mount it of course) at the four corners, taking care not to obstruct the fan flow. The self-sticking cushions actually fit just right on the corners. This literally forces space in between the fan and the metal RF shield, but not with so much force that you're damaging the fan, CPU, or motherboard. The space is just enough to quiet the fan down to what you would expect on any desktop computer; in fact, it's just a bit quieter than my regular desktop computer. Reattaching the metal grill should be done with care; you have to push it just a bit to get it in position for reassembly with the regular IO screws. That's about it! The back of my unit looks perfect, with no messy cutting, etc.~! (If you know what to look for, you'll notice a slight bowing-out of the case right where the fan is, but that would be missed if you weren't inspecting carefully.) Anyway, I love my solution best of any I've considered so far. The cost is $1.19 for a package of 12.
Randy in Knoxvegas, er, Knoxville, TN | |
