Frequently Asked Questions

Ordering

When can I expect to RECEIVE MY ORDER?
If all of your items are marked in stock, the order is placed on a business day by 1:00PM (Pacific standard time), and you live in the Continental U.S., then, in most cases, your order will go out that day (otherwise your order should go out the next business day). All standard orders are sent via UPS Ground and take between 1 and 6 business days to arrive to their Continental U.S. destinations. Please refer to this map to see standard UPS Ground delivery times for your area.
How soon will my order ship out?
If you live in the Continental U.S., your items are in stock, and you place your order by 1:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time (4:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time) on a business day, your order should go out the same day. Case Packages take 1-2 business days to complete and Computer Systems typically take 5-10 business days.
What types of payment do you accept?
We accept VISA, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express. Please inquire about payment options for large quantity orders.
Does SilentPC offer a money back guarantee?
SilentPC offers a full money back guarantee on all quiet computer products for 30 days after the purchase date should they not work or meet your satisfaction. For full details please visit our Terms & Conditions
Can I change my order once I've submitted it?
Generally, yes, you can always call or e-mail us your order information if you want to add or remove a part before it ships out. If it is time sensitive, call to make sure we can make the change in time.
Why does my status say pending?
Pending just simply means that your order has not yet shipped. Once your order ships, you will receive a shipping confirmation e-mail containing your tracking number.
Do I have to be at home to receive my order?
It is always safer to be at home to receive your package, but most parts orders are usually left on your door step if you are not home. Computer systems will always require an adult signature and will require you to be at home.

Computer Systems

If I have already placed an order for a system and want to change something before it ships, can you accommodate my request?
Depending on what it is that you would like changed, we can usually delay a machine before it ships out, install new hardware or software, or change the layout of the machine. Special order items are subject to a restocking fee if we have already ordered the parts.
What is the service like after I order a computer?
Our service does not change after a system is purchased and shipped. We are here for you any time, with phone support, and helpful advice! In the event of hardware failure, we offer a standard one year warranty covering any parts or labor required to put your system back in perfect shape. Many of the parts in our quiet computer systems have longer warranties from the manufacturers. Even after the warranty period is up, we can often help you take advantage of these longer parts warranties. We are also here to help you to rebuild and upgrade your PC years later instead of having you just throw the old one away and buy a new PC altogether. We can give you advice, sell you the parts, or even have you ship us the PC and have us rebuild it for you.
What is RAID?
A raid array allows you to connect 2 or more drives into an array and makes them work together as a single drive.

Some common applications are:

Drive Mirroring (Raid 1), takes 2 identical drives and makes them work together as a single drive. The hard drives are exact copies of each other, so that if one fails you have a full backup. For example two 1TB drives would show up as one 1TB drive.

and

Drive Striping (Raid 0), takes 2 or more drives and makes them work together as a single faster, large drive. This splits the workload of the hard drive across multiple physical drives, and speeds up Hard Disk access. If either drive dies you will lose all of the data.

What is a heatpipe and how does a fanless PC cool itself?
A heatpipe is a copper or aluminum pipe that is used to transfer heat from the hotter components in a PC to a large heatsink of some kind to help dissipate heat. In Fanless PCs the CPU and video cards are heat-piped to the sides of the case because the entire case is made of thick machined aluminum; this allows the heat to dissipate from the sides of the case like a giant heatsink allowing the components to stay cool.
Can I order a custom part in my system?
Absolutely, if you already have a part and want to send it in to us to install and test with the machine, or if there is a part that you want us to special order in, we can always use parts that we don't offer by default, just let us know.
How much does shipping cost on a computer?
If the computer is being shipped to an address in the continental U.S, then UPS ground shipping is free. International shipments are usually quoted before your system ships out.
What is a burn-in test?
A typical burn-in test usually consists of testing all of the hard drives, while testing the PSU, CPU, and RAM at 100% load using the Passmark testing suite. The video card is tested using Furmark at 100% load rather than using other testing software because it will test it the hardest. All of the components are tested for at least 24 to 48 hours.
What is overclocking and does SilentPC support it?
Overclocking is when someone increases the voltages and frequency settings of the CPU, RAM, and video cards to increase performance.SilentPC does not support overclocking as it can lead to system crashes, instability, and a shortened lifespan of the parts and machine as a whole. Quiet components tend to run hotter than standard components as it is, and when you overclock a quiet machine heat problems will definitely come into play.
What is SLI or Crossfire?
SLI and Crossfire can only be used with multiple video cards to increase the video performance by combing the resources multiple cards. Nvidia video cards use SLI and AMD video cards use Crossfire technology to accomplish this.
Why aren't your computers offered in stores?
All of our PCs are custom built to order. Each Quiet PC is hand assembled with special care to your custom specifications and thoroughly tested before we ship them out. We don't mass produce computers like HP or Dell, so we don't sell a cookie cutter PC to your local Best Buy like they do. We prefer quality over quantity.
Why does it take 5 to 10 business days for my computer to be shipped out?
Our machines are always built by professionals and not rushed into production. We will never assume that your machine is 100% ready to go until we have thoroughly tested it and made sure that it meets our expectations before it leaves the facility.
If I select rush processing, are some tests skipped to meet the deadline?
No, rush processing just means that your machine is rushed to the head of the line to be built and possibly that we expedite the ordering of special order parts in to us. We will always fully test every machine and we do not cut corners.
What comes with my new computer?
We send everything that comes with the parts we order. All software and hardware accessories are included. We also send the operating system disk, extra cables and power cords, and extra screws along with a copy of your final invoice.
I can't find my Windows key?
The windows product key is always going to be somewhere on the computer case itself. It's usually on the top corner of the right side panel if you're looking at the machine from the front. Sometimes they are placed on the back of certain machines due to case orientation.

Parts

What are recertified products?
Recertified products are products that have been sent back for repair to the original manufacturer. These products have since been repaired and the "Recertified" title is the manufacturers promise that the product is going to work and function as specified. We never use any recertified parts in our PCs. Despite the manufactures guarantee on recertified products.
Are my parts tested before they ship?
We do not open or tamper with any products that you order. We only test parts that are ordered in a computer system.
What is case insulation and what is its purpose?
Case insulation is a special type of foam that is used in computer cases to reduce vibration noises that can come from hard drives and power supplies.
Can I just use case insulation?
Most of the time the answer is no. Case insulation is designed to reduce the vibration noise that comes from hard drives and power supplies. It is not used to make stock cooling parts like CPU fans and case fans any quieter.
What is thermal paste?
Thermal paste is a thick paste that is applied to the base of a CPU cooler. Its only purpose is to transfer heat from the CPU to the cooler.
Which fan controller is right for me?
Generally, fan controllers are used by people who like to monitor or adjust the speed of their fans. If you already have quiet case fans inside your computer then there is usually little need to get a fan controller to adjust fan speed. The motherboard BIOS also has some settings to adjust fan speeds.

You can use a fan controller to lower the voltage of the case fan making the fan quieter. However, be aware that some stock fans are noisier even at lower voltages than the quiet fans we sell.

Also, if your computer is not designed specifically for the lower airflow of a Quiet PC it is possible to overheat and damage components by lowering the airflow. Many fan controllers are also used to monitor case temperatures. See our fan controller section for a full line of quality fan controllers.

What's the difference between OEM and Retail items?
OEM and Retail items are generally the same product. However the retail version of a product usually comes with extra accessories or extra software packages, whereas the OEM version will just come with the base product.
How can I rate the service or parts I received?
The best way that you can rate the service or parts you recieved is by going to ResellerRatings and writing a review on based on your experience with us. Please let us fix the problem or situation if you're unhappy with a service or part you received from us before you write a review. Your satisfaction is our #1 concern.
Do I need to purchase any thermal grease to use with your silent CPU coolers?
All of our silent CPU coolers come with their own thermal paste. If you would like to use thermal grease we recommend Arctic Silver 5 which drops your CPU temperature 3 to 10 degrees Celsius when compared to standard thermal compound. Be sure to clean the contact surface of the CPU and the cooler thoroughly prior to applying any thermal grease. We recommend using ArctiClean to clean your CPU and CPU cooler. (Stock CPU coolers and surplus coolers do not come with any thermal paste.)
Which parts should I replace first in order to eliminate computer noise?
We usually recommend first replacing the BIG THREE SOURCES of computer noise:
  1. The Power Supply
  2. The CPU Fan
  3. The Case Fan/s

These three parts are usually the noisiest components.

Four

Next, you can evaluate whether the spinning of your Hard Drive is too noisy for you or not. Many hard drives are made quieter nowadays. We recommend using an absolutely silent (no mechanical parts) SSD drive, for a totally silent experience. However, if the hard drive you own is too noisy, you can dampen the noise made by your hard drive using a Nexus Disktwin Hard Drive Dampener.

Five, Six

Another component to consider replacing in your computer is your video card fan. Replace that video card with a noisy fan with a fanless video card.

Finally

Finally, if you want to further reduce the noise of your computer, you can use sound insulation and dampening techniques. Keep in mind, however, that computer insulation can sometimes cause enough of a rise in computer case temperature to require the addition of a case fan.

Fan vibration isolators and noise dampening quiet computer feet are also great noise dampening touches which work well in unearthing every last source of noise in your quiet computer.

Do you have questions?

If you have any questions, don’t be afraid to ask. No problem is too big or too small. We are, at our very core, a custom PC builder. So, if you have a custom need, we can find the solution. All you need to do is ask our sales team. We will be glad to answer all your questions.

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