Reducing Acoustical Noise in Personal Workstations by Increasing Cooling Efficiency

Overview

Personal workstations have provided users with substantial increases in processing power over the past decade. Increases in memory size, increased graphics capability and hard drive capacity, and much higher processor performance have all contributed to creating much more powerful desktop and deskside systems. However, the beneficial increases in capabilities have also increased power requirements, with a corresponding increase in generated heat. Hewlett-Packard places great emphasis on employing the latest technology in personal workstations, and noise reduction is no exception. HP employs innovative technology to reduce noise levels in its high-end xw9400 workstations, ensuring high levels of performance while still maintaining low acoustic noise emissions. This paper will examine this technology and discuss the acoustical benefits of a quieter and more efficient cooling system.