PS2 fan noise, make it stop.

February 21, 2006 5:52 PM

Is there any way to reduce the noise from my PS2's fan without risking it overheating?

I finally have the opportunity to use the Linux kit on my PS2. It's no longer my main DVD player and I've got a cool little wireless network bridge that lets me put it pretty much anywhere in the house, but I still can't get it far enough away from my bed so that the fan noise doesn't keep me (or someone else) awake. It's such an annoying little whine. Does anyone know of any modifications, replacement fans or external baffles that can be installed in order to shut the damn thing up?

It's PAL and I think it's a fairly early version.

posted by krisjohn to computers & internet (3 comments total)

Maybe build an enclosure of some kind for it.
posted by JekPorkins at 6:13 PM on February 21, 2006

I've modified my PS2 for quietness. I have a fairly early model and found the original fan extremely annoying. At first, I disconnected the original fan. The PS2 will shut itself off after running for a few minutes fanless. Perhaps opening the box and attatching a large heatsink would allow for completely fanless operation, but that wasn't really an option for me as I wanted to keep my PS2 looking mostly stock.

I ended up removing the original fan and cutting out the plastic grill and putting an 80mm Panaflo fan in the spot with some cardboard ducting to get it to fit and offset it from the back of the PS2 to reduce air turbulence. For power, I soldered directly to the pins that go between the power supply and the motherboard, as they're very robust. The downside is that I have to turn the PS2 off via the switch on the back, rather than the front power button if I want to turn off the fan. The Panaflo runs at 12V, which is audible in a quiet room but much quieter and at a much more comfortable frequency compared to the stock fan. I could have ran it off of 5V, which would have been silent, but 12V provides better cooling and is quiet enough for me. I did run it at 5V for several weeks and it seemed to cool well enough, though.

Here's a picture of what I did -- it's definitely not a professional-looking job, but it's much quieter.

I have also heard that the later versions of the large PS2s were quieter, but I haven't been able to analyze one in a silent environment.
posted by zsazsa at 7:58 PM on February 21, 2006

Oh, and it is attached with clear packing tape, colored black with a Sharpie for ultra-stealthiness.
posted by zsazsa at 8:02 PM on February 21, 2006