SilverStone PP02 Acoustic Cover

Examination:

As we had mentioned earlier in this article, the SilverStone PP02 Power Supply Acoustic Cover attaches to the outside of the ATX power supply mount. Thanks to its sound absorption foam padding, much of the PSU acoustic noise is reduced which of course is an entirely different design than many of the rubber PSU gaskets available that simply reduce a small amount of vibration. However, due to the SilverStone PP02 design, some airflow may be minimally obstructed and we will take a closer look at that as well as its temperature alterations in our performance section. On the outer side of the PP02 is a ribbed design along with SilverStone's name and logo that is printed atop the black ABS plastic. On the various sides of the product are also holes for aligning with traditional ATX power supplies. The inside of the dampening unit is lined with foam padding for improved sound absorption.

Performance:

The SilverStone PP02 is of course designed for power supply units that are on the noisier side of things while the quieter PSUs may not see much of an advantage from attaching the unit. To get a better understanding for its true abilities, we had tested the PP02 on a wide variety of systems with different power supplies ranging from an old Logisys dual 80mm unit to flakey generic units as well as a high-performing Enermax Whisper II 2.0 535W SLI. The installation of the PP02 in all of these scenarios was easy as all that’s required is to remove the previous PSU screws and then to align the PSU acoustic cover with the PSU exhaust and then to install SilverStone's longer mounting screws. One of the troublesome areas we had noticed was the lack of room for accessing the power cable and switch on the rear of the power supply once the cover had been installed. However, for those not routinely changing around system components should not notice much of a problem. When it came to testing the acoustic cover for its abilities to dampen noise, we had noticed some improvement take place in the louder power supplies with multiple fans. The PSUs that were already quiet to start out with we had not noticed much of a change in the overall noise level. Another one of our areas for concern was any airflow, or ultimately temperature change, after the PP02 had been installed. With the acoustic cover outlet being faced down the PSU fans would need to work a bit harder to push the warm air outside of the system. In order to see the affect the SilverStone PP02 would have on the air temperature as it was being exhausted from the power supply, we ran some temperature tests when the product was installed on the Enermax Whisper II 535W. Using a WinMax WIN8696 with thermal probe, we monitored the air temperature inside of the SilverStone PP02 and then the temperature immediately on the outer side of the acoustic cover. In general, we had noticed about a 2.5°C temperature change between the inside of the SilverStone PP02 cover and the outside. This difference is somewhat significant but not enough to cause concern if the ambient room temperature is maintained relatively low.

Conclusion:

Since SilverStone Technology's 2003 launch they have been quick at making headlines with their wide array of products from Sugo and Lascala chassis' to its NVIDIA SLI certified ST60F PSU. The PP02 Power Supply Acoustic Cover is yet another example of SilverStone's talent at work. However, the product is not for everybody as the noise reductions are noticeable largely in older power supplies that are generally much noisier than current-day PSU innovations. In addition, the PSU temperature will most likely increase marginally as in our tests on average the temperature had increased by 2.5°C making it not the choice for critical environments. When it comes down to it, this is one of the best choices we have come across as its noise dampening capabilities are much more noticeable than other PSU gaskets and contraptions. If your power supply is in need of some taming, the SilverStone Technology PP02 can be found for approximately $15 USD.