I'm sorry, but that video isn't necessarily a good reflection of reality. They get quieter after the system completes POST. Now, if you leave it set to maximum airflow it will stay that loud, but the setting of "optimal" is sooo much quieter there's no comparison.
Yep, until it it gets hot again within the case. If the server stands in a room that doesn't stay cool in the summer then it will get loud again during that period.
Well, I'll see how it goes when the box is here, which should be somewhen next week. But there should be ways to get it quieter, like different fans and stuff
Sure there is, look at what he did next:
Manual fan control. I don't know about that... I'd get some multimeter temperature probes in there after such a mod to test how hot it really gets around the components. And if that were my workplace that would still be too loud for me.
Keep in mind that they are designed to be able spin that fast for a reason. The air path is much narrower in a server case than in a desktop case, so the fans need more maximum throughput. On the other hand especially with storage cases there's only one straight front to back way for the air to flow, the disks are located in a more optimized path than in desktop cases where there are plenty of gaps for turbulences and alternative routes. Air takes the path of least resistance and if there's a nice gap between the HDD cage and the case door as is in most desktop cases, the fresh air will happily flow around the HDD cage and not through it. But then again because of its compact build and the lack of internal space for convection and alternative air vents at the top a minium airflow is an obsolute must in a server case. Heat dispersal through air convection and out of the top vents won't work in a server case like it still would in an ATX desktop case if fans fail.
I don't know, a server case looks cool and professional, but for my home...? Those small vents at the front will be covered up with dust in no time, believe me. A cooling mod might work in the beginning but might eventually fail once the front and the inside of the case got clotted up with dust. Vacuum those front vents regularly. Another idea would be to get a enclosed rack with a door, they aren't that expensive especially used ones and a dust filter should be easy to install in one of those. But then you will have to remove any fan voltage mods again for better cooling which wouldn't be a big deal since the enclosed rack has the benefit of dampening the noise. There are many possibilities for modding a rack, adding soundproofing materials, extra vents and dust filters. Of course, you could mod the rack mount server case instead, but they are designed to run in a clean and cool environment, which you could try to create with a modded rack.
In the end specific enclosures are designed for specific environments, when you switch them, things might not work out as designed. Look at what the market has to offer, it shows what people usually do to get things done. They sell racks specifically designed for in office use with sound dampening and dust filters. But server cases with all those things you won't find that easily. Sound dampening and dust covers are integrated into many if not most commercially available desktop cases. Now the conclusion which I draw from that is to either get a desktop case with all those mods (or add them myself) or get a rack with those mods (or add them myself) and put a server case into that one. I have chosen the first one because it's cheaper and I can spend more money on the actual computer components. You got your server for a bargain, which maybe enables you to invest some money into a nice rack. Since the 19" rack mount system won't be out of date any time soon this has the benefit that you can repurpose that rack for many servers to come or even resell for a profit. If you mod your server case, well. It is probably gone when you replace the server, chances are that you can't fit a new board into it or it doesn't meet your other future requirements in some way.
I'm not saying that this is the ultimate way, these are just some thoughts you might not have considered. Different things might work out well enough for different purposes.
In my personal opinion a 19" server case
and a nice air-conditioning rack to put it into is the optimal solution for keeping the hardware "healthy" even at home. But for me that's far beyond what I'd like to invest.
