Quiet PC DB1i Fanless i10

Built around Streamcom’s extremely compact DB1 chassis, the DB1i Fanless i10 takes advantage of Intel’s 35W Core processors and the chassis built-in fanless CPU cooling to offer a totally silent, very small, yet powerful system for every day use.

Total silence in a small package

Apart from the tiny UltraNUC, the DB1i Fanless is one of the smallest PC we offer. Unlike the UltraNUC, the DB1i Fanless uses a conventional fully-featured motherboard, albeit a Mini-ITX sized one. The machine can accommodates the latest Intel CPU, a M.2 SSD and a 2.5” drive. And because we offer the latest power-frugal processors, it is cooled fanlessly, thanks to the integrated fanless CPU cooler. The heat generated by the CPU is transferred to the large finned panel that naturally dissipates the heat, so no need for fans! The benefits of fanless operation include zero noise, it does not attract dust and has no moving parts, meaning the PC requires very little to no maintenance.

Intel’s 10th Generation Processors

As already mentioned, the PC takes advantage of an Intel latest generation CPU, which has an increased core count and therefore performance boost over the previous generation. As a guide, here is a quick comparison between the 10th Gen Core i7 10700T and the previous 9th Gen Core i7 9700T. As you can see the Core i7 10700T has an increased CPU score of almost 30%! The extra threads and increased Intel Smart Cache on the 10th Gen CPU help bolster this performance gain, even with both CPUs having the same clock speed (2.0GHz).

You’d think there would be a downside to all this extra performance but to be honest we cannot think of any. The CPUs have a maximum Thermal Design Power (TDP) of 35W for the lower powered “T-suffix” processors. This means they can take advantage of the integrated fanless CPU cooling and be cooled without the need for a fan! Now that is fantastic (pun intended).

Fully featured mini-ITX motherboard

The DB1i Fanless features a ASRock Z590M-ITX/ac motherboard, which the smallest of desktop boards, but don’t let its size fool you. The vast majority of Mini-ITX motherboard are packed with features you expect to find on larger motherboards. By default the motherboard comes with two monitor outputs that both support 4K @ 60Hz, so when connected to up to two 4K monitors you can expect resolutions of up to 4096 x 2160, thanks to the included DisplayPort (1.4) and HDMI (2.0) ports.

There are many USB ports on the rear of the motherboard, four of them are USB 3.2 Gen2 which offer speed of up to 1.2GB/s (10Gb/s), while the other is USB 3.2 Gen2x2 (Type-C) which doubles the speed to 2.4GB/s.

You’ll also find the very latest WiFi 6E speeds, which gives more capabilities for even better and faster connections compared to previous generation Wi-Fi. There is also Bluetooth 5.2 and last but not least a 2.5Gb/s LAN port, which is 2.5 times the increase in bandwidth over 1000Mb/s.

Motherboard Features and Options

This particular computer utilises either the B560 or the Z590 series chipset, so expect the improved connectivity, like USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 for USB speeds up to 20Gbps. The 500 series chipsets also features PCIe 4.0, M.2 connectors, premium audio, HDMI and DisplayPort outputs and support for up to 64GB RAM. Below are images of each motherboard available in this system with a table that shows some of the specification each motherboard offers.

ASUS B560 motherboard

ASRock Z590 motherboard

ASUS B560 rear motherboards ports

ASRock Z590 rear motherboards ports

Power supply recommendations

Due to the small nature of the DB1, the chassis is only compatible with Streacom’s NanoPSUs. Three different wattages are available, 90W, 120W and 160W. During our testing we found that all of the NanoPSUs were able to power all of the processors available. The tests we conducted included a M.2 drive and a SSD, and even with the Intel Core i9 10900T installed, all PSUs performed flawlessly. Conclusion - it really does not matter which PSU you opt for, therefore the only difference between the PSUs is the external AC adapter block which sits outside of the chassis. The size of this block is 168 x 71 x 38mm for the 120W and 160W, while the 90W version is slightly smaller at 140 x 58 x 32mm.

Storage considerations

When specifying your new PC’s storage options using our system configurator below, you will be offered a choice of drives which vary by price and capacity. There are two primary types of storage. A conventional hard disk drive (HDD) offers huge storage capacity for a low price, but it won’t be especially fast and it will generate a certain amount of running noise since it contains a constantly-rotating spindle. A solid state (SSD) or a M2 drive on the other hand, offer tremendous speed and absolutely silent operation, but they cost more than an HDD for any given capacity.

So if you need a lot of storage space (for videos or large quantities of digital photos for example), then we would recommend an HDD. On the other hand, if you prefer silence and speed (especially boot-up speed), then an SSD or M2 drive would be a better choice. Of course, you can have more than one drive, so you could have the best of both worlds by choosing one of each! We recommend that customers choose an SSD or M2 drive as a boot drive that contains the operating system and important programs. A conventional HDD would store other data but remember that if you intend to have a totally silent PC, you might want to forgo the HDDs altogether as they will make some noise due to their moving parts.

PLEASE NOTE: Due to the design of the DB1 chassis we highly recommend installing all storage drives required at the time of building the PC. If you intend to add a drive at a later stage then please be aware that this is not a simple task. All heatpipes, surfaces and the CPU will need to be cleaned along with applying new thermal paste. If you have an old storage drive you would like to add to the build then please let us know. We can arrange for this to happen at the time of building the system.

Clean Build™ Promise

The price of many pre-built PCs these days is often supported by cash kickbacks from software companies who pay hardware manufacturers to pre-install limited or trial versions of their software and then hope that the customer pays to upgrade to the full version. The downside to this approach is that the new PC comes pre-loaded with a lot of “junkware” which bloats the operating system and can cause severe performance degradation.

Here at Quiet PC we believe that customers have every right to expect the best possible performance from a brand new PC, so every system we build comes with our Clean Build™ promise. We install the operating system (if you order one), motherboard drivers, OS updates and Microsoft Security Essentials / Windows Defender - that’s it. You won’t be pestered by pop-ups and nag screens and you can get on with using your new PC immediately without having to uninstall lots of junkware first. Your new machine will boot in super-quick time and will stay running quickly for many months and years to come.

Free hardware support and fully inclusive warranty

We offer free hardware technical support for as long as you own the machine. This support covers any hardware query or problem, including advice on maintenance and upgrades. We regret we can’t offer software support or training so we would recommend contacting the software vendor in this instance.

Our hardware warranty runs for two years and is “collect and return” meaning that you don’t need to worry about getting the machine back to us - we will instruct our courier to collect it from you on a day of your choosing, then after we have checked and repaired it, we will send it back to you by express courier at our expense. In addition, unlike many other PC suppliers, we have an “open-case” policy which means you are free to open the machine and perform your own minor modifications or upgrades without worrying that your warranty might be affected.