The Xbox Series X has only been out for a few days, but already owners of the machine are marveling at how quiet it is. While Microsoft’s last-gen consoles didn’t really have a reputation for fan noise, the Xbox Series X is packing a lot more power. You might expect to hear it from time to time as a result, but the system’s cooling process manages to eliminate noise entirely.
There’s another reason you can’t really hear the Xbox Series X when it’s running, though. According to Reddit user nanoboby, it’s because of a small detail Microsoft paid attention to when designing the console. It’s why you might hear some sounds coming out of Sony’s competing PlayStation 5 occasionally, but the Xbox Series X remains quiet.
Two words: “grey goop.”
why the Series X is considerably quieter ( not just the fan) from r/XboxSeriesX
As you can see, the coils on the Xbox Series X power supply are covered in some sort of strange gray matter. This apparently prevents them from emitting any sort of sound. Over on the PlayStation 5 side, the coils are exposed.
There are little details, and then there are little details. Coil whine is something someone at Microsoft clearly thought about, leading to this simple little fix. If you’re wondering how the Xbox Series X manages to run so silently — despite pumping out 4K, 60 frames-per-second performance in many titles — here’s your answer. As nanoboby themselves said, it’s “not just the fan.”