Shuttle XPC's

[nikolajhendel]

Just wondering about the latest review of the two XPC's. THG review is the only one that criticizes the operating noice - where other sites commends it because its quiet !

I can see in the specs that they use a 80 mm fan - so is it just the quality of the fan that the reason for the noise - as it's easy to get quiet 80 mm fans ?

(i know that the nforce2 version uses an active cooler on the motherboard)

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by nikolajhendel on 01/31/03 07:48 AM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[WingDing]

I know there's no mention of it, but I'd also be a little bit concerned about a 200w power supply with a card like the 9700 Pro. And the heat issues bother me a little.

The rumours are true. <b>Eden</b> likes to help <b>Svol</b> make snowballs

 

[Quazzeymoto]

I have an sn41g2 and Toms is the only review that says that it is loud. I have been very happy with the sound, it does not make a racket. Here is another review. The fan can be adjusted to stay at its fastest all the time or to only speed up when the chip gets to a certain temp.
http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=NDE2

 

[Quazzeymoto]

I have an AIW 9700 pro in there and have no problems. It is a little tight but I knew that would be the case when I bought it.

 

[jheine]

I have to agree, the power supply does seem a bit weak. I think the aluminum case would help out in the heat department a little. It may be the reason there is no coating on the case. While the coating would help decrease scratches, it would also help to retain any heat dissipating through the case. I do think a copper plate for the AMD version would have been a better choice though.

Jarrett

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[svol]

We have them at school and they don't make much noise... but if it is still to much for you, you can change the 80mm fan with a panaflo fan as they are very quiet.

My dual-PSU PC is so powerfull that the neighbourhood dimms when I turn it on

 

[Crashman]

I advise against anything smaller than Micro ATX. The Mini ITX form factor is the same as Micro ATX with two more slots removed. Now, Micro ATX only has room for four, so you only get two with the XPC's. One of those is AGP, the other is PCI. If you ever need as many as TWO PCI devices, you're screwed. If you want to run a wide AGP card like the 5800FX, you're screwed. If you want to run two hard drives, a removable device (say, a floppy or ZIP), a DVD and a CDRW, you're screwed. In fact, for almost any kind of upgrade, you're screwed. And it's too tall and narrow to look good in a home theater, so if you were looking at that, lots of companies make Micro ATX desktop cases that look like home audio components. If you need portability out of a small tower, you can get towers that are only twice as high and nearly 50% narrower in the Micro ATX form factor. As for the "cool looks", heck, you could get a book sized PC with almost the same amount of expandability and doll it up.

What I'm saying is that people who buy these things are usually short sited. I have the feeling that a lot of people are aware of the shortcommings and buy them anyway because they look cool, even though they won't do what they want, which shows how uninteligent they are (Frank included).

<font color=blue>There are no stupid questions, only stupid people doling out faulty information based upon rumors, myths, and poor logic!</font color=blue>

 

[Quazzeymoto]

Thx for the cut downs Crash. I have 4 computers, my third was a large antec case that I could readily upgrade but got tired of having because it takes up so much space. My fourth is in a smaller antec case so I could take it places easier. I bought the SN41G2 for the portability. Going to the local lan party is easier than ever now. I realize that I am stuck with this motherboard and can have only one hard drive. I've got a CDRW+DVD|TOSHIBA SD-R1312 COMBO in there and dont need extra crap. No you cant put a GeForce FX card in this one but guess what, try and find one right now or in the near future. My All in Wonder fits and works fine. I have plenty of performance to play all my games at 1600x1200 32 with AA and FX turned on and I will be able to do that for a long time as well especially with AMD coming out with faster socket A(462) chips coming out.
It is a preference thing. Everyone is different.
Also, unintelligent is spelled with 2 L's.

 

[Crashman]

Right, but I never cared about spelling. Some of the slowest kids I knew in school were excellent spellers (but they couldn't do math or understand science). Anyway, I just think it's a poor solution for anyone, even you, in the long run. Have you SEEN how thin some of the Micro ATX towers are? <A HREF="http://www.newegg.com/app/Showimage.asp?image=11-124-040-04.jpg/11-124-040-03.jpg/11-124-040-07.jpg/11-124-040-01.jpg/11-124-040-02.jpg/11-124-040-06.jpg/11-124-040-05.jpg/11-124-040-08.jpg" target="_new">Here's an example</A>. Or if you would like <A HREF="http://www.newegg.com/app/Showimage.asp?style=album" target="_new">One with a handle</A> These types of cases are barely any lager than the shuttle, they are taller but much, much narrower, and should pose no greater portability limitations.

<font color=blue>There are no stupid questions, only stupid people doling out faulty information based upon rumors, myths, and poor logic!</font color=blue>

 

[Quazzeymoto]

I've probably put together 20 computers for family and friends and guess what, they are mostly all different. Everyone has different tastes, but theres no reason for trying to express how smart you are by cutting down someone elses preference in computers. You don't have one of these computers so you have little basis for your argument.

I am not trying to get into a forum name calling session, so excuse me if I'm laying down too much attitude, but sometimes you get tired of the old humdrum case now and then. In a year, I'm gonna want something new anyway.

I am also not a geforce hater but the new FX isnt that far ahead of the 9700 pro anyway, so theres no reason to go out and buy one if you can get a very over-clockable and cheaper 9700, and with the new R350 chip coming out from ATI they should pass the FX very soon as well. http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=NDIx
I'm sure you've already read the toms review so I wont go there.
Good Day

 

[Crashman]

You don't have one of these computers so you have little basis for your argument.

That is the weakest argument I've ever heard in defense of anything. That's like saying "You don't own a 1973 pinto so you have no right to say they explode in rear end collsions". Or "You've never been shot in the head before so you have no right to speak about other people shooting each other in the head". LOL. There are lots of very happy people using computers with NO PCI slots. This is not a forum for them. This is a HARDWARE forum, a place where people discuss things like how to UPGRADE their computers and build high end systems. Take your 1973 pinto arguments to an economy car forum, LOL.

It's BECAUSE of their limits that I DON'T own one. I can argue with complete validity against them based soley on their limits. The limits are clear to see, buying one isn't going to magically make more PCI slots, drive bays, or larger power supplies magically appear!

<font color=blue>There are no stupid questions, only stupid people doling out faulty information based upon rumors, myths, and poor logic!</font color=blue>

 

[solomal1]

Considering that the original question related to noise...and that it never got answered anyway!!

Can someone suggest where on Toms his particular review of the SN41G2 should be discussed. I personally see that it fits my needs perfectly. It has everything I expect to need for the next couple of years. I don't need the big PSU, I don't need the slots.

I mean, it has Firewire and USB sprouting from all sides, not to mention SPDIFs and analog audios all over...there are many expansions that can be done through USB these days....

Oh, and I think two HDD is possible once you stow a USB external floppy away in a drawer for the one time a month that I need to user it.

So, is the cooling noise a real problem on these systems, or did Tom just get one with a faulty fan?



"If it's lost, it'll turn up, things always do"
" I love it when a plan comes together!"

 

[Quazzeymoto]

As I stated earlier
I have an sn41g2 and Toms is the only review that says that it is loud. I have been very happy with the sound, it does not make a racket. Here is another review. The fan can be adjusted to stay at its fastest all the time or to only speed up when the chip gets to a certain temp.
http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=NDE2

I don't know what happened to Toms Fan but the noise level is minimal in my system. That also depends on your perspecive on what is loud. It is not dead quiet with the fan on the highest setting but it is minimal in my opinion and it does not make a racket. Tomsthe heat-pipe fan creates so much racket that we feel it's safe to say that this PC will not be gracing many offices any time soon.)
The only thing that I can think of that would cause this would be when you take off the heat pipe, it is possible that they didn't have the casing that goes around the fan secured in the right position when they put it back on as you have to take it off as well when you attach the CPU. If the casing isn't on correctly it is possible, I guess, that it could contact the outside of the fan an vibrate. I will try and test this and get back with you later.

To put it in simple terms, it sound like a normal fan on a computer. Since it is so small you will have this comp on your desk right by your monitor so the fan might seem loud to someone who usually has their comp on the floor.

You have more options on temp to fan speed but I haven't messed with that much. I got tired of the fan speeding up when it got to the higher CPU temp so I leave it on the fast. I left it on 48C when it picked up but you can also put it on 52C. If the fan is on it's "slow" setting you can't even hear it until it picks up.

 

[Quazzeymoto]

It's BECAUSE of their limits that I DON'T own one.

I want you to honestly tell me what are in the PCI slots on your current computer. My comps have lan and sound in them. A configuration that is already equipped in the shuttle. Tell me what else you need in a computer for gaming and work. You have 3 1394 ports and 4 usb ports for portable devices. Hardocp.com" Needless to say, the back panel is rich with nearly every feature you could ask for".

The limits are clear to see, buying one isn't going to magically make more PCI slots, drive bays, or larger power supplies magically appear!

I understand that this system is not for everyone, if you have a need for a bigger case and motherboard with 5 pci slots, raid, bluetooth, an Alpha Pal8045U and a Creative Labs Sound Blaster Audigy 2 Platinum in one of your drive bays then get it. If you need a case that matches your stereo equipment better then get that. Also, the power supply in the shuttle is sufficient even with an All in Wonder video card installed. How do I know, because it works fine in my system.

It's amazing to me that I like it, Toms likes it so much and Hardocp likes it as well. YOU must be right.

I'm done debating, I believe you just enjoy getting a rise out of getting someone to go on about, and argue about the rude comments you make about someone's system and how stupid and unintelligent they must be, and how smart you are for not going on rumors, myths and poor logic.

If anyone else has a question about the shuttle I would be happy to answer them. I am no expert though; I will help you if I can.

 

[eonx]

I have a Shuttle SS-51G, it was a bit noisy so I put in an Zalman 80mm fan (20dBa) instead. Took about 2min and cut the noise level in half, I monitored the CPU temperature and noticed no large changes, 2 degrees C at most at full load (prime95, pcmark and 3dmark). I used SiSoftware Sandra for the measuring.

What one should thing about is that this type of low noise Zalman fans is not are as durable as the standard fan. And the runtime/life-expectancy is probably cut in half as well as the noise.

 

[nikolajhendel]

thx Quazzeymoto and eonx

Thats what i needed to hear - sounds like its quiet enough for me

The only way I heat up my house is by overclocking my cpu :tongue:

 

[svol]

And the runtime/life-expectancy is probably cut in half as well as the noise.

There will be such a small difference (unless your CPU is really overheating) you wont even notice it.

The Shuttle XPC's look very cool... too bad they are to small to fit in my watercooler and the fact that I already own to much PCs.

My dual-PSU PC is so powerfull that the neighbourhood dimms when I turn it on