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SFF Multitasking, cool and quiet

D

DragonReborn

Senior member
I need a dual core multitasking SFF. I was looking at the SN25 but it seems rather expensive at $400. Is that what they run now? I wanted to come in for the SFF at around $300. Do some of the dual core intel boxes run a little cheaper?

I won't be playing any games so should I just get the nvidia 6600 for under $100 just to have something to run vista and random things? Should be fine, right?

1 gb of memory (prolly some value crucial stuff)
200-300 gb hard drive (does the WD SE16 come in those sizes or just the 400?)
3800x2 or a comparable intel dual core
NEC 3540 or Benq 1640

Need to stay under $1000...shouldn't be a problem...hopefully... =\
 
Aspire X-QPack

That, plus an mATX nForce 6100/410 MB (built-in video works fine if you don't need to play games, and you can always toss in a GeForce 7800GTX 512MB if you really want to), is going to be about $150-$175.

Athlon X2 3800+ for $322
200-300GB HD for $100
DVD writer for $45
1GB Corsair RAM for $78

You're in business at only $700.


Mod the stock rear fan on the QPack for 7 volts (just change the black wire from the black wire on the Molex to the red one), enable SMART fan control for the CPU fan in the motherboard's BIOS, and the thing is damn near silent.
 
that aspire is nice...not as clean as the shuttle but you can't beat the price. Do you have a recommendation when it comes to matx boards? lastly i have built tons of desktops but only a shuttle sff...i take it installing a matx mobo ain't too hard? =)
 
I have the Biostar TForce 6100 and love it. It's made for overclocking (and does so quite well)... but even if you don't intend to OC, this is nice because it means it has high quality components that can take more than you will be throwing at them. The thing really is solid, and at least one review has noted its great stability.

Foxconn, Asus, and MSI also have nice looking boards based on the 6150/430 chipset (very slightly faster 3D performance and an extra feature or two vs the 6100/410 on the Biostar - see http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/204) that you might want to take a look at.

As for installing stuff in the QPack, it's dead easy. The motherboard tray slides out, and the standoffs are built in, so you literally just sit the board on the tray and screw it in. It works just like a standard case, it's just a little bit smaller. Cable routing can be a little tricky, but with a few minutes of work everything stows away neatly in the bottom front compartment.. but be aware that leaving one of the 5.25" drive bays empty also helps a lot. You can fit a lot of power cabling in one!
 
thanks for the reply...i'll check that one out. =)

I also was looking at the basic SN95G5 V3...would that work with the 3800+ or would a need an nforce4 board? I like the $280 price and the sleek black lines. At the worst I could throw in any 939 chip like a 4000+ (non x2 right?)
 
It'll take an X2 3800+ just fine, but it only has a 240W power supply so by the time you get your components loaded in you will be pushing the limits of the PS already. You will need a separate video card for this unit, and your choices will be limited by the AGP slot.. which shouldn't be too much of a problem if you don't intend to play games.

Sure as hell looks nice though, doesn't it?

Looks like it will fit the bill for you, as long as you don't mind the increased price tag and limited upgradeability and power supply (I'd think that it would be just fine with a lower end AGP graphics card, one hard drive, and one optical drive).
 
Originally posted by: deathwalker
Jonnythan..if your are refering to the aspire qpack..it has a 420 power supply.
Click to expand...

Actually, my QPack has a 450 watt power supply.

But, no, I was answering this question:
"I also was looking at the basic SN95G5 V3...would that work with the 3800+ or would a need an nforce4 board? I like the $280 price and the sleek black lines. At the worst I could throw in any 939 chip like a 4000+ (non x2 right?)"
 
interesting that the shuttle comes so underpowered...i really don't want any stability issues coming from a weak power supply.

So i guess each SFF has it's ups and downs. I'm not in love with the aspire just because it is going to be an office environment and it looks a tad flashy.
 
I love my QPack. I guess it looks a little bit flashy, but the one with the black face and no windows would fit well in an office:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811144162

deathwalker: Like I said, I love it. It's little, portable, lightweight, quiet, full of features, easy to work with.. I have no complaints at all. The only problem I've run into is that the power switch has some bare leads behind it, and if you press the case the right way, the leads contact the metal on the chassis, causing your PC to turn off (or on). I fixed it by putting a small piece of electrical tape behind it.. no biggie.

It's a very cool, efficient case, too. The 120mm fan on the back does a good job of exhausting air and it has great airflow. I modded the fan to run at 7v and now it's basically silent.
 
The shuttle is not under powered. I find that shuttle power supplies are actually equivelant to other manufacturers stating 450-500 watt. I have an SN25P (and an X-QPack) and I promise I could stress the shuttle power supply much more than the X-QPack factory power supply. SO much so that you don't hear about folks replacing the shuttle (not that they could) but many if not all enthusiasts replace the X-QPack PSU.

Also realize that teh rear 120mm fan on the X-QPack is rather noisy. It will have to be replaced for a quiet machine. My shuttle even with the shroud removed and a 7800GTX in there is super quiet.

Speccs of shuttle
SN25P
AMD 4400+ at 2.6
2 GB Patriot LLK 2-3-2-5
EVGA 7800GTX
2 Maxtor Maxline III 300GB HD

Specs of X-QPack
AMD 3200+ Winchester CBBHD @ 2.7
Biostar Geforce 6100-M7
1 GB Corsair Pro Series PC4000
2 Seagate 200 Gig 7299.7

Both are rather nice, and the X-QPack is silent now with a new PSU and a silent 120mm. I still prefer the shuttle though.
 
another quick question...since i am not so performance hungry, is there any reason why I shouldn't go for the intel dual core? don't they have some cheaper offerings than the 3800+?
 
I very much agree that 240W is probably enough for anything you can fit in the Shuttle, but it's still awfully low. I'm sure many people would replace that PSU if it were an option... the fact that it's an option in the QPack means that many will indeed replace them. As for this quote:
"I promise I could stress the shuttle power supply much more than the X-QPack factory power supply."
Promises are good and all, but that's a pretty empty claim with no data whatsoever to back it up.

The 120mm fan does make a bit of noise, but it's because it's moving so much air. Bumping it down to 5 or 7 volts makes it all but silent, and it still moves a good amount of air. Doesn't need to be replaced at all.

All that said, the Shuttles are nice, they're smaller, and probably adequate, but it's also significantly more expensive. I imagine you'll be happy with either.

As for dual core, the 3800+ is the cheapest AMD option. Intel offers the Pentium D 820 for about $250, but at that price you'd probably be much better off with a single core A64 3800+. Intel's next step up, the Pentium D 830 is the same price as the 3800+ and gets smoked by it in virtually everything.
 
yeah, i think the x2 3800+ is worth the extra cash. i don't know if I can swing the extra 250-300 dollars that the shuttle commands but who knows...

is sfftech.com they only SFF website out there?

lastly, what about some of those desktop matx cases like from lian li? kinda like the small htpc cases? why do people go for the "cube" more than the small desktop?
 
Originally posted by: jonnythan
It'll take an X2 3800+ just fine, but it only has a 240W power supply so by the time you get your components loaded in you will be pushing the limits of the PS already. You will need a separate video card for this unit, and your choices will be limited by the AGP slot.. which shouldn't be too much of a problem if you don't intend to play games.

Sure as hell looks nice though, doesn't it?

Looks like it will fit the bill for you, as long as you don't mind the increased price tag and limited upgradeability and power supply (I'd think that it would be just fine with a lower end AGP graphics card, one hard drive, and one optical drive).
Click to expand...

excuse me, but my shuttle ran higher end everything without issue (3200+ AMD64 CPU, 74GB Raptor, 16x DVD burner, x800xt AIW, audigy 2 ZS), so I'm not sure where you're getting off saying the sn95g5 (mine was v1, but I don't think they downgraded their PSUs as they progressed, did they?) won't have enough juice to power a gaming rig.

the only sacrifice I made, if it could be called that, was to externalize my second hard drive. that was more because I have a lappy and like having the versatility of moving the drive between computers...

It did run warm, though, especially after 8 hours of Day of Defeat: Source.

 
Originally posted by: Busithothexcuse me, but my shuttle ran higher end everything without issue (3200+ AMD64 CPU, 74GB Raptor, 16x DVD burner, x800xt AIW, audigy 2 ZS), so I'm not sure where you're getting off saying the sn95g5 (mine was v1, but I don't think they downgraded their PSUs as they progressed, did they?) won't have enough juice to power a gaming rig.
Click to expand...
Well, I don't get off saying that cause I never said it 😉
My only comment about games was concerning the AGP slot, as the fastest graphics cards are not available in AGP format.
 
Originally posted by: jonnythan
Originally posted by: Busithothexcuse me, but my shuttle ran higher end everything without issue (3200+ AMD64 CPU, 74GB Raptor, 16x DVD burner, x800xt AIW, audigy 2 ZS), so I'm not sure where you're getting off saying the sn95g5 (mine was v1, but I don't think they downgraded their PSUs as they progressed, did they?) won't have enough juice to power a gaming rig.
Click to expand...
Well, I don't get off saying that cause I never said it 😉
My only comment about games was concerning the AGP slot, as the fastest graphics cards are not available in AGP format.
Click to expand...

typed, sorry.
I thought even the newer ATI cards are going to be made available in AGP also.
future upgrades would be the only concern. If you're into changing video cards every cycle, then I suppose PCI-E would be the only way to go.

anyway, I thought you were saying the PSU couldn't handle a gaming rig, and thought I'd clarify (takes foot out of mouth)
 
Questions about the Xpack:
Is the PSU loud
Is the 120 Fan loud

Also how did you mod you PSU. And what did it get you?
More power? quieter?

thanks
 
My PSU appears to have a temperature controlled fan and as far as I can tell it's dead-ass silent.

The 120mm fan isn't loud, but the volume of air it's moving makes some wind noise. It was a little too loud for my tastes, but now it's running at 7V and it's silent as well
 
I went with the Antec Aria because of its 120mm PSU fan and it's pretty darn quiet. It's not as quiet as a Seasonic but not bad for a SFF.
 
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