Views on Antec Sonata

[jarsoffart]

Originally posted by: robrr
The 3700 was new, perfect condition. The Sonata had some blemishes along the top of the case, but they buffed out with some car wax. Now it is as good as new, too.

Did it come with screws and the fan or a combination of them? What is excluded from the retail package?

 

i am looking for a 'Silent' case and i am going to get the Zalmon Heatpipe for my 9700, and i allready have a Zalmon Copper Flower on my CPU which is "Silent".

Thats exactly the setup I am using on my P4 box and I am hard pressed to hear any fan noise out of it.

 

[Bad Dude]

Did you guys know that the USB ports in front are USB 1.1 and not USB 2.0?
What makes the ports 2.0 vs. 1.1? Is it the cable? Or is it the cable and port?

 

[Hanzou]

Did you guys know that the USB ports in front are USB 1.1 and not USB 2.0?

I am pretty sure it is just the cable that determines the difference.

 

[Corporate Thug]

all i can say is that PSU is real good. a friend of mine had no use for the psu and sold it to me. it's happily running in my coolermaster right now. personally, i'm a coolermaster fan when it comes to cases but i wouldn't mind one of these

 

[KenAF]

Stock, the Sonata is not silent!! The Antec power supply and rear fan may be quiet in comparison to some other power supplies, but they are definiitely not quiet by SilentPcReview.com standards. If you really want a quiet computer, you should replace both the power supply and fan in the Sonata.

If you can tell that your system is on with your ears, then it is too loud!!

 

[KenAF]

I already posted this in the Sonata thread, and re-posted in the case mod sticky, but thought silencing might deserve its own discussion thread...

I recently built a silent PC setup with the Sonata.

P4 2.8
Abit IC7
512Mb Corsair PC3200
Antec Sonata case w/ True 380W PSU
Seagate Barracuda V
ATI Radeon 9700
MIT MDP-120 HDTV PC tuner/pvr
Pioneer DVD-R A05 DVD writer

Then I added:

Fortran FSP-350-60PN power supply w/ 120mm fan - $47
Zalman CNPS7000-Cu P4 heatsink (uses 92mm fan) - $34
Zalman ZM80A VGA Heatpipe Cooler - $25
Zalman ZM-NB32J northbridge heatsink - $5
Sunbeam Rheobus (black, review here) - $19
Panaflo L1A 120mm - $13
AcoustiPak Deluxe (another pic, sold here, coming soon with version pre-cut for Sonata) - $79
Elastomer fan isolators (more info here, order cheap here) - $9.71 for pack of 20
Elastomer drive grommets (order cheap here) - $7.77 for pkg of 25
Smartdrive 2002 hard drive enclosure - $59

What I did:

Installed the CNPS7000-Cu and set it to the lowest fan setting (5v)
Replaced the heatsink and fan on the Radeon 9700 with the Zalman ZM80A
Put Barracuda V hard drive in the Smartdrive 2002 enclosure
Replaced the Antec power supply with the much quieter FSP-350-60PN
Replaced the rear Antec 120mm fan with the Panaflo L1A, mounted with with the better Elastomer fan isolators
Added Elastomer grommets to drives in 5.25" bays
Connected the L1A to the Sunbeam Rheobus for 5 volt operation
Replaced the heatsink/fan on the IC7 northbridge with the ZM-NB32J, as per instructions on Hardforum
Lined inside of case with AcousticPak Deluxe
Inserted AcousticPak Deluxe foam blocks into extra 5.25" and 3.5" bays

What I will do next:

Try WD Raptor in the Smartdrive2002 enclosure
Try Quiet feet case isolators (sold here)

More information people asked for (part numbers):

Elastomer fan isolators - part 5801K6 for 80/92mm fans, 5801K8 for 120mm 38mm fans like Panaflo; order here
Elastomer drive grommets - see here for more specs; G-410 part is 9311K138/ 9311K89, G-411 part is 9311K139/9311K91; high damp and low damp differ in softness

If you can tell your system is on from the noise, then it is too loud!

 

[shinobi]

Does anyone know if the power supply that comes with the Antec Sonata has the 3-pin fan sensor? [ http://www.antec-inc.com/images/3pinfansensor.jpg ]

I am considering this case, but I heard airflow is poor, is this true? And how significant is the poor airflow?

I'm looking for a case with front USB and Audio, and has a good power supply.

Thanks in advance.

EDIT: I found out from the Antec webite that it does have the 3-pin fan sensor connector. This is what it says in the manual: "The power supply is also equipped with a 3-pin fan signal connector."

 

[paperfist]

Maybe I am used to working in desktop cases cause other then installing the motherboard I wouldn't say the Sonata is cramped at all. It is a pretty heavy case and though it isn't perfectly silent it is very quiet. The rubber grommet mounting setup for the HDs also help to lower the noise factor. I'd say it's pretty good with airflow as my 1700+ now runs 5-6 degrees cooler then it did in my other case. I'm used to paying 50 bucks for a case and I had sticker shock when I bought the Sonata, but after owning one of these cases I won't go back to the cheap seats.

shinobi, It's got the true380Watt PS, 2 USB, 1 Firewire & 2 audio jacks on the front of the case.

robrr, hey does your refurb Sonata have a dent on the lower right hand side? Just wondering cause I sent one back like that.

 

[PHL1365]

Originally posted by: Bad_Dude
Did you guys know that the USB ports in front are USB 1.1 and not USB 2.0?
What makes the ports 2.0 vs. 1.1? Is it the cable? Or is it the cable and port?

It has something to do with the ports, although I'm not sure why. There is a little PCB that the ports mount on, rather than just passive connectors.

I just got this case and had the same issue with the USB ports. I called the Antec tech support line and they took care of me.

BTW, major kudos to Antec Tech Support on this issue. The phone was answered by a live person on the first ring! I told him what the issue was and he just took down my address and said they would send me an updated PCB. Total time spent: about 3 minutes, start to finish.