best SFF barebone

[superflysocal]

I am new to the sff.

what is everyone's opinion as to the best barebone SFF as far as reliability, quietness, and expandibility...as well as cool factor?

I am looking at currently the epox ex5 (mini me) 300s because i always thought epox was a reliable brand and it has the cool lcd in the front. can you play a cd without booting up the pc?

also looking at the soltek QBIC EQ3401M because I heard it was the quietest system while still keekping temperatures pretty cool. some say the mirror front looks too plasticky.

shuttle has a good rep with their xpc because they started all of this but I heard the system actually runs hot because it doesn't cool the hard drive.

i wanted some of you guys personal experience with these.

 

[Psychosylph]

It would probably be best if you let us know what you are planning on using it for so that we could give you the best recommendation.

 

[superflysocal]

probably mostly for internet and htpc. not much on gaming but watching dvd's, divx, mpeg2. Also, using it possibly as a dvr (probably will add an aiw card, but probably nothing more than a 9200 or 8500). will not overclock. Importances to me are: reliability, stability, noise, temperature (again stability), and expandability (less important than others). Aesthetics also very important with the wife.

Besides the one from MSI, are there any others that can play cds and mp3s without powering up the PC?

 

[superflysocal]

Also, like I said noise is a big issue with me. I have read some reviews on this and they say that soltek is the quietest. However, there tests are equipped with very powerful accessories. If I plan on only using p4 2.4 or 2.8 with a video card no more than aiw 7500 or 9200 with 512mb Dimm, should i be that concern about system noise?

 

[Psychosylph]

Well, current reviews put the ST61G4 as being the leader of the pack when it comes to being quiet. Make sure you get a video card with passive cooling, as active cooling on a video card tends to increase noise somewhat dramatically. Pretty good looking for an HTPC unit, too. The only thing is it doesn't play stuff w/o turning it on.

 

[superflysocal]

sounds nice, but i would rather stick with intel chipset.
price also too high, i am trying to stay under 300 (no rebate)

that shuttle would be nice if i was not going to add a video card since it has a 9100 ati already. but since i am gonna want dvi out, i will need to get a card anyway.

 

[gbrux]

I got the Shuttle SN65G2: P4 up to 800 fsb, builtin WiFi, black.

I put in a P4 2.4 gHz, overclocked to 2.8 gHz no sweat.

This is my first experience with the sff, so I don't have any other comparative experience. However, I'd buy another in a minute.

I'm looking at the superbad Athlon 64 sff from Shuttle. It costs not much more than the sn65g2.

 

[SWEnginerd]

Asus has a nifty SFF box called the Terminator. They recently came out with an updated P4 model, look for revision "A". I don't know if you can stay under $300 with a Pentium, since Intel's prices are a LOT higher than AMD's, but the bare P4-533A box includes a floppy, card reader, and 52X CDROM, and sells for ~$170 at Newegg last time I checked. If you go with an Athlon, you can easily put together a system for well under $300 (depending on CPU and memory), but that is for the current-generation Athlon model which is 266MHz and can only take up to a XP 2400+

MSI is supposed to be coming out with a new model RSN (it was supposed to be RSN at Thanksgiving :/ ) which has improved radiotuner/CD/etc. hookup to the PC part of the machine. In the old (orange-ish front) box, supposedly you can't play the radio or use the other front-panel functions when the PC is on -- my source for that is unreliable, however. Also, there is no way to control the LCD from software; it's strictly a part of the music system. I don't know if the new one will address this (or anything else, really).

I don't think I could recommend an XPC any more. Both my roommate and I have one, and I have been finding out the hard way that (at least the SN41G2) they cannot handle more than a single HD. I was going to leave out the floppy and put in a second HD, but plugging a second HD into either IDE1 or IDE2 causes boot failures. And yes, I actually have a clue. I have tried every plug-in order I can think of, and it either won't even begin to boot (if I put HD + CDROM on IDE2) or it BSOD's (if I don't use Shuttle's supplied single-drive cable -- their very own CABLE!!! forget even trying a second drive! -- on IDE1).

 

[ericboo]

I am on my 3rd SFF. First a Shuttle SV25, then an Iwill XP4 and now an AMS Gbox 968 and they have come a long way, but don't fool yourself into thinking they are anywhere as close to quiet as a Dell. I have done fan mods to mine, and I still find it too loud for my bedroom.

I personally do not use it as an HTPC as it is just simpler to use a DVD player.

They have the cool factor, are useful when space is an issue.

The new AMS Ecube, Biostar and Soltek's are nice, as are Shuttle's too. Soltek is supposedly the quiet one.

 

[TSDible]

You might want to look into the new shuttle series that is coming out. External power block, and the fan has been modified to an 80mm I believe. It should be very quiet. I believe that it will be slightly smaller than the current versions as well... I will see if I can find a link.

 

[Psychosylph]

Originally posted by: SWEnginerd
Asus has a nifty SFF box called the Terminator. They recently came out with an updated P4 model, look for revision "A". I don't know if you can stay under $300 with a Pentium, since Intel's prices are a LOT higher than AMD's, but the bare P4-533A box includes a floppy, card reader, and 52X CDROM, and sells for ~$170 at Newegg last time I checked. If you go with an Athlon, you can easily put together a system for well under $300 (depending on CPU and memory), but that is for the current-generation Athlon model which is 266MHz and can only take up to a XP 2400+

MSI is supposed to be coming out with a new model RSN (it was supposed to be RSN at Thanksgiving :/ ) which has improved radiotuner/CD/etc. hookup to the PC part of the machine. In the old (orange-ish front) box, supposedly you can't play the radio or use the other front-panel functions when the PC is on -- my source for that is unreliable, however. Also, there is no way to control the LCD from software; it's strictly a part of the music system. I don't know if the new one will address this (or anything else, really).

I don't think I could recommend an XPC any more. Both my roommate and I have one, and I have been finding out the hard way that (at least the SN41G2) they cannot handle more than a single HD. I was going to leave out the floppy and put in a second HD, but plugging a second HD into either IDE1 or IDE2 causes boot failures. And yes, I actually have a clue. I have tried every plug-in order I can think of, and it either won't even begin to boot (if I put HD + CDROM on IDE2) or it BSOD's (if I don't use Shuttle's supplied single-drive cable -- their very own CABLE!!! forget even trying a second drive! -- on IDE1).

What are you running in your rig? I have an SN41G2 that I am running two drives in...

 

[TSDible]

Originally posted by: Psychosylph

Originally posted by: SWEnginerd
Asus has a nifty SFF box called the Terminator. They recently came out with an updated P4 model, look for revision "A". I don't know if you can stay under $300 with a Pentium, since Intel's prices are a LOT higher than AMD's, but the bare P4-533A box includes a floppy, card reader, and 52X CDROM, and sells for ~$170 at Newegg last time I checked. If you go with an Athlon, you can easily put together a system for well under $300 (depending on CPU and memory), but that is for the current-generation Athlon model which is 266MHz and can only take up to a XP 2400+

MSI is supposed to be coming out with a new model RSN (it was supposed to be RSN at Thanksgiving :/ ) which has improved radiotuner/CD/etc. hookup to the PC part of the machine. In the old (orange-ish front) box, supposedly you can't play the radio or use the other front-panel functions when the PC is on -- my source for that is unreliable, however. Also, there is no way to control the LCD from software; it's strictly a part of the music system. I don't know if the new one will address this (or anything else, really).

I don't think I could recommend an XPC any more. Both my roommate and I have one, and I have been finding out the hard way that (at least the SN41G2) they cannot handle more than a single HD. I was going to leave out the floppy and put in a second HD, but plugging a second HD into either IDE1 or IDE2 causes boot failures. And yes, I actually have a clue. I have tried every plug-in order I can think of, and it either won't even begin to boot (if I put HD + CDROM on IDE2) or it BSOD's (if I don't use Shuttle's supplied single-drive cable -- their very own CABLE!!! forget even trying a second drive! -- on IDE1).

What are you running in your rig? I have an SN41G2 that I am running two drives in...

I've run 2 drives in my SN41G2 as well... no problems here.

 

[TSDible]

Here is the link to the new "Zen" by shuttle...

It uses the new ATI 9100-IGP

Looks Promising

Shuttle Zen

 

[Sead0nkey]

Biostar IDEQ 200N has been everything I could ever want. I only wish more shuttle fans would give it a look.

 

[erikistired]

i'm running a shuttle sb51g with a p4 2.8b, 1gig ram, 120gb seagate 7200.7, radeon 9700 np, audigy 2 & dvd/cdrw combo with no heat issues. i'm not o/c'ng at all tho. it's a really nice little machine, runs all my gaming and surfing and cd burning and music and dvd watching just fine.

 

[kursplat]

Biostar IDEQ 200N has been everything I could ever want. I only wish more shuttle fans would give it a look.

ha . just ordered one from newegg. reviews were good and i love hiding the drives behind a cover. using it to replace my htpc thats currently in a home built case .
i just built (nov.03) this soltek QBIC for my wife with a 2.8 and dual 512 muskin memory and it's running perfect.

 

[treachery]

Any opinions on the Abit Digidice?

 

[hkctr]

I picked one of these for about $275. Quiet and runs well. A good compact setup. It will probably make its way to the US soon. As with any Nforce2 IGP, be carefull with memory compatibility especially if you plan to run dual channel. Had problems with Adata PC3200 but Spectek PC2700 and original Samung PC3200 are OK. For the uses you described, an AthlonXP and the onboard video should be just fine. The clear blue case add a bit to the cool factor for those who like this type of thing.

Aopen SilentSea

 

[superflysocal]

kursplat,

i am really leaning towards the qbic 3401 from soltek. Any regrets, or downside? One thing i don't seem to like is only one spdif and it's in the front. also debating between mirror and aluminum front face. In the pictures, i think the mirror one theoretically looks more appealing but i heard the mirror one looks plasticly in real life and scratches easily.

any memery issues?

also, is it as quiet as the reviews claim?

 

[superflysocal]

also,

what's the biggest hard drive partition you can use with this with win xp (without any service pack upgrade)?

 

[superflysocal]

also, do these take single or dual channel memory or either?

 

[SUOrangeman]

http://matrix.sfftech.com/

-SUO

 

[DrAtomic]

Originally posted by: Sead0nkey
Biostar IDEQ 200N has been everything I could ever want. I only wish more shuttle fans would give it a look.

I built an IDEQ 200N for myself and liked the SFF so much I decided to build one for my eldest kid. I went with the Shuttle SN41G2 for him so I could compare the two. IMHO, Biostar is easily the better unit. Lots of reasons, but I don't want to hijack the thread.
Still, he's REALLY happy with his new box and BF1942 runs GREAT on it, even with the on-board graphics.

 

[DrAtomic]

 

[kursplat]

i am really leaning towards the qbic 3401 from soltek. Any regrets, or downside? also debating between mirror and aluminum front face. any memery issues?

no regrets it's worked flawlesly . got the aluminum and am very happy with the way it looks. memory got detected as dual channel just fine. it i can pry my wife away long enough i'll run some sandra bench marks later but based on it sofar , i would buy another no problem.