SPCR

I'm planning to build a new system with these components:
cpu Intel core i5 750 (I'm in doubt if an i7 860 may be better)
case antec solo
video sapphire 5770 vapor-x
hd 1 WD blue 320 or 500MB
hd 2 WD 1 TB green EARS in raid 1 (may go to 1,5TB)
motherboard Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD3P
PSU Cooler Master Silent+ 600W
RAM 2x2GB DIMM 1600 (any recommendations?)

Any comments or suggestions?
Thank in advance

Where is your SSD?

ces wrote:Where is your SSD?

too expensive or unavailable yet on my country. I'll start with a HD and replace it later.

It looks pretty solid, and should be all you need, 600W is a lot, but then again, finding something lower power and modular is near impossible.

I'm partial to G-Skill RAM, but Corsair is also good. Generic brands I don't really see much in, I've also never been one for Kingston, but I've never really heard anything bad about them.

Sounds solid overall though, Solo is a good choice too.

adobni wrote:PSU Cooler Master Silent+ 600W
(any recommendations?)

A 600 watt coolermaster PSU with the word "silent" in its name is what drove me to this site.

What makes you think this this PSU is not noisy?

Two PSU's I'm looking at now are the
1) Antec Basiq 550
2) Enermax Liberty ELT400AWT-ECO 400W
These are two of the least-expensive modular, low-powered (for modular), 80+ compliant PSU's available that also have high-current 12V rails. I didn't think modular mattered until I had a really small case! That may not be an issue with your Solo.

Note: Newegg doesn't say the Antec is 80+ compliant, but it is (pdf).

Jay_S wrote:Two PSU's I'm looking at now are the
1) Antec Basiq 550
2) Enermax Liberty ELT400AWT-ECO 400W
These are two of the least-expensive modular, low-powered (for modular), 80+ compliant PSU's available that also have high-current 12V rails. I didn't think modular mattered until I had a really small case! That may not be an issue with your Solo. but it is (pdf).

Get the x650 Seasonic recommended by SPCR. It is FULLY modular. each and every cable is separately selectable.

it is difficult to recommend any hardware without knowing what your intended useage is... overclocking, gaming, avchd video editing, internet only, etc.

ces wrote:

adobni wrote:PSU Cooler Master Silent+ 600W
(any recommendations?)

A 600 watt coolermaster PSU with the word "silent" in its name is what drove me to this site.

What makes you think this this PSU is not noisy?

it was the word silent and the Cooler Master brand is available here. I searched for some reviews that seemed good enough. I can't find many silent PSU around here in my country.
You seem to had a very bad experience with the same or a similar model, right?

adobni wrote:

ces wrote:

adobni wrote:PSU Cooler Master Silent+ 600W
(any recommendations?)

A 600 watt coolermaster PSU with the word "silent" in its name is what drove me to this site.

What makes you think this this PSU is not noisy?

it was the word silent and the Cooler Master brand is available here. I searched for some reviews that seemed good enough. I can't find many silent PSU around here in my country.
You seem to had a very bad experience with the same or a similar model, right?

I don't remember the model.

PSUs a are common source of noise. If you can, you should attempt to stick to models that have been reviewed by SPCR.

danimal wrote:it is difficult to recommend any hardware without knowing what your intended useage is... overclocking, gaming, avchd video editing, internet only, etc.

I don't intended to overclock, at least its not in my plans. I prefer stability but I still want a fast system, I don't want to wait if I have many open applications. I'll use it as server for some services, storage (photos, videos, personal files). Need space for those files.
Some gaming but I don't expect to use the latest games. The last games I used are old or open source.
Some video encoding/converting and probably including avchd when I buy a new camera.
I may use one or more virtual machines to use different operating systems.
I very probably do some programming in Java which means heavy development enviroments.
I want a PC that doesn't make noise. My current very old setup sounds like a saw. It would be nice if one could sleep in the same room with it. I would like openings to be filtered for dust. And it would be good well designed insides to make it easy to maintain. My current case is a pain for changing things (10+ years old).
It will run 7x24 (like my current system).
I haven't decided on operating system yet.
Two monitors are possible in the future.
I want a system that wont let me down in performance for some years.

bonestonne wrote:It looks pretty solid, and should be all you need, 600W is a lot, but then again, finding something lower power and modular is near impossible. Modular seems the way to go.

I'm partial to G-Skill RAM, but Corsair is also good. Generic brands I don't really see much in, I've also never been one for Kingston, but I've never really heard anything bad about them.

Sounds solid overall though, Solo is a good choice too.

I used a power calculator a few month ago -don't remember the link- that gave me around 500W. I added somewhat to compensate for efficiency of the PSU and to have a safety margin.

Most 4GB DDR3 kits I found -many are G-Skill- are 1.65V for 1600Mhz. I read that 1.5V runs cooler but I only found 1333Mhz kits. I'm also trying to get kits with CAS <8. I don't know if an 1.65V kit could run at 1.5V without problems.

ces wrote:

Jay_S wrote:Two PSU's I'm looking at now are the
1) Antec Basiq 550
2) Enermax Liberty ELT400AWT-ECO 400W
These are two of the least-expensive modular, low-powered (for modular), 80+ compliant PSU's available that also have high-current 12V rails. I didn't think modular mattered until I had a really small case! That may not be an issue with your Solo. but it is (pdf).

Get the x650 Seasonic recommended by SPCR. It is FULLY modular. each and every cable is separately selectable.

Can't find the Seasonic products in the local market. It would be great to have more options.

adobni wrote:

ces wrote:

Jay_S wrote:Two PSU's I'm looking at now are the
1) Antec Basiq 550
2) Enermax Liberty ELT400AWT-ECO 400W
These are two of the least-expensive modular, low-powered (for modular), 80+ compliant PSU's available that also have high-current 12V rails. I didn't think modular mattered until I had a really small case! That may not be an issue with your Solo. but it is (pdf).

Get the x650 Seasonic recommended by SPCR. It is FULLY modular. each and every cable is separately selectable.

Can't find the Seasonic products in the local market. It would be great to have more options.

I would trust the Antec and Enermax brands before Coolermaster.

I seem to remember from somewhere that Antec Basiq is good. The Enermax Modu82 is good. To the extent the ELT400AWT-ECO uses the same fan and fan controller, it should be quiet. The fan looks similar.

Coolermaster makes some nice products, but the PSU I got was really bad. It was so bad I thought that it was defective, so I returned to coolermaster for a replacement. The replacement was no different than the original. I just don't think coolermaster is best known for their PSUs.

Most 4GB DDR3 kits I found -many are G-Skill- are 1.65V for 1600Mhz. I read that 1.5V runs cooler but I only found 1333Mhz kits. I'm also trying to get kits with CAS <8. I don't know if an 1.65V kit could run at 1.5V without problems.

G.Skill makes an ECO (ecological) series with good performance that runs at 1.35V if your motherboard supports it. Here is a listing at Newegg for 4 x 2GB modules. I've been using this memory at 1600MHz for almost 6 months, without any problems. Default timing is 8-8-8-24-2N.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6820231328[/quote]

depending on what editing software you are using, the avchd editing could be the most cpu-intensive application you have, because not all software is capable of offloading the decoding to the gpu... overclocking would be an advantage there.

windows 7 would probably work fine, running on a cpu that is capable of virtualization... i've had very good results with the free wmware player on win7, you should be able to run anything with it.

i would discourage the use of the solo cases, especially in a 24/7 operation, in part because the dust filter in front is hidden behind a fixed panel that requires you to remove the side of the case in order to pull the front panel off... it's an incredibly stupid design, and the filters are for 92mm fans, which really limits your fan options.

danimal wrote: i would discourage the use of the solo cases, especially in a 24/7 operation, in part because the dust filter in front is hidden behind a fixed panel that requires you to remove the side of the case in order to pull the front panel off... it's an incredibly stupid design, and the filters are for 92mm fans, which really limits your fan options.

what alternative do you see as viable?

adobni wrote:

danimal wrote: i would discourage the use of the solo cases, especially in a 24/7 operation, in part because the dust filter in front is hidden behind a fixed panel that requires you to remove the side of the case in order to pull the front panel off... it's an incredibly stupid design, and the filters are for 92mm fans, which really limits your fan options.

what alternative do you see as viable?

The filter access is hardly a problem - two thumbscrews to remove the side panel, open the front panel - there are the filters. The whole process takes about 30 seconds.

The 92mm fan is much more problematic - it's hard to find good quiet 92mm fans, and the Noctua NF-B9 that I've got in my Solo is quite noisy at full speed (around 1800RPM). At anything below about 900RPM with my fan controller it's almost inaudible. If you can get the Nexus Real Silent 92mm in your country it's supposed to be quieter than the Noctua, but you would still want to undervolt it.

I've heard some whispers that the Solo is going to be updated soon - lets hope they go for a 120mm front fan. And if they improve the filter access that would be good - but it's not a deal-killer if they don't, IMO.

Cheers!

outbackyak wrote: I've heard some whispers that the Solo is going to be updated soon - lets hope they go for a 120mm front fan. And if they improve the filter access that would be good - but it's not a deal-killer if they don't, IMO.

It would be cool but what alternatives to Solo are there now? I've read that the CM 690 II (not really a silent case) has all its vents filtered but don't know about noise.

adobni wrote:

outbackyak wrote: I've heard some whispers that the Solo is going to be updated soon - lets hope they go for a 120mm front fan. And if they improve the filter access that would be good - but it's not a deal-killer if they don't, IMO.

It would be cool but what alternatives to Solo are there now? I've read that the CM 690 II (not really a silent case) has all its vents filtered but don't know about noise.

1. You can retrofit FilterRight filters into most cases. So you don't have to limit yourself to the stock filter configurations when deciding on a case.

They are so easy to clean, once you use them you can't go back to those PITA standard filters - which even when they are accessible, are a pain to clean anyway.

2. The Lian Li a05 is an alternative to the Solo. And it is better in so many ways.

outbackyak wrote:The filter access is hardly a problem - two thumbscrews to remove the side panel, open the front panel - there are the filters. The whole process takes about 30 seconds.

that would depend on how accessible the case was to begin with.

even if it was on top of the desk, who wants to spend 30 or more seconds tearing it apart, only to find out that the filters weren't clogged up enough to warrant cleaning? or that they were totally clogged up, and should have been cleaned a month ago?

don't the case screws go into sheet metal? how long before the holes get elongated from overuse? why build a pc with a power supply on top, that sucks hot air into the cool air intake? etc.

i'm not up on mid-size cases, but i know from personal experience that while this case is solidly built, it's not a good foundation for a performance build.

danimal wrote:
don't the case screws go into sheet metal? how long before the holes get elongated from overuse? why build a pc with a power supply on top, that sucks hot air into the cool air intake? etc.

If can use the Filterright filters (don't know how that works in this setup) they are easy to clean without removal and if you insist on removal, they have their own screws so that you can remove the front part of the filter without removing the filter itself.

outbackyak wrote: I've heard some whispers that the Solo is going to be updated soon - lets hope they go for a 120mm front fan. And if they improve the filter access that would be good - but it's not a deal-killer if they don't, IMO.

Is the Antec Proto http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product.php?id=MjM3Ng== the update of the Antec Solo case?

ces wrote:If can use the Filterright filters (don't know how that works in this setup) they are easy to clean without removal and if you insist on removal, they have their own screws so that you can remove the front part of the filter without removing the filter itself.

cleaning isn't the problem, i can run a vacuum cleaner across the filter, it doesn't need to be removed.

the problem is that without a door, you can't even inspect the filter... the pronto looks like it doesn't have a door, and the power supply is still in the wrong place, so i'm not seeing the improvements?

adobni wrote:Is the Antec Proto http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product.php?id=MjM3Ng== the update of the Antec Solo case?

I don't think so - it doesn't have the HD suspension system of the Solo, the HD silicone grommets, the cable management panel, or the dual layer panels. It's also much smaller. Looks more like a smaller and cheaper alternative to the Sonata Elite.

I'm guessing that when they update the Solo they will can the current Solo altogether.

Cheers!

outbackyak wrote:

adobni wrote:Is the Antec Proto http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product.php?id=MjM3Ng== the update of the Antec Solo case?

I don't think so - it doesn't have the HD suspension system of the Solo, the HD silicone grommets, the cable management panel, or the dual layer panels. It's also much smaller. Looks more like a smaller and cheaper alternative to the Sonata Elite.

I'm guessing that when they update the Solo they will can the current Solo altogether.

Cheers!

I want to buy a new case and they are going to update it the day after!