Antec Sonata II: A Brief Review

gintasr · Post by **gintasr** » Wed Jun 15, 2005 1:48 pm

I posted a 'review' of the Sonata II on my website. Check it out and feel free to comment or ask questions. here is the link:

http://gintas.net/

sundevil_1997 · Post by **sundevil_1997** » Wed Jun 15, 2005 2:01 pm

From the pics, I don't understand the point of the duct. Is it exhausting air? That would make sense, since it's centered right over the CPU. But if so, then isn't the exhaust duct opening directly over the HSF, which is pulling air down? So you have the air being pulled in two directions? If the duct is an INTAKE, then that means you're losing some of the advantage of your front filter.

Sad to hear that the PSU is your loudest noise source (though that doesn't give a good feel for HOW loud it is...just that it's the loudest). I know someone else here gave a little summary of their experience with the Smart Power 2.0, and they said it was darn quiet. however, I think they also were just bench testing it, not in an actual system.

Thanks for the quick review. Maybe it'll tide me over until SPCR finally gets to it.....

gintasr · Post by **gintasr** » Wed Jun 15, 2005 2:06 pm

The duct to provide cool air directly to the CPU. Its part of Intel's Thermally Advantaged Design. Instead of the air going across the motherboard and the RAM, it gets uncirculated, cool air directly to the hotest components.

The PSU is not THAT loud, but your can definatly hear a difference when you disconnect it from the motherboard.

Overall, I'm impressed with the case and really like it and I cant wait to put some dampening in it and etc.

sundevil_1997 · Post by **sundevil_1997** » Wed Jun 15, 2005 2:43 pm

Ok, an intake duct makes the most sense. I'd have to improvise a filter then. I live in AZ, where dust is the state flower.

So you disconnected the smart power from the motherboard and turned it on (with some PSU tester or some such, I assume) and listened to it, and it's definitely louder when physically connected to the motherboard? Interesting....

gintasr · Post by **gintasr** » Wed Jun 15, 2005 3:51 pm

No PSU tester, just didnt plug in the PSU Fan wire into the motherboard. You can definatly hear the fan, but like I said, its really not that bad, I've dealt with a lot worse before!

w00dy · Post by **w00dy** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 12:50 am

Many Thanks for the review gintasr - really appreciated.

I am swinging towards Sonata 2 for my next build now and away from P180 - I just fail to see how you will be able to get a tidy case with the PSU/ ATX wires stretching all over the place

The Sonata 2 seems to have ironed out the major failings of the original which is good.

wim · Post by **wim** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 2:03 am

gintasr wrote:No PSU tester, just didnt plug in the PSU Fan wire into the motherboard. You can definatly hear the fan, but like I said, its really not that bad, I've dealt with a lot worse before!

??? hang on...
psu fan powered by the motherboard - did you do that?

~El~Jefe~ · Post by **~El~Jefe~** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 4:12 am

LOL yes i thought the same thing. Thats a unique psu fan. shrugs?

Anyways, I do appreciate this review. it actually is better than 80% of case reviews even with no number tests.

That duct confuses me completely. I havent seen anything like that. Just totally miffed. It sounds like a great idea though if you get a silent fan on it thats adequate.

The case looks like my SLK 3700 BQE inside, which, i believe, is better than other SLK's for the same mounting direction as this case, and its open front. I just hope that this new sonata II will have some sort of indirect-ness to its front fan. My next case will be this one, thanx for the info.

gintasr · Post by **gintasr** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 5:30 am

Haha yes, there is a motherboard connector for the PSU fan. Small 2-pin.

The small blue and black wire is for the fan to connect to mobo.

w00dy · Post by **w00dy** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 5:48 am

On the Sonata II is the other side panel removable, like the BQE3700, or is it riveted like the Sonata?

Thanks

gintasr · Post by **gintasr** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 6:13 am

w00dy wrote:On the Sonata II is the other side panel removable, like the BQE3700, or is it riveted like the Sonata?

Thanks

Unfortunatly, its riveted

w00dy · Post by **w00dy** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 6:38 am

That is a shame

the removable side panel on the BQE3700 is quiet useful, particularly for cable management.

gintasr · Post by **gintasr** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 6:40 am

w00dy wrote:That is a shame the removable side panel on the BQE3700 is quiet useful, particularly for cable management.

I totally agree.

w00dy · Post by **w00dy** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 6:56 am

Anyway still prefer the Sonata 2 to the P180

I wonder whether the Sonata 2 is worth getting over my current SLK3700BQE ?

gintasr · Post by **gintasr** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 7:06 am

w00dy wrote:Anyway still prefer the Sonata 2 to the P180

I wonder whether the Sonata 2 is worth getting over my current SLK3700BQE ?

I prefer it over the refridgerator as well. Its basically the same thing as a 3700BQE except shinier

swivelguy2 · Post by **swivelguy2** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 1:55 pm

are you sure the blue and black wire powers the fan, as opposed to simply providing RPM monitoring? many PSUs have a lead coming out of the fan so that the MB can monitor the speed, but the fan is still powered internally. My Seasonic Super Silencer is like this.

sundevil_1997 · Post by **sundevil_1997** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 1:55 pm

gintasr wrote:No PSU tester, just didnt plug in the PSU Fan wire into the motherboard. You can definatly hear the fan, but like I said, its really not that bad, I've dealt with a lot worse before!

I'm not sure the purpose of the fan being plugged into the motherboard except for rpm measuring, which it doesn't sound like it's for.

So the inside fan (that's always on) in the PSU is powered/controlled by the motherboard fan header? Why on EARTH would a power supply use outside power for its own fan? If they did it so that users could moderate the fan themselves....why would they take that kind of a risk?

Am I missing something here?

teknerd · Post by **teknerd** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 2:28 pm

the black and blue wire is simply for rpm monitoring. the blue wire is for rpm, the black is a ground. on a normal fan you will see there is another wire (usually red) in the middle. It is that red wire that actually draws the 12V (or whatever voltage it may be) power for the fan. The Fans in the Antec power supply draw their power from the power supply fan controller. The RPM output from the fan controller is then provided via that black and white lead.

AntecRep · Post by **AntecRep** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 2:40 pm

The blue/black wire should only be reporting RPM, not actually getting signal from the Mobo to control the fan speed.

AntecRep

popupsquad · Post by **popupsquad** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 3:17 pm

Could someone explain the placement of the front fan to me? It seems really odd to have it behind the drive cage rather than in front.

It's hard to tell from the pictures, but if I put 4 HDs in the cage would the front fan be able to draw in any air at all? I'm trying to decide between the Sonata II and the SLK3000-B. I like the idea of the duct on the Sonata II, but the SLK3000-B looks like it'd have a better intake at the front and keep the HDs cooler.

Thanks.

gintasr · Post by **gintasr** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 4:15 pm

Plenty of air gets around the HDD... top and bottom.

you can see the 2 HDD and 2 blank rails.

Here is my try at an illustration of how it works, dont make fun of it!

I tried...

sundevil_1997 · Post by **sundevil_1997** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 4:37 pm

Isn't there an issue though with that fan placement in regards to the filter? I would think filters are only really effective if the intake fan is directly "sealed" to it. Once the side panel goes back on, then it looks like you have a sealed duct from the fan back to the filter in front...except for the gaps above and below the fan. What's keeping air from just circulating counter clockwise from the fan, down to the bottom of the case, towards the front, and then through the fan again?

Filters being restrictive, the air is going to take the easiest route possible. That's why I'd think you'd have to force the fan to be pulling air through the filter.

The P-180 seems like an example where it's ok if the fan isn't directly against the front filter, because there's a (mostly) continuous duct from the filter to the fan. So air can't be siphoned in from inside the case. I don't see that ducting in the Sonata II.

gintasr · Post by **gintasr** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 4:40 pm

The fans will create a negative pressure inside the case. As in most setups you have more exhaust than intake. The negative pressure will draw air into the the case. The less resistance (large intakes) the better.

popupsquad · Post by **popupsquad** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 6:33 pm

Well, I was specifically wondering about 4 HDs because that's how many I have and I was afraid it'd get pretty cramped.

But your drawing helps a lot, I couldn't quite tell where the mounting holes for the fan were and now that you've pointed it out, I can see the slots where air can flow over the top of each HD. So I guess I have nothing to worry about.

Still have no idea how I'm going to make up my mind though

It's either a Sonata II or an SLK3000-B with a Seasonic S12-430w. The Sonata II would be a bit cheaper and it has the duct, but the S12 sounds like it'd be a bit quieter than the Sonata II's PSU.

I'm not sure which case you had before gintasr, but how much do you think the duct improves airflow to both the video card and the CPU?

Thanks again for posting the review

Post by **MikeC** » Thu Jun 16, 2005 8:07 pm

Aside from the better filter placement on the Sonata II, the SLK3000 is a bit better all around, especially if you have many HDDs. And yes, there is the benefit of not being saddled with a PSU, even though the end cost might be a bit higher.

gintasr · Post by **gintasr** » Fri Jun 17, 2005 4:28 am

popupsquad wrote: I'm not sure which case you had before gintasr, but how much do you think the duct improves airflow to both the video card and the CPU?

My previous case was an Antec TX640B:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6811129157

It was a nice case but those darn side intakes let so much noise escape.

As far as the duct goes, I havnt tried to use the system without it in place. I will try it over the weekend or when more time permits. One problem ive noticed is that with the XP-120 and SilenX 120mm fan, the duct sits right on top of the HSF - not how Antec recomends it... 20mm away.

I will try to remove the duct and post some temps.

Mike_Metro · Post by **Mike_Metro** » Fri Jun 17, 2005 5:19 am

gintasr,
Thanks for all the great info and pics. How is the 270 degree door mechanism on the Sonata II?

Popupsquad wrote:Still have no idea how I'm going to make up my mind though It's either a Sonata II or an SLK3000-B with a Seasonic S12-430w. The Sonata II would be a bit cheaper and it has the duct, but the S12 sounds like it'd be a bit quieter than the Sonata II's PSU.

I am trying to make the same decision. Here's my scorecard so far. It's still in progress.

Sonata II
Slightly Cheaper (Maybe I'll sell the the power supply on ebay and buy a S12)
Smaller
No Side vents (Can place the case flush against desk on either side)
Front fan Placement
Looks Better
Front USB, Firewire, and Audio

SLK3000-B w/Seasonic S12-430w
Much Better Power Supply
Better Cable Management
More Drive Space
MikeC said it's better

Neither of these lists are based on any first hand experience with either of these cases. Just my observations.

gintasr · Post by **gintasr** » Fri Jun 17, 2005 5:57 am

Here what i got with playing around with the ducting. With the ducting my CPU load (load being 10 minutes of Flight Simulator 2004 at max settings) my cpu temp was 40C. WithOUT the ducting, the cpu temp is 37C at load. So as far as the ducting goes.... settle without it. Two problems ive noticed with it thus far...

1) when the duct is positioned over the heatsink/fan... the duct doesnt go hight enough to provide a space between the duct and the fan (this being true with a XP-120 HSF and SinenX 120mm fan combination). Antec recomends a 20mm gap between the two.. obviously that wasnt possible.

2) the duct is so large that it makes the rear 120mm fan useless. The rear fan cannot scoop up enough air from the front intakes and lead it through to the back. That 20mm gap between HSF and duct would help the problem.

In conclusion.. unless you have a smaller heatsink.. dont use the duct

-or-

dont use a fan on the heatsink and instead attach a 92mm fan into the duct itself.

I prefer... no duct.

gintasr · Post by **gintasr** » Fri Jun 17, 2005 6:37 am

Mike_Metro wrote: Thanks for all the great info and pics. How is the 270 degree door mechanism on the Sonata II?

Sorry, forgot to include that in my last reply. The door is on a double hindge. It opens up 180 then to 270 effortlessly. You do not have to press any part or it or anything (like i hear about the p180). The hindges are plastic however... so dont kick the door!

Mike_Metro · Post by **Mike_Metro** » Fri Jun 17, 2005 9:19 am

gintasr wrote:
Mike_Metro wrote: Thanks for all the great info and pics. How is the 270 degree door mechanism on the Sonata II?
Sorry, forgot to include that in my last reply. The door is on a double hindge. It opens up 180 then to 270 effortlessly. You do not have to press any part or it or anything (like i hear about the p180). The hindges are plastic however... so dont kick the door!

Sounds good. I was worried after I heard about the P180. Thanks.

gintasr wrote:2) the duct is so large that it makes the rear 120mm fan useless. The rear fan cannot scoop up enough air from the front intakes and lead it through to the back. That 20mm gap between HSF and duct would help the problem.

Do you think this would still be an issue when using an XP-90?

Now that you've been using the case for a while, would you buy this case again? Do you like this case better your Antec TX640B?

Antec Sonata II: A Brief Review

Antec Sonata II: A Brief Review

Re: Antec Sonata II: A Brief Review