Would you like a 5cm longer Solo?

Tzupy · Post by **Tzupy** » Sat Nov 11, 2006 5:13 am

The P150 is too short to accomodate a 8800 GTX, or a shorter graphics card with a HDD installed at the same height.
It wouldn't cost a lot more to build a 5 cm longer (front to back ~52 cm instead of ~47 cm) Solo, and call it the Solo XL.
I would definitely buy it! If the poll will show many people would like it, I'll ask the Antec Rep to submit the matter to Antec's management.

nick705 · Post by **nick705** » Sat Nov 11, 2006 6:47 am

Yes, absolutely. I've just found that although it will physically fit, even a 7900GTO can be a pain in the arse in the P150/Solo, at least if you have more than two hard drives (and even worse I imagine with an SLI configuration).

I think you might be underestimating retooling costs a wee bit though...

RAFH · Post by **RAFH** » Sat Nov 11, 2006 12:06 pm

I voted for the more than 5 cm. The way things are going, video cards will continue to get longer with more cables to them. So, I am not advocating 10 cm but perhaps 7. But 5 would be a step in the right direction.

nici · Post by **nici** » Sat Nov 11, 2006 1:38 pm

I would just remove the HDD tray or something..

josephclemente · Post by **josephclemente** » Sat Nov 11, 2006 2:51 pm

I voted "no." In fact, I'd like a 5cm shorter Solo...

orihara · Post by **orihara** » Sat Nov 11, 2006 5:53 pm

I had no real problems with having my vid card and HDD installed at the same height. Have to slide the HDD out a bit to get the cables on, but they fit fine. And the PCIe power cable is sticking towards the front of the case.

nightmorph · Post by **nightmorph** » Sat Nov 11, 2006 9:55 pm

I vote no. The Solo is already too long as it is.

nutball · Post by **nutball** » Sun Nov 12, 2006 12:04 am

How about we vote for an 8800GTX which is 5cm shorter? It's NVIDIA who are at fault here, not Antec.

Tzupy · Post by **Tzupy** » Sun Nov 12, 2006 4:10 am

Even if you (and I too) don't like it, the graphics cards are getting not only power-hungrier, but also longer.
The R600 prototype is rumored to be 30 cm long, probably because of the 512-bit memory interface, and ATI is working to reduce that to 27 cm.
While for people that have 7600 kind of cards the shortness of the P150 / Solo is not a problem, for the high-end cards more space will be needed.

Post by **Ralf Hutter** » Sun Nov 12, 2006 7:36 am

josephclemente wrote:I voted "no." In fact, I'd like a 5cm shorter Solo...

What he said.

nutball · Post by **nutball** » Sun Nov 12, 2006 9:51 am

Tzupy wrote:Even if you (and I too) don't like it, the graphics cards are getting not only power-hungrier, but also longer.

Right, all of which are silly! The most effective way for we consumers to express our distaste at this trend is to not buy their products.

Are you suggesting that it's in any way sane that a graphics card upgrade should require the purchase of:

- a new graphics card
- a larger case
- a higher-rated and more expensive power supply

???

NVIDIA and ATI appear to think that this is entirely reasonable. Personally, my definition of "entirely reasonable" is that they continue to think again, and when they come up with something sensible I'll buy it. I don't see why my choices should be dictated by the e-peen-size-angst of 15-year-olds.

Why would you think that an extra 5cm is a solution which is in any way long-lived anyway? There'll be a new graphics card along in six months, and by your argument it will be (completely reasonably) yet another 5cm longer and yet another 50W more power-sucky. So you'll have to buy a Solo III: Extended Length Edition.

Where is this going to end? Should I think about buying a larger house?

It's silly, and the only real solution is for NVIDIA and ATI to Get Real(TM).

nick705 · Post by **nick705** » Sun Nov 12, 2006 10:45 am

nutball wrote:I don't see why my choices should be dictated by the e-peen-size-angst of 15-year-olds.

I'm 38 years old and have a truly enormous penis, so no deficiency there to be compensated by a supersized graphics card. I still think the Solo is just a little bit too cramped for comfort for a "full-sized" midi tower, and I really don't think I'd miss the 5x20cm patch of floor space if it were made that bit longer.

I suppose it all just shows you can't please all the people all the time...

jaganath · Post by **jaganath** » Sun Nov 12, 2006 11:30 am

I'm 38 years old and have a truly enormous penis

Question: how do you know it's enormous? have you been conducting surveys at urinals?

Seriously though, if one were going to build some heinously powerful gaming rig, with supersize GFX cards, wouldn't they choose the P180 instead? The P150/Solo is simply not meant for that kind of thing.

Tzupy · Post by **Tzupy** » Sun Nov 12, 2006 12:49 pm

@nutball: it's Antec's problem, because I could buy another case tomorrow, longer than the P150.
I can't buy something else than nVidia 8800 right now (or ATI R600 in a couple of months) if I want to experiment with the new architecture.
I happen to like the qualities of the P150, except this shortness. And the stealth covers that break, but that's another story.
Asking for a Solo XL - which is by no means to replace the standard Solo - is not a matter of e-penis.
As a graphics programmer (aged 40 not 15), I want / need to have access to the latest hardware.
Which may include long cards and maybe EATX motherboards. Why wouldn't Antec make a Solo XL for quiet workstations?

jaganath · Post by **jaganath** » Sun Nov 12, 2006 2:10 pm

Why wouldn't Antec make a Solo XL for quiet workstations?

It's simple economics: Antec will make a Solo XL if it is profitable for them to do so; this means the demand must be sufficiently large, and the costs of retooling not prohibitive. I have doubts that the demand for a Solo XL will be sufficient to justify the cost, but ultimately it is up to Antec.

Tzupy · Post by **Tzupy** » Sun Nov 12, 2006 2:32 pm

I doubt any retooling would be necessary. There are so many Antec cases on the market that another one wouldn't be a problem.
Just the top, bottom and sides would have to be longer - no fancy new structures.
For those that posted that they want a SHORTER P150 / Solo:
Such a case couldn't accomodate a standard ATX motherboard, since the HDD cage would reach at least 3.5 cm over the motherboard,
making impossible the installation of memory and plugging of the PSU 24-pin connector.

nick705 · Post by **nick705** » Sun Nov 12, 2006 3:18 pm

jaganath wrote:I have doubts that the demand for a Solo XL will be sufficient to justify the cost, but ultimately it is up to Antec.

I think it might well be on their agenda - look at the length of the forthcoming P190 in relation to the P180, presumably to cater more comfortably for 8800GTX cards and the like.

At the end of the day it's rather irrelevant whose "fault" it is that the new breed of long graphics cards don't play nicely with the P150/Solo - if Antec don't adapt there's plenty of other case manufacturers who'll be only too happy to snap up their lost sales...

mbetea · Post by **mbetea** » Sun Nov 12, 2006 3:59 pm

Right, all of which are silly! The most effective way for we consumers to express our distaste at this trend is to not buy their products.

WHAT?!!! And not have the latest and greatest the moment it comes out even though I might not need it!!???!!! That's just crazy!!!! Gotta get those 3dmark scores and higher fps, omgrofl!!!11

@nutball: it's Antec's problem, because I could buy another case tomorrow, longer than the P150.

You could buy another Antec case too that fits whatever video card you want nicely. Each case has limitations, I would think it would be up for the consumer to decide their own needs and purchase accordingly. If I'm one that needs or wants the latest and greatest, I would pass on the compact mid tower and go with a full tower. Should they make the Sonata bigger (don't know or care if it fits) or the NSK3300. Or their Fusion or Overture cases.

No, that's why I believe they make different lines of cases. So they have an available solution that meets most people's needs.

panda-R · Post by **panda-R** » Sun Nov 12, 2006 8:52 pm

i think the length is fine.. but what could be more useful is a seperate PSU chamber ala P180 and maybe 120mm fan in front to get better positive case pressure!

gb115b · Post by **gb115b** » Mon Nov 13, 2006 4:54 am

actually, can't we just campaign for nvidia to release normal sized graphics cards....

havign said that my x1950xtx was a tight squeeze too (but it fit!)

Tzupy · Post by **Tzupy** » Mon Nov 13, 2006 5:37 am

The problem is NOT with nVidia or ATI. They are trying to make the cards as short as possible, for manufacturing cost reasons.
The 8800 GTX uses a 384-bit memory interface, and this is the main culprit for the extra large size.
The refresh of the G80 will probably use a 512-bit memory interface, and so will the R600. Card length is at best going to stay the same.
Maybe if the memory chips were 64-bit instead of 32-bit then length could be reduced, but I'm not sure.

nick705 · Post by **nick705** » Mon Nov 13, 2006 6:31 am

mbetea wrote:
Right, all of which are silly! The most effective way for we consumers to express our distaste at this trend is to not buy their products.
WHAT?!!! And not have the latest and greatest the moment it comes out even though I might not need it!!???!!! That's just crazy!!!! Gotta get those 3dmark scores and higher fps, omgrofl!!!11

Or rather more sensibly, to be able to play Oblivion at 1920x1200 with all the eye candy enabled at decent framerates.

I'm not really a gamer, and a nice compact passive 7600GT would be more than enough for my personal use, but I do recognise that other people have different requirements, so why shouldn't Antec or anyone else for that matter cater for those needs (and retain those sales)?

jaganath wrote:Seriously though, if one were going to build some heinously powerful gaming rig, with supersize GFX cards, wouldn't they choose the P180 instead? The P150/Solo is simply not meant for that kind of thing.

Well, the P150/Solo has certain unique features which presumably make people (gamers included) want to buy it in the first place, so just saying "get a different case if you want to play the latest games" seems a little unreasonable, given that it would only take a small modification to sort things out.

The current P180 isn't exactly over-endowed length-wise either, incidentally, unlike myself...

Tzupy wrote:The problem is NOT with nVidia or ATI. They are trying to make the cards as short as possible, for manufacturing cost reasons.

Yes, I'm a bit puzzled by the nVidia and ATI bashing going on here - I very much doubt they sat down and deliberately decided to make their high-end cards unnecessarily large, purely to piss off SPCR members...

jaganath · Post by **jaganath** » Mon Nov 13, 2006 7:17 am

Yes, I'm a bit puzzled by the nVidia and ATI bashing going on here - I very much doubt they sat down and deliberately decided to make their high-end cards unnecessarily large, purely to piss off SPCR members...

I think the annoyance stems from a perceived disregard for how graphics card form factors and power requirements might impact on consumers; with the spiralling power consumption and increasing size of top-end graphics cards, nVidia and ATI are basically saying "We don't care if you have to buy a new power supply or case to use our latest cards, this is how they are and you can like it or p1ss off".

NB. This situation doesn't impact on at me at all, because I don't even use a discrete graphics card, but that is how the situation looks to me as a spectator.

Mike_P · Post by **Mike_P** » Tue Nov 14, 2006 5:35 am

this is stupid. If you can afford a $650+ video card you can buy a $100 case

otherwise get the GTS

Derek Baker · Post by **Derek Baker** » Tue Nov 14, 2006 5:48 am

Does this restriction also apply to the SLK3700AMB?

Thanks

nick705 · Post by **nick705** » Tue Nov 14, 2006 6:22 am

jaganath wrote:...nVidia and ATI are basically saying "We don't care if you have to buy a new power supply or case to use our latest cards, this is how they are and you can like it or p1ss off".

I'm not sure that's strictly fair - IIRC, ATI's original R600 prototypes were over 30cm in length, and they've had to go to some effort to get them even as short as the nVidia competition. It's not really in their interest any more than it's in Antec's to risk losing sales because of physical incompatibilities with potential customers' existing equipment. Also, the early reports indicate that the cards' stock coolers are all decently quiet, so they're obviously listening to their customers at least from that point of view...

Mike_P wrote: this is stupid. If you can afford a $650+ video card you can buy a $100 case

Yes you probably can. So what?

Jiggs · Post by **Jiggs** » Wed Nov 29, 2006 3:00 pm

:( DAMN

been looking for the right case for ages now. finally, sorta, decided on the p150 (size (i want a smallish case), silence, style). will be buying all the parts early next year, and was probably going to get the 8800GTX.
now i have to restart my case finding!

is it 100% confirmed it wont fit? is there anything at all that can be done to make it fit?

the GTS does fit though, yes?

vincentfox · Post by **vincentfox** » Wed Dec 06, 2006 8:54 pm

DISAGREE.

The Solo is already a bit deeper than most other cases I measured. It's just barely short enough to fit on the shelf in my living room I have for it, if it was even a little deeper I wouldn't have bought it.

This is a case for people building medium-sized PC's.

If you have a monster video card, get a full-sized case.

Jiggs · Post by **Jiggs** » Sun Dec 10, 2006 7:35 am

well, it wouldnt replace the exisitng SOLO.
You'd still have your short one.

And it is not true that monster card equals monster case. Shuttle is making a SFF case to fit 1 (maybe 2?) 8800GTXs.

I would like a nice medium sized case as i hate those huge massive ones. But i don't want to have to lose out on what i can buy now or in the future.
And i also disagree that the SOLO is deeper than most mid sized cases. In fact i would say its one of the shorter cases out there. Its 47cm. You wont find a Lian Li shorter than 49cm for example with similar dimension overall.

Jiggs · Post by **Jiggs** » Thu Dec 14, 2006 6:27 pm

http://www.hardforum.com/showpost.php?p ... tcount=235

this shows it doesn't take much to make it fit.
a small and easy dremel mod.

so SOLO/p150 owners can get an 8800GTX in if they really want to.
ill probably be doing this quite soon

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Would you like a 5cm longer Solo?