Antec Solo or P183[?]

sschnee · Post by **sschnee** » Sun May 31, 2009 12:48 pm

I am planning on build a new PC in June. I would like it to be quiet, but also good enough for casual gaming, including Starcraft 2 when it comes out. Most of the time, I'd just be using it for Firefox. I am debating between the Antec Solo, which I like because it is relatively inexpensive for a quiet case, and the P183 because it is well-rated on this website.

I would put a Core i7 or Core 2 Quad processor in it, as well as GTX 260 or GTS 250 video card in it, depending on prices when I make my purchase. I don't mind doing a little case modding to put a GTX 260 in the Antec Solo.

For the Solo, I would probably keep the Antec Tri-Cool exhaust fan on low, and put a couple of 92 mm fans in the front. I like the Scythe brand and Nexus. I would be happy to get suggestions.

For the P183 I would likely keep the two Tri-Cool fans on low, and move the top exhaust fan to the middle front spot for intake, although I could put other case fans in if it's needed for quiet computing.

Mostly, I would like advice as to whether the P183 or Solo would better suit my needs. I also welcome advice for case fans for the case you suggest. Finally, if you suggest the Solo, I'd like a power supply recommendation. For the Antec P183, I would go with the CP-850, because it would fit and I like the idea of it, even though it's way more power than I need for 1 HD and 1 graphics card.

One last thing: If you suggest the Solo, what CPU heatsink would be best? I would probably pick the Scythe Mugen 2 for the P183 if that's the case you suggest. I don't know if it would fit in the Solo.

Thanks,
Steve

hbogaards · Post by **hbogaards** » Thu Jun 04, 2009 6:26 am

Hi Steve,

I don't have any experience with the P183, but I must say that I like the Solo very much.

A couple of months ago I have built a new system for my wife with:

Case: Antec Solo, exhaust fan on low
Power supply: Corsair VX450
Motherboard: Asus M3A78
Processor: Athlon64 X2 5200+
CPU Cooler: Xigmatek S1283
Videocard: nVidia 9600GT passive cooling
HD: Samsung F1 1TB

And now I am jealous of her computer!
And she is complaining that she has to look at the case to see if it is running, cause she can't hear it...

The Solo case is a really nice case to work with. Not very big inside, so I don't know if the CTX 260 of GTS 250 will fit. But I think it will suit your needs.

I'm pretty sure the Scythe Mugen 2 will fit without problems.

Good luck with your build!
--
Hans

Post by **NeilBlanchard** » Thu Jun 04, 2009 8:16 am

Hi,

The Solo is also highly recommended! Unless you are going to have more than 4 hard drives, then the Solo is the best case.

And I would use the Mugen 2 -- check the clearance from the CPU socket to the PSU at the top edge of the motherboard you choose. It should fit, but it would do to check!

RaptorX · Post by **RaptorX** » Thu Jun 04, 2009 12:16 pm

I love my SOLO! I think the components I chose for my rig will be enough for you as well. You can see my rig's presentation here: viewtopic.php?t=53747

If you have any questions feel free to ask!

speedkar9 · Post by **speedkar9** » Thu Jun 04, 2009 5:37 pm

I'd recommend the Solo too, however I'd begin to worry if the Solo can handle heat generating components like an i7 + GTX 260. All that heat is going to be exhausted through the back and through the PSU, causing it to ramp up, where as in a P18x, cooling is much better.

Don't even think about a Tri-cool even on low- it won't give enough air and it would be the biggest source of noise (after the GPU cooler?) in your system.

Airshark · Post by **Airshark** » Thu Jun 04, 2009 11:35 pm

I have a question here: I had heard that the Solo was somewhat limited in space for full-length video cards, including the GTX 260. Is this not the case? Is it easy to mod if I wanted to put in a long video card, maybe even a GTX 295?

Fungi · Post by **Fungi** » Fri Jun 05, 2009 2:06 am

It depends on the card, but for some long cards you can just leave the hard drive space for that slot open.

loimlo · Post by **loimlo** » Fri Jun 05, 2009 4:06 am

Using the dremel to drill the clearance for GTX260 in Solo is the only way if you really want a combination of GTX200 series and Antec Solo. As for leaving the HDD space, it only works for ATi 4870 or 9800GTX=GTS250. True GTX200 Series such as GTX295/285/275/260 are far longer than 4870 or 9600GT. In a nutshell, ATi 4890 is the fastest card for Solo without drilling the case. Btw, 4890 is faster than GTX260.

Airshark · Post by **Airshark** » Tue Jun 09, 2009 1:45 pm

Is there a picture anywhere of this modification done? I have a dremel, and I'm not a newbie at case modding, but if it's extensive, I might just go with a P183.

And if ATI 4890 is faster than GTX 260, great - but what is the noise level like?

loimlo · Post by **loimlo** » Thu Jun 11, 2009 5:37 am

I am afraid that I can't help you in terms of drilling Solo since I don't want to break the case.

Btw, SPCR has reviewed 4890 with stock cooler. In a nutshell, ATi 4890's stock cooler is very quiet at idle but a bit louder under heavy load. I don't think you'd notice the noise when playing pc games anyway.
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article933-page4.html

edan · Post by **edan** » Tue Jun 16, 2009 7:28 pm

Airshark wrote:Is there a picture anywhere of this modification done? I have a dremel, and I'm not a newbie at case modding, but if it's extensive, I might just go with a P183.

And if ATI 4890 is faster than GTX 260, great - but what is the noise level like?

Like loimlo just said, SPCR rated it a lot louder than the 260 they reviewed. What concerns me more is that the SPCR (and other sites) clock the idle power usage much higher. SPCR has 35W vs 78W at idle, and Tom's Hardware had similar higher power consumption. It seems like cooling 35W is going to be a lot easier, no matter what version I get.

I've been debating cards to fit in a small case, and I think the GTX 260 makes the most sense (of almost any card right now unless you're a really hard core gamer). Check out this set of benchmarks, which includes the 4890: /reviews/radeon-hd-4890,2262-8.html on Tom's Hardware..That seems to sum up what I've seen in most of my research--performance beyond the 260 is mostly "meh" and doesn't seem worth the cost or extra power (though with nvidia, it's mostly cost).

And since I'd really rather a GTX 260 than a HD 4890... I'm shying away from the Solo and any hacking.

But I'm in the same boat narrowing down a case. You might want to check out the Silverstone TJ-08--MikeC here just said it was one of his favorite small cases in the new Single Moving Part PC article. The Solo seems very popular here, but it also got a great review on this site, so in some ways it's not surprising. The TJ-08 looks much more open for video cards (Tom's Hardware put dual GTX 260's in SLI in last month), so it seems like a better compromise to me if you want more cooling and flexibility and maybe a little less "quiet." Also, the TJ-08 seems to fit almost any big heatsink, I think I saw it can fit up to 160mm high. (MikeC said "I refer to popular widely-spaced fin heatsink towers such as the Scythe Ninja 2, Thermalright HR-01 Plus, Xigmatek HDT-S1283, or Prolima Megahalems" as fitting in the TJ08)

Have you consider the Mini P180? Since you said Solo or P183, I thought you might want something sized smaller than full size. The Mini P180 seems like even more cooling and flexibility for perhaps more noise and size

I'll probably go with the TJ08, though I'm still waffling

sschnee · Post by **sschnee** » Fri Jun 19, 2009 2:30 pm

As an update, I did build my PC finally.

Antec Sonata Plus 550 (Solo Case with 550 Watt power supply included)
Asus GTS 250 Dark Knight 1G
Nexus 92 mm intake fans (2)
Antec Tri-Cool exhaust fan on low. Quiet enough for me to not want to replace it.
WD Caviar Blue 640 GB hard drive suspended.
Noctua NH-C12P cooler.
Intel Q9400 core 2 quad cpu
My only source of annoying noise is the CD/DVD drive when it spins up.

I'm very happy with the performance and noise so far.

Thank you all for your help in this thread and the others I've started.

Steve

Vaiski · Post by **Vaiski** » Wed Jul 01, 2009 10:53 am

Can you fit 3 suspended drives and 4850 in Solo?

sschnee · Post by **sschnee** » Wed Jul 01, 2009 12:24 pm

Yes to the 3 suspended drives, that is the max the case holds using the suspension system.

I don't know about the 4850. If it fits without case modification then yes. Anyone know about that card?

Steve