What reasons *not* to use Antec solo?

[Alex_42]

Hello; first let me say I love spcr! I found all the advice here immensly useful to build my current system, based on an Antec solo.

I am very happy with the result, and I thought I would use the same case to build another system in a year or so (and pass the previous one to my brother). But I fear I might overlook some of the limitations of that case; mostly in term of size, and thus the size of the graphic card I can fit in (gaming being one of the objectives).

So I would be very interested to know if one of you experienced people thinks that in my case it would make sense to use for example a p182/p183 instead of a solo.


First, the use I want to make of the setup:
- Gaming, but not cutting edge gaming. I'll probably use the gc for at least two years, so I don't want to spend more than say 200$ for a single gc.
- Normal operations (linux), which I spend kind a lot o time on, and I like to be really quiet.


My current setup has a single gc (9800 gtx), and I spent the time and money to by all fans at spcr's recommendation (scythes and noctuas), including for the cpu and gc (with oversized heatsinks), all controlled by manual knobs on the front panel. All of this I found very useful (in particular the manual control, too bad there is no software to do it right for my MB). I also applied dampening, channeled the airflow and have a big underused psu.

The problem with that is that the solo is small. In particular the gc barely fits. This is my main concern: when I bought the 9800 gtx, I was told that most higher end gc would be longer.
- Since those are now the mid-range, is this a generic trend?
- Will it be impossible to fit a mid-range gc in a solo in one year?
- Could a dual gc setup be a good idea for me?
- Is there a general trend of overall higher consumption, making a bigger (better ventilated) case necessary for mid-range gaming in one year? (my current case has only 4 fans: the cpu fan is tasked with blowing the air out of the case, with a bit of airflow shaping).


The thing is, I really hate how all bigger cases have so many holes in them. Even the 182/183 have this fan grid at the top, when the top and front are much more important noisewise. (Also, holes are ugly, while I just love the solo's look). Overall, the only problem that I see with the solo (apart from, maybe, the size) is that it has louder 9cm fans at the front instead of a 12cm one.


That's it, many thanks for reading that far; any help or comment greatly appreciated!

[frenchie]

Hi,

WELCOME TO SPCR

Overall, the only problem that I see with the solo (apart from, maybe, the size) is that it has louder 9cm fans at the front instead of a 12cm one.

Don't foget, you can fit a 120mm fan in the drive bays of the solo. You don't have to use the inside door to mount the fan.

If you want to use dual GPUs, I'm not sure the Solo is the best choice. In my Solo, if I use another GPU with say, an Accelero, the GC+Heatsink assembly will be very close to the bottom of the case, making cooling it a challenge. Maybe it varies from motherboard to motherboard but it would be a tight fit.

[dhanson865]

The problem with that is that the solo is small. In particular the gc barely fits. This is my main concern: when I bought the 9800 gtx, I was told that most higher end gc would be longer.
- Since those are now the mid-range, is this a generic trend?
- Will it be impossible to fit a mid-range gc in a solo in one year?
- Could a dual gc setup be a good idea for me?
- Is there a general trend of overall higher consumption, making a bigger (better ventilated) case necessary for mid-range gaming in one year? (my current case has only 4 fans: the cpu fan is tasked with blowing the air out of the case, with a bit of airflow shaping).

Foo, Longer cards and higher power draw are not a given.

The 9800 GTX is 10.5" and draws ~45W idle and ~110W load.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gef ... 491-7.html shows that an ATI 5770 is a faster card. The second revision shows us

ATI 5770 Rev 2 at 8.25" idles at ~15W and gets to ~60W at load.

ATI 5850 is 9.5" and idles at ~25W and gets to ~130W at load.

I'm not saying these specific cards are perfect. They seem to have driver issues and some games are unstable with the early drivers. I just mention them to show that newer cards don't equal higher power draw.

You can always find a reasonably sized video card to go in that Antec Solo that is good for gaming. Just don't buy casually. Do the research and pick a better card for your situation.

Switching out a 9800 GTX for the 5770 rev 2 would lower your power draw 30-40 watts + the savings on the inefficiency of your power supply. If you sold the 9800 GTX for $100 you'd only be out $50 to upgrade to a better video card.

Now talking about dual graphics cards I'd say this is a waste of time and money unless you plan on spending more money on your video cards than you did on every other component in your PC and plan to buy new video cards every 6 months. If you aren't a professional gamer you don't need two video cards.

New ATI cards can do as many as 6 monitors on one card. I can't see calling a 6 monitor setup as mid range. Even 3 monitors would be above average.

The midrange cards have 4 connectors but can only handle 3 monitors at a time as seen in this video discussing how to hook it up http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYorUpN4PQo

As to other items in the PC you should be making the switch from hard drives to SSDs. Each time you yank a 7200 RPM hard drive out and put a SSD in you are saving ~10 Watts. Oh, and if you replace a 2 drive RAID 0 with a single SSD you are saving >20 watts.

Fans can be slowed down and/or removed if you lower your power consumption enough.

In general I think the power draw of a "mid range" gaming system should go down over time not up.

[MikeC]

dhanson865 -- good advice!

The Solo is still my favorite mid-tower case. The only changes I would make (now) is to eliminate the front-to-backstabilizing bar which makes PSU in/out a pain, and make a single 120mm fan mount for the front. Both are trivial quibbles.

[CA_Steve]

Here's the one other downside I've come across...and perhaps the newer builds have fixed this: Sometimes, the front reset button assembly isn't quite long enough to hit the switch that lies behind it...so, you build your system and the first time you go to hit the reset button it breaks.

That was my first experience with the case. Good news is Antec mailed me a quick replacement front panel. I cut a little tiny square of plastic from the old panel and superglued it to the back of the new one's reset button assembly just to give it an extra 1/8" or so of reach.

Otherwise, it's worked well for a couple of builds.

[SHODAN]

The Solo is still my favorite mid-tower case. The only changes I would make (now) is to eliminate the front-to-backstabilizing bar which makes PSU in/out a pain, and make a single 120mm fan mount for the front. Both are trivial quibbles.

Why change the (2) 92mm to (1) 120mm fan? I thought I read (here) that two 92's would have more airflow at the same noise level than a single 120. Is that incorrect?

[dhanson865]

Why change the (2) 92mm to (1) 120mm fan? I thought I read (here) that two 92's would have more airflow at the same noise level than a single 120. Is that incorrect?

92mm fans are less common now than they were in the past. It's harder to find cheap 92mm fans with low RPMs than it is to find a low RPM 120mm fan.

One example is that Scythe "KAMA FLEX" 92 mm comes in 1600 or 2000 RPM versions but the Scythe KAMA FLEX 120 mm comes in speeds as slow as 1000 RPM. So without a fan controller it's easier and cheaper to buy one 120mm fan than two 92mm fans and try to slow them down.

It's hard to find truly slow or quiet 92mm fans but it isn't hard to find 120mm fans that barely move any air like the 500RPM slipstream or 800 RPM S-Flex.

Case manufacturers are using 120mm, 140mm, 200mm, 230mm fans now. 80mm and 92mm fans haven't disappeared but they have fallen out of favor and will be harder to find at retailers in the future.


Jab-tech listings case fans
80mm case fan = 1
92mm case fan = 1
100mm case fan = 0*
120mm case fan = 2
140mm case fan = 1
200mm case fan = 0
230mm case fan = 0

* I think they used to list these on the 92mm fan page. Unfortunately 100mm fans never got much attention and seem to be tied with the fate of 80 and 92 mm fans.

Oh and if you want to see cases that use the newer fan sizes take a look at one of these

Antec Nine Hundred (stock fans)
1 x 120mm rear fan
2 x 120mm front fans
1 x 200mm top fan
------
optional
1 x 120mm side fan
1 x 120mm middle fan

Antec Three Hundred (stock fans)
1 x 120mm TriCool rear fan
1 x 140mm TriCool top fan
------
optional
2 x 120mm front fans
1 x 120mm side fan

COOLER MASTER HAF 932 (stock fans)
1 x 140mm rear fan
1 x 230mm front fan
1 x 230mm top fan
1 x 230mm side fan
(all the optional fans on this case are 120mm)

I didn't realize until recently how common 140mm fans have become.

[SHODAN]

I see. I was not aware of the degree to which larger fans had replaced smaller ones in general.

Since I already have this case (Solo), and since 92mm fans are still available at this time, assuming the use of a fan controller, PWM header, or volt mod, how do two 92mm fans compare to a single 120mm for noise and airflow?

If I get a new case at some point, should I look for one with fans even larger than 120mm, or is 120mm optimal?

[dhanson865]

I see. I was not aware of the degree to which larger fans had replaced smaller ones in general.

Since I already have this case (Solo), and since 92mm fans are still available at this time, assuming the use of a fan controller, PWM header, or volt mod, how do two 92mm fans compare to a single 120mm for noise and airflow?

If I get a new case at some point, should I look for one with fans even larger than 120mm, or is 120mm optimal?

If you don't mind buying 92mm fans or already have them they are fine to use once you get the RPMs in the right range. What that range is will depend on who is listening to it just as much as what fans are there.

How big of a fan is optimal is more of a cost issue and a will it fit concern than some law of physics. Sure in a perfect world you'd use a large fan at slow RPMs and call it good. This isn't a perfect world.

Some people like short cases to fit under a TV hidden or in plain sight as part of an entertainment system, some people like the PC under a desk, some like it on the desk, some want it to be portable, some don't care how much it weighs. So long as there are as many people and reasons to want different cases there will be a variety of case fans.

You just have to decide if you want silent, insanely quiet, very quiet, mostly quiet, barely quiet, barely noisy, noisy, leaf blower noisy, or jet engine noisy and then decide how that interacts with your choice in shape/size case and your money supply to buy quality components.

Assuming you aren't on the extreme end of things and are in the US you can get quiet fans for $3 a piece or very quiet fans for $8-$12 a piece (before shipping and taxes). What mm those will be will vary over the years but price will be a good clue as to what is common and RPM will vary even if the size doesn't so you can think oh I need the slowest fan in that size, or oh I need the medium speed fan in that size and decide based on that. If you aren't sure if the fan is too slow you check how hot your components are (how hot is too hot varies by component and would be too many to list in any one place).

Don't worry if your case has 92mm fans when the guy down the street has 140mm fans. Replace your case when you have a power button that doesn't work or need USB 3 ports (or USB4 some day), or some other reason. Consider the fan options when you compare your case choices but it isn't an overwhelming factor.

Just decide if your system makes a noise you don't like or if it is good enough and go from there.

[ces]

If you don't mind buying 92mm fans or already have them they are fine to use once you get the RPMs in the right range. What that range is will depend on who is listening to it just as much as what fans are there.

My personal rule of thumb is most 120mm fans are quiet if they run at 800rpm or less.

To extrapolate that rule to different sized fans, see:
viewtopic.php?p=541850#p541850

[GuyClinch]

Fractal Design and Corsair both make cases far better then the solo - I would add some of the Lancool cases to the list..

So reasons include - MUCH better wiring, far better cooling, better setup (things like a bottom mounted power supply), more room to work in and better quality. I am not the first person to notice that Antec has lost its mojo. I don't know if their designers got poached or what but they are not a leading vendor anymore.. And that's in the low end - something high end like a Silverstone FT02 greatly outpeforms anything from Antec.. Now the various vendors might not match everything the Solo has to offer - but I think they offer better mixes.

They were one of the first vendors to pay some attention to building quiet cases - but there are so many better choices now with easier builds that are plenty quiet..

[dhanson865]

Fractal Design and Corsair both make cases far better then the solo - I would add some of the Lancool cases to the list..

So reasons include - MUCH better wiring, far better cooling, better setup (things like a bottom mounted power supply), more room to work in and better quality. I am not the first person to notice that Antec has lost its mojo. I don't know if their designers got poached or what but they are not a leading vendor anymore.. And that's in the low end - something high end like a Silverstone FT02 greatly outperforms anything from Antec.. Now the various vendors might not match everything the Solo has to offer - but I think they offer better mixes.

They were one of the first vendors to pay some attention to building quiet cases - but there are so many better choices now with easier builds that are plenty quiet..

excuse me for being pedantic as English is my first language but:

The thread title is reasons not to use a Antec Solo. To me that means if you were given a Solo and had it laying around why wouldn't you use it? Or what would you complain about as you used it or after you used it?

If another case is better then there are reasons to use the other case instead but they aren't necessarily reasons to not use the Antec Solo.

Giving the language analysis a rest, I'd say there are plenty of cases I'd love to have instead of the original Antec Solo (including the Solo V2), I'd even go as far as to say I wouldn't pay full price for a Solo (V1 or V2) right now knowing there are better cases to choose from.

But I do have a Solo sitting on the floor 5 feet away right now and any thing I don't like about it won't keep me from using it so long as the power button still works. In fact it'd be cheaper for me to buy a new bay device to add USB ports and a power switch than to buy a new case.

As SSDs replace all my rotating disks I'll stop using the front 92mm fans and either use no front fan or hang a 120mm fan in there somehow. I'll probably just be lazy and go to no front fan once the last HD goes away.