Why is Sonata more expensive than SLK3700BQE?

JC · Post by JC » Fri Oct 31, 2003 9:59 pm

The only difference I can see is some audio and Firewire ports on the Sonata.

Am I missing something here? Is the Sonata better quality construction perhaps?

Or is this just a marketing/price point thing?

chylld · Post by **chylld** » Fri Oct 31, 2003 10:17 pm

IMO it's mainly a marketing thing. The sonata is marketed as their "Lifestyle" case whereas the 3700bqe is marketed as one of their "Solution" (i.e. cheap) cases.

Also the Sonata has a glossier finish.. and it has drive rail holder things behind each 5 1/4" panel.

MechanicalMan · Post by **MechanicalMan** » Fri Oct 31, 2003 10:52 pm

The Sonata also has a better PSU.

Post by **Ralf Hutter** » Sat Nov 01, 2003 5:54 am

It might also have something to do with the fact that the Sonata case is a one-off design and is also made of thicker steel (more steel = more expensive

)than the 3700 series.

The BQE is nothing but a slight redesign of the existing 3700AMB which is built on a common OEM chassis.

From what I can tell, the Sonata was purpose designed by Antec and is made solely for them. That alone probably means they incurred additional design/R&D and die setup charges that they didn't have with the "off the shelf" sourced 3700 series.

Tom Brown · Post by **Tom Brown** » Sat Nov 01, 2003 7:47 am

Perhaps the biggest problem with the Sonata is that it looks so good that you will want to populate it with the best parts.

I used to try to live on the sweet spot of the value curve.

Syphon869 · Post by **Syphon869** » Sat Nov 01, 2003 8:53 am

Sonata = one of their flagships

3700BQE = Half-Breed

Tom Brown · Post by **Tom Brown** » Sat Nov 01, 2003 4:57 pm

Half-breed? That's pretty harsh, Syphon. LOL!

I would suggest that the similarities between the Sonata and 3700BQE vastly out number the differences. In fact, I think it would be fair to recommend the Sonata to those who like a high lustre finish and recommend the BQE to those who prefer a more course finished case. The high lustre does show the dust.

-- Tom

SomeGuy15 · Post by **SomeGuy15** » Tue Dec 09, 2003 7:12 pm

MechanicalMan wrote:The Sonata also has a better PSU.

Is the Sonata PSU significantly quieter than the 3700BQE PSU?

Post by **Ralf Hutter** » Wed Dec 10, 2003 6:23 am

SomeGuy15 wrote:
MechanicalMan wrote:The Sonata also has a better PSU.
Is the Sonata PSU significantly quieter than the 3700BQE PSU?

It's certainly not "significantly" quieter, it's a little quieter but it also has the voltage controlled "fan only" connectors and it's rails are more well regulated than the BQE's PSU.

davidstone28 · Post by **davidstone28** » Wed Dec 10, 2003 9:06 am

As well as having a more expensive better quality PSU, its probably slightly more expensive to manufacture the Sonata that the 3700BQE - additional tooling for drilling the Sonata logo into the side of the case, putting on the overated allegedly 'piano black' finish blah blah blah.

SomeGuy15 · Post by **SomeGuy15** » Wed Dec 10, 2003 5:25 pm

I have an Antec SX630-II and the SmartPower 300W PSU and it's quite noisy. I was thinking of replacing it with either the Zalman 300W APF PSU or Antec TruePower 330W but was wondering how much of a difference I would hear.

Of course the 80mm Antec fan that came with the case sound like a hurricane so that has been disconnected. I'm waiting for a 12dB Papst fan to arrive! Hopefully that'll move enough air through the case.

Geez, silencing this computer is becoming an obsession. Zalman 7000AlCu CPU fan, Zalman passive Northbridge cooler, Zalman HDD Cooler/isolator, Seagate 7200.7 80GB SATA, Antec Noise Killers, Pyrotek SoundSorber acoustic dampener, Papst fan...... when will it stop?!

Post by **Ralf Hutter** » Thu Dec 11, 2003 5:52 am

SomeGuy15 wrote:I have an Antec SX630-II and the SmartPower 300W PSU and it's quite noisy. I was thinking of replacing it with either the Zalman 300W APF PSU or Antec TruePower 330W but was wondering how much of a difference I would hear.

You'd hear a little difference with the TruePower and a lot of difference with the Zalman. I wouldn't waste your money with the TruePower, it's a high quality PSU but it's not a whole lot quieter than what you already have.

Schlotkins · Post by **Schlotkins** » Sat Dec 13, 2003 8:58 am

I see there's two 3700's... Is one significantly different than the other? The BQE gets most of the chatter so I'm assuming that's the better silent case...

Thanks,
Chris

Post by **Ralf Hutter** » Sat Dec 13, 2003 12:49 pm

Schlotkins wrote:I see there's two 3700's... Is one significantly different than the other? The BQE gets most of the chatter so I'm assuming that's the better silent case...

Thanks,
Chris

There's the original version called the 3700AMB that has more restrictive fan grills, a "normally" oriented HDD cage (that's very easily removable) and an average noise level PSU and case fan. This case was never expressly designed or marketed as a "quiet case", it just works out real well due to it's excellent ventilation and quiet HDD mounting.

The newly released 3700BQE has the much less restrictive grills lifted from the Sonata, the sideways HDD cages (again from the Sonata) and a slightly quieter PSU and case fan. The BQE is kind of a made-over AMB that is marketed as a "quiet case" and has a few features that make it quieter than the 3700AMB right out of the box.

If you're going to ditch the PSU and fan for some actual quiet versions any way and don't mind cutting out the fan grills I'd recommend the 3700AMB due to it's HDD cage orientation. This gives better cooling airflow over the HDD(s) and is entirely removable if you're looking to suspension-mount your HDD(s) for noise reduction purposes.

If you want a case that requires a little less fussing with, and will be satisfied with a not-super-quiet PSU and case fan or are enamored with the sideways HDD cages for some reason, the case to get is the 3700BQE.

Both of them have been reviewed here at SPCR.

3700AMB review

3700BQE review

Schlotkins · Post by **Schlotkins** » Sun Dec 21, 2003 11:32 am

I was going to replace the Power supply and don't mind cutting the fans so I'll go with the AMB. Definitely can't WAIT to quite this full tower POS I have now. (No reason for the full tower... just had it left over.)

Chris

Why is Sonata more expensive than SLK3700BQE?

Why is Sonata more expensive than SLK3700BQE?

BQE versus AMB

Re: BQE versus AMB

Thanks