Antec Solo Vs. Antec Fusion 430

led777 · Post by **led777** » Mon Apr 07, 2008 1:04 pm

Hello all,

II've read a lot of posts about the above two cases, but didn't see any thread comparing the two.

Lets say I need a HTPC case, but the most important thing is silence. I saw the Fusion doesn't have dampening on the door. from that POV, which of them is the better one?

Another thing: If I'm changing the PSU fan to the noctua NF-R8, can't I jist cut the 2 pin connector from the ADDA and connect it to the noctua, instead of wiring it out of the PSU to the mobo or somewhere else?

andyb · Post by **andyb** » Mon Apr 07, 2008 3:05 pm

Why are you comparing a desktop case to a tower.?

Andy

led777 · Post by **led777** » Mon Apr 07, 2008 9:07 pm

I want the smallest and most quiet case from antec. Price wise I can get them at the same price (solo+psu and fusion 430). I would rather have the AMP look of the fusion, but I don't mind having the tower look of the solo, in my cabinet. which one can be made more quiet? or better yet, can the fusion be made near silent? my experience is with P182, which I'm very fond of.

led777 · Post by **led777** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 9:26 am

Nobody here has experience with both fusion and solo?

andyb · Post by **andyb** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 2:59 pm

which one can be made more quiet? or better yet, can the fusion be made near silent?

Modding aside, the Solo will be the easier to keep silent as it has built in suspension, and the airflow holes are all 90 degrees away from the end user.

The fusion (style) case can also be made very quiet (it is already, but even quieter) with a few minor mods.

In reality though no one has any idea what you are planning on putting on the inside of these cases, or how far away from you they will be, until then I cant say anymore.

Andy

PS: Welcome to SPCR

led777 · Post by **led777** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 11:08 pm

Thanks for the reply, Andy

It's going to be a HTPC computer, in a cabinet, 2.5m from me under the TV.
The inside:
Gigabyte 780G motherboard
AMD 4600 89W TDP (unfortunately)
2GB Corsair Value
WD 320GB AAKS
Ninja MINI for the CPU
replace the fans to 12cm Noctua or S-Flex 800 RPM
replace the PSU fan to Noctua (although I didn't get an answer yet for this question from the 1st post)
Running Vista as HTPC only.

Will the Fusion Suffice?

andyb · Post by **andyb** » Wed Apr 09, 2008 3:17 am

That system will be damned quiet, and probably inaudable a 2.5M away, you dont really need to go with any other case, this looks to be a perfect solution for you.

AMD 4600 89W TDP (unfortunately)

Do you already own this CPU and want to re-use it - if you dont AMD's AM2 CPU's are 65W available parts upto the 6000+

In any case, the 89W is the most the CPU would take, typically it would use far less than that in standard recording/playing video's, so this is not really an issue for you.

Andy

led777 · Post by **led777** » Wed Apr 09, 2008 4:51 am

Yes, I already own the CPU, memory and HD. I'm only buying the 780G and case.

I'll go with the fusion. does anybody know if the Noctua can be connected to the PSU board, or it must be connected to the motherboard?

yamahaSHO · Post by **yamahaSHO** » Wed Apr 09, 2008 8:00 am

led777 wrote:Yes, I already own the CPU, memory and HD. I'm only buying the 780G and case.

I'll go with the fusion. does anybody know if the Noctua can be connected to the PSU board, or it must be connected to the motherboard?

I would skip the Noctua's... I have them in my NSK-2480 and they're not as quiet as one would think they should be. Personally, I would go with some Scythe Slip Streams (800 RPM or 1,200 RPM if you have a controller). To answer your question, the Noctua's (and Slip Streams) can be connected to the motherboard fan headers.

In my NSK-2480, I have suspended a 2.5" HDD for silence and boy did this quiet down the case considerably. I literally cannot hear the HDD from more than a few inches away.

JLee · Post by **JLee** » Wed Apr 09, 2008 9:29 am

yamahaSHO wrote:I would skip the Noctua's... I have them in my NSK-2480 and they're not as quiet as one would think they should be.

qft

had 2 of these, but use one now... at full speed this thing is loudest thing in my case, but it's not a bad loud so it's tolerable. Luckily I have a fan controller I have it at lowest all the time...

though I must say, they push a lot of air

led777 · Post by **led777** » Wed Apr 09, 2008 9:45 pm

Really?!

I got the impression Noctua is much better than the S-Flex.

Ok, I'll go with the S-Flex 800 RPM X2 for the case. which 80mm is good for the psu replacement?

nitram_tpr · Post by **nitram_tpr** » Wed Apr 09, 2008 11:45 pm

I recently built a system with the Fusion case, almost similar spec to yours, same mono, but I used a BE-2350 with the mini ninja. I replaced the case fans with 2 of these connected to the motherboard headers. The Antec fans are fairly quiet on the low setting but even from about 6ft away they are audible. The Akasa fans I have got are practically inaudible.
I found the PSU that comes with the Fusion is silent, I had no problems with it at all. The noisiest part of the system I built is the Optiarc DVD drive. Yes the stealthed DVD drive cover is a bit clunky but that doesn't bother me as it doesn't affect normal viewing.
I have a Samsung SpinPoint HD501LJ in my fusion case, this is a little on the noisy side but I will be suspending it soon.
As for your quote:

I want the smallest and most quiet case from antec.

The Fusion is far from a small case though. I got the black one and it looks great on the black glass stand under a Sony Bravia 40" LCD.

led777 · Post by **led777** » Thu Apr 10, 2008 2:24 am

you're correct. when you have the P182 as a reference, everything looks smaller. I actually meant slimmest.

so, with the two akasa fans, you don't hear the stock PSU fan? no need to replace it?

Do you hear the rattling of the drive because of the installation method of the fusion, or just because it's noisy?