Search found 270 matches

by sgtpokey
Sat Oct 08, 2011 6:46 am
Forum: SPCR Article Discussion
Topic: Fanless PSUs: Kingwin Stryker STR-500 & Silverstone ST50NF
Replies: 20
Views: 14788

Re: Fanless PSUs: Kingwin Stryker STR-500 & Silverstone ST50

Good article, one correction, on both of the stats tables, you imply "standard" ATX PSU length is 150mm (You meantion the kingwin is 20mm longer than normal at 170mm and the Silverstone 10mm longer at 160mm). While most modern ATX PSU's are either 150mm or 160mm these days, the actual standard is 14...
by sgtpokey
Wed Jun 29, 2011 2:18 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Fanless i5 mini-itx build
Replies: 12
Views: 6482

Re: Fanless i5 mini-itx build

If you really want fanless and are willing to spend money you'd want a purpose-built case, with heatsinks and heatpipes to bleed the heat out of the case. Your choices are: 1) the HFX micro or mini offerings from mcubed (an austrian based company, if you are buying for shipment to the US, the VAT ta...
by sgtpokey
Thu Jun 16, 2011 10:16 pm
Forum: SPCR Announcements
Topic: Re: Mike's final sign-off - POSTPONED
Replies: 70
Views: 140006

Re: Mike's final sign-off

Quite simply: Thank you Mike for everything you have done for this community in particular, and the computing community as a whole. I hope SPCR continues to have life, but wish you the best. No one is more dedicated, diligent, and honest than you when it comes to silent computing and those personal ...
by sgtpokey
Thu May 19, 2011 10:13 am
Forum: SPCR Article Discussion
Topic: Asus P8H67-I Deluxe Mini-ITX Motherboard
Replies: 12
Views: 9044

Re: Asus P8H67-I Deluxe Mini-ITX Motherboard

Question: Was wireless n tested on both 2.4ghz and 5ghz bands? Also, do you happen to know if the atheros chipset used supports the 450mbps theoretical rate of the newest 80211n implementations? For the latter question I'm guessing no since I believe you need 3 antenae for that "standard". Good revi...
by sgtpokey
Thu Mar 03, 2011 1:24 pm
Forum: SPCR Article Discussion
Topic: HDPLEX H10 Fanless microATX Case
Replies: 26
Views: 16843

Re: HDPLEX H10 Fanless microATX Case

thanks for the review SPCR, as a user of HFX fanless cases for 5+ years, I've been looking forward to seeing the HD plex series. HOWEVER, as an HTPC enthusiast and with experience with the HFX cases, I don't agree with the "improvement" suggestions you noted. the only real issue I have with the H10,...
by sgtpokey
Thu Jun 10, 2010 11:07 am
Forum: Power Supplies
Topic: 400W/460W fanless 80PLUS Gold PSU from Seasonic
Replies: 34
Views: 24193

hmm, non-standard length?

I think in the image, the dimensions state 180 cm in length, whereas the "standard" is usually 160 cm.

This might not fit in my HTPC case due to it's unique PSU positioning...
by sgtpokey
Fri Oct 06, 2006 8:45 am
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Silent NAS, looking for ideas
Replies: 12
Views: 12437

I actually just bought the a-tech 4x Mass Storage case, so you'll know my thoughts in a few weeks. I'm feeling very comfortable going into it as I've already talked to folks who have used all of their products for an extended period. I've also had very good and straightforward conversations with the...
by sgtpokey
Fri Jul 21, 2006 10:23 am
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: Quiet 6-Drive External SATA RAID Enclosure
Replies: 8
Views: 5942

haha, Yeah I know that that raises concerns, but from my own enclosed passive builds, I'm quite comfortable with his design. I'm actually purchasing his 4-way next month as I upgrade my HTPC setup. You can try emailing him regarding testing he's done or testing his customers have done. He answered a...
by sgtpokey
Thu Jul 20, 2006 12:20 pm
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: Quiet 6-Drive External SATA RAID Enclosure
Replies: 8
Views: 5942

Some ideas:

The 8-drive monster, or my prefereence would be 2 4-drive stacked on top of each other:

http://www.atechfabrication.com/

He's a well-respected custom manufacturer to the AV community... email a question and he'll respond...
by sgtpokey
Tue Jun 06, 2006 2:38 pm
Forum: CPUs and Motherboards
Topic: Zalman ZM-NBF47 - First Thoughts
Replies: 11
Views: 9461

Hmm,
thanks for posting, that might solve a particular problem I have. Quick question, where did you order it from? My usual US shops don't seem to stock it yet. I saw it on a German site, but did you get it from a UK shop?
by sgtpokey
Tue Jun 06, 2006 8:12 am
Forum: Video Cards & Monitors
Topic: 300W ONLY för VGA card !!!
Replies: 12
Views: 4943

I'm not too worried about the insane 300w article. Mainstream games will (IMHO) always be able to be run nicely using much less powerful components. This includes all the current talk about physics cards as well as dual gpu rigs. Why? Because software game companies have to make sure their titles al...
by sgtpokey
Wed Dec 21, 2005 10:36 pm
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Gigabyte i-Ram 2
Replies: 10
Views: 6064

(unless ur mad and are willing to accept a full ATX case under your TV) haha, I currently use this ATX case for my HTPC. I actually got it in 4 months ago in anticipation of a future useful 5.25" component (such as this rev 2 i-Ram). Funny thing is it's the same footprint as my older microatx coole...
by sgtpokey
Mon Dec 19, 2005 7:55 am
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Gigabyte i-Ram 2
Replies: 10
Views: 6064

Ah ok, the original news source is in english and sums it up pretty well, the only thing I'm wondering now is if it's still using a PCI/pCIe slot to draw power... If the design is external than it probably also comes with a power transformer as an option. http://www.vr-zone.com/?i=3052 "It will be e...
by sgtpokey
Mon Dec 19, 2005 7:51 am
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Gigabyte i-Ram 2
Replies: 10
Views: 6064

Last piece of intersting info: The memory slots = 8 so budget-wise, you can fill it up with 1 gig sticks for 8 gbs, and if you can find/afford 2gb sticks, you can get it to 16 gb. It also says it's in a 5.25" bay, utilizing an eSATA connection!! Which may mean they are giving users a choice of mount...
by sgtpokey
Mon Dec 19, 2005 7:45 am
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Gigabyte i-Ram 2
Replies: 10
Views: 6064

by sgtpokey
Mon Dec 19, 2005 7:42 am
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Gigabyte i-Ram 2
Replies: 10
Views: 6064

Hmm,
What is the specific link for the news on matbe? I know a little French but I can't find a gigabyte link...
by sgtpokey
Mon Dec 19, 2005 7:38 am
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Gigabyte i-Ram 2
Replies: 10
Views: 6064

perfect!! I kind of figured there would be a Rev-2 before they went to market. The 5 - 1/4 form factor at 8gb/16gb was what I personally would have liked to see. It now has enough capacity to act as the first storage location for an HTPC. (The dumbest thing about HTPCs is the "LiveTV" portion, since...
by sgtpokey
Fri Oct 07, 2005 2:32 pm
Forum: General Gallery
Topic: Building the Mother of All Silent PC cases
Replies: 19
Views: 15543

Hi All, I actually finished building my mcubed fanless HTPC 2 weeks ago and have been testing it out as an HTPC and a game machien for the past two weeks. I do plan on posting a more thorough assessment (with install pictures) but the highlights are: 1. Yes completely passive designs DO work. 2. Hav...
by sgtpokey
Fri Oct 07, 2005 2:31 pm
Forum: General Gallery
Topic: Building the Mother of All Silent PC cases
Replies: 19
Views: 15543

Hi All, I actually finished building my mcubed fanless HTPC 2 weeks ago and have been testing it out as an HTPC and a game machien for the past two weeks. I do plan on posting a more thorough assessment (with install pictures) but the highlights are: 1. Yes completely passive designs DO work. 2. Hav...
by sgtpokey
Wed Sep 28, 2005 3:31 pm
Forum: Quiet Prebuilt, SFF and Barebones Systems
Topic: Pentium-M with temp-based fan, fanless graphics, fanless PS?
Replies: 9
Views: 5954

If all you are doing is web surfing, a Radeon x300 or the equivalent Nvidia card (the number escapes me at the moment) are overkill. Even Intel's integrated graphics will be able to run a high-res, web surfing (2d graphics) panel easily. All of those options are both fanless, have low-power requirem...
by sgtpokey
Fri Sep 23, 2005 3:01 pm
Forum: Silent Storage
Topic: Best of 400-500GB Hard Drives
Replies: 17
Views: 9145

I would second the Jazzy Rabbit's obeservations. I have one and I had it running externally bare for a while and I did notice that it was pretty quiet. I didn't run it for along time like that before I enclosed it but it was definitely quieter than a previous generation's 2 platter Maxtor drive with...
by sgtpokey
Fri Sep 23, 2005 2:45 pm
Forum: Video Cards & Monitors
Topic: Potential for quiet performance - Nvidia 7800GT
Replies: 16
Views: 7708

That's good confirmation. I've researched the reported power draw from the various reviews. As far as I can tell from this imperfect analysis, it is cooler running than a radeon x800XL by 10%. I had already put my money where my analysis is and have my 7800gt passively cooled, running in a completel...
by sgtpokey
Tue Sep 13, 2005 10:34 am
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Quiet! Pentium M - Media Center Edition - Help me build it!
Replies: 7
Views: 3902

i don't know what your a) budget or b) build experience is but have you taken a look at this Austiran comapny: http://www.mcubed-tech.com They have Aopen P-M specific fanless heatsinks that will work with your mobo choice, the all-black looks great, and it should fulfill your noise criteria. I have ...
by sgtpokey
Mon Sep 12, 2005 5:06 am
Forum: SPCR Article Discussion
Topic: AOpen i915GMm-HFS: 2nd Gen Pentium M desktop board
Replies: 146
Views: 138123

Hi dragonii, Haven't followed this thread lately, but I thought I'd let you know that I too have the mcubed case, the BORG Pentium M heatsink and Aopen's ATX i915 p-m board I haven't yet installed mine, but I do notice that there are a lot of "manual" steps involved with the pipes, the contact quali...
by sgtpokey
Sun Sep 11, 2005 8:08 am
Forum: Power Supplies
Topic: New PSU for HTPC-can't have bottom mounted 120mm fans
Replies: 5
Views: 3263

Hmm, I don't believe you actually have a aproblem: you may have out-thought the issue. I use the same case with a bottom mounted psu 12cm fan (I use a 350 watt Fortron Source). The "bottom" mounted fan in this situation is actually on the "up" side once you install it. Theoretically you may lose som...
by sgtpokey
Thu Aug 18, 2005 12:05 pm
Forum: CPUs and Motherboards
Topic: Low-profile, Passive, heatpipe northbridge cooler Released!
Replies: 13
Views: 8693

Actually here's an interesting picture straight from mcubed. However, this looks like their Northbridge version made especially for their HFX Media Case (Note that the heatsink end is a simple block that is attaching to the HFX Case's heatsink wall): http://www.t-balancer.com/catalog/images/borg-hbc...
by sgtpokey
Thu Aug 18, 2005 11:54 am
Forum: CPUs and Motherboards
Topic: Low-profile, Passive, heatpipe northbridge cooler Released!
Replies: 13
Views: 8693

Ha nice find teapot!! on topic: according to mcubed the heatpipes can swivel, you then adjust the heatpipes so that you can afix the black portion (it has adhesive, but they also recommend screwing in place) to whatever case wall makes sense. It's the same concept as their entire line of BORG heatpi...
by sgtpokey
Thu Jul 28, 2005 5:44 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: HTPC - Looks finally matter
Replies: 11
Views: 7017

for your specific need, have you looked at the cases forum for HTPCnews.com? They discuss a gamut of sylish htpc cases in various price ranges. I currently use a Coolermaster 620 (Black) Micro ATX case. It uses a full-size psu and 60mm exhaust. However, I run an Athlon XP-based HTPC and it runs fine...
by sgtpokey
Wed Jul 20, 2005 8:30 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Please help, all components < 22 dBA, still noisy!
Replies: 7
Views: 4786

re: your hard drive. It may still be exhibiting a whining even in idle mode (the disc still spins even in idle mode). The new hard drives are better but since you don't list your model it's hard to say. And since you haven't pinpointed you noise source you shouldn't rule it out. It's easy to figure ...
by sgtpokey
Fri Jul 08, 2005 9:28 am
Forum: CPUs and Motherboards
Topic: Aopen Pentium M ATX mobo with desktop chipset
Replies: 37
Views: 23754

For those who had this board in the back of their minds, aopen's website now has the picture of this board back on their website; the picture had dissappeared for a while and some of us hoped that meant that the finished mobo would have a socket 478 compatible heatsink mount when it finally came out...