Shuttle SDXi Water-Cooled SFF PC 74
MojoKid writes "Shuttle Computer single-handedly invented the SFF PC or Small Form-Factor PC a few years back. Their line of XPC mini-PC systems, no bigger than a toaster oven, has evolved nicely over the years. This article takes a look at the features and performance of a new XPC from Shuttle that is built on a i975X/Core 2 Duo platform and is designed with the PC enthusiast in mind. The SDXi features a number of unique features like a built-in water-cooler for Radeon GPU-based graphics cards and a slick, flamed-out paint job that you've just got to see." Update: 07/08 23:53 GMT by KD : Here is a link to the version split over 12 pages, in which the images are clickable thumbnails.
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System Noise (Score:4, Interesting)
If I could be choosy, this is what I want in my typical SFF system:
- One full size x16 PCI express slot for my big graphics card (that should fit and be adequately cooled)
- Space for two hard drives in the chassis, along with one optical drive
- Near silence except when doing something intense, like gaming or encoding
- Of course, small.
When will I get such a system!?
Yeah, good luck with that... (Score:5, Insightful)
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The problem is that it seems as if Shuttle cheaps out on components, doesn't properly secure the
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Additionally you'd probably use only one VGA card in your Mac Pro, equal to the amount you'd use in the Shuttle.
As a last detail, you probably couldn't fit 12 cm fans into the shuttle because it's back side (after subtracting the space taken by
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It's also more than adequately powerful, with the exception of the dinky hard drive and graphics card. You could hypothetically make it *twice* as thick, and put in a really nice graphics card, and throw in a normal 3.5" hard drive. It'd still be smaller than the Shuttle SFF PCs (and you can work out creative ways to deal with noise and cooling. Underclocking (heresy, I know) by just a few percent can hut heat output drama
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Where would you find a Core 2 Duo BTX motherboard? BTX was stillborn.
From stores that have a good selection of Intel motherboards, of course, since Intel created the BTX spec. See this page for a list of Intel motherboards by form factor:
At least four of the microBTX boards and two of the picoBTX boards support Core 2 Duo. ZipZoomFly sells some of these BTX boards.
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Re: Mac Mini (Score:3, Insightful)
The truly SFF, quiet computer that I have also been using for over a year is a Mac Mini. If you don't need one of those high-wattage video cards, the Mini is fast and about 1/6th the size of any of these "toaster" boxen. (I have the Mini sitting ~on top~ of the SFF PC, along with a USB 2.0 external hub.)
You can also drop a Core 2 Duo CPU into the Mini. (The current
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Don't hold your breath.
I have an older Shuttle system, the SS51Gv2, and it's almost silent if you let the BIOS turn the main fan down when it isn't needed. It has the space for two HDs plus an optical, as well as being the size of a rather large toaster. That meets three of your requirements. The only problem is the graphics card. The model I have comes with an AGP slot and after a week or two of using a Radeon 9800 Pro, it burned out the power supply. It seems that the 9
Probably Never Re:System Noise (Score:1)
Shuttles won't be quiet and heat efficient for a long time. If you want a system with a fast, multicore processor, and a beefy video card, be a man and buy a tower.
Although, after my friend moved some components to a new cas
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J
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The article mentions a problem that I have had with Shuttle systems all along: Noise. Even though it's water cooled, they found noise to still be a problem.
If I could be choosy, this is what I want in my typical SFF system:
- One full size x16 PCI express slot for my big graphics card (that should fit and be adequately cooled)
- Space for two hard drives in the chassis, along with one optical drive
- Near silence except when doing something intense, like gaming or encoding
- Of course, small.
When will I get such a system!?
Shuttle already offers it [digitalmediathoughts.com]. The noisiest component in the SD11G5 is the hard disk, even if you go for the quietest on the market.
Unfortunately, Shuttle has not updated this amazing system so you will have to be satisfied with a pentium M processor.
Not gonna happen... (Score:3, Insightful)
small and powerful, but noisy
silent [bjorn3d.com] and powerful, but big
small and silent, but slow
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small, silent, powerful.
pick 2.
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Sure it ramps up and gets louder when I put it under load (FPS gaming) as the smart fan does its job, but when its idle or even being used lightly like web/email usage, I can barely hear it. Hell, most of the noise comes from the GPU fan!
I think the heatpipe design of their standard air cooled line is one of the best out there. Instead of just recirculating the CPU waste heat around inside t
Ideal SFF System (Score:2)
1) A "smarts" box with all the solid state parts in it: mobo, cpu, ram, and graphics card. These parts all have higher temperature tolerances (~85C) and put out a lot of heat, especially the graphics card. It's not hard to arrange them in a wind tunnel fashion that allows for the most absurdly large PCI16 cards with the entire front of the box being an intake for single, large, high volume
No bigger than a toaster over? (Score:2)
Wake me when they're smaller than a box of Pop-Tarts (that's an ISO unit of measure, isn't it?)...
"single handedly invented"???!!! (Score:3, Informative)
I've read some fanboi tosh on slashdot in my time, but that is so wrong it's not even ironically funny. I'd delve into prior art but I really can't be bothered: take your pick from any computer manufacturer and they'll have had something SFF.
I suppose they did attempt to make SFF attractive for the living room, but again that was nothing new: geeks have been doing that for years to try to appease other halves.
Hey.... (Score:1)
Re:"single handedly invented"???!!! (Score:5, Informative)
I've read some fanboi tosh on slashdot in my time, but that is so wrong it's not even ironically funny.
Indeed, the Shuttle guys were interviewed for Macformat magazine, and stated that what gave them the idea was the Cube - they wanted to do a Windows equivalent of something as small
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pc104 ftw (Score:2)
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that is so wrong ... I suppose they did attempt to make SFF attractive for the living room, but again that was nothing new: geeks have been doing that for years to try to appease other halves.
Shuttle may not have been innovative, but they positioned themselves in a unique niche that no one before them bothered to specifically target: the high quality SFF barebones market. Shuttle SFF boxes have a combination of advantages that no one else has:
- DIY component selection - you pick everything but the box and the mobo
- By far the smallest volume cases for every bay configuration up to 2x internal 3.5/2x external 5.25
- Excellent custom heatsink
- Excellent case airflow for its size (there are SFF cas
When will pico ATX be affordable? (Score:3, Insightful)
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I worry about Shuttle's quality control (Score:1, Interesting)
Here's a long thread on Sudhian discussing it:
http://www.sudhian.com/index.php?/forums/viewthrea d/50166/ [sudhian.com]
I've built lots of computers. I know there are quirks and problems. What really frustrated me is that shuttle did *nothing* to help an obvious design or manufacturing error. So, I was stuck with bad hardware. That leaves a bad tas
Not just flaming stripes... (Score:2, Funny)
"And the 1337 series, which is a complete system based on this chassis"
It really must be c00l.
This is mini? (Score:3, Insightful)
When I think small computer, I think Apple Mac mini and AOpen miniPC.
Fucking blog spam. (Score:5, Informative)
Let me start out by saying HotHardware itself is nothing better than a middle-of-the-pack hardware review site. If I remember correctly, they're a generic offshoot of one of the more major tech sites that tries (too hard) to appeal to enthusiasts but comes across as nothing more than stiff corporate whores desperately spewing cool lingo to draw hapless internet goers into viewing their adbortion (SPELLING INTENTIONAL) of a website. And I'm OK with that.
What I'm not OK with is their oh so blatant blogspam bullshit they send to slashdot. Wow guys, you reviewed a small form factor PC. If that's not front page worthy, I don't know what is! Even worse, the only link in their submission was to their own site.
In the spirit of sharing, I've decided to help out slashdotters who might be genuinely interested in the product beyond a "sweet flames, bro!" 10 pager (it's a fucking barebones system!) fluff review with some informative links. Let's start with a direct link to hothardware's printable version of the page.
http://www.hothardware.com/printarticle.aspx?arti
That wasn't so hard, was it guys? Oh sure, it might cut into your ad revenue, but it would be disingenuous of me to accuse you guys of submitting this for the shallow purpose of bumping ad revenue, right? Right?!
In other news, I was looking for alternate reviews of this system. What did I find? HotHardware are apparently a bunch of linkwhoring board spamming bastards. Witness the evidence:
http://www.elitebastards.com/forum/viewtopic.php?
http://www.dvhardware.net/review/31338 [dvhardware.net]
http://forums.hardwarelogic.com/f68/shuttle-sdxi-
http://www.mbreview.com/article.php?sid=11683 [mbreview.com]
http://www.motherboards.org/forums/viewtopic.php?
Maybe the hardware review business is now just as inbred as most news blog sites. I don't know. What I do know is I spent way too much time writing this post. And this story is beyond worthless.
Paint Job? (Score:2)
Too many hoses (Score:4, Interesting)
Shuttle did well with their innovative heat pipe system, which is a rigid, sealed unit connecting a heat exchanger atop the CPU with one near an air outlet and fan. The case and motherboard were designed around the cooling system. That's what makes their small form factor PCs workable without overheating problems. We used those things outdoors in summer, while field testing robots, and they held up well. I've never had a Shuttle PC overheat, even at 105F ambient.
But the new graphics card cooling technology looks like a tacky afterthought. Big hoses all over the place. Too much plumbing. It comes with a paint job that might look good on a pickup with a lift job. So you get a sense of the target market.
If you like this sort of thing, go read "Soon, I Will be Invincible!" [sooniwillb...ncible.com], the fictional memoir of an evil mad scientist who tries to take over the world. It's the classic dweeb fantasy, with appropriate interior decoration.
Wow, Flames. (Score:2, Interesting)
'defragged' - How quaint (Score:3, Interesting)
Nice to note that the only non-UNIX based OS on the market continues to come from MS. Too bad such a nice little box is held back by such a stoic, muzzle-loading OS.
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Cool but not cool enought (Score:1)
I wonder if they have figure out a system with its entire components dipped in oil.
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x6800 is a $1k chip (Score:2)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N
RE: Update (Score:2)
Either this gets fixed by the top of the hour or we expect a full refund.
Regards,
Wanker @ Hot Hardware
Hurray! (Score:1)
you want quiet... (Score:1)
Lengthy warranty delays... (Score:1)