New PC time....

...and right now, I'm very tempted by the range offered by shuttle,
especially the SD31P (http://eu.shuttle.com/en/desktopdefault.aspx/searchcall-12/searchcategory-289/noblendout-1/tabid-72/170_read-11119/)
http://eu.shuttle.com/en/Portaldata/1/Resources/12_products/xpc_barebones/sd31p/p_sd31p_d_sm.jpg
and the SD35G5 (http://eu.shuttle.com/en/desktopdefault.aspx/searchcall-12/searchcategory-289/noblendout-1/tabid-72/170_read-12700/)
http://eu.shuttle.com/en/Portaldata/1/Resources/12_products/xpc_barebones/sd36g5/p_sd36g5_d_sm.jpg

Anyone have any experience with these machines?
I know that I could get a much better PC with the extra that I'd be paying for a small form PC but the size and supposed quiet factor is very tempting, not to mention that I think that just look cool (yes yes, i am shallow).

They are a fucking nightmare to work with, nearly impossible to upgrade and run very hot.

They are a fucking nightmare to work with, nearly impossible to upgrade and run very hot.

True bout the upgrade aspect, not much room to do anything with, so unless you are completely happy with the factory specs and have no plans on upgrading then this won't matter to you.

They do have more of a possiblity to run hotter than a normal desktop due to the crampt quarters but, as long as it has decent fans you should be ok.

Personally, I'd just go with a regular desktop but, if small form factor is what you want then laptop ftw! :P

the alternative is to do a little work and build my own spec pc.
only thing is, it doesn't look to work out that much more than the spec shuttle i was looking at.

so far, things i've looked at

3.4 dual core
512MB 7900GT Geforce
2048MB at 533MHz (or better)
400GB SATA

i'm not sure if i would need to upgrade anything for quite a while after this purchase.

the heat thing.
the shuttles run on heat pipes to heat sinks and uses existing air/fans to pssively cool the various processors so yeah, i know that they do get hot. thing is, i'm not entirely sure about how stable or reliable this cooling system is.
any news on how they work generally outside of the shuttle systems?

As always self built is best so if you can give us an ideea of the usage patterns plus aprox budget we can recomend somenthing.



Btw you mentioned a 3.4 dual core. There is only one type of proc with those specs a P4. Do not buy one period, they are garbage and have been replaced by the new Conroe/woodcrest cores in the intel lineup.


Overall one of the best sweet spots right now is the E6600 2.6GHz with 4MB L2 its around 350 USD and faster than the FX62 in most benchies.

Forget a shuttle PC, they are shit.

Build your own.

can't get more unequivocal than that.

Here is the pc I am putting together:

case $49.99: Cooler Master Centurion 5
power $84.99: Antec TruepowerII 550
CPU/MB combo $497.98
MB: Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6600
Memory $189.00: Corsair SMS2 2GB DDR2 800
GPU $325.99 eVGA 7900 GT 512mb
GPU cooler: $48.99 Zalman VF900
HD: $69.99: WD Caviar 250 GB
Optical drive $29.25: NEC DVD

The video card is new, so it is hard to find.

Here is the pc I am putting together:

case $49.99: Cooler Master Centurion 5
power $84.99: Antec TruepowerII 550
CPU/MB combo $497.98
MB: Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6600
Memory $189.00: Corsair SMS2 2GB DDR2 800
GPU $325.99 eVGA 7900 GT 512mb
GPU cooler: $48.99 Zalman VF900
HD: $69.99: WD Caviar 250 GB
Optical drive $29.25: NEC DVD

The video card is new, so it is hard to find.


looks very good, although you might want consider an ADFD series raptor for OS/Apps if it fits in your budget

Also I don't think the 7900GT would benefit that much from 512 mem (speculation on my part since I have not seen any benches for that particular model) so you might consider the far cheaper standard 256mb versions for 250-280USD or for the same money a X1900XT.

As far as the PSU your choice is good but you might want to consider the Antec NeoHE version since should be slightly better quality (built by seasonic)