Soltek Qbic EQ3401M: More Expansion & A New Standard in Quietness
by Wesley Fink on October 6, 2003 12:12 AM EST- Posted in
- Systems
Final Words
It is interesting to see how competent Small Form Factor systems have become since their introduction a little more than 2 years ago. Comparing them to the best of our top-line, full-size 865 and 875 boards, we find with each new SFF that the small systems compete extremely well in every area. The Soltek joins the Shuttle and Biostar as very capable computer systems by any measurement.Overall, there are some things the Soltek Qbic EQ3401M does better than any other SFF we have tested. The Icy Q system, which doesn’t sound like much more than a quickly chosen marketing name, turns out to be extremely effective. The Soltek is the quietest SFF we have ever tested, and is, in fact, about twice as quiet as the Shuttle, which has become the “quiet standard” against which all SFF systems are compared. This is a huge accomplishment, and we congratulate Soltek on the remarkable job they have done in creating this extremely quiet and effective cooling system.
The extra 5-1/4" drive bay is also welcomed. Some enthusiasts would never be happy with a system that did not allow “on-the-fly” copying of CDs or DVDs. Unless you are willing to use an additional and more expensive external CD or DVD, you cannot use more than one optical drive in other SFF systems. This Soltek Qbic EQ3 chassis gives the user the option to use 2 optical drives if they choose. The sleek appearance of the Soltek is also a large positive. It is a beautiful small computer.
Countering these significant positives is the really cluttered wiring in the Soltek. Compare the interior, for instance, to the elegant small Biostar and you can see what a difference careful engineering can make to the ease-of-use of a Small Form Factor computer. Of the 3 systems we have recently tested, the Soltek is the worst in terms of cluttered wiring. If the inside of the Soltek looked like the Biostar, then clearly it would be the one and only best SFF, but it doesn’t.
This leaves something of a conundrum. The Soltek is the quietest SFF we have ever tested, it has the best expansion capabilities we have seen in an SFF, and it overclocks better than any SFF we have tested so far. The inside wiring, however, is cluttered and makes assembly more difficult and time-consuming than it needs to be. We highly recommend the Soltek Qbic EQ3401M. If Soltek can further refine the system board and internal wiring, it would be our choice without qualification. As it is, if you are willing to put up with the cluttered internal wiring and layout while you build or upgrade your SFF, then you will be rewarded with a sleek, stable system that is the quietest SFF Computer we have ever tested.
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ducsauce - Saturday, January 24, 2004 - link
Does anyone know whether this would accomodate the upcoming Prescott? I have one that's been sitting around for months. I've been waiting for the new 90nm procs but wonder whether it'll be compatible.thanks
Anonymous User - Friday, October 17, 2003 - link
www.newegg.com carry it, but not in stock till oct 31,Anonymous User - Wednesday, October 15, 2003 - link
U. S Suppliers please??Anonymous User - Tuesday, October 7, 2003 - link
2 5.25" bays? woohoo - this means that I can now get my 4 drive raid 10 array in one :)What do you lot think? 2 drives in the 5.25s, one in the floppy 3.5 and one normal drive bay. The raid card in the pci slot, a Radeon 9700 pro in the agp and a DVDRW/CDRW combo in an external case on the USB2.
Lan is already in, sound too - what else do i need? (a P4 2.4c and a pair of geil platinums)
My only reservation is the power supply - I know for a fact that (using an extenal meter that measures power drain) my rig pulls 220W when running 3dmark2001 and copying 2 files simultaniously and the only real difference is an SB live and my p4 is a 2.4b. Im just not sure that even 250w will be enough.
Anonymous User - Tuesday, October 7, 2003 - link
I still would get the Shuttle SB65G2 or SB75G2 , who cares about quiet? I need colling and performance. What y'all think?Anonymous User - Monday, October 6, 2003 - link
Put anything next to an 800W amp in a cramped stereo rack and you will have cooling problems.Anonymous User - Monday, October 6, 2003 - link
I agree. Could we have some temp. readings of the case and of the rear exhaust. I currently have an older Shuttle SV25 and the case gets really hot at times. I already burned out one powersupply. I am mostly concerned about temperature since I use these SFFs as stero components along with the rest of my stero equipment. Put a little computer next to a 800W amplifier in a cramped stero rack and you will have cooling problems.Anonymous User - Monday, October 6, 2003 - link
Apple introduced the Cube back in July 2000, if I recall correctly. But then again, the Next Cube came out long before that (Oct. 1988!). It was a fairly big cube, though. Of course, if you go really far back, things like the Sinclair were, um, small, too.Anyway, it seems like the Shuttle, Biostar and Soltek (that were recently reviewed) are all good PCs. Praising the Soltek for having more capacity is a little odd, though, since I thought the whole point is for these to be small.
I'm shopping for a new system right now and have gone back and forth between mid tower, laptop, and SFF, and between Shuttle, Biostar, and Soltek. I think I've settled upon the Shuttle, though, since it's the smallest while still being full featured. (And it will take an ati 9800xt, unlike a laptop. Sweet!)
Anonymous User - Monday, October 6, 2003 - link
#9 I'm no apple lover by any means but #6 is right the apple launched the Apple ICube quite a while before shuttle started making sff computers.Anonymous User - Monday, October 6, 2003 - link
#9 what do you consider to be a sff?i remember some macs being very small(compared to hulking pc's at the time).
while i cant say for a FACT that they were the 'first' to make a sff, i can say that i have seen similar sff-like-macs many, many years ago.
btw, i am not #6, i am some other person.