I learned my lesson - Antec Overture vs P160.

[oblivi0n]

Well I did my research, and ordered everything for my new PC last week.

Basic overview of the system:
P4 3.0C
Abit IC7
1 Gig Corsair PC3200 2-3-2-6 (512x2)
120 Gig Seagate SATA Hard Drive
Sapphire ATI Radeon 9800 Pro
Negear FA311 10/100 NIC
Lite-On CDRW/DVD-Rom
Floppy

Also got a new 19" Viewsonic, MX Duo keyboard/mouse combo, and Logitech 5.1 Speakers.

I was torn for what to get case wise. I knew I wanted a black/silver combination in mid tower atx form. Something well built, and with atleast a strong 350w PS. Im a fan of simplicity, but something that also looks good. Most everything out there is overpowering to the eyes, obnoxious or too plain. Ive bought Antec in the past, so they were a favorite. However the case I wanted, theAntec Overture (http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=11-129-142&depa=0) - was a tad small. I read multiple reviews, where all stated cooling was a problem. Its made to be a HTPC box. But all the reviews I read they had high end components in them, and they worked - but all slightly complained about the airflow and lack of fans. I was stubborn and went ahead and ordered it, thinking I could later cut a fan hole out and add one if it really was too hot.

~~

It all arrived yesterday morning, and I began my build. Case is nice, no bones about it. Well constructed, and has nice features. But its SMALL. Motherboard fit nicely, and cable management was a breeze. Took me about an hour to get everything in it, wired up correctly and such before I fired her up. I fired her up, and went right into the bios. Noticed my CPU was at 90 degrees, and turned it right off. Opened it up and noticed I didnt hook up the CPU fan. Hi, im a moron. lol. So fixed that, and turned it back on - and was still looking at 50 degrees, and a system temp of about 35 degrees.

Installed WinXP, began installing and updating software - and monitoring temp off and on. Started Unreal 2k4, and noticed temps rising near 70 degrees on my CPU, and 50 on my system. So I got out, and shut down. Checked all my cabling, and decided there was no better way to route it all so that air flowed better thru the case. Gave it another shot, and upon full load was still seeing 65-75 degrees on the cpu, and 50-55 on the system. Unhappy to say the least. Shut her down, and slept on what to do.

Decided today to do what I should have done all along - get a bigger, better flowing case. Im gonna be OC'ing to a 3.5ghz and modding my card to an XT soon as the system is stable, which is only gonna add to the temps. I however plan to buy a SP-94+fan, and a VGA silencer before doing this. But still, I would like my temps all under 50 degrees before even trying.

Read around, and decided to order the Antec P160 (http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=11-129-141&depa=0), and a Antec 380w TrueBlue PS. Also got an extra 120mmx25 Stealth fan for the front intake. It ended up costing me almost $100 more then the Overture - but I think my potential for temperature disaster is alot lower. Its prolly the case I should have ordered in the 1st place.

So yah, if your thinking about buying the Overture for a main desktop, dont do it. Its just not feasable with high end stuff creating so much neat inside. It would be a perfect box for lower end stuff....but just isnt flying for my setup. Hopefully everything will go smoothly tomorrow, and be running cooler.

[theELVISCERATOR]

i just built my new system with the 835sxII and love it.....great airflow esp with my 120 blowing in the side...


http://home.comcast.net/~eknop/cpu.jpg

[Z_oc]

oblivi0n, are u sure that temp readings aren't off?

70C+ is really high. Just to double check - have you checked the temps with the case cover off? With the cover off, their should be plenty of space for heat dissipation - if temps are high even then, you might suspect an error in temp readouts.

[oblivi0n]

70 was with the side off :(

And yah, it was accurate.

I switched everything out into the P160 case today - and everything has leveled off.

Im at about 30 system, and 45 idle/55 load. Still a tad high on my cpu - but im using the stock heatsink(with ac5).

Im alot happier with my setup now - and this P160 case is SWEET.

[Z_oc]

The Antec should seriously look into their design - otherwise they should state a "recommended system" of sorts.

[pwnt by pat]

eh, for the size of that case id say thats about right on temps. my friend had a old emachines matx roughly 18x18x8 and a tbred a 2200. he had about 45idle 60some load. theres just no way you can expect to cram a system like that into a tiny desktop case like that and still expect good temps. i must say though, that is a good looking case.

[Z_oc]

pwnt by pat, there are even some m-ATX cases that are designed for faster procs; you can find some of them in this tested chassis list from Intel:

http://www.intel.com/cd/channel/reseller/asmo-na/eng/35834.htm

The Antec P160 has a capacity of around 50 litres, while the overture is nearly 28 litres; however the mATX on the list have capacities around 26 litres. But these mATX cases usually come with 2x80mm fans + an “Air-guide” solution so that the air right above the processor remains 38 degrees C or lower.

The main problem with the Overture is likely to be the airflow; in order to make the case slim and elegant, Antec has not been able to position a big fan right behind the CPU (just over the ATX IO shield for keyboard, mouse ports). Instead they have shifted the fan over the motherboard, behind the HDD cage – this fan looks to be sucking out the heat from the HDDs, rather than from the processor or other components. Most probably a lot of hot air get's "stuck" within that area, increasing processor temps significantly.

It is unlikely they can put an “Air-guide” solution on the overture, as this will spoil the looks and most likely prevent the user from keeping anything on top of the case. I am not sure if twin 60 mm fans can be fixed behind the CPU, or if this will actually help the airflow substantially.

Only thing they can try is to move the HDD mounting cage a few inches to the front, and place a fan in its place, directly over the processor. This would preferably a 120mm fan (case is 133mm high and is likely to accommodate it), running not too slow for the sake of “total” quietness.

If anybody is willing to mod… but ah, this is a good looking case… :-) and nobody would like to spoil it... :-)