Issues Encountered
In addition to the previously described physical issues, the
following were encountered.
Disk Mounting
This issue is discussed above, but I feel it should be clarified.
The 3.5" form-factor for disks has been the standard for PC disks for quite
a few years, and all tower and desktop PC cases support this form-factor.
Over the past several years, the 2.5" form-factor has
been growing in popularity. Initially, this form-factor was only available
in laptop disks, and the prices were substantially higher than for a similar
capacity in the 3.5" form-factor. Recently, the prices of the 2.5" disks
have come much closer to those of the 3.5" disks of a similar capacity. Also,
the capacity of the 2.5" disks has climbed considerably. The 2.5" disks are
now considered to be a viable option where low noise or low power is important.
Additionally, high performance disks are moving to the 2.5"
form-factor. At this size, the disks are capable of being faster than the
3.5" disks. They also draw less power. Finally, the packing density of
the disks is higher, which allows more physical disks
to be installed in the same case. These differences all combine to make
the 2.5" form-factor the best choice in any high-performance system.
Because of the above, case manufacturers need to consider options
to allow direct mounting of 2.5" disks into their cases. These disks are critical
for both low power and high speed applications.
For the Antec Solo case used here, implementing a 2.5" disk
mounting system could be as simple as punching another set of holes in the
disk tray, to provide an alternate mounting position for the disk. The system
integrator could then place the Silicone isolators in the appropriate location
for the disk being installed. This is a truly simple solution to this problem.
Case Vibration
It was found that there was an occasional vibration coming
from within the case. This was tracked down to the disk suspension system (unused
in this system). It appears that the plastic pieces that are at the end of
the suspension elements aren't very tight in the case. I consider this to be
a design defect. The simple solution to this problem is to place a piece of
duct tape over the plastic pieces. This will damp out the observed vibrations.
Unfortunately, it's not a very pretty solution.
A more elegant solution would be to put a dab of silicone under
each each end of the plastic pieces.
There are similar plastic pieces on the back of the disk suspension
system, but this computer has several cables tucked away in there, which do
a good job of keeping the plastic pieces from vibrating.
Rear Panel Air Flow
The Antec Solo has a set of vent holes in the back, above the
card slots. These holes are only useful if the case has a positive pressure.
As there is only room for two 92MM intake fans, the intake fans would have
to be significantly more powerful than the exhaust fan to provide a positive
pressure. In most instances, the case will have neutral pressure or a slight
negative pressure. Under these circumstances, the rear vent holes will allow
heated exhaust air from behind the case to come back in. This can have a negative
effect on the ability of the case to stay cool. The simple solution is to place
some packing tape over these holes.
Case Finish
The finish on the case is reflective black. This finish is
fine, if you're looking for a pretty case. Unfortunately, most cases get handled
and moved enough to quickly mar this finish. A rougher finish (like that used
on many of the other Antec cases) would be a welcome change.
AHCI
There was an issue with the BIOS. It turns out that the 1.0a
BIOS delivered on the motherboard wouldn't support AHCI devices when more than
4GB of memory was used. The support people at Supermicro quickly
sent me a BIOS that resolved this issue (1.0b Beta).
SSD Space
The 32GB SSD is quite small, and I don't advise that it be
used as the system disk in a production workstation. The application installations,
and the growth from patching, will fill such a small disk VERY quickly. If
an SSD is to be used, a 64GB or larger unit is advised.
Registered Memory
It is a minor issue that the single-socket motherboards are
limited to unbuffered memory, even when used with a processor that is capable
of using registerd memory. This limits the single-socket Nehalem systems to
24GB of memory. Had they been able to use registered memory, it would have
been possible to have single-socket systems at up to 48GB of memory.
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