Silence is only ONE of its great features
Written: Mar 10 '05 (Updated Mar 10 '05)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Easy upgradeability -- easy to open, maneuver, add/remove components. Slick looks. Silent case/power supply fans.
Cons: Doesn't eliminate all sounds -- users need to separately address noisy CPU/chipset/video card fans.
The Bottom Line: I highly recommend this case to users looking to put their computer in a high-profile area and are serious about quiet computing.
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| xero-g's Full Review: Antec LifeStyle Sonata ATX Mid-Tower Case |
I bought this case expecting silent computing and got much more. The case looks beautiful, is extremely easy to work in, and makes upgrades a snap.
My computer sits in my room, about 5 feet away from my bed. I needed a case that would not keep me awake all night. I also needed a case that would look nice as I try to upgrade my room decor to something a little less college dorm-like. Before I get to the reasons I love this case, let me start with a caveat of what this case is not.
This case IS NOT meant to silence all of your noisy computer components. In my previous case, most of the noise was coming from the chipset and video card fans. In the Antec Sonata case, I can still hear them, although not quite as loudly as before. However, the case itself (which means the case fan and the power supply fan) are very quiet. And the case's sturdy construction also minimizes the vibration and drive noise that oftentimes come from optical drives and hard drives.
My favorite part about this case is how easy it was to install components into it. It took me about an hour to get all of my components out of the old case and into this one. The side panels have thumb screws and a door-handle-type latch for easy removal. The inside of the case leaves plenty of room for screwing in components.
And the drive bays are incredible!! All of the internal and external drives are very easily snapped into the computer, and just as easily snapped out of the computer. It makes hard drive and CD drive swapping very fast.
FWIW, there are two things that have pleasantly surprised me about the case during the 4 months I have been using it.
1. The temperature in my case stays very reasonable. There is enough air circulation inside to remove the hot air.
2. My components seem to stay cleaner for longer. I have a lot less dust in my computer than with old cases. I believe this is because of the air filter on the front of the case.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
xero-g
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Location: New York, NY
Reviews written: 2
Trusted by: 0 members
About Me:
I am a gadget-geek living in a typical New York City apartment.
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