excellent little desktop pc
Written: Aug 08 '08 (Updated Aug 08 '08)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Low power consumption. Small!! 4xUSB. Included SATA cable. Place to install 92mm fan.
Cons: No DVI, tv-out, front-side ports. 4GB RAM impossible.
The Bottom Line: I recommend this to anyone looking for a low-power desktop pc solution that is cheap. $99! Cheap!
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| tokar's Full Review: Shuttle KPC K45 (K45-K1-SV-V1) Barebone |
I bought this because i wanted to run an Intel Core2Duo media/tv server 24/7 without worrying about the amount of energy it uses. Full desktop PC's require 300W, or even 400W to operate. This little machine includes a 100W power supply which is apparently enough to operate it. I read it uses something like 35W idle, and maybe 50W during max load. I don't have the tools to test that, but I am saving maybe $150 a year by choosing to run this over a full desktop PC.
Anyway, the major complaints I read of this unit were the following:
1) maximum ram in the specs is listed at 2GB
2) no ICE GENIE (I'll get into this)
3) older graphics (GMA950)
4) includes a PCI slot, no PCI-E slot
5) no 5.25" bays
I will address each one:
1) The computer has two ram slots, each supporting 1GB. HOWEVER, Tom's Hardware Guide tested 2GB DIMM's and it worked. So you could run 2x2GB for 4GB but the computer will only see 3.3GB because of the 32bit constraints.
2) ICE GENIE is a new cooling feature in Shuttle's newer barebone systems. It is a metal heatsink which resides over the processor and connects to a metal exhaust fan. I am not sure if you put the included CPU heatsink/fan over that, but ICE GENIE will certainly help to maintain CPU temperatures. However, without it you can get by installing a 92mm fan in the open location.
3) If you are just using this as a server, a media center, or just general internet use, then this is not an issue. The GMA950 will net you a 3.0/3.1 in the Vista graphics scores (3.0 for Aero), which is good enough to get by. If you plan for gaming with this, then steer clear. The GMA950 is not a great gaming option, and with the lack of a PCI-E slot you won't be able to upgrade the graphics.
4) Not really a big deal unless you are looking to install a graphics card, or buying a specific card that is PCI-E. I went and bought a PCI TV Tuner card, so I was good.
5) Again, if you are using this as a server or something simple that doesn't require a cdrom drive, then it shouldn't matter.
Mind you, these are general complaints, NOT MINE - so they aren't going into my "cons" section. With those out of the way, now the review.
In the box:
1x Shuttle KPC K45 with 100W Power Supply, motherboard installed
1x Driver CD
1x 3"? SATA cable
Some Manuals
1x Standard power cable
The first thing that hit me was how small the unit is. I thought it was bigger from the pictures. I was so excited to see how small it really is.
The next thing that hit me was the existence of only ONE IDE molex from the power supply. In total there was one IDE molex, one SATA connector and 1 floppy power connector. This was an issue because I planned to use an IDE hard drive and install windows from an IDE cdrom. I did not have a Y cable so I had to use my USB HD enclosure to power the cdrom while I installed windows. So if you dont have a solution like the one i had, look into investing in a SATA hard drive for the unit.
Quick rundown of what I installed:
2.53GHz E7200 Core2Duo
2GB (2x1GB) OCZ DDR2-800 RAM
200GB Maxtor 7200RPM IDE hard drive
Hauppauge HVR-1600 1183 PCI HDTV tuner card
92mm fan (there is an open location to install it)
On a quick note, the computer says it supports DDR2-667 RAM. DDR2-800 works fine, just it gets downclocked to 667.
The only issue I ran into while installing the hardware was with the hard drive and the PCI card. I installed the HD, putting the screws in the first and third holes from the front, then i installed the PCI card, and then i decided i wanted to take out the hard drive... I saw the PCI card blocks the third hole! So I had to remove the PCI card, and then the HD. So when installing a HD use only the first and second holes from the front to avoid complete dismantle to get the HD out.
Alsom the power cables are not very long. They are JUST long enough to get to the HD with a tight fit.
After installing all the hardware I really didn't find myself fooling around in the BIOS. There really wasn't much to be changed. Sure, if you want to overclock you can do that very easily in there, but I didn't. You can also overclock the RAM if you so please. The PC Health tab was nice, showing me all cooling info and the sort.
It took a while, but I got windows Vista installed and everything was great. The only "problem" I ran into was with the soundcard. Now mind you it is a realtek audio card so you must install the realtek software to have it operate properly - the microsoft driver is not good. The problem is that it does not recognize the sound card UNLESS you have something plugged in. It could be just as mundane as a headphone splitter, but something needs to be plugged in. It is really odd...
Shuttle gives you the driver CD, but in Vista everything is recognized. The only driver you have to install is the audio with the realtek software. Otherwise everything else is fine.
Ports wise, everything looks good...
4x USB2
1x RJ45 LAN
1x VGA-out
1x serial
3x audio ports
1x ps2 mouse
1x ps2 keyboard
I was overjoyed to see the PS2 mouse and keyboard. I had no plans on buying new USB hardware, only having PS2 hardware on-hand.
I was a little disappointed to find no DVI or TVout ports, but it isn't a big deal for how im using the computer.
I was also upset to see no front-side ports for USB or the sort :P.
Heatwise, everything stayed cool. The CPU never seems to get above 50C, and the HD's are holding cool. You are able to control the fan speed of both the CPU and Exhaust fans. Everything looks great here.
There isn't much else to say about it. It works great and its SMALL! I love it only after a few days. It will be a great little server. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a low-powered desktop solution.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
tokar
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Reviews written: 37
Trusted by: 1 member
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