3R Mstation HT-1100 (cont’d)
Examining the front closer, we notice the great job of the brushed aluminum finish even more so. With the flip-down face up, the minimal “OPEN” stencil is visible, in addition to the gold-colored feet.
One final look at the front panel - this time, a close-up of the top left corner - reveals to us the nice layout of the power and reset buttons, power and HDD activity LEDs, and the front display as well. Finally, the product’s model number is also discretely placed in the far upper corner.
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Moving on, here’s a shot of the Mstation from the side. Notice how the cover’s finish matches perfectly with the sides of the case and really helps keep the overall look immaculately clean.
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This theme is continued all the way around to the rear of the case, where a simple I/O plate with one installed 70mm fan (and space for a second), extra exhaust fan, and power connector can be found. Something that grew on us while working with this case was the unit’s dimensions. It doesn’t feel particularly long, deep, or tall, and would work perfectly with other electronic components right under or on top of it.
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Getting inside the HT-1100 is as easy as unscrewing the three holes on each side of the top cover and sliding it back. The fit of the cover is perfect, and much to our liking, it doesn’t require any finicky latching mechanisms.
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With the case opened, the most prominent feature of the Mstation comes into plain view; the warm air exhaust tunnel. With a power supply installed, the warm air from that (plus additional heat drawn in from the fan visible in the above picture) is all funneled out to the rear of the case. The idea sounds good, but we’ll only be able to tell for sure after we benchmark the case with our test bed installed.
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Turning the case slightly, we can see that, overall, the HT-1100 has a smart layout. Moving the power supply to the front should help keep motherboard clearance issues from arising, and the height of the system is kept in check, thanks to the omission of the external 3½” drive bay. While certainly this could be an issue for some people, for the majority of users, a floppy drive is not even really necessary anymore.
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Like most HTPCs, the Mstation has plenty of cabling coming from the front of the case, but thankfully, there’s a space between the power supply and drive cage that makes cable routing a little easier.
Notice also the standoffs that will help support the power supply. While not exactly pliable rubber, they are still a soft plastic and will help absorb any additional vibrations from the power supply that would’ve otherwise added to the noise of a running system in this case.
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BigandSlimey - Tuesday, November 22, 2005 - link
These guys http://www.atechfabrication.com/products/HTPC_case...">http://www.atechfabrication.com/products/HTPC_case... have been designing their cases in conjunction with the HTPC guru's at avsforum. I'd suggest anyone planning to build a HTPC to go to http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=...">http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=... and do some reading, there's a lot to consider.I'm also surprised at your omission of the Ahanix cases http://www.ahanix.com/ahanix_product_list.asp?cid=...">http://www.ahanix.com/ahanix_product_list.asp?cid=... which IMO look a lot better than any of the options on your article.
See also: http://www.origenae.com/products_htpc.htm">http://www.origenae.com/products_htpc.htm
http://www.silverstonetek.com/product-case.htm">http://www.silverstonetek.com/product-case.htm
ceefka - Tuesday, November 22, 2005 - link
Those Origenae look very nice. I meant the X15 in my earlier comment. This one will cost around 500 bucks. Expensive, but very pretty.lukecon - Tuesday, November 22, 2005 - link
All well and good on the review love AnandTech's review but I think you guys forgot something - The TV tuner in your system - I mean it is a Home Theater PC.Tamale - Tuesday, November 22, 2005 - link
The tuner shouldn't really pose any additional problems with a particular case, and the 6600GT we use gets as hot or even hotter than most video cards with built-in tuners.Perhaps the cooling in an HTPC would be changed dramatically though if another expansion card is also in the system.. hmm.. I'll have to think about that one. Thanks for the comment.
BigLan - Tuesday, November 22, 2005 - link
Actually, tuners can get pretty toasty, maybe not as hot as a video card, but they don't have active cooling on them. An MCE-500 dual tuner stuck in the last slot with no airflow could be a problem.If you are adding a soundcard as well, it can also impede airflow which exacerbates the problem.
tkr2099 - Tuesday, November 22, 2005 - link
Very nice review! I'm planning on building a HTPC this holiday season, so this review could not have come at a better time. Thank you, Anandtech, for another extremely well written and helpful review!tayhimself - Tuesday, November 22, 2005 - link
IMO Silverstone especially and less so Ahanix are specialized HTPC vendors. Either you didnt know this, didnt bother to do research, or didnt get a free sample from them. None of which is a terribly good thing.AFAIK no 3R systems cases have been available in North America since about 3 years ago when newegg carried a few. Theyre a Korean manufacturer of quality cases that are quite popular in Australia (I'm in Canada FYI).
Also, why the POS power supply along with the lousy thermaltake heatsink with a hot P4 system? Not too many people are building HTPCs with P4s, and they tend to use better components than Mad Dog and ThermalTake (no offense to the *bling* obsessed).
The measurements dont jive with the subjective measurements as a 9 dB difference between the loudest and quietest is almost twice as loud.
A poor review, that doesnt belong on AT. I could probably write a better review and I've never done one before.
MPE - Tuesday, November 22, 2005 - link
I could probably write a better review and I've never done one before.Cop out - not to mention inconsequential, immature, ad hominem, and probably false.
tayhimself - Tuesday, November 22, 2005 - link
ad hominem? Go to http://dictionary.com">dictionary.comceefka - Tuesday, November 22, 2005 - link
Isn't that just perfect? If you can get these temperature numbers with P4, you know that a 90nm s939 is going to do just fine.There are so many cases to chose from. Even with built in LCD screens (not cheap btw). Maybe AT can inlcude HTPC's in their entry/mid-range/high-end reviews and builds. On the other hand, this could be a totally different category by itself. You'd also have the opportunity to chose platform.
This brings forth the next question: How long before Apple makes a Home-Pod, HTPC based on Mac ingrediënts. They should be able to make/develop one by now.