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You asked for it so here it is, a mini SN95G5 review.
This is my 4th Shuttle now, and I've seen Shuttle produce a fair few changes over the years to its XPC range, and this model is no different. I won't bore you with the spec's of the machine as Im sure you already found out, but heres my initial impressions.
The build quality of the SN95G5 is pretty much upto standard the finish is nice and the new button layout creates a more slick look. The only negative really to the build of the machine was the two stealth bays, they are plastic and look prone to snapping, would of been nicer if shuttle had made them out of metal.
I have a 3500+, a 6800 GT, WD Raptor all tucked up in my SN95G5 and Im amazed at how much better the new cooling solution is. The bigger fan and increased grill size for the ICE system is great. My system temps are in the high 30's to low 40's, and even after playing a few hours of Doom 3 the air being pushed out is only warm to the touch and not hot like my previous XPC. What tops of this improvement is the fact that even under load the new ICE fan operates so much quieter, it makes a refreshing change as my XPC sits next to me on my desk and one of the best advantages of the new ICE system.
The performance of the SN95G5, is hard for me to quantify, as this is my first A64 and I have no other experience of similar spec desktops. All I can say is that its faster than my last rig which was running of a 3.0ghz Northwood.
I do have a couple of concerning issues with the SN95G5. The CPU Temp is not reported correctly. It idles at 20c and goes to 30c under load, be nice to think these were right. And I and other Nforce 3 users are have problems with memory timing. My Geil Ultra stock timings are 2-3-6-3, but my system is unstable with anything lower than 2.5-3-6-3, it only works out to be a 2% performance loss, but it is annoying. Whether this can be fixed by a bios update is unknown, as other Nforce 3 boards are proving to have similar issues. There is talk that in fact the issues lies with the on-die memory controller on the A64 not liking low timings, but we shall see.
Im very impressed with what Shuttle done with this XPC, the fact that you can run all the latest hardware like a A64, and even a 6800 GT known for its high running temps, in a shuttle and have it deal with this hardware with ease in a silent manner is a great achievement by Shuttle.
This review is only for fun and I will give the SN95G5 a Hexus mini review rating of
9 out of 10
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