Upcoming offerings from Antec

The 24th of June provided me with the opportunity to represent AusBF at the pre-launch lunch of some crazy fantastic new Antec products. Amongst these were the new signature Series of Power Supply Units, the new Veris iMedian multimedia devices and take a look at some new cases including the tiny Minuet 350 and the gigantic Twelve-Hundred case.

Power supply Units are generally overlooked items when building a new PC. Most people forget that they are the most important item in the damned case considering everything needs power to run. Antec has always been at the top of the game when it comes to PSU’s and it’s nice to see that their newest and most advanced PSU’s (that’s power supply units for you non-abbreviating technical types like me); the ‘Signature’ Series don’t remove them from that top spot. Now the slides they were showing at this launch had a lot of numbers on the screen, a few graphs about wattage, some about heat and others about RPM’s. I followed them for the most part and those that I didn’t I just nodded anyway. The gist I got from it was that this little guy can go harder and faster without skipping a beat. This is all thanks to the new Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) fan that the Signature series (the 850 and 650) are equipped with. Put into context from what was said at the launch, an ordinary smart fan can get to a maximum of 3000 RPM and maintain a heat of 75?C where the new PWM fan can run at 4000 RPM and only hit 85?C (of course maintaining ones power supply at full speed is never recommended). Another little kick of the PWM fan is its noise reduction, and can run up to 50% quieter than standard PSU fans, as according to the handy little pamphlet they handed out, PWM fans can run as slow as 10-15% of the fan’s rated top speed, whereas a voltage regulated fan can only go as low as 40%. Another couple of impressive facts of these PSUs is the energy efficiency that they carry, able to run at 82% efficiency at 20%, 50% or 100% load. Furthermore the layout of the Signature series (pictured below) allows greater airflow with the hybrid cable management system.

One little crazy fact about PSUs is that by keeping them only 10C coolers, you double their lifespan. Below in the table are all the little technical elements for both the 850 and the 650 respectively.

Next was the new Media Devices, the Veris multimedia station is for lack of a better word, awesome. These handy little devices look fantastic which belie their price (surprising inexpensive as far as items in this category go) and they for the most part sit nicely in a drive bay. From what I witnessed the potential of these is fantastic with true High Definition (yes, I mean TRUE 1080p, not this erroneous 720p/1080i crap) output to a TV or projector, aside from ones monitor. Furthermore the interface is by no means a letdown and looks great on screen with vibrant purple backdrop and easy to use functions. Another bonus is the actual item itself is quite stylish, so it won’t detract from your fancy case at all.

There was a brief look at the cases as well with appearances from familiar ones such as the Nine-Hundred, which I personally own and swear by (and recommend to anyone wanting a mid size tower of pure awesome). Also the three hundred and the twelve hundred were present, being the younger and older brothers, respectively of the nine-hundred. The twelve hundred is by far the biggest case I have ever seen in my life, but with the amount of features is has, if you can fit it on your desk (which is a big if) then it is well worth the purchase. Where the nine hundred has the small issue of collecting a fair amount of dust on its fans and grills, the twelve hundred boasts washable dust filters that pull out for brushing or rinsing. Like the Nine-Hundred it also holds an impressive amount of fans which are amazingly silent whilst dealing a great amount of air flow and cooling throughout the tower. The advantage of the twelve hundred being that one can control fan speed (unlike the nine hundred) and it was also designed for water cooling in mind (also unlike the nine hundred). What it doesn’t have like the nine hundred, is the ridiculous drink holder with rubber grip in the top of the case, the one right next to the gaping hole with a 200mm fan. The three hundred is more like the nine hundred without the appeal. Less cooling features (due to less fans), but retains the washable dust filters like the twelve hundred. This is the case for those who just want a functional case without all the style and trim of something like the nine-hundred. Next is the Mini P180. This is overall a nice case, the cooling substantial and it’s got some stylish charm to it, but if its mini that you really are going for, then look no further than the Minuet 350. This case, when I first looked at it confused me. I could not work out who would buy something like that, it was tiny (only able to fit microATX motherboards inside) and the only real style of it was the few chrome features on the front and sides. That was until I realised something – it was the perfect office computer case. The chrome really gives it a modern appeal that adds something to the otherwise everyday dull black that is seen so often and with the ability to lay flat or stand upright it is convenient for those in need of space and thus likes to play Tetris with their case.

Antec has always made, to my knowledge, quality products, some of which I already own and some of which I soon hope to (I’m looking at you Veris Media system!). I would recommend any of what I was able to review and although I have not had the ability to road-test any of these devices (except of course for the nine-hundred case) I can say without a doubt that I would be veryhappy to purchase any of the products above,funds permitting as always.
Antec Website

As per usual Livefire will be happy to help you out in obtaining these products.