Silverstone Grandia GD01S - MXR ATX/mATX HTPC Chassis
Test Setup, Installation & LCD Display
Published: 23rd March 2007 | Source: Silverstone | Price: |
To really test the HTPC I installed a fully fledged Core2Duo system:
Intel Core2Duo E6700 @ 2666MHz (1.3v)
abit IN9 32x Max Motherboard
Mushkin PC2 5300
Gainward 8800GTS 640mb
Hitachi Deskstar 7K160
Sony DVD-RW
Silverstone Zeus 560w
I installed the system into the case and then installed the iMon software.
I measured the temperature using the abit uGuru temperature monitoring software. The system and PWM temperatures were checked with a thermal probe. Idle temperatures were taken after the PC had been on for 30minutes. Load temperatures were taken after 30minutes of dual F@H. Ambient temperature was maintained at 22°C throughout.
Installation
Installation was not easy by any stretch of my imagination. After totally stripping out the case I started by installing the motherboard. Once this was done I installed the power supply, graphics card and memory. It's worth noting that I do have a few cuts and scraped on my fingers as a result of some sharp edges, so be careful.
Wire tidying was an issue, especially as I didn't have a modular PSU around to help me with tidying. I ended up hiding the spare wires somewhat. A power supply made especially for a smaller form factor case would have been a bonus here. However I soldiered on.
The case is very tight but then it is a media chassis so I wasn't expecting miracles. Once the wires had been matched up with where they should go on the motherboard I installed the DVD-RW and the HDD.
The hard drive was a tricky situation as I wanted plenty of room for wires. Here the GD01S shined through. With 6 available bays I was able to install this sideways allowing for loads of room to hide wires and store spares:
You could have fitted in the 6 hard drives that are possible, but not without sacrificing the high-end GPU I put in this build.
As you can see I ended up with a bit of a collection of wires but to the cases credit there was room to store them without totally ruining airflow.
On the face of it it's not too bad an installation. I did have some trouble with the graphics card clearance and no way would an 8800GTX fit in the case, but all in all everything fits in ok.
However I cannot help but be slightly worried that those with less experience installing PC equipment would go astray. It took me 2.5Hrs to install the system into the case and I had to use some guesswork with some of the wires as the manual does not cover everything there by a long shot.
I would also have to recommend a fully modular PSU to use with the GD01 as otherwise you will end up with a big bundle of wires like mine.
The LCD display
The LCD display provided with the case is an iMon. Once powered on, installation is a pretty simple and hassle free process with no problems. However here the effort is just starting. Now I've configured a few LCD displays in my time but I did find the GD01's iMon to be a rather long winded affair. With multiple screens and programs to change and setup and a whole host of options it's certainly for those who want to really fiddle with their LCD's.
However I cannot help but be slightly worried that those with less experience installing PC equipment would go astray. It took me 2.5Hrs to install the system into the case and I had to use some guesswork with some of the wires as the manual does not cover everything there by a long shot.
I would also have to recommend a fully modular PSU to use with the GD01 as otherwise you will end up with a big bundle of wires like mine.
The LCD display
The LCD display provided with the case is an iMon. Once powered on, installation is a pretty simple and hassle free process with no problems. However here the effort is just starting. Now I've configured a few LCD displays in my time but I did find the GD01's iMon to be a rather long winded affair. With multiple screens and programs to change and setup and a whole host of options it's certainly for those who want to really fiddle with their LCD's.
The upside is that iMon have attempted a media centre approach and the UI is rather pretty, although it can be hard to use at times. I've uploaded some of the basic features in a PDF file that Silverstone kindly provided me with here.
Let's take a look at the LCD itself.
Let's take a look at the LCD itself.
Here's the LCD before I added a custom font and adjusted the contrast of the display. Not too bad out of the box.
The LCD isn't hugely impressive but with a bit of fiddling around with the settings you can get it so that it's easy to see in the dark and with even more fiddling you can get your track/DVD info displayed on the LCD. Shown is the system settings feature showing system speed, OS info etc
And above is the equaliser function. If you are willing to really get into setting it up there is quite a lot that can be done with the display but I have not found it the easiest thing to get on with to be honest.
Most Recent Comments
Looks nice 
Altho it is massive!!
Nice review I like the images of the LCD on the front
Altho it is massive!!
Nice review
I like the images of the LCD on the front Aye it is huge, but I spose it helps with thermal dissapation
Very pretty case!
Nice review dude, really nice read!
Nice review dude, really nice read!
Great review. Looks to big and too expensive for me though.
Nice work! It's always fun trying to squeeze everything into an HTPC case and then tidy the wiring. The inside looks quite spacious with everything installed and no doubt those 80mm fans help to keep the temperature reasonable as well.
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