Friday February 10, 2012 9:25 AM AEST

Antec Sonata Plus 550

By David Hollingworth
11:18 Mar 13, 2008
Tags: antec | sonata | plus | 550 | case
Antec Sonata Plus 550
 
70
---

A quiet and shiny case, just in case you should need one. And that's not punny.

Antec makes a vast range of cases, from little home entertainment units all the way up to gaming powerhouses with enough fans to fill an auditorium. But it’s not all about size and power – quiet operation is another computing exemplar, and the Sonata Plus 550 is a true champion of the cause.

Design-wise the case’s finish is akin to that found on shiny red tool boxes, but in black. The finish marks up very easily (pity our poor photographer –ed) but it also wipes pretty clean. The front fascia features a brushed aluminium finish which is set off by a painted copper highlight. Copper’s not the most inspiring colour at the best of times, and we do feel this cheapens the design a touch.

The internals, however, are top notch for a case this size – it’s a nice and roomy design for a case this small, and even though there’s not a lot of cross support, the solid metal construction makes for a very solid design. Rolled edges are prominent, and everything seems nice and accessible. The side panels use spring-mounted thumb screws of a comfy size, and swing easily away – this will be a good case for frequent upgraders.

The drive bay count is ample for all but the most storage-hungry of users. This is meant to be a superlatively quiet machine, and Antec’s added a feature that we find quite interesting – if you sacrifice a bay, you can suspend three drives in elasticised cloth bands. This way, the drives make no solid contact with the case frame, cutting down on vibration and noise. Of course, and Antec is quick to point this out, it’s not a great solution if you’re moving your PC around a lot, but for a relatively static set-up it’s a neat solution, and really helps the Sonata run quiet.

We’re very curious, however, to see how that material might stand up to prolonged use in the relatively warm and hopefully dry environment of a PC case.

It also comes with a 550watt Antec power supply, with a variable speed, quiet-running fan. Speaking of fans, there’s only one 120mm fan mounted in the case’s rear, though there are mounting points for two more behind the case’s front door. One or two more would be ideal, but the low count is in keeping with the quietly-quietly mission statement.

 
Product Info
Specs:
W)206 x (H)425 x (D)463mm; 12kg net; SECC & brushed aluminium; ATX and smaller; 3x 5.25in bays, 1x 3.5in bay that can be converted into 5.25in bay, 4x 3.5in bays (3x if using suspension mechanism); black & silver with copper trim.
Supplier:
Price when reviewed:
AUD$275
price check*
$233.57 Antec Sonata Plus - Piano Black and Silver ATX Mid Tower Case, NeoPower 550...
Digitan Technology (NSW)
$290.00 Antec 'Sonata Plus' ATX MidiTower Case - Piano Black and Silver, NeoPower 550W PSU, S
Allneeds Computers (SA)
*Products and prices sourced from staticICE and are in no way associated with Atomic MPC Powered by
 
This article appeared in the January, 2008 issue of Atomic.

Behind the scenes with Mass Effect 3! GTX 560 VGA round-up! Essential Skyrim tweaks to improve your game! Plus reviews, news, hardware, more games, and easy to following modding guides for PC builders. ON SALE NOW!
 
Latest Competitions
 
Atomic Magazine

Issue: 133 | February, 2012

Atomic is a magazine aimed squarely at computer enthusiasts, gamers, and serious PC upgraders.

Every month we bring you the latest reviews of new technology and PC components, in depth features on everything from overclocking to console hacking, and gaming previews and interviews.
 
Latest Comments
 
Latest User Reviews
Battlefield 3 is the new benchmark online FPS
90%
A very fun and realistic multiplayer ride.
 
Antec Kuhler 920 - liquid cool
90%
Antec Kuhler 920 silent but effientive out of the box no maintence water cooling kit
 
Antec's Lanboy Air - our new favourite case
90%
Antec Lan boy Air in red a very cool design
 
Antec's Lanboy Air - our new favourite case
90%
This product overall is awesome.
 
MSI's GT780 laptop as fast as it gets
90%
Nice laptop
 
 
Close Get the February, 2012 issue of Atomic mailed to you for $8.95, including postage.

SubscribeBuy nowDigital Version