Shuttle XPC SB65G2: Big Performance in This Small Package
by Wesley Fink on September 9, 2003 11:32 PM EST- Posted in
- Systems
Shuttle SB65G2: G2 Chassis
The SB65G2 chassis front is finished in the brushed aluminum used for the case shell. The G2 design is very familiar, as we’ve seen it in our last 2 reviews of Shuttle SFF systems in January and March. In this incarnation, we find just about every port you could ever want on the front of the system — 2 USB, mini Firewire, and duplicate audio jacks. The Blue System ON and Orange hard disk activity lights are very easy to see and distinguish in this design.
The rear of the chassis is much like other Shuttle XPC designs. We were pleased to see both SPDIF optical in and out ports included for hook-up to a Dolby Digital setup. Shuttle was wise to include a full set of audio connectors on both the front and rear panels. Different configurations work best with different arrangements, and this SB65G2 design is very flexible and easily adapted to your needs.
The brushed aluminum shell include air inlet grills low on both sides of the chassis. These do help in improving cooling.
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As you can see in our open view of the chassis, we have loaded the system with a CD Recorder/DVD combo, floppy, and 120Gb hard drive.
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Even with all of these peripherals installed, the interior is still well-organized and reasonably uncluttered, especially considering the small size of the system.
The rear fan that you see in the picture above is a temperature-controlled variable speed unit, with two modes that are selectable in the BIOS. It is part of the familiar and very effective Shuttle I.C.E. heatpipe/rear fan arrangement.
Click to enlarge.
If you would like to know more about how the Shuttle cooling system works, check out our earlier Shuttle Review.
One of the more notable points of the Shuttle design is the ability to access both the AGP and PCI slot even when the system is fully loaded.
Most of the installation steps on the SB65G2 are familiar and well-described in the Shuttle manuals. Mounting an AGP or PCI card, however, is a bit unique unless you have used a Shuttle SFF before. As you can see in the above photo, 2 screws secure the slots. You must remove both screws and flip up the hinged top cover by pushing out from the inside of the case, just above the slots. You can then easily add or remove a PCI or AGP card. While this is not the most intuitive arrangement we have seen, it is actually a very clever solution to the problem of space in a SFF design.
Click to enlarge.
No, your eyes are not playing tricks on you, because that is our top-line ATI Radeon 9800 PRO mounted in the 8X AGP slot with a Molex power connector. With a 200 watt power supply, we were more than a little concerned about whether the Shuttle could handle a loaded system with a 3.0 GHz CPU and the ATI card. The answer is: “yes, it can”.
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Anonymous User - Sunday, September 14, 2003 - link
Awesome little box. Built an SB61 last year, stuck a Ti4200 in it and it is magic - yet is quiet as a mouse.Whatever version of the SB62 is available at the end of this year will be my next PC purchase.
And you have to wonder what those who report heat problems are DOING with their boxes - I live in an un-airconditioned tropical location that regularly gets above 35C - and my Shuttle just keeps on keeping on.
Anonymous User - Saturday, September 13, 2003 - link
anyone have one of these aluminum machines from shuttle? I've been trying to find a cd drive that matches the finish before I buy the system.Anonymous User - Saturday, September 13, 2003 - link
I was curious about USB FDD in order to avoid putting a FDD In one of these and and according to the SB61G2 manual off of Shuttle's web site there is BIOS support for booting to USB FDD and USB CD/DVD.Anonymous User - Friday, September 12, 2003 - link
It's amazing what they can put inside that small box.Anonymous User - Friday, September 12, 2003 - link
Looks excellent for the price !Anonymous User - Thursday, September 11, 2003 - link
Where is the gigabit NiC??? and firewire 800 even!!!Anonymous User - Thursday, September 11, 2003 - link
#20 and #25My apoligies.
Anonymous User - Wednesday, September 10, 2003 - link
#25The difference between the SB61G1 and the SB62G2 are the following:
SB61G2- silver, firewire, SATAx2 (non RAID), AC '97 Realtek AL650 6 channel Codec, 200w Power Supply, usb, integrated Intel Extreme Graphics -865G chipset, 800mhz, spdif in/out, bugs with ATi Radeon 9500&9700s (until recent revision that fixed the capacitators that were the culprits), extra crackling noises in front Headphone jack due to some sort of interference.
SB62G2- BLACK, MESHED, NO FIREWIRE, SATAx2 RAID (ICH5-R), 220W POWER SUPPLY, DUAL 10/100 LAN, FIXES to ATi Radeon issues and supposedly the sound problems too, USB, Intel Extreme Graphics 865G chipset, 800mhz FSB, SPDIF in/out, same Realtek AL650 6 Channel AC '97 Codec.
yes, the PDF spec sheet is off, it was actually posted the last week of August, while the product page on the Shuttle HQ and US websites have been changed twice since then to reflect the 220W PS and some other typos. So until offical release, its specualation.
Anonymous User - Wednesday, September 10, 2003 - link
To #23...wow, that's kind of harsh.Actually, the info is from the shuttle site. See http://us.shuttle.com/specs2.asp?pro_id=380 and http://www.shuttle.com/hq/product/barebone/specs_b... Each page also has a PDF with detailed specs as well. No spdif is listed. Unlike these pages, the spec pages for the 61G2 specifically list the spdif. (According to the site, the 52G2 has a spdif.)
Of course, you may have a 61G2 right in front of you with a spdif, in which case the online info is wrong (wouldn't be the first time). It also seems the 62G2 doesn't have a 1394 port.
Still, no reason to abandon courtesy! Perhaps you'll share with us common folk what you see as the difference between the 61G2 and the 62G2?
(Disclaimer: Lest anyone think that what I post is "fact," please note that everything I say is "as far as I know." Believed accurate, but not guaranteed.)
Anonymous User - Wednesday, September 10, 2003 - link
Nice big pictures at http://www.shuttle.com/de/druck_sb65.htm. It's in German, only Shuttle site that has info so far.