Just over a month ago now I found myself reviewing my first Soltek barebone system. This SFF system was a member of the Classic series and this product left a good first impression. Though there were a number of areas that did require attention, the overall product was good. Unfortunately, the Soltek EQ3501-300P is exactly the same product underneath the cosmetic touchups. This means the same poor overclocking abilities lie within the EQ3501-300P and its cooling properties are nothing to boast about. In fact I was shocked to learn that this SFF system has gone back a step in the cooling department.The EQ3901 featured a rather stock looking heatsink designed to cool the processor, which did not have quite the same effect as the Shuttle heatpipe setup. Furthermore the system featured just one exhaust fan that did not seem all that effective. However the EQ3501-300P has made no attempt to improve on this situation, doing away with any kind of processor cooling all together. That?s right, the EQ3501-300P does not feature a heatsink and instead the user will be forced to use the OEM AMD cooler. This is extremely disappointing given the EQ3501-300P is no cheaper than those that do feature excellent cooling setups.
Nevertheless, there is no denying the fact that this tiny barebone system is capable of delivering extreme performance, thus making it the ultimate desktop replacement for gamers. When testing the EQ3501-300P a combination of extremely powerful hardware was used. The system comprised of an Intel Pentium 4 560 processor, 1GB DDR400 Corsair memory and an ATi Radeon X600XT PCI Express graphics card. All this powerful hardware made this tiny computer something that all standard desktop PC?s should fear.
For those that are concerned about the power output of the 300w PSU featured in the EQ3501-300P, you have nothing to fear. This system is more than capable of utilizing the most advanced 3D graphics cards, including the power hungry ATi Radeon X850XT. As you may know, this graphics card requires an additional 4-pin molex connector to operate correctly. With this graphics card, two SATA hard drives and an optical drive, the system maintained absolute stability for a number of days. However, please note that due to the dual PCI slot design of the ATi Radeon X850XT, it will not fit in this SFF system without modifications made to the case.
If you are after a retro looking SFF system then the EQ3501-300P is certainly worth considering given its unique design. For creating a small portable gaming machine there are better solutions, but again the EQ3501-300P is a unique looking system. Overall, the EQ3501-300P has been a little disappointing as one of the most important aspects of these SFF systems is their cooling setup. Shuttle quickly learnt this after their first few barebone systems were plagued by high operating temperatures and extreme operating volume levels. Hopefully, Soltek will learn from these mistakes also and will deliver even more competitive systems in the near future.
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Reviewed By Steven Walton
Soltek Qbic EQ3901 Review (2005-01-15)