Antec Fusion Remote Max

Updated version of the famous Fusion HTPC enclosure.

Author:	Jouni 'Jipa' Vasama
Published:	17.03.2009
Manufacturer:	Antec
Product Group:	System Enclosures
In English Suomeksi

Assembly

Motherboard: Abit IP35
Processor: Intel C2D E6750 (Cooler: Xigmatek HDT-S1283)
Graphic card: Gainward Bliss 8800GT 1024 MB
Hard drive: Seagate 7200.10 250 GB

Antec Fusion Remote Max

The assembly is very much like with the old Fusion, getting the parts in is easy enough with lots of room, but connecting the cables is a nightmare. Some of the cables are a bit too short and others are way too long, so the end result is about as elegant as a train crash. Maybe the hardest and definitely the most unnecessary mess is caused by the extremely clumsy power adapter and also the fans that require a molex-cable to be routed all across the case. On the bright side installing the drives and even a long modular PSU was easy.

In Use

Antec Fusion Remote Max

The LCD and the remote are again made by Soundgraph and thus use the iMon software we've already seen with many HTPC cases earlier. The bundle contains two programs; iMon and iMedian. The iMon is the one that controls the VFD and with which one can tweak the settings of the remote controller and the iMedian is a media center-utility that can be used to watch recorded TV programs and listen to music. This software set is easy to use and contains everything needed to turn your XP/Vista PC into a mediaPC.

Temperatures

Antec Fusion Remote Max

For load temperatures the system was loaded with some gaming and Intel Burn Test and the temperatures were written down from CPUID Hardware Monitor after they had stabilized. During the temperature tests the CPU cooler fan controller was disabled and the fan was running at full speed all the time. Idle temperature reading was taken after the load.

For a HTPC-case the results are very good. At load the motherboard temperature hits 40 degrees, but the temperatures of the individual components remain at reasonable levels.

Noise

In HTPC-use the quiet operation is often even more important in desktop use and that sets unusually high requirements to the fans used in these cases. Unfortunately Antec uses their Tri-Cools in all models from gaming cases to HTPC cases and in this use they just don't cut it. At full speed the 140 mm fan is even louder than the normal 120 mm Tri-Cools and the noise is unbearable. At minimum the sound of the two fans still covers the noise of the other components, so on that sector I'd call the Fusion Remote Max a bit of a failure. Users looking for silence are going to have to replace the fans and at this price range it seems wrong.

Conclusion

PROS

Enough room for large graphic cards and coolers

Clever dust filters

CONS

Fans too loud at low setting

No HDD-cooling with most power supplies

Bronze Award!

So then, what's the verdict? The Fusion Remote Max turned out to be a mixed bag, there are so many good things, but then again there are the terrible installation with the cable mess-nightmare and too noisy fans. First of all I really like the outlooks of the case. It isn't easy to fit a full-sized ATX motherboard into a HTPC-case without making it look massive. There are also very clever dust filters that, again, aren't an easy to achieve feature in HTPC-cases.

It's the internal layout that brings the problems. The compartments seem kinda unnecessary really. Most of todays' power supplies take their cooling air with a 120 mm fan on the side, in Remote Max this means from outside the case. This again both makes the dividing wall unnecessary to begin with, and also means that the hard drives in the PSU-compartment don't get any airflow whatsoever. These combined make me wonder why the wall even is there.

In the end the Fusion Remote Max can mainly be recommended to those looking for a HTPC-case to fit ATX-motherboard and depending on the power supply either 2 or 4 hard drives. With the right hardware and by changing the fans you can still make this into a very nice case.