DREAM MACHINE 2004
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The Parts
Case: Silverstone
Nimiz SST-TJ03
Back in the old days, we always used PC
Power and Cooling cases made from solid
steel for the Dream Machine. These enclo-
sures were extremely stout, and sturdy
enough to withstand a top-secret crucible
known internally as the “staffer squat.” We
used this highly scientific procedure to
determine how a case would hold up to,
say, the sitting weight of a middle-aged
mammal. This year we inadvertently
added another “real world” test known as
the “intern drop” to our Dream Machine
case selection, and we’re happy to report
that the case we chose—Silverstone’s
magnificent Nimiz—passed both tests
with flying colors. The Nimiz is able to
hold all of the Dream Machine’s payload
without being cramped or causing a ther-
mal crisis. And building the machine
resulted in nary a nicked thumb or mut-
tered obscenity. Even though we used a
total of six bays and included an LCD
display, there’s still plenty of room forworking on the
internals and future
expansion.
We also adore
its all-aluminum
construction,
which allows
it to achieve a lithe
feel that belies its intimidating
stature. Four internal fans (the front one
even has a washable filter) keep every-
thing nice and cool at all times.
For this year’s Dream Machine case,
we wanted a paint job in sync with our
PC’s forward-thinking, future-proof nature.
Words like abstract, sleek, and post-modern
dominated our thoughts. With this—and
Art Director Natalie Jeday’s early drafts in
mind—we enlisted the aid of the custom-
painting PC wizards at Smooth Creations.
Founded by Jim Saling in 1999 as a con-
tinuation of his career in high-end automo-
tive painting and detailing, this company
performs amazing work, and uses the exact
same meticulous process to paint PCs as
they do with Lamborghinis and Dodge
Vipers. The process begins with a complete
disassembly and acidic wash of the case.
That’s followed by a dip in an anti-corrosion
etching solution that ensures the paint will
stick. Then multiple coats of custom-mixed,
high-quality automotive paints are applied,
followed by multiple coats of a clear poly-
mer. Finally, all the components are baked
in a thermal downdraft oven, and the case
is wet-sanded, buffed, and polished.
The result: a sleek, classy, elegant
work of art that’s fit to house and protect
our Dream Machine.
http://www.silverstonetek.com,
http://www.smooth-creations.comMotherboard:
asus P5AD2 Premium
We’ve expressed love for Asus mother-
boards’ performance and reliability, but
have criticized them for their conservative
feature sets. This is definitely not the case
with the company’s new P5AD2 Premium,
which is easily the most over-the-top
mobo package we’ve ever seen. And we
don’t mean color-coded IDE cables orbreakout boxes you’ll never use. We’re
talking about a tour de force of useful,
forward-thinking features.
Three onboard RAID subsystems
using the new Intel ICH6R, Silicon
Image, and an ITE controller, respec-
tively, grant us a total of eight Serial ATA
ports and three parallel ports. Although
the Silicon Image controller lets you run
up to four drives in RAID, our Lab tests
revealed that Intel’s new ICH6R coupled
with two 10K Raptor drives actually
outperformed four 10K Raptors on the
Silicon Image controller. Why the per-
formance gap? The SI controller suffers
in comparison because it’s bridged to
the PCI bus, which limits it to 133MB/s.
The ICH6R’s ports on the other hand, are
located directly in the south bridge and
take advantage of the new Direct Media
Interface that moves data between the
south and north bridge at speeds up to
1GB/s in each direction.
Asus is also the first company we’ve
seen to include not just FireWire A but
also FireWire B—aka IEEE-1394B. This
doubles the effective data transfer rate
from 400Mb/s to 800Mb/s. On the USB
2.0 front, there are a total of eight ports
available on the back panel and internal
headers. Asus also goes over the top on
the networking front with not just one
but two Gigabit Ethernet ports plus an
onboard Wi-Fi 802.11b/g controller.
Audio is compliant with Intel’s new
HD Audio spec and uses a C-Media 24-bit
codec. But wait, there’s more! Asus also
bundles an adapter that lets you plug
two SATA drives into the outside of your
PC—and a heat spreader to help dissipate
heat through the bottom of the mother-
board. That’s not even mentioning theWhat makes Dream Machine 2004 so dreamy? Its com-
ponents, of course. Read on for explicit technical details
on the parts we chose—and why we chose them