Cables:

20+4 Pin plug	4 & 8 pin plug	2 PCI-E
6 Molex	Molex and FDD	4 SATA plugs

    The cabling on the EarthWatts EA-500 even looks old school, as it's missing the mesh over the cables, except these wires are more flexible than the wires of old. The only cable covered with the mesh is the motherboard power cable. This cable also has the 20/24 pin connector. A separate 4pin and 8pin 12v power cable are included and are non-meshed. Two separate PCI-E cables are also included along with two cables with three Molex plugs each, one with a FDD plug, and two SATA cables with two connections each.

Installation:

5.25" rails	Rails installed	HDD tray
Clean install	Gear installed	Power LED

    Installation of components into the Sonata III will be a breeze... well, almost. Although the Sonata is supplied with brackets that lock into the rails, those brackets need to be secured to the 5.25" devices with screws. You'll find these brackets attached to the backside of each 5.25" bezel plate. The same goes for the HDD trays: the hard drives need to be secured to the tray with screws.

    Remember when I was saying that the HDD bays sit sideways? With this setup, we usually see the cable connections. Well, with the Sonata III being wide, this allows the hard drives to be turned around and all the cables run along the side wall. This gives a real clean look and keeps the wires from interfering with air flow.

    After I had all the optical drives and hard drives installed, the next item in line was the motherboard. This is the simple, straight-forward approach of installing standoffs and then securing the motherboard to the standoffs. Finally, make all the proper connections and fire up the system.

Conclusion:

    For a third generation case, I would have expected just a little bit more in the way of convenience in this new world of tool-less installation. One other minor gripe is that only one 120mm fan is included with the Sonata III. There is plenty of room to add another fan behind the bezel, but unfortunately there are no mounting holes for a fan. The HDD and power LED's are the same color; some people might not like that, so here is a tip from your Uncle Sludge: the LED that is flashing is for the hard drive.

    On to the stuff I did like, and if you have read some of my reviews before you know I like the piano finish. The front bezel is smooth and clean, and the IEEE plug has been replaced with a eSATA plug. The TriCool fan kept the case temperatures in check no matter what speed was set, but I would like to see an additional fan. Now for the noise: the panel design keeps the noise to a minimum and it did this well. The fan and hard drive noises were contained and the silent series lives up to its name. The bottom line is: the Sonata III would make an excellent enclosure for someone needing to build a new system and needed a PSU. I would like to thank Antec for sending this unit out for VH to review.

Got News? Send 'em in!