Long live the optical drive

Despite what Sony might think, optical drives aren't dead yet. Quiet PC launches two new fanless systems - Intel or AMD-powered - featuring the Streacom FC8 heatsink case. The front panel features a sleek, integrated slot-loading optical drive bay, which can be configured with a DVD or Blu-ray drive for media playback and archiving. The systems feature CPUs up to the Core Ultra 9 285T or Ryzen 7 9700X, up to 64GB of RAM and up to 20TB of SSD storage.

Two faithful companions

We always loved this picture of a cat on a Streacom DB4. Well, we finally found her. Meet Chi (from the Konami Kanata manga) in 2019 (picture 1) and in 2026 (picture 2 and 3). The PC itself is still going strong and went from a Ryzen 7 1700 and Radeon RX 550 combo, to a Ryzen 7 5700X paired with a GeForce RTX 3050. Here’s to many more years for both!

Streacom SG10 as a complete PC

Previously exclusive to the original backers of the 2016 Calyos Kickstarter campaign, the Streacom SG10 is now available to everyone as a complete PC, in both Intel and AMD configurations. In the fanless PC world, the SG10 stands entirely in a class of its own. It features cutting-edge loop heat pipe technology that passively cools up to 600W of combined heat, eliminating (optional) fans for near-silent operation. This level of ultra-premium hardware comes with a matching price tag, starting at a steep $4,300.

Intel: https://www.quietpc.com/sys-sg10-intel

AMD: https://www.quietpc.com/sys-sg10-amd

Turbocharged Streacom SG10 build

The Streacom SG10 is a feast for the eyes. This Japanese PC enthusiast's build features the Ryzen 7 7800X3D and Radeon RX 9070 XT GPU. The setup also includes Streacom's VU1 analog gauges for real-time CPU/GPU temp monitoring. While impressive, the SG10 isn't without its flaws, the liquid coolant is audible during light tasks, though the sound curiously tends to dissipate under heavy load.

Source: UnlimitedLenchinWorks

Semi-passive build

"I based this build on the the first version of the Streacom FC5 fanless case. The case was released in 2011 and I previously used it with a Sandy Bridge CPU. I managed to adopt it to fit AM4 (not officially supported in this version, though the newer FC5 versions support it with the universal CPU mount). The case currently houses passively cooled Ryzen 5600G on Gigabyte Aorus B550 ITX board . The other cooling fin takes care of the Plex GAN 500W PSU. The GPU is RTX 5070 Founders Edition. The case sits in my AV rack under the TV and it's completely silent with normal use like Youtube or playing movies. The GPU fan only kicks in when I use it for gaming. FC5 wasn't designed for the modern GPUs use. I modified it to fit the 5070 and allow more air movement. The top lid was mostly cut out and replaced with mesh grille. There's also a mesh grille underneath the GPU, to allow the air in. The non-gaming temperatures sit around 40C for CPU/GPU. The gaming will take them much higher - 80-85C CPU and 60-70C GPU (with undervolt)"

Source: reddit 

Streacom FC8 build

"Pros: - totally silent - relatively compact - perfectly fine for general use and lighter gaming Cons: - case does get hot under heavy load over extended periods of time (which is normal and generally expected of a fanless build) - case does not officially support AM5 cpus, but it was possible to install Ryzen 8700g into it (even though it was a bit fiddly)"

Source: PCPartPicker 

Easy Streacom SG10 build

Waiting two years for the Streacom SG10 was a long haul, but this Chinese user's patience paid off. Streacom's giant copper case looks stunning. The PC assembly is very straightforward and when paired with the Ryzen 7 8700G, the heatsink case significantly outperforms Noctua's NH-P1 (seen in the background of the last picture). Given its price, which is roughly twelve times more, that's a welcome relief. At this time, the SG10 is only available to backers of the original Kickstarter campaign, or after buying a €479 pledge voucher here.

Source: Chiphell

Optiplex 7050 get silenced

"Had this Streacom passive case lying around, bought an old Optiplex 7050 for a budget ebay/YouTube build which of course ended up not being very budget as it usually goes. Learned the hard way that dell uses non standard motherboard standoff locations so had to drill and tap all of those. Original zeroflex PSU blew up immediately so replaced it with an Enhance 1u and a Noctua fan swap. Few wiring adaptors purchased or made for the weird dell plugs... Would go a different route next time but a fun project nonetheless."

Source: reddit 

Streacom SG10 up close

Linus reviews the Streacom SG10

The Raspberry Pi Open Benchtable

The BC1 Open Benchtable Pi brings the award-winning test bench to the world of single-board computers and Raspberry Pi. Following the legacy of the award-winning BC1 Open Benchtable series, the BC1 Open Benchtable Pi combines a sleek, premium look with toolless design.

The BC1 Open Benchtable Pi focuses on minimalism and functionality in a Raspberry Pi test bench. Precision-crafted from high-quality aluminum, the BC1 OBT Pi ensures durability and stability while providing unrestricted access to the Raspberry Pi’s GPIO pins, ports, and add-ons, making it the perfect solution for prototyping, development, and creative projects.

Source: Streacom 

Streacom SG10 noise

Well, this is unfortunate to say the least. It turns out that the groundbreaking cooling technology used for this €1,200 case is not noiseless. The case uses a pump-free, two-phase cooling system, and this noise is consistent with the coolant's vaporization. It's literally boiling.
Courtesy of The Dinner King

Streacom SG10 is shipping

The long-in-the-making 600W-capable fanless Streacom chassis is now shipping. This marks the end of a long - and painful - journey for early birds who backed the 2016 Calyos Kickstarter campaign. Following multiple revisions from its original Calyos NSG S0 form, the case was refined and released by Streacom, a well-known specialist in fanless cooling.

Direct die & passively cooled 8700G

"Although my DB4 ft. a 13900F and RTX 4070 was working great, I was intrigued by the arrival of the AMD Ryzen 7 8700G. I've had a 5700G before and that was quite nice. The most important feature being that it has a monolithic die, vs. the chiplet design of its siblings like the 5600X. Because of the monolithic die, it isn't wasting power at idle and also has good undervolting potential - perfect for a fanless build.

So it's a very nice improvement and was definitely worth it. However, for a passive build you're ultimately limited to the cooling capacity provided by the heatsinks, the CPU will 'soak' if it uses more power than can be dissipated. Also, the heat dissipation improves when the temperature delta increases. Meaning, more watts can be dissipated when the CPU is hot. This makes it all more complex."

Source: reddit 

Streacom's fanless gaming PC case is official

The SG10 can provide an incredible 600W of total combined cooling for the CPU and GPU without any fans or moving parts. The SG10 uses a type of phase change cooling technology called Loop Heat Pipe (LHP) to deliver this unparalleled performance. Unlike traditional heat pipes, where the phase change of the working fluid happens in opposing directions within the tube, the LHP phase change cycle occurs in a continuous flow around the loop, significantly improving the performance.

Whilst loop heat pipes are not a new concept, what is new and what makes this LHP different is both the patented design of the evaporator developed by Calyos and the highly optimized condenser designed by Streacom. This cooperation and ability to combine design and manufacturing expertise were critical and fundamental to its development.

Many other unique features make this case special, such as the diagonal fully adjustable motherboard and GPU mounting system or the modular IO panels that can be placed anywhere along the case’s front or back (that are actually symmetrical). Compatibility has also been an important consideration with a modular approach to GPU cooling that will allow for broader brand/model support over time.

The SG10 Copper Edition will be available for pre-order shortly, with an estimated shipping date of May 2024. This extended time frame allows for the assembly and integration process that will take place in Belgium and, more critically, to complete the collection of GPU choice data from customers and the subsequent fabrication of these cold plates accordingly. The price of the Copper Edition is 1200EUR

The SG10 (not Copper Edition) will be available in Black and Silver variants and is expected to go into the product after the Copper Edition is complete; the exact ETA is TBD. This version features Aluminium fins on the condenser and is priced at 1000EUR. 

Source: Streacom

Streacom FC8 upgrade

"After I posted about my FC8α build (link), Streacom made contact with me to politely tell me what they thought about my temperature and sent me their thermal compound to help with the fix. A fellow redditor also replied to my post suggesting that I set the maximum processor state to 99 % which should disable the overclock and run the CPU at 65 W as intended. I lapped my heatsink, applied Streacom's thermal compound, set the maximum processor state to 99 %, and ran the AIDA64 stress test. The temperature of the 5700G dropped from 96° C to 73° C (23° C ambient). 7-Zip benchmark went from 89838 MIPS to 82105 MIPS from the lack of overclock, which I am happy with."

Source: reddit 

Vast pre-built fanless PCs offering

This top end Intel NUC 13 Pro uses the 13th Gen i7 1360P processor with "Intel 7" hybrid architecture. In total there are 12 cores, using a combination of 4 Performance-cores and 8 Efficient-cores. This enables faster performance while also being power and heat efficient. The aluminium case uses advanced heat pipes for fanless cooling. The heat is extracted from the processor and transferred to the cooling fins. This is totally silent with no moving parts.

With high performance and excellent fanless cooling, this silent "solid state" PC will be a great solution for home or business users. Intel have made a step change in performance with this new 13th Generation processor. The new "Intel 7" hybrid architecture has a combination of Performance-cores and Efficient-cores, enabling faster performance while also being power and heat efficient. The processor is directly attached to the aluminium case which is covered with cooling fins that use convection to remove heat.

This top end Intel NUC 13 Pro uses the 13th Gen i7 1360P processor with "Intel 7" hybrid architecture. The feature packed PC allows up to 4 displays simultaneously with 4K resolution. The latest Wi-Fi 6E supports standard dual band 2.4GHz and 5Ghz and the new 6E 6Ghz band. The fast PCIe 4.0 System SSD is cooled with an aluminium block with a thermal path to outside the case. A second 2.5" SSD/HDD can be selected from the options list or installed later by using the mounting bars on the inside of the PC's baseplate.

This Rackmount 1U PC has high performance and excellent fanless cooling, enabling a silent "solid state" PC for server, broadcasting and audiophile applications. The i5 13400T processor uses the latest "Intel 7" hybrid architecture with 10 cores, using a combination of 6 Performance-cores and 4 Efficient-cores. The slim PC also features a unique SSD aluminium cooling block, thermally connected to the case, that enables the SSD to be used intensely without thermal throttling.

With stylish design, small footprint, high performance and excellent fanless cooling, this silent "solid state" PC will be a great solution for home and office users. The processor is cooled passively using a copper block connected via heatpipes to an aluminium heatsink cooling panel. The case is constructed from 4mm thick aluminium panels, a 21mm thick extruded heat sink, solid aluminium rods and is made using CNC milling and finished with sandblasted/anodised surface treatment. In light use the PC draws only 10-35W of power. Even when all 8 cores of the i7 version are loaded 100% the PC only draws on average <60W of power.

The industrial grade case is manufactured in Germany and has an extremely robust design using 7kg of aluminium and steel. The embedded O-ring gaskets and silicone seals protect the inbuilt system from water spray and dust. This model features the ASUS B760i motherboard, which uses premium components throughout for stable and reliable performance. Features include 2.5Gb LAN, Wifi 6E, Displayport 1.4, HDMI 2.1, USB 3.2 Gen 2 with USB-C, high quality audio. The product uses a copper block on the CPU that connects to the external cooling fins using heat pipes. The motherboard's chipset is also cooled with a heatpipe. This design enables the product to not need air vents and enables it to be used in dusty/dirty environments. Because there are no moving parts and no air sucked into the case the product has zero maintenance and high reliability. The internal industrial fanless power supply enables intense 24/7 operation and no external power adaptor is needed. 

i9-13900 Streacom DB1 build

"One tip if you want to reproduce the build. The thermal paste is really important. After I built it initially, I saw that it was running fairly hot. Later on, I redid it (since I managed to break the first motherboard I had after flashing the bios). When I redid the build, I got 2 x 5.5g Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut tubes. They come with a really nice applicator that allows you to put down a thin and even layer. I put an even layer over both sides of the copper plate that comes with the cooler, as well as where the cooler touches the case. It took a lot of paste, but it made a huge difference on thermals. Now, the CPU is running at 55C when idle. At full load over prolonged periods of time, it runs at about 80C. At peak load for short periods of time, it hits 100C and gets throttled sometimes but 90C is more typical. Note that you have control over these temperatures with the power limits."

Source: PCPartPicker