INTRODUCTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   Cable management may be a big thing nowadays because it improves both the aesthetics and interior airflow of a PC tower but that wasn't always the case. Prior to the debut of the first PC towers with side panels made out of plexiglass almost 2 decades ago people just didn't care about interior aesthetics and back well, component temperatures weren't really something anyone really cared about (hardware was much simpler back then). Today however cable management is important and so it's no coincidence that manufacturers from all over the industry are always looking for ways to further improve on that. Last month i took a closer look at the SYNCRO Q704 + SYNCRO CONNECT DPC-850 combo by Seasonic (review) and since it actually surpassed my expectations today, I’ll be taking a closer look at their lower-tier ARCH Q503 + CONNECT 750 combo.

   Sea Sonic Electronics Co., Ltd was founded more than 40 years ago by engineers. Since its early beginnings the company has rigorously maintained its focus on the research, development and production of technologically advanced, high quality products. In 1981 Sea Sonic expanded into the production of PC power supplies to become one of the first manufacturers in this market. Soon after, the manufacturing of high quality and performance PC power supplies became the core identity of Sea Sonic.

   The ARCH Q503 is currently available with either the PRIME CONNECT SSR-650FA or the PRIME CONNECT SSR-750FA power supply units (2nd revisions - as mentioned earlier with me i have the 750W model). The ARCH Q503 is a rather simple looking black E-ATX mid-tower that features two tempered glass side panels, top magnetic air filter, 3 pre-installed brushless fans and a dual chamber design. In terms of available interior space it has enough to accommodate up to 3 drives (3x3.5", 3x2.5" or 1x3,5" and 2x2.5"), 8 fans (8x120mm or 3x120mm & 4x140mm) and/or 2 radiators (240/280/360mm), 165mm tall CPU coolers, 380mm long graphics cards and 230mm power supply units. The PRIME CONNECT SSR-750FA2 model shipped with this bundle is 80 Plus Gold certified (up to 90% electrical efficiency), has a peak power output of up to 860W, sports a single strong 62A +12V rail which can deliver 98% of the units’ total power output (744W), comes ready with a hybrid fan function (fanless mode until 40% load) and sports numerous industrial grade electrical protections including OPP (over-power), OVP (over-voltage), UVP (under-voltage), SCP (short-circuit), OCP (over-current) and OTP (over-temperature). So, time to see what exactly you're getting with the ARCH Q503 + CONNECT 750 bundle by Seasonic.

 

 

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

 

 

 

 

 

 

Drawings of both the case and the power supply are placed at the front of the box right beneath the company logo and above the product warranty.

 

 

Another product drawing is located on the left side and as for the right side here we see the specifications tables.

 

 

At the rear of the box Seasonic has placed the product feature in 12 languages and right over 4 product drawings.

 

 

Along with the ARCH Q503 (and the SSR-750FA2) inside the box you'll also find 8 cable ties, 5 motherboard standoffs, thumb key, plastic bag with mounting screws and the user manual.

 

 

THE ARCH Q503 EXTERIOR

 

 

 

 

 

 

The ARCH Q503 is a medium sized mid-tower that measures 482mm in height, 448mm in depth and 215mm in width.

 

 

Almost the entire left side panel is made out of tempered glass held in place with two thumbscrews.

 

 

The plastic fascia is perforated on both sides (unfortunately when i removed the protective sticker from the Seasonic logo most of the logo got removed with it).

 

 

You can of course pull out the fascia to access the two pre-installed 120mm fans.

 

 

As mentioned already here you can also mount either three 120mm or two 140mm fans (or an 240/280/360mm radiator with its fans).

 

 

Moving at the top we find the I/O which includes the on/off and reset buttons, power and HDD activity LEDs, two USB 3.0 ports, USB-C 3.1 port and the typical headphones and microphone 3.5mm ports.

 

 

Most of the top is covered by a magnetic air-filter beneath which you can mount either two 120/140mm fans or a 240/280mm radiator.

 

 

The right side panel is also almost entirely made out of tempered glass and from here you can even see the CONNECT power supply box.

 

 

At the rear we find yet another 120mm fan, 7 PCI expansion slots and the PSU area.

 

 

The tower sits on 4 round feet and a large metal air-filter takes its entire base.

 

 

THE ARCH Q503 INTERIOR

 

 

 

 

 

 

When it comes to interior space the ARCH Q503 may not be anywhere near the SYNCRO Q704 but it's still quite spacious.

 

 

At the front you can mount a radiator up to roughly 35mm in thickness.

 

 

The PSU shroud is perforated since Seasonic has made it that you can mount two 120mm fans on it.

 

 

5 rubber grommets and a large CPU cut-out are located on the motherboard tray.

 

 

Behind the motherboard tray we find the CONNECT module and next to it an 3.5" drive cage (you can place an 3.5" drive inside and either an 3.5" or an 2.5" drive on top) and a vertical steel drive tray (this has room for either two 2.5" drives or a single 3.5" one).

 

 

THE PRIME CONNECT 750

 

 

 

 

 

 

The PRIME CONNECT SSR-750FA is placed inside a black and gold box and aside its power cord and cables (all of which attach to the CONNECT module) it comes bundled with 12 cable ties, 4 mounting screws, Seasonic case sticker, 5 cable straps, tester, Steam e-Gift participation card and the user manual.

 

 

Aside the main power cable which is braided every other cable is a low-profile one.

 

 

The SSR-750FA2 is a compact PSU measuring just 140mm in width, 150mm in length and 86mm in height.

 

 

A hybrid controlled 135mm fan is located at the top of the enclosure.

 

 

A sticker with the model line is placed on both sides of the enclosure.

 

 

As with previous models the electrical table is placed at the base of the enclosure.

 

 

At the rear of the enclosure, we find the usual honeycomb perforation, power port, on/off power switch and the hybrid mode button.

 

 

The 135mm dual-ball bearing fan used is manufactured by Hong Hua and can reach speeds of up to 2000RPM.

 

 

Once again Seasonic has used Japanese capacitors rated for use up to 105 degrees Celsius, again from Nichicon (primary, secondary) and United Chemi-Con (secondary).

 

 

BUILDING THE SYSTEM

 

 

 

 

 

 

As always, the purpose of this section is not to build a functional system but rather to showcase what you can expect from the case at hand in terms of interior space.

First i mounted the PSU and connected it with the CONNECT module as seen above.

 

 

Since this is an E-ATX mid-tower an ATX motherboard leaves plenty of room around it.

 

 

With room for 165mm tall CPU coolers most models in the market will feel right at home inside the Q503 and as for the top here you can mount either an 240mm or an 280mm radiator (i used an 280mm one).

 

 

The front has room for up to 360mm radiators but due to thickness (35mm max) the only one compatible i had was an 240mm one. As for graphics cards even with a radiator installed you still have room for roughly 320mm ones.

 

 

NOISE LEVEL TEST

 

 

 

 

 

 

After giving it much thought, we decided on performing noise tests with each PC Case we receive by placing our ExTech HD600 vertically on top of each case to measure the noise levels emanating from the pre-installed fans at both 50% and 100% with the help of a fan controller (if the case doesn't have one, i use my very own).

 

 

TEST BED

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TESTING METHODOLOGY

   Using a dedicated measurement instrument such as a Chroma or a SunMoon to test power supply units is without doubt the most ideal and accurate way (not to mention the fastest) to do that currently. However, it's certainly not the only way there is and so pretty much anyone can test a power supply unit just by using a test rig. Certainly, limitations do apply and so you can't really push a 1000W power supply to its limits if your system only uses 500W at peak loads and that's why over the years we saved certain hardware components for the purpose of building a dedicated PSU test rig. True it may not be as accurate as the above mentioned solutions but it comes really close and is in fact much closer to real world usage. So as always, we ran several games with maximum graphic options enabled at a resolution of 2560x1600 in order to stress every hardware component and increase the overall power demands of the system. The Passmark BurnIn Test was also used to overstress the components in an effort to provide the most accurate results possible. As a final test we also used the latest OCCT 4.4 software and its dedicated PSU testing suite since it can really bring a power supply to its knees after inside a few minutes.

   Rail stability was checked/measured with the CPUID Hardware monitor and a Metex multimeter which also recorded the system load in idle and in load. As always try to remember that the power consumption numbers listed in the graph are the highest (Peak) ones recorded during the entire duration of the tests and not the average ones. Noise levels coming from the fan were recorded using the high precision HD600 ExTech Sound dBA Meter from the rear of the unit and at a range of no more than 5-10cm. Readings under load are recorded the exact moment we manually switch the fans of all graphics cards from full speed to almost zero, that way the fan of the power supply does not have enough time to slow its RPM and so by doing this we get very accurate noise level readings. Needless to say, in order to get 100% accurate readings, you need to have a noise isolated room for that exact purpose, something which is quite impossible unless you are working inside a real lab (some people use very small noise insulated boxes but due to their size both heat and noise exceed normal levels and so the results can't really be considered to be 100% accurate, nor realistic for that matter). Also do take into account that since all noise measurements take place from just 5-10cm away the final noise levels to reach your ears will be considerably less.

* After well over 10 years of testing PSUs the Intel Core i7-920 CPU of this rig failed and was replaced it with a Xeon X5660 (also swapped the GA-X58A-UD7 for the G1. Assassin).

 

 

TEST RESULTS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CONCLUSION

 

 

 

 

 

 

   As a standalone case the ARCH Q503 may not offer anything new (especially in terms of looks, although we don’t see models with both side panels made out of tempered glass a lot) but combined with the PRIME CONNECT GOLD power supply units it certainly offers a far better degree of cable management compared to regular cases. On top of that however the CONNECT SSR-750FA power supply unit also performed extremely well in terms of rail stability so it’s not a model aimed just to improve on how the ARCH Q503 looks. Unfortunately, the 135mm fan used is quite loud when at full load and as a matter of fact since it’s the same unit used in the SYNCRO CONNECT 850 model Seasonic has probably used an even more aggressive profile this time over (the SYNCRO model was far more silent). Interior space is good overall, yes, it’s far from stellar and the fact that you only have room for an 360mm radiator at the front may disappoint some users but overall, it features more room than your average mid-tower.

   The ARCH Q503 + CONNECT 750 combo was announced in May this year and currently retails for USD339.99 inside the USA (Newegg.com) and for around 340Euros inside the EU, a price tag which is indeed higher than expected (especially since the SYNCRO bundle costs roughly the same in the EU – inflation of course is also to blame for this). Yes, you are getting the module pre-installed and overall, the bundle does perform extremely well but it’s only natural for consumers on a budget to consider other choices. That being said the ARCH Q503 + CONNECT 750 combo does deliver as advertised and even though it doesn’t quite stand out i strongly recommend checking it out if optimal cable management is among your priorities.

 

PROS

- Good Build Quality (Tempered Glass Side Panels)
- 750W 80 Plus Gold Power Supply Unit With Module
- Three 120mm Fans (Up To 8)
- 2 Radiator Mounts (240/280/360mm)
- Space For 165mm Tall CPU Coolers, 380mm Long Graphics Cards & 230mm Long Power Supply Units
- Top & Bottom Air Filters

CONS

- Price (For Some)
- Overall Availability