CubeOwner Exclusive: The PowerLogix PowerCube Options Menu

[CubeOwner]

<p>I was recently reminded of this famous excerpt from <b>Endymion</b>, by John Keats:</p> <blockquote> <p> <i>A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:<br> Its loveliness increases; it will never<br> Pass into nothingness; but still will keep<br> A bower quiet for us, and a sleep<br> Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing.</i></p> </blockquote> <p> Of course, Keats was referring to a mythological Greek youth who spent much of his life in perpetual sleep. One version of the legend has it that he was put to sleep by the goddess of the moon so that she might enjoy his beauty undisturbed. Perhaps Apple put the Cube to sleep for the same reason?</p> <p> Yet another version says eternal sleep was a punishment inflicted by Zeus because the boy had ventured to fall in love with his wife.</p> <p> Most Cube Owners would agree with the second version. </p> <p>The oft-told stories of Cube coma episodes aside, Cube enthusiasts see their beloved's premature death as more of a curse than a blessing. So it's only fitting that we would try to prolong our own Cubes lives by any means possible.</p> <p> First, we started with the little things. We added a little RAM here and a larger hard drive there. Then we met the Jaguar and we wanted a taste of that Quartz Extreme goodness, so we opened our wallets for new graphics cards that could handle those Aqua waves and drive our Cinema Displays. Still not satisfied, we wanted our Jaguar to run faster and faster, so we begged for CPU upgrades that would crush our Xbench opponents. Now Panther roars and we cater to it's every whim.</p> <p> We got what we wanted, but we paid the price. 32MBs of VRAM gets the job done, but still leaves us wanting more. Single 1.2GHz is fast enough for most, but the dual crowd left us in their dust and we got burned (literally) when we tried to compete with them. So we started hacking and modding and cutting and rewiring and adding fans and heat pipes and water pumps. We subjected our Cubes to such drastic measures that we hardly recognized them anymore! The whir of the fan distracted us. The holes in the case repulsed us. A thing of beauty is best enjoyed in silence and should be left uncut. Our days were numbered. An 8-inch Cube can only contain so much before it starts to spill out and we had lost the very essence that drew us to the Cube to begin with: silence and aesthetics. And that damned DC/DC card kept getting in our way!</p> <p>Well we're back, baby! <a href="http://powerlogix.com/products/enclosure/" target="_blank">The PowerCube Enclosure</a>, brought to us by <a href="http://www.powerlogix.com/" target="_blank">PowerLogix</a>, brings us back home, giving us a similar form-factor, but with considerably more room to expand, better airflow to keep things naturally cool and a sleek design that screams &quot;<i>Customize me!</i>&quot;<br><b>Reminder to cut down on the emails I am getting: The special Cubeowner rate is $249 and that rate is only available from the links on this site. Ordering through the "public" PowerLogix product page noted above will result in your paying full price. <a href="http://www.cubeowner.com/cgi-bin/adcycle/adclick.cgi?gid=10&cid=12&mid=18&id=31" target="_blank">Purchase your PowerCube here</a> or you will pay full price</b></font><img src="http://www.cubeowner.com/cgi-bin/adcycle/adcycle.cgi?gid=10&cid=12&mid=18&id=31" width=1 height=1 border=0>. </p> <p>I will admit to being a bit biased about this new product, since I personally had a hand in bringing it to fruition, but I am genuinely pleased with the end result. </p> <p> I spent a few days with the &quot;G5-style&quot; anodized aluminum PowerCube and the glossy black powder coat version.</p> <p>The PowerCube is only slightly larger than the original cube, measuring 9&quot; x 9&quot; x 10&quot; as compared to the original Cube's 8&quot; x 8&quot; x 10&quot; form factor. It adds only a few ounces to the overall weight of the Cube, still coming in under 15 pounds in its standard configuration.</p> <p>The PowerCube arrives wrapped in heavy-duty plastic, in a custom-fit cardboard box and includes everything you need to perform your Cube transplant.</p> <ul> <li>a custom mounting bracket, screws, nuts, spacers and short ribbon cable for easy relocation of the DC/DC card;</li> <li>a Torx L-key (no other tools needed);</li> <li>Velcro™ dots for holding your Airport antennas in place behind the port holes that are built into the PowerCube for maximum Airport reception;</li> <li>long screws for attaching the PowerCube to the Cube's core via the top plate assembly;</li> <li>a top grille (in the finish of your choosing);</li> <li>and a very cool frosted acrylic power button that sits right over the Cube's original touch-sensitive power switch.</li> </ul> <p>Also included is a handy Video CD that walks you through the very simple installation process, and printed instructions for those of you without a DVD player or 2nd computer for video playback.</p> <p> The installation is painless and relatively quick. It took me about 20 minutes to do the first one while following along with the video and it went even quicker the second time with no visual aids at all. Here are the steps, in a nutshell: </p> <ol> <ol> <li>Take the PowerCube and all components out of the box. Lay it all out on your working surface;</li> <li> Disconnect your Cube and remove the core from the original enclosure, place the original enclosure aside (you'll need it again in a few minutes);</li> <li> Remove the DC/DC card;</li> <li>Remove the screws from the top plate;</li> <li>Remove the Airport antenna wire from your Airport card (if you have one, if you don't currently have an Airport card, you should still do the rest of the steps so it's ready to use in the future);</li> <li> Pop out both Airport antennas, which only requires removing 2 corner posts and the aluminate side plate that covers the optical drive to free the Airport antenna wire.</li> <li> Mount the DC/DC card onto the included bracket, plug it in and mount the bracket (which now has the card attached) to the Cube chassis - it screws right into the center stringer where the handle is housed. Attach the ribbon cable;</li> <li>Put the rest of the screws that came out of the side of the top plate back in (but not the top screws).</li> <li>Sit the chassis on top of your original Cube enclosure (use the plastic that the PowerCube was wrapped in to protect it);</li> <li>Place the new power button and grille onto the chassis, slide the PowerCube enclosure over the chassis, align, use the included long screws to attach the chassis to the PowerCube from the top;</li> <li>Turn your new PowerCube over and secure the Airport antennas to the Airport port holes (using the included Velcro™)</li> </ol> <p>&nbsp;</p> </ol> <p> Now flip the PowerCube back over and admire it! If you are impatient like me, you'll immediately plug your new PowerCube in and make sure it all works:). It would be pretty hard to &quot;break&quot; your Cube at any point during the PowerCube install process, but there's always a slight chance that you might accidentally knock a cable out of place or not seat the new DC/DC ribbon cable properly in your haste to enjoy your new PowerCube.</p> <p> Once you're satisfied that everything is still working, you can start to think about how you want to customize your new PowerCube enclosure.</p> <p> I immediately reached for my classic rainbow Apple logo decals and slapped one on the front of the aluminum-finish enclosure. I placed a modern white Apple logo decal on the glossy black enclosure. A few pictures appear below this review. Once I decide which one I want to keep for myself, I'll probably add a few carefully placed pinstripes about an inch and a half from the bottom and add a few other touches to make it truly &quot;mine.&quot;&nbsp; I think a shiny chrome Apple logo, <a href="http://www.cubeowner.com/forums//index.php?showtopic=3854&view=findpost&p=25893" target="_blank">as discussed here</a>, would look <i>sweet</i> on a white PowerCube!</p> <p>My test Cube was a totally fanless PowerLogix 1GHz with a GeForce2 MX, 120GB IBM HD, 1.5GB of RAM and an Airport card. While I am looking forward to installing a more powerful graphics card (with ease, thanks to the relocated DC/DC card) and faster, <i>fanless</i> CPU upgrade, neither were available in time for this review. This week, however, I will have a PowerLogix 1.4GHz card for evaluation and I will shoot for a ATI Radeon 8500 or 9000 so I can put the PowerCube through a full battery of <i>&nbsp; fanless&nbsp; </i> performance tests. My gut tells me that it's up to the task . With the abovementioned setup under OS X 10.3, I ripped and burned a few CDs with iTunes, and compressed about an hour's worth of video in Quicktime. I also rendered a 90 minute movie in iMovie. With CPU usage at near 100% for the entire time, the PowerCube's grille felt barely even warm to the touch and everything proceeded without even a hiccup.</p> <p>PowerLogix has graced us with a unique, functional, yet still-stylish spin on our beloved Cube and should be applauded for their efforts. The potential performance gains and customization options of the outer shell make the PowerCube a welcome update to a timeless classic.</p> <p>The limited edition PowerCube is available to ship now! <hr> <p><font size="3"><b>CubeOwner.com is proud to offer readers this <font color="#990033">exclusive special offer</font></b>: <ul> <li> <font color="#FF0000"><a href="http://www.cubeowner.com/cgi-bin/adcycle/adclick.cgi?gid=10&cid=12&mid=18&id=31" target="_blank">Purchase a PowerCube</a></font><img src="http://www.cubeowner.com/cgi-bin/adcycle/adcycle.cgi?gid=10&cid=12&mid=18&id=31" width=1 height=1 border=0> at the special price of<b> $249 USD</b> <i>for a limited time only</i>. That's a discount of $20 off the retail price of $269! Ground shipping anywhere in the Continental US and is only $10. </li> <li> And for our friends outside the US, the PowerCube is just <b>$249 + actual shipping charges TBD</b> once you've placed your order. </li> </ul> <p> Since the PowerCube has been introduced in limited quantities, don't wait too long to order or you'll miss out on owning one of the best things to happen to the Cube since... well since the Cube itself! Use the unique links on this page to <font color="#FF0000"><a href="http://www.cubeowner.com/cgi-bin/adcycle/adclick.cgi?gid=10&cid=12&mid=18&id=31" target="_blank">Purchase a PowerCube</a></font><img src="http://www.cubeowner.com/cgi-bin/adcycle/adcycle.cgi?gid=10&cid=12&mid=18&id=31" width=1 height=1 border=0> or you'll miss out on the discount!</p>

This post has been edited by CubeOwner: Jan 26 2004, 12:04 PM

[CubeOwner]

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Additional pictures (most taken on the bench at Tekserve due to better lighting than my apartment!):
http://www.cubeowner.com/gallery/powercube

Check out the install video (low res and low bandwidth as a gift to those on dial-up. the Video CD is of higher quality):

http://powerlogix.com/downloads/PowerCube3.mov

And the Official PowerCube Gallery (note: the PowerLogix logo in the pictures is not actually on the case! it's just a picture!):

http://www.powerlogix.com/images2/powercube/010/

PDF manual here [27.5MB]:

http://www.cubeowner.com/powercube.pdf

Word doc manual here [22.4MB]:

http://www.cubeowner.com/powercube.doc

High res installation video here [197.4MB]:

http://www.cubeowner.com/powercube.mov

This post has been edited by CubeOwner: Nov 14 2003, 10:43 PM

[manchovie]

whoa cool! i'm the fifirst cubeowner to see it other than laurie of course. it's pretty, a massive improvement over the prototype. i have trouble understanding how you can get upgrades working fanlessly in there though.

[Mike457]

Seriously cool indeed! Does this mean that if I were to move my present Cube (with the Powerlogix 1.2 upgrade) into the new enclosure, that I could remove the fan that came with the upgrade? My only regret with the upgrade is the fan's (admittedly not very loud) noise.

[solardan]

wooooo. Now lets get some Guinea pigs.

[CubeOwner]

Seriously cool indeed! Does this mean that if I were to move my present Cube (with the Powerlogix 1.2 upgrade) into the new enclosure, that I could remove the fan that came with the upgrade? My only regret with the upgrade is the fan's (admittedly not very loud) noise.

Based on my 1.0GHz in the PowerCube without a fan, I'd say "yes."

As always... YMMV

[Chinasaur]

Wow!!

I'm just a B&W owning Stooge™ but you all have some seriously good looking toys to play with LOL

I'm a "wannabe" w/out the discretionary income to buy a cube but if I owned one, I would be all over this new enclosure. It's the perfect G5 Cube Evolution

Enjoy and post pictures for those of us who are not lucky enough to own one

[dhong]

YES!!! YES!!! YES!!! (Jumping with joy)

More pictures please! More! More!

What material is used for the Airport antennas port holes? Any close up pictures?

-Dennis

[CubeOwner]

I'll take close-ups tomorrow.

[4CUBES!]

Sweeeet! Nice job indeed!

I look forward to more pics.

[panphage]

I am going to need a chrome apple logo to go with this case. But what color case will look best with the chrome? I'll bet black, but black is so 1998. I'm drawn to the white...

Wow. dammit, I was saving up for a portable...but now maybe I can get a screaming video card in there, and with a 7457-based upgrade maybe I can stay silent. Whoohoo.

ALUMIN(I)UM CONDUCTS HEAT VERY WELL. Yay!

This post has been edited by panphage: Oct 27 2003, 12:40 AM

[panphage]

Oh, and it's not even Monday yet.

[panphage]

Don't watch the video if you're prone to epileptic seizure. I just watched it and I think I'm having heart palpitations. The thing is jumpy and nauseating. Give me full-motion video any day. Definitely motion-sick now.

[CubeOwner]

That's the low-res and low-bandwidth version of the video. The full quality is much smoother (and larger), I promise

[Alec]

Magnificent!

I applaud you Laurie and Powerlogix.
Killing 3 birds with one stone:
1) increased airflow to components by eliminating the 'much too tight' inner shell
2) relocated VRM module to a better airflow location; in doing so opening slew of potential for video card upgrading
3) creating a replacement shell design that is pleasing and in keeping with the clean looks of the Cube.

Bravo!

:P

PS. Robert, please post more pictures comparing colors of enclosure finish; in particular, what's the color difference of the top grill between anodized aluminum versus bright chrome steel?

Did I say, Well Done?

----------
Argh. I posted to soon. I see the difference now.
:P

This post has been edited by Alec: Oct 27 2003, 01:36 AM