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LAS VEGAS -- Antec traditionally caters to do-it-yourself PC builders who demand the best and are willing to pay a premium to get it. Its newest products--including a unique power supply and two very different cases--are likely to appeal to the same selective crowd.

Antec previewed its upcoming products for the press at offsite meetings during the Consumer Electronics Show here this week.

Silencing Your PC

Many people are tired of listening to loud, whining computers in their home and office, says Scott Richards, vice president of sales and marketing at Antec. Common sources of the noise are the power supply and its numerous fans. Antec has sold near-silent power supplies for years, but its new Phantom model takes quiet to a whole new level by removing the source of the noise.

Phantom is completely fanless: The entire unit essentially acts as a giant heat sink. All four sides of the extruded aluminum casing have fins, mimicking the look of a typical CPU heat sink. The exterior is designed to draw heat from additional internal heat sinks, making fans unnecessary, Richards says.

The unit's interior parts also differ from those of most power supplies in their efficiency. Even good power supplies offer about 65 percent efficiency, Richards says. In order to operate with less heat, the Phantom is designed to run at about 85 percent efficiency.

The company plans to ship its first Phantom product, a 350-watt unit, in March at an estimated street price of $169. Later, Antec plans to launch higher-power units, although these will need fans to accommodate their increased heat production.

These 500- and 700-watt units will be silent for the most part, however. Their fans will spin only when under load, so the majority of the time the fans are silent, Richards says.

Antec is also readying an update to its popular TruePower supply, called NeoPower. The new unit replaces TruePower's two-fan system with a single, larger, and much quieter 120mm fan. It also offers dual 12-volt rails for better stability under heavy loads. The company will offer 380-, 430-, and 480-watt versions of the NeoPower. Pricing will be announced when the units ship in March.

Cute Case

Antec is rolling out several new cases for the new year. One is aimed squarely at competing small PCs, which are gaining in popularity.

The new Aria case is Antec's first cube-shaped case, but Richards says it's noticeably different from those sold by Shuttle, which pioneered the smaller sizes. Each Shuttle case comes with its own proprietary motherboard, as the case is too small to accommodate an industry-standard board. On the other hand, the 10.5-by-12.7-by-7.9-inch (width by depth by height) Aria accommodates any standard Micro ATX motherboard, which gives builders much more flexibility, he says. The unit is also large enough to accommodate full-size expansion cards.

Also, whereas most Shuttle cases and other competitors offer 200-watt power supplies that often max out under normal system loads, the Aria has a 300-watt unit. That lets you install everything you need, including a high-powered graphics card, without worrying about power constraints, Richards says. Thanks to the power supply's quiet 120mm fan, the unit is also less noisy than the average small PC, he says.

The unique anodized aluminum case includes an eight-in-one flash card reader, as well. "We figured, 'Hey the floppy is dead, let's give them something useful instead,'" Richards says.

Antec plans to begin shipping the Aria by March, with an estimated street price of $129.

High-End Case

On the other end of the size spectrum is the new P160 case, part of Antec's Performance line. It is now shipping at an estimated street price of $169.

"We decided it was time to have a new, state-of-the-art offering," Richards says.

The P160 is a full-size tower case with integrated blue LEDs in the front fan well, built-in 5.25-inch drive doors (so non-color-matched optical drives won't spoil the illusion), and a swiveling front control panel. Embedded in that front panel is an LED temperature reading that alternates between two internal probes that you can install anywhere in the case.

See PC World's ongoing CES coverage.