Setup

Our test setup consisted of installing the Insight Solutions P4-ITX Mini-ITX motherboard that we recently reviewed into the AMS gITX. We could have used a VIA EPIA board also but housing a P4 system would be a greater challenge for the gITX - both for the case and for the Xross Blade cooling system.

The Xross Blade cooling system was first removed from the case to allow clearance for the P4-ITX motherboard installation. The motherboard aligned perfectly with the mounting holes inside the case. However, problems arose when we attempted to place the cooling system back into the case. There wasn't enough clearance between the stock Intel Pentium 4 heatsink/fan unit at the rear of the case for the installation of the Xross Blade cooling system. To overcome this problem, a smaller Pentium 4 CoolerMaster heatsink was installed but even the smaller heatsink made for a very tight fit inside the system. Notice that the Blade unit touches up against the fan of the heatsink unit.

Once the motherboard is installed, the rest of the setup is fairly straightforward. You will need to connect the power supply cables and the front I/O connectors to the motherboard.

There is a removable drive cage at the front of the case. Unscrew two screws and everything comes right on out.

For drive installation, we used a 20GB 7200 RPM IBM Hard Drive and a Liteon DVD ROM drive. The hard drive fits below the optical drive perpendicular to the direction of the DVD unit.

Once we placed the drives back into the case, things get cramped rather quickly. We chose to use rounded IDE cables but you'll probably have better luck using regular IDE cables. Serial ATA cables would be even better if there was SATA support on the motherboard.

Close up the case and that's it!

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