Antec Sonata III User manual

SONATA III
U SER ’ S M ANUAL

1
T ABLE OF C ONTENTS
S ECTION 1: I NTRODUCTION
1.1 Getting to Know Your Ca e…………………………………………………………………………………. 3
1.2 Ca e Specification ……………………………………………………………………………………………… 5
1.3 Part Included…………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 5
1.4 Before You Begin………………………………………………………………………………………………… 6
2.1 Locating and Po itioning Your Computer……………………………………………………………. 7
S ECTION 2: I NSTALLING H ARDWARE
2.4 Removing the Side Panel…………………………………………………………………………………….. 7
2.2 Cable Management…………………………………………………………………………………………….. 8
2.3 Motherboard In tallation……………………………………………………………………………………. 8
2.4 Internal 3.5” Drive Bay Device In tallation………………………………………………………….. 9
2.5 External 3.5” Drive Bay Device In tallation…..…………………………………………………….. 10
2.6 External 5.25” Drive Bay Device In tallation……………………………………………………….. 10
S ECTION 3: C ONNECTING THE F RONT I/O P ORTS
3.1 USB 2.0 Port ………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 11
3.2 AC’97 / HD Audio Port ……………………………………………………………………………………….. 11
3.3 Power Switch/Re et Switch/Hard Di k Drive LED Connector ……………………………… 12
3.4 Rewiring Motherboard Header Connection ...……………………………………………..…….. 12
S ECTION 4: C OOLING S YSTEM
4.1 TriCool™ Fan……………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 13
4.2 In talling an Additional Fan…………………………………………………………………………………. 14
4.3 Wa hable Air Filter ……………………………………………………………………………………………. 14
S ECTION 5: C OMMONLY A SKED Q UESTIONS
Commonly A ked Que tion ……………………………………………………………………………….. 15

2
S ONATA III 500 U SER ’ S M ANUAL
Congratulation on your purcha e of the Antec Sonata III 500!
Your Sonata III 500 i de igned to be the quiete t, ea ie t-to-u e ca e on the market. The Sonata III 500
i powered by EA-500D Green power upply unit equipped with Univer al Input and Active PFC, which
allow you to connect your power upply to any AC power outlet between 100V and 240V a well a
reducing electrical wa te.
At Antec, we continually refine and improve our product to en ure the highe t quality. It’ po ible that
your new ca e will differ lightly from the de cription in thi manual. Thi i n’t a problem; it imply
indicate an area where we’ve improved the de ign. A of the date of publication, all feature ,
de cription , and illu tration in thi manual are correct.
Grab your ca e and component … let’ get building!
Dis laimer
Thi manual i intended only a a guide for Antec’ computer enclo ure . For more comprehen ive
in truction on in talling the motherboard and peripheral , plea e refer to the u er’ manual that come
with tho e component .

3
I NTRODUCTION
1.1 G ETTING T O K NOW Y OUR C ASE
1. 120mm rear TriCool™ fan
Po itioned at the rear of your ca e. Draw warm air through the interior of the ca e and out the
back. See Section 4.1 for more detail.
2. 120mm front fan mount
A fan mounting location i provided for mounting fan up to 120mm in ize. See Section 4.2 for more
detail.
3. Wa hable air filter
Thi filter out du t from the air entering your computer ca e. For removal and wa hing in truction ,
ee Section 4.3.
4. Motherboard tandoff
Motherboard tandoff are included with your ca e. The e will match up with the tandard
mounting hole in Mini-ATX, MicroATX and ATX motherboard only.
5. Cable routing compartment
Thi area i provided for you to tuck away unneeded connector and cable .
6. Power upply mount
Thi ecure your power upply to your ca e. In the Sonata III 500, thi i already occupied by the
included Earthwatt EA-500D Green PSU.
7. 5.25” drive bay
The e bay allow the in tallation of optical drive a well a acce orie like front panel audio
control , card reader de igned to fit into a 5.25” bay.
8. Front I/O panel
Contain AC’97/HDA-compatible 3.5mm audio, USB 2.0 and eSATA port .
9. External 3.5” drive bay
The e bay allow external in tallation of 3.5” bay-compatible torage acce orie .
10. Internal 3.5” drive bay
The e bay allow in tallation of 3.5” bay-compatible torage acce orie .

4
9
2
1
7
3
5
6
8
10
4

5
1.2 C ASE S PECIFICATIONS
Ca e Type
Mid Tower
Color
Glo Black
Dimen ion
19.5 " (H) x 10.5" (W) x 21.5" (D)
495mm (H) x 266.7mm (W) x 495mm (D)
Weight
9.1kg / 20.2 lb
Cooling
1 x Rear 120mm TriCool™ LED fan
1 x Front 120mm fan mount (optional)
Drive Bay
10 Drive Bay :
-3 x External 5.25” drive bay
-2 x Internal 3.5” drive bay
-4 x Internal 3.5” drive bay
Expan ion Slot 7
Motherboard Size
Mini-ITX, microATX, Standard ATX
Front I/O Panel
2
x USB
2.0
External eSATA
AC’97 / HD Audio In and Out
1.3 P ARTS I NCLUDED
In addition to the acce orie tored in ide your computer, your box hould al o contain the following:
Illu tration No. Part Qty
1 Front/Side panel key 1
2 Screw for 5.25” bay drive bay crew 2
3 HDD crew (grommet already in erted in drive tray ) 16
4 Fan crew 4
5 Motherboard tandoff 9
6 Motherboard crew 13
7 Mi c for crew 4
8 Optical drive crew 16
9 Ca e decal 1
Clear ilicone grommet (already in talled in drive tray )
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9

6
1.4 B EFORE Y OU B EGIN
In order to en ure that your building experience with the Sonata III 500 will be a po itive one, plea e
take note of the following:
•While working in ide your Sonata III 500, keep your ca e on a flat, table urface. Keep a clean,
du t-free environment for building your computer.
•Antec ca e interior feature rounded edge that minimize the occurrence of hand injurie .
Nonethele , we trongly recommend taking the appropriate time and care when working in ide
the ca e. Avoid hurried or carele motion . Plea e u e rea onable precaution .
•Handle component and card with care. Do not touch the component or contact on a card.
Hold a card by it edge . Hold a component uch a a proce or by it edge , never by it pin .
•To avoid electro tatic di charge, ground your elf periodically by touching an unpainted metal
urface ( uch a a connector or crew on the back of thi computer) or u ing a wri t grounding
trap.
•Before you connect a cable, en ure that both connector are correctly aligned and oriented.
Bent pin can be difficult to fix and may require replacement of the entire connector.
•Thi manual i not de igned to cover CPU, RAM, or expan ion card in tallation. Plea e con ult
the motherboard manual for pecific mounting in truction and trouble hooting. Before
proceeding, check the manual for your CPU cooler to find out if there are tep you mu t take
before in talling the motherboard.
•Do not it on your ca e. Although it i con tructed of heavy-duty teel and internally reinforced,
it i not intended to upport the weight of an adult. Buckling or dimpling of the ca e wall may
re ult.
•Remember to u e the right tool for each ta k. Do not u e improvi ed crewdriver like coin ,
nail or knife blade a they may re ult in damage to crew thread or even injury. Do not u e
your fingernail to eparate edge or lift the ide of the ca e, a paint chipping or injury may
occur.
•La tly… have fun!
TIP: In order to increa e the preci ion of your hand , you may find it helpful to brace your elbow
again t the table, or again t your abdomen. Move the component you’re working with in a direction
parallel to the front of your body, u ing a many arm mu cle a po ible. Breathe in a relaxed,
controlled fa hion.

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1.5 L OCATING A ND P OSITIONING Y OUR C OMPUTER
Your Antec Sonata III 500 ha a backward -facing exhau t fan and two air intake on the ide of the
front panel. For optimum performance, we recommend leaving the front air intake unob tructed. The
Sonata III 500 can operate re ting ideway a well a vertically. Do not re t the Sonata III 500 up ide
down, a thi will impede operation of optical drive .
S ECTION 2: H ARDWARE I NSTALLATION G UIDE
2.1 R EMOVING T HE S IDE P ANEL
1. Remove the ide panel by fir t lifting the latch located at
the rear of the ca e. Then, grip the ide panel with the
latch and lift it away from the ca e until it detache .
Caution: The front panel is not removable. Plea e do not attempt to remove or pry open the
front panel.
Caution: Do not use your fingernails to lift or pry open the panel. Injury or damage to the ca e
fini h may re ult.

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2.2 C ABLE M ANAGEMENT
There i a cable management compartment behind the 3.5” drive cage.
You can tuck or route exce cable in thi compartment. Thi will keep
the cable from interfering with airflow in your ca e and help with
cooling.
1. Open the ide panel a de cribed in ection 2.1.
2. Locate the cable management compartment with cable tie
located behind the wall of the external 3.5” drive cage.
3. Tuck or route your exce cable to the compartment.
4. U e cable tie to hold them in place.
2.3 M OTHERBOARD I NSTALLATION
The Sonata III 500 come with four motherboard tandoff
already crewed in to the mo t common mounting location .
1. Lay the ca e down, with the open ide facing up.
The drive cage hould be vi ible on the right ide of
the ca e, with the power upply in the upper left.
2. Make ure you have the correct I/O panel for your
motherboard. If the panel provided with the ca e
i n’t uitable, plea e contact your motherboard
manufacturer for the correct I/O panel.
3. Align your motherboard with the tandoff hole and
remember which hole are lined up. Not all
motherboard will match with all the provided
hole ; thi i normal and won’t affect functionality.
4. Now remove your motherboard by lifting it up.
5. In tall tandoff if needed and put the motherboard
back in.
6. Screw in your motherboard to the tandoff with
the provided Phillip -head crew .
Caution: Make sure to remove any unused motherboard standoffs. They may come into contact
with the back of the motherboard and electrify your ca e exterior if left connected.
Note: The Sonata III 500 come with a CPU cutout on the motherboard tray, which will allow
you to mount over ize CPU heat ink , and al o change your CPU heat ink without
removing the motherboard.
Note: The motherboard tray ha tandoff pre-in talled for the mo t common ATX mounting
location . Extra tandoff and crew are included.

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2.4 I NTERNAL 3.5” D RIVE B AY D EVICE I NSTALLATION
The Sonata III 500 provide pace for up to four internal 3.5”
hard drive . Before you begin, remove the ide panel a
de cribed in ection 2.1.
1. With your thumb and forefinger, gra p the pinch tab on
either ide of one of the internal 3.5” drive tray , and lide
the drive tray outward .
2. Mount your hard drive onto the internal 3.5” drive tray
with the hard drive’ ocket facing toward the back of
the tray.
3. Align and fa ten the crew hole at the bottom of
the hard drive with the hole in the included
ilicone grommet , u ing the included internal 3.5”
drive tray crew .
4. Gra ping the pinch tab on either ide of the
internal 3.5” drive tray, partially in ert the drive tray
containing your 3.5” hard drive into the ca e.
5. Attach the Molex power lead from the PSU and the
hard drive cable from your motherboard to the back
of the hard drive.
6. Pu h the 3.5” drive tray containing your hard drive
into the ca e all the way until it click and lock into
place.
Caution: Do not torque or over-tighten the 3.5” internal drive tray s rews. Compre ing the
crew again t the ilicone grommet will reduce their life pan and will le en or negate
their vibration-in ulating effect. Tighten the crew until you feel re i tance, then stop.

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2.5 E XTERNAL 3.5” D RIVE B AY D EVICE I NSTALLATION
The Sonata III 500 provide pace for two external 3.5”
device . Before you begin, remove the ide panel a de cribed
in ection 2.1.
1. With your thumb and forefinger, gra p the pinch tab on
either ide of one of the external 3.5” drive tray , and
lide the drive tray outward .
2. Remove the crew from the top or bottom panel of the
external 3.5” drive tray. Gently pinch together the ide
of one of the drive tray’ drive cover and remove it from
the drive tray.
3. Place your 3.5”device in the tray. U ing the crew
provided with the drive tray, ecurely fa ten your
3.5” device to the tray.
4. Place the 3.5” external drive tray a embly
containing your 3.5” device into the front panel,
and pu h until it click .
5. Attach power and motherboard cable to the device
a nece ary.
2.6 E XTERNAL 5.25” D RIVE B AY D EVICE I NSTALLATION
The Sonata III 500 provide pace for three external 5.25”
device . Before you begin, remove the ide panel a de cribed
in ection 2.1.
1. With two forefinger , pre the pinch tab on either ide
of one of the external 5.25” drive cover and pull the
cover out of the ca e.
2. Slide your 5.25” device into the drive bay, making ure to
engage the 5.25” drive tray rail on either ide of the
bay.
3. Connect the power and motherboard cable to your
5.25” device.

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Pin Signal Names Pin Signal Names
1
USB Power 1
2
USB Power 2
3
Negative Signal 1
4
Negative Signal 2
5
Positive Signal 1
6
Positive Signal 2
7
Ground 1
8
Ground 2
9
Key (No Connection)
10
Empty Pin
Pin
Signal Names
(HDA)
Pin
Signal Names
(AC’97)
1 MIC2 L 1 MIC In
2 AGND 2 GND
3 MIC2 R 3 MIC Power
4 AVCC 4 N C
5 FRO-R 5 Line Out (R)
6 MIC2_JD 6 Line Out (R)
7 F_IO_SEN 7 N C
8 Key (no pin) 8 Key (no pin)
9 FRO-L 9 Line Out (L)
10 LINE2_JD 10 Line Out (L)
S ECTION 3: C ONNECTING THE F RONT I/O P ORTS
3.1 USB 2.0 P ORTS
Connect the front I/O panel USB cable to the USB header pin on your motherboard. Check the
motherboard u er’ manual to en ure that it matche the table below:
3.2 AC’97 / HD A UDIO P ORTS
There i an Intel® tandard 10-pin AC’97 connector and an Intel® 10-pin HDA (High Definition Audio)
connector linked to the front panel of the ca e.
10 6 4 2
9 7 5 3 1
You can connect either the AC’97 or the HDA connector, depending on your motherboard. Locate the
internal audio connector from your motherboard or ound card and connect the corre ponding audio
cable. Con ult your motherboard or ound card manual for the pin-out po ition . Even if your y tem
upport both tandard , only u e one connector.
1 2
9 10

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3.3 P OWER S WITCH / R ESET S WITCH / H ARD D ISK D RIVE LED C ONNECTORS
Connected to your front panel are LED and witch lead for power, re et, and
HDD activity. Attach the e to the corre ponding connector on your
motherboard. Con ult your motherboard manual for pecific pin header
location . For LED , colored wire are po itive ( + ). White or black wire are
negative ( – ). If the LED doe not light up when the y tem i powered on, try
rever ing the connection. For more information on connecting LED to your
motherboard, ee your motherboard u er’ manual.
3.4 R EWIRING M OTHERBOARD H EADER C ONNECTIONS
There may come a time when you need to reconfigure the pin-out of a
motherboard header connector. Example could be for your USB header, audio
input header, or ome other front panel connector uch a the Power Button
connector.
Before performing any work, plea e refer to your motherboard u er’ manual
or your motherboard manufacturer' web ite to be ure of the pin-out needed
for your connector. We trongly recommend making a notated drawing before
beginning work o that you can recover if your work get di turbed.
1. Determine which wire you need to remove in order to rewire your
plug to match the USB pin-out on your motherboard (refer to your
motherboard u er’ manual). Working on one connector at a time,
u e a very mall flathead crewdriver or imilar tool to lift up on
the black tab located be ide the gold po t ( quare ). Thi will
allow you to ea ily lide out the pin from the USB plug.
2. Working carefully o a not to damage the wire , connector , or
pin , lowly remove the pin from the connector. Repeat the e
tep for each wire you need to change.
3. Slowly, carefully rein ert the pin into the correct lot of the
connector then nap clo ed the black tab that wa lifted in tep 1.
Repeat the e tep for each wire you need to change.
Tip: Polarity (po itive and negative) doe not matter for witche .

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S ECTION 4: C OOLING S YSTEM
4.1 T RI C OOL ™ F AN
Top TriCool™ Fan – The ca e come with a 200mm top exhau t blue LED fan. The fan i in talled o the
air will be blown out of the ca e. Thi fan come with a three- peed witch that let you choo e the peed
be t uited to your need. The default fan peed etting i Low.
120mm TriCool™ Spe ifi ations
Size: 120 x 25mm TriCool™ fan
Rated Voltage: 12V
Operating Voltage: 10.2V - 13.8V
The Sonata III 500 come with one pre-in talled 120 x 25mm TriCool™ fan, located at the back of the
ca e. Thi fan i in talled to blow warm air out of the ca e. The TriCool™ fan come with a peed control
device attached to the fan hou ing. The default fan peed i Low.
Speed
(RPM)
Input
Current Air Flow Static Pre ure
Acou tic
Noi e
Input
Power
High
2000
0.24A
(Max.)
2.2 m³ / min
(79 CFM)
2.5mm-H2O
(0.10 inch-H2O) 30 dBA 2.9 W
Medium
1600 0.20A 1.6 m³ / min (56 CFM)
1.5mm-H2O
(0.06 inch-H2O) 28 dBA 2.4 W
Low
1200 0.13A 1.1 m³ / min (39 CFM)
0.9mm-H2O
(0.04 inch-H2O) 25 dBA 1.6 W
Note: The minimum voltage to tart a typical TriCool™ fan i 5V. We recommend that you et the fan
peed to High if you choo e to connect the fan( ) to a fan control device or to the Fan-Only
connector found on ome Antec power upplie . A fan control device regulate the fan peed by
varying the voltage, which may tart a low a 4.5V to 5V. Connecting a TriCool™ fan et on Low
to a fan-control device may re ult in the fan not being able to tart becau e the already lowered
voltage from the fan control device will be further reduced by the TriCool™ circuitry below 5V.

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4.2 I NSTALLING A N A DDITIONAL F AN
There i one optional 120mm fan mount located at on the
ide of the internal 3.5” drive bay . We recommend u ing
Antec 120mm peed control fan and etting the peed to
Low. The e fan mu t be in talled o that the air i blowing
into the ca e.
Front Fan – A front fan can be u ed to enhance graphic
card cooling. The fan hould be in talled to pull air into
the front of the ca e. To in tall the front fan, fir t remove
the ide panel a de cribed in ection 2.1.
1. Find the fan mounting crew hole on the interior
of the ca e. They are located on the interior of the
internal 3.5” drive bay rail , below the cable
management compartment.
2. Secure your 120mm fan to the four crew hole
u ing the fan crew provided with the ca e.
4.3 W ASHABLE A IR F ILTERS
Your ca e feature a wa hable, removable front panel air
filter.
To remove the air filter:
1. Re t the ca e on it back or ide.
2. Locate the two black air filter retention pinch tab
at the front bottom of the ca e.
3. Pitch the outermo t tab together and pull the
filter from the ca e.

15
S ECTION 5: C OMMONLY A SKED Q UESTIONS
My ase is missing drive rails.
Check the back of the 5.25” drive bezel. They hould be located there. If you ee purple or black, it’
there.
My side panel is lo ked in pla e.
If the ide panel appear to be tuck in the locked po ition, place the ca e down with the left panel
facing up. Pu h and pull on the lever with gentle, firm pre ure and it will come off. Your ca e i built
with very clo e manufacturing tolerance , and light contraction or expan ion from heating may cau e
the ide panel’ paint to eal clo ed again t the ca e. Plea e place a mat or ome oft cloth under the
ca e panel to avoid cratching your fini h.
My omputer shorts out and turns off when I tou h the front USB or audio panel
If you have an original or early ver ion of the Sonata III erie that i ilver in color, plea e call cu tomer
upport to obtain a black plate cover for the front port .
What size graphi s ard an I put into the Sonata III 500?
The maximum graphic card length i 10.5 inche .
What is the middle port I see in front of the ase?
The middle port i an unpowered eSATA port which allow high- peed data tran fer. In order to utilize
thi connector, you will need a motherboard that upport eSATA a well a the cable.
Does the TriCool fan onne t to the motherboard or the power supply?
The fan i intended to connect directly to the power upply through the included 4-pin Molex connector.
I lost my keys.
Plea e call 1-800-222-6832 to obtain another et. Charge may apply.
Can I open the front door all the way to the left side panel?
No. Damage to the hinge or front door may re ult.
The power supply will not run my ATI/Nvidia/other manufa turer graphi s ard.
The PSU may not upport power output level that the graphic card require . Plea e check for
compatibility. You will need to know the power wattage and amperage requirement of your video card.
Plea e call 1-800-222-6832 for upport.
I plugged in the AC power and my power supply will not start.
Your PSU require a minimum level of power draw to tart. Check to ee if PSU i connected to the
motherboard and all of it main connection a well a any peripheral or acce orie you may wi h to
u e.
When I push the front power button, my omputer will not start.
There may be a mi -wired or faulty connection. Carefully check the front panel connection and firmly
re-attach a nece ary. To confirm if a problem exi t with the power upply lead, pull the power witch

16
header out and u e the Re et witch temporarily. If the y tem boot up, then the power lead witch
may be faulty. Plea e call 1-800-222-6832 and obtain a replacement witch.
Do I need more fans to ool my system?
In mo t ca e , no, you do not need more fan to cool your y tem. Plea e note, however, that the
Sonata III 500 wa de igned for tandard u age level , and exten ive addition of high-temperature
hardware may adver ely affect cooling performance. If you do decide to upgrade to a ub tantially
higher-temperature configuration, plea e make ure you have ample cooling by adding another fan
u ing the provided fan mount, or adding another third party cooling y tem.
Can the Sonata III 500 fit a Mi ro-ATX/Mini-ITX board?
All our ca e are de igned to Intel pecification and are backward compatible with older ca e
tandard – o, ye .
My power supply fan is not running.
Plea e contact 1-800-222-6832 for RMA ervice.
What is my warranty?
The Sonata III 500 and the EA-500D Green PSU have a three-year limited warranty on part and labor.
Plea e check our warranty information at:
http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/index.php?page=warranty_info&AQ=AQ3&value=en
If I am shipping ba k my PSU, do I need to ship my ase as well?
No, you only need to hip the defective PSU back.

17
Antec, Inc.
47900 Fremont Blvd.
Fremont, CA 94538
USA
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
Antec Europe B.V.
Stuttgart traat 12
3047 AS Rotterdam
Netherland
tel: [phone]
fax: [phone]
Cu tomer Support: US & Canada
1-800-22ANTEC
cu tomer [email protected]
Europe
[phone]
europe.tech [email protected]
www.antec.com
© Copyright 2009 Antec, Inc. All right re erved.
All trademark are the property of their re pective owner . Reproduction in whole or in part without
written permi ion i prohibited.