Shuttle XPC slim DH370 mini-PC Review: A Compact Digital Signage Powerhouse
by Ganesh T S on May 6, 2019 8:00 AM ESTHTPC Credentials - Display Outputs Capabilities
The XPC slim DH370 comes with 3 display outputs, and their characteristics are summarized in the table below. From a HTPC use-case perspective, the entries of interest include the ability to support UHD (3840 x 2160) or higher resolutions, along with HDR and HDCP 2.2. The latter enables the display output to be used for viewing protected content such as 4K Netflix streams and play back UltraHD Blu-rays.
| Shuttle XPC slim DH370 Display Outputs | |||
| HDMI | DisplayPort 1 | DisplayPort 2 | |
| Version | 2.0a | 1.2 | |
| Max. Video Output | 3840x2160 @ 60Hz | 4096x2160 @ 60Hz | |
| HDCP | Yes (2.2) | ||
| HDR | Yes | ||
| HD Audio Bitstreaming | Yes | ||
The system allows all three display outputs to be simultaneously active at the maximum rated resolutions. To maintain uniformity, we tested all three outputs driving a 3840 x 2160 display at 59.94 Hz in 'extension' mode.
The system has no trouble running three 4Kp60 displays and doing casual browsing or animation displays on all three at the same time. We will be analyzing more interesting use-cases in a later section.
Supporting the display of high-resolution protected video content is a requirement for even a casual HTPC user. In addition, HTPC enthusiasts also want their systems to support refresh rates that either match or be an integral multiple of the frame rate of the video being displayed. Most displays / AVRs are able to transmit the supported refresh rates to the PC using the EDID metadata. In some cases, the desired refresh rate might be missing in the list of supported modes.
Custom Resolutions
Our evaluation of the Shuttle XPC slim DH370
Various display refresh rates ranging from 23.976 Hz to 59.94 Hz were tested. Of particular interest is the 23.976 Hz (23p) setting, which Intel used to have trouble with in the pre-Broadwell days.
The gallery below presents screenshots from the other refresh rates that were tested.
The system has no trouble maintaining a fairly accurate refresh rate throughout the duration of the video playback.
High Dynamic Range (HDR) Support
The ability of the system to support HDR output is brought out in the first line of the madVR OSD in the above pictures. The display / desktop was configured to be in HDR mode prior to the gathering of the above screenshots.
The ideal desktop experience needs a YCbCr 4:4:4 or RGB output in order to avoid chroma subsampling artifacts on text content in HDR mode. The Shuttle XPC slim DH370 has no issues with this aspect.
The CyberLink Ultra HD Blu-ray Advisor tool confirms that our setup (Shuttle XPC slim DH370 + Denon AVR-X3400H + TCL 55P607) supports HDCP 2.2 along with HDR. The PC also satisfies other requirements (such as SGX and appropriate Management Engine firmware) to enable playback of Ultra HD Blu-rays.
In fact, we were able to activate UHD Blu-ray playback on our standard HTPC setup, as well as the LG HDR 5K monitor driven using one of the DisplayPort outputs.
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timecop1818 - Monday, May 6, 2019 - link
Intel CPUs only have native DisplayPort output, not HDMI (licensing?). Nothing is technically preventing fullly complaint HDCP 2.2 path when using the MCDP part - unless shuttle cheaped out and didn't include the keys? Anyway i never looked into this as HDMI port is never something I'm looking for in a PC. I'm curious what exactly prevents the playback, as the same part (or a similar one from Parade tech) is what would be used inside a USBC to HDMI 2.0 cable as well.ganeshts - Monday, May 6, 2019 - link
All three display outputs support HDCP 2.2Intel supports HDMI, but, only 1.4a as of now. If OEMs want to put a HDMI 2.0a port, then, that HDMI capability of the Intel CPU is left un-used.
Some LSPCons do not do Stereoscopic 3D forwarding, which results in the loss of 3D capabilities.
rchris - Monday, May 6, 2019 - link
Thanks for a good review. But please include physical dimensions; particularly important when you're reviewing a compact system. The volume specs are nice, but not sufficient. Yes, they are available at the "Full Specifications" link, but would be more helpful to be in your article.Guspaz - Monday, May 6, 2019 - link
Be wary of Shuttle claims that their systems support standard motherboards. I bought a Shuttle XPC SZ77R5. Years later, the motherboard died and Shuttle wanted an absurd amount of money for the replacement (enough to buy a whole new computer). They claimed in the advertising for the system that it was "easily" upgradable with any standard mini-itx motherboard. In fact, the product website STILL says that.Three problems: the case uses a non-standard motherboard standoff height, and does not include any standoffs. There are a few of them directly welded to the chassis, but only enough for Shuttle motherboards, more are required for a mini-ITX board. I couldn't even find any of the right height online to buy, short of ordering them in bulk from China and waiting a few months. Instead, I had to take standard brass motherboard standoffs and filed them down by hand. It took hours.
Second: the included power supply didn't have a full-width power connector that mini-ITX motherboards required. Luckily, the missing pins were just for providing power, so they seem to be in the "strongly recommended but technically not required" category, and it worked OK without them.
Third: Shuttle motherboards don't have the CPU in the same location as a mini-ITX motherboard, so the system's custom heatpipe-based cooling system must be thrown out and replaced by traditional air cooling, which is less effective.
Death666Angel - Monday, May 6, 2019 - link
Well, mITX motherboards don't have the CPU sockets in the same location, so that point is moot. And all I just read about their advertising the ITX compatiblity (granted, I only found the German site) is that they said you can use mITX motherboards without having to modify the case. And that seems right, doesn't it?Guspaz - Wednesday, May 8, 2019 - link
It was not really true for the SZ77R5, no. Because short of fabricating custom mounting hardware like I did, you would have needed to modify the case with a deemed to install an mITX board. Requiring mounting hardware that does not exist is far from the easy upgradability they claimed. Now, hopefully this isn’t the case with the product that is the subject of this anandtech article. But I’ve been burned by them before.Guspaz - Wednesday, May 8, 2019 - link
*with a dremel, not a “deemed”timecop1818 - Monday, May 6, 2019 - link
Dude this is a completely non-standard SFF motherboard that doesn't follow any particular layout or spec. Do you complain that Intel NUC doesn't fit into Mini ITX board? There are no claims made anywhere that this board is user replaceable.0ldman79 - Tuesday, May 7, 2019 - link
"Mini-ITX Mainboard SupportShuttle expands the capabilities of its R chassis, adding support for Mini-ITX mainboards (17 x 17cm or 6.7 x 6.7 inches). The Shuttle chassis can go beyond the Shuttle mainboard, so you can easily upgrade or downgrade the mainboard to your desire, without any modifications to the chassis."
http://global.shuttle.com/main/productsDetail?prod...
timecop1818 - Tuesday, May 7, 2019 - link
Yes and that link has nothing to do with the product reviewed here...