WITH EXPANSIVE INTERNALS that can accommodate up to three hard drives, a trio of temperature-controlled cooling zones, tool-free drive rails, and a robust 350W power supply, the P series is undoubtedly the pinnacle of Shuttle's XPC chassis line. Enthusiasts have been eagerly awaiting a P-series XPC for the Athlon 64, but in the seven months since the chassis' introduction, the P series has been a Pentium 4-only affair. That all changes today with the arrival of Shuttle's XPC SN25P.

Sporting a 939-pin socket for the Athlon 64, an nForce4 chipset, PCI Express, and an integrated Envy24PT audio controller, the XPC SN25P could be the best small form factor barebones system to date. Does it deliver on its considerable potential? Was it worth the wait? Read on to find out.

Update - Shuttle has a new SN24P BIOS revision with a 1T DRAM command rate. We've updated the review's conclusion to reflect the new BIOS, giving the SN25P our Editor's Choice award.