[SOLVED] Anything better than a Corsair 4000D Airflow for a no frills case?

[emitfudd]

I need a mid tower case with good airflow. The Corsair 4000D Airflow looks like a good choice except for two things. It only comes with two fans, one front, one rear. It doesn't have a fan controller on the panel to adjust fan speed. This will be nothing more than a backup PC for surfing the web but I will be running a 7700k at stock speed with air cooling so still need good airflow. So far this case looks like the best choice. Is there anything else that might come with 3 fans and a fan speed controller that I missed in my research?

I have been running my 7700k at 5.0GHz with 360mm AIO in my current rig and don't remember what temps it ran at with an air cooler when I first built it. Maybe one intake/one exhaust is enough if I am not using it for gaming?

 

[Deleted member 362816]

For the price and how good the airflow is I would stick with the 4000D hands down. Used this case a few times and was very impressed.

 

[Math Geek]

i went with this one for my system. no frills and half the price. lots of room and great airflow.

it comes with the 2 front fans but i added 2 up top and 1 in the back and never have any temp issues.

comes in multiple colors as well

https://www.newegg.com/black-fractal-design-focus-g-atx-mid-tower/p/N82E16811352069

 

[Deleted member 362816]

i went with this one for my system. no frills and half the price. lots of room and great airflow.

it comes with the 2 front fans but i added 2 up top and 1 in the back and never have any temp issues.

comes in multiple colors as well

https://www.newegg.com/black-fractal-design-focus-g-atx-mid-tower/p/N82E16811352069

I forgot about this case, I agree its a good choice.

 

[emitfudd]

I read through the reviews of the Fractal on Newegg and they weren't as good as the Corsair. Since they both come with 2 fans I think I'll go with the Corsair and add a fan or two. Thanks for the suggestion. I do like that the Fractal comes in different colors.

 

[Math Geek]

those user reviews are pretty much worth less. but it's your money

 

[Karadjgne]

4000D is considerably better than a Focus-G. (not knocking Fractal, but it's their budget offering).

Lian-Li 215, Phanteks P400D, Lian-Li 011 Mini Air, Fractal Meshify series would be my choices.

Kinda depends also on exactly what air cooler you are going for, if overkill cooling like a DeepCool Assassin III or BeQuiet DRP4, that might limit case choices, or choosing a case might limit cooling options instead. Have to consider both at the same time.

 

[Math Geek]

my thought was that this is a simple web surfing machine and a $100 case seems a bit much for a "budget" build. but that was just my line of thinking

 

[emitfudd]

my thought was that this is a simple web surfing machine and a $100 case seems a bit much for a "budget" build. but that was just my line of thinking

After spending too much on a new build, a $100 case won't break the bank. LOL. Keep in mind the new case is the only expense as I am just looking for a new case for my current rig's components. I am sticking with my Corsair 780T for the new build.

 

[emitfudd]

4000D is considerably better than a Focus-G. (not knocking Fractal, but it's their budget offering).

Lian-Li 215, Phanteks P400D, Lian-Li 011 Mini Air, Fractal Meshify series would be my choices.

Kinda depends also on exactly what air cooler you are going for, if overkill cooling like a DeepCool Assassin III or BeQuiet DRP4, that might limit case choices, or choosing a case might limit cooling options instead. Have to consider both at the same time.

Thank you for the suggestions. I had already looked at the Lian-Li 215. That is a nice looking case but I am bothered by the fact that the huge front fans are partially blowing against the frame of the case. Seems like it would disrupt the airflow. Then again would they really have put this case on the market if it was problematic? LOL

 

[Karadjgne]

Gamersnexus did a review on the Lian-Li 215, Steve quibbled about the airflow impedence of the frame too, but overall that was negligible loss, the 215 remains in the top 5 best cases.

 

[MR_BROCK]

For the price and how good the airflow is I would stick with the 4000D hands down. Used this case a few times and was very impressed.

Yeah i would agree . If your really worried about airflow and want it to cool better pick up a few noctua fans they work well .

I also noticed an increase after removing the front dust filter. Although you gotta deal with the dust bunnies every few months that way.

 

[boju]

Recently built with this case. Am very happy with it. Bought pair of lian li 140s for top exhaust.

Lancool-II-Mesh-Performance

<h2>Born to push the limits</h2> LANCOOL II MESH Performance features a mesh front panel and mesh bottom left shroud panel, honeycomb vent design and built-in PWM fans, ensuring bountiful airflow delivered to your components while the system runs at peak performance. <span...

lian-li.com

 

[emitfudd]

Recently built with this case. Am very happy with it. Bought pair of lian li 140s for top exhaust.

Lancool-II-Mesh-Performance

<h2>Born to push the limits</h2> LANCOOL II MESH Performance features a mesh front panel and mesh bottom left shroud panel, honeycomb vent design and built-in PWM fans, ensuring bountiful airflow delivered to your components while the system runs at peak performance. <span...

lian-li.com

Thanks for the recommendation. This has everything I was looking for. 3 fans and a fan controller in the case. I haven't made my purchase yet and was going to go with the Corsair but now I have another great option. And it looks like the Corsair only has 120mm fans and the Lian Li has two 140mm and a 120mm.

 

[emitfudd]

Recently built with this case. Am very happy with it. Bought pair of lian li 140s for top exhaust.

Lancool-II-Mesh-Performance

<h2>Born to push the limits</h2> LANCOOL II MESH Performance features a mesh front panel and mesh bottom left shroud panel, honeycomb vent design and built-in PWM fans, ensuring bountiful airflow delivered to your components while the system runs at peak performance. <span...

lian-li.com

I do have a question. Do the hinged panels come off completely? If I had my case laying down flat on a table to install components I wouldn't want the main panel in my way while I'm working.

Edit: After reading many reviews I saw a few posts that confirm the side panels can be lifted off the hinges.

Are the ssd cages removable? I like to gut my cases for max airflow. I am only running M.2 ssd's so don't need all those cages in the way.

 

[geofelt]

If you like to fiddle with parts, the CM HAF XB EVO is a bit different:
https://www.newegg.com/black-cooler-master-haf-series-atx-desktop/p/N82E16811119265

 

[boju]

I do have a question. Do the hinged panels come off completely? If I had my case laying down flat on a table to install components I wouldn't want the main panel in my way while I'm working.

Edit: After reading many reviews I saw a few posts that confirm the side panels can be lifted off the hinges.

Are the ssd cages removable? I like to gut my cases for max airflow. I am only running M.2 ssd's so don't need all those cages in the way.

Side panels slide off the hinges yes. Not sure if drive bays can be removed but did slide the whole assembly (held down by single screw) to the front to make more room for me connecting psu cables. Maybe they can be removed but honestly don't think there's a need to.

Bottom chamber is partitioned off from the upper atx portion so the two front fan's coverage is enough imo. Can add 2x 120mm top of psu chamber if wanted. I have psu intake from under case and exhaust out rear.

Top fans bought separately, pair of Lian Li 140mm. They connect together so you can control both with single cable, connected to fan controller hub and able to control all case fans with front panel preset switch. On high it's not all that loud, much quieter than the Antec nine hundred two case i had

https://www.centrecom.com.au/lian-l...mm-argb-pwm-1500rpm-2pc-black-with-controller

 

[emitfudd]

Recently built with this case. Am very happy with it. Bought pair of lian li 140s for top exhaust.

Lancool-II-Mesh-Performance

<h2>Born to push the limits</h2> LANCOOL II MESH Performance features a mesh front panel and mesh bottom left shroud panel, honeycomb vent design and built-in PWM fans, ensuring bountiful airflow delivered to your components while the system runs at peak performance. <span...

lian-li.com

I decided to go with this case. Thanks for the recommendation.

 

[boju]

Cool, let us know what you think of it. Im sure you won't be disappointed.

 

[emitfudd]

Cool, let us know what you think of it. Im sure you won't be disappointed.

My case arrived today and I have everything installed except the GPU and CPU cooler. It's a nice case. Sturdy, well built, the side panels come off the hinges easily. I have two nitpicks that might make a difference to some people. The PSU can only be installed one way. I have a Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W and it has the option to mount it with the fan up or down depending on whether or not you use the silent mode. I was not able to install it with the fan facing up which is required for silent mode operation for passive heat distribution. The mounting holes in the back of the case only have one pattern. I don't use silent mode so I was ok with this. Secondly the drive cage mounted to the bottom of the case doesn't completely come out. I was able to remove it from the adjustable track it is mounted in but the cage was too big to find an opening in the case to slide it through. The track is riveted to the case so you can't remove that. I left the cage with individual brackets removed and slid it forward to have room to plug in PSU cables. Seems weird they didn't give a way to remove it from the case completely. If they did and I missed it please enlighten me.

I really like this case and would recommend it to anyone. Thanks again for the recommendation. I got what I was originally looking for. 3 fans (2 of them 140mm) and a way to control the fan speed from the I/O panel.

 

[boju]

Glad you like it overall. Having the psu intake clean air from bottom would be better for it i would have thought, especially with open air coolers spewing out warm air. Psu wouldn't disrupt flow either sucking air from the upper regions if it were facing up.

 

[Don Madison]

The HDD/SDD cage can be removed from the case; you did miss something.

Check out this step-by-step video for a Lancool II Mesh build from Christopher Flannigan, where he removes the cage as part of his case prep:

View: https://youtu.be/2mMBA4lzDvo?t=336

My case arrived today and I have everything installed except the GPU and CPU cooler. It's a nice case. Sturdy, well built, the side panels come off the hinges easily. I have two nitpicks that might make a difference to some people... Secondly the drive cage mounted to the bottom of the case doesn't completely come out. I was able to remove it from the adjustable track it is mounted in but the cage was too big to find an opening in the case to slide it through. The track is riveted to the case so you can't remove that. I left the cage with individual brackets removed and slid it forward to have room to plug in PSU cables. Seems weird they didn't give a way to remove it from the case completely. If they did and I missed it please enlighten me.

I really like this case and would recommend it to anyone. Thanks again for the recommendation. I got what I was originally looking for. 3 fans (2 of them 140mm) and a way to control the fan speed from the I/O panel.

 

[emitfudd]

The HDD/SDD cage can be removed from the case; you did miss something.

Check out this step-by-step video for a Lancool II Mesh build from Christopher Flannigan, where he removes the cage as part of his case prep:

View: https://youtu.be/2mMBA4lzDvo?t=336

Thanks for the info. I wish they had just made the opening at the backside of the case a hair bigger. That's ridiculous to have to remove the entire front fan assembly.

 

[d_dyan]

check this one as well, budget but comes with 3x120mm at the front ( RGB) + 1x120mm at the back ( non RGB) and open top with magnet mesh:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07KGSJRC3/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_image_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1

 

[Don Madison]

Thanks for the info. I wish they had just made the opening at the backside of the case a hair bigger. That's ridiculous to have to remove the entire front fan assembly.

Well, the good thing about taking it out through the front is that Lian Li made removing that assembly easy. I think they provided that functionality mainly for folks who want to change the fan layout, so it was smart of them to keep it really simple.