Best FullATX GameCases:Antec900,TJ09,Kandalf,CMStacker830/1

[PeaceLoving]

***Edited November 7, 2006 11:00 PM (Thailand time)
Vote for your "Dream Case". If you had an unlimited budget or someone said that they would buy you ANY case you wanted. Which case would you ask for? Also imagine that you could get any watercooling setup you wanted as well! :lol: (So you have to choose a case that will accomodate your cooling system) YaY!

Note: I put LCS for Liquid Cooling System. It is optional. Some of you might say you hate LCS and want Air-cooling. It's up to you. Vote for your DREAM case!
If you don't know how each case looks like, go to newegg.com and search for "ATX computer cases" sorted by "Highest Price" :lol:

**If the case you are dreaming of is not included in the poll, pls reply in the forum and tell me your case. I'm sorry I can't put more poll options. I wanted to include the TT MozartTx, Antec P180/P190 and many others.
Thanks for taking part!

Fred



What do you think of the CM Stacker 830?

CM Stacker 830

Questions for the general public.
1. Is this the best "air-cooled" case?
2. Any other suggestions of cases that
a) have good airflow
b) stong and sturdy but not too heavy (less than 20lbs)
c) good looking
d) has a lot of space
3. Must be able to fit the new gen of Graphic Cards (8800GTX/R600) **edited/added 5:30 AM Thailand time)**
***imagine (only imagine) that I have an unlimited budget***

Questions for those who have experience with this case.
1. If I put in 4 side-fans, will the sound be unbearable?
2. How heavy is it now(after you have added in all your components)?Can you carry that to a LAN party by yourself?

Any other opinions....pls put down.

 

[rodney_ws]

A Thermaltake Armor/Kandalf with the 25 cm side fan is probably the best air cooled case... just my 2 cents.

And here's a link...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811133020

 

[Guest]

I didn't use that case but I did some reading on it.

I personally dont know why you would use that side pannel with the fans. I think that 2 X 120 MM intake with 1X exhaust and 1X top would cool anything you throw at it pretty damn well!

Still you have to buy some quality silent 120mm fan if you want to use that side pannel, last I check the Vantec Stealth and the Panaflo were highly rated.(never tryed panaflo).

The stacker is the biggest case out there my friend that work at the same computer shop as me, assembled two of them and said it was a charm.

Another incredible case is this one:
Tj-09

Innovative airflow, big case, looks like nice cooling!
Waiting for some more reviews!

 

[Doughbuy]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811103008

2 25cm fans and one 120mm exhaust...

I'd still say the CM Stacker 830 is probably better, but 4 120mm fans will make quite a bit of noise (unless you get quieter ones)

You might also want to look at the TT Tai Chi, not as many fans, but its design helps dissipate heat. Also looks damn nice.

 

[ma2ha3]

antec nine hundred
silverstone TJ09
antec P190
stacker 831

in term of air flows, i think these are the top guns.

No, a case with high speed fan have more noise than stacker 830 with lots of fans but all low speed.

that is my opinion.

 

[nukemaster]

P190.... WOW.....thats allot of cooling.....

 

[muffin]

http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=94402#
A serious case...out of your weight range but you can always start working out! Probably horrible for packing long distances, but it has real handles and you can stack everyone else's computers on top of it at the LAN party without damage or blocking airflow...and the add-in card hold-downs keep everything secure on the road. If you start carrying this thing any distance, I'm sure the FBI or local police will show up to help you out. 8)(may as well use that Homeland Security paranoia to your advantage). I threw a fan speed controller in because the stock fans in this thing will exchange the air in your house every minute and a half - but it'll be well filtered air!. Roomy, easy to work on, totally reconfigurable, comes with a real power supply, and you're definitely going to be the only one with one of these at a gathering. Just eat your Wheaties and don't drop it on any living creatures. With the speed controller it's quiet and menacing at the same time...like the MIB dropped by and forgot to take their machinery home. You could just host the LAN parties and forget packing this thing around if you are concerned about the weight, don't have a strong friend, or don't have a vehicle...lol. I'm an ox so the weight doesn't bother me much - but my gf refuses to even try to move it - she doesn't do Wheaties.

 

[Doughbuy]

Yeah, thats a nice case, I was actually looking at it. Some of the negatives were the fact it has no drive rails so it's not really a tooless installation, and there are no 3.5" external bays (which I like, no use for those these days)...

Cooling wise, it has one of the best systems i've seen to date... You can also use the 3.5" drive cages as wind tunnels for your cpu or gpu (as long as there are no HDD's in them)..

Definitly check it out...

Also there is the NZXT Zero which is equivalent to the CM Stacker 830...

 

[tool_462]

I vote for the Antec Nine Hundred. It is a great case and has great cooling. Get good fans and this baby is very quiet. I know you have a "unlimited budget" but at the price of the 900 vs. the Stacker, I don't see $100 worth of improvements in the Stacker over the 900.

 

[skyguy]

Nice.

I have one question on this topic that may influence a purchase:

If someone is looking for a mid-tower, which ones may fit the new 8800 vid cards?? Or is a full tower needed? Assuming 12" long (the card....get your minds out of the gutter ), what will house it without hitting the drive bay cage?

Is P180 considered full tower? Will the 900 work?

For anyone (including myself) considering a move to G80/R600, getting a case that isn't a monster would be ideal...........

 

[muffin]

Actually it has 2 external 3.5" bays...they are vertical in the middle. All the cages are removable-both of the 5.25"x3 on each side and the center 3.5". I have 2 HDDs behind the 120mm fan-it comes with rails to put 3.5" drives in the 5.25" slots, and one suspended from the hold down bar.
(Edit - tried to add an image...didn't work)

 

[Guest]

The P180 is a "super mid-tower" according to Antec that is!

I think the G80 will fit, if you remove the drive cage next to the PCIe slot...

You don't need a Full-tower, you just need a long one (hehe). You should look at cases that are ~580 mm deep. the P180 is 'only' 507, it might be to short!

 

[Doughbuy]

Ah... I see... eh, 3.5" bays are pretty much useless anyways... still don't know why people support floppy drives and PS/2 connections... Serial, I can understand in some cases... but I'd still like to see anything thats obsolete not on my computer...

 

[Guest]

Raid setup can be a hassle without a floppy...
My experience with USB floppy drive/US memory stick are less than stellar in this depertement. Good old floppy, still dont need a whole in my case for that, just need a connector So i can hook it up long enough!

 

[Doughbuy]

Yeah, thats part of the reason, manufacturers don't want to add support for USB on mobo's like they do for floppy, but if we could seamlessly use usb drives like we use floppy right now, then it should definitly disappear. It's not that the tech isin't there, its the companies are too lazy to change to allow it to take over...

I mean, why can't I boot windows off a 8 gig flash drive (beside the obvious fact that windows wouldn't want me doing that)? MS is doing the right thing by ridding us of IDE slots (a step in the right direction)... and mobo's are already removing serial (they need to get rid of PS/2...)

meh, enough ranting, back to your regularly sheduled programming.

 

[lambofgode3x]

you want a really good case? I got the solution for you. The NZXT Zero.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811146029

And if you're worried about noisy fans, here's your solution...seven of these bad boys...
http://xoxide.com/thunderblade4.html

As for the 80mm top exhaust fan, I just got an 80mm to 120mm adapter. Cools my computer down amazingly. I have my x2 4800+ clocked at 2.63 ghz per core, and it idles at 27C and loads at 42C.

Just as good as the Stacker 830, and 100 dollars less.
Same price as the Antec NineHundred, but it's bigger (much bigger) and mores a lot more air.

And lastly, don't be fooled by those huge 25cm fans. They operate at only 800RPM and move less air than a Thermaltake Thunderblade.

EDIT: The Antec NineHundred is a nice case, but it is REALLY SMALL. I went to install a 7900GTX in there, and there as not even an inch between the card and the hard drives. If you want good air flow at a cheap price in a big case, the NZXT Zero gets my vote.

 

[muffin]

I like my floppy 8) ...even if it is the sexier multiple hard drives that keep 'em coming back!
sorry...probably should have let that one pass.

 

[Guest]

Heheh
:lol:

 

[3lfk1ng]

BEST CASE EVAR! imo

Silverstone TJO9

 

[apesoccer]

Hrm...I have a p180...it does pretty well. I think the p180 does better then my other cases...despite my attempts to upstage it.
P180:
5 -120mm fans (1 vent top, 1 vent rear CPU, 2 intake front, 1 internal pushing over psu)

I also have a couple of full tower antec cases that i've modded a bit...

White Tower:
8-80mm fans (1 vent psu, 2 rear vent, 3 intake front side, 1 cut for intake for psu with vent shaft)
1-92mm fans (intake, cut for cpu with vent shaft)
3-120mm fans (2 top vents, 1 intake over sli cards)

Black Tower:
5-80mm fans (1 vent psu, 2 rear vent, 2 intake front)
4-120mm fans (2 cut vent top, 1 cut cpu intake, 1 cut sli intake)

I'm sorry i can't hear you...I'm deaf.

 

[PeaceLoving]

Replying to tool462:

No...i do not have an unlimited budget (just wanted to know "if i had an unlimited budget")

 

[PeaceLoving]

Thanks about the info on the suggested length of the case....didn't know that.... i've been reading (self-educate) about computers for over 2 years now and still feel so Noobish!

 

[PeaceLoving]

replying to skyguy:

your consideration has been noted and added..thanks!

 

[PeaceLoving]

Are there any large differences between the Armor and Kandalf series?

 

[PeaceLoving]

After I get a lot of suggestions...i'm thinking of starting a poll. Any other suggestions?

Until now...the most suggested ones are:
Stacker 830 (mostly from me ...LOL)
Stacker 831 (??)
Silverstone TJ09
Thermaltake Armor/Kandalf
Antec Nine Hundred
Antec P180/190
NZXT Zero

will edit these later when more suggestions are given.

Thanks all for replying!