Case/HDD/SSD

[musicmelody]

This is kind of a three/four part question, but it centers around a case and case components.

I have been looking at the Bitfenix Prodigy. Love the case, the aesthetics, fans, and how the motherboard sits flat, seems logical and makes sense, only problem is only one 5.25 bay. Are there any other cases out there, like this, that have a similar layout? I will be gaming so cooling is a concern, no crossfire/sli, but I will overclock the CPU. Not here asking for a build, just case info.

Second question is part of the first, if I CAN'T find another case, then is there any true performance/speed loss in using an external CDRW/DVDRW/BluRay drive? If not, what are the qualities/features that I should look for in one? Also, what else can be external like that? Memory card readers? I wouldn't need a fan controller, just plan to keep them on high, noise doesn't really bother me.

Thirdly, SSD/HDD, my current PC has a HDD that is about 4 years old, and I was wondering, what is the life expectancy of these things? How do I tell when it is getting old? I'm terrified and paranoid about SSD's being flash memory and how volatile that could be. Also, is it better/safer on my PC components to always keep it on, and just keep it in sleep at night when I sleep, and only shut it down when I'm gone for like two or three days or what?

Lastly, I'm in the dark on RAID setups, and ssd/hdd setups, how are those normally done and for what reasons? This build, I aim to keep for 2 to 3 years at least.

 

[musicmelody]

I just ran across the Cooler Master HAF XB, I love that case so far, any thoughts on it? How is cable management and cooling?

 

[c4p741n]

try searching xoxide.com they have a whole lot of cases but do a little search on price before buying from there most time other places have better prices but ts a greaty site to browse and get all the details you want about a case and case mods.
using an external drive right now with an external sata port or usb 3.0 i really doubt u would notice much of a difference.
do a simple search on your HDD's model on google for specs most companies list expected life time but regardless of this backing up your drive on a regular basis is a good habbit to adapt.
Raid setups are mostly used for the same reason you are paranoid about life of the HDD. raids are setup with multiple HDD's and files are then spread over multiple drives so when one HDD fails nothing is lost and can be recovered.

 

[musicmelody]

Okay, and do I need a hotswap bay to do raid? I have no idea why I would want to hot swap. That is the only thing the XB case has that I'm unsure of. Thanks for the reply though! And the HDD is the one that came with this HP.