Question Case recommendation

P0tluck94

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Nov 22, 2021
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I was messing with my case tonight (coolermaster masterbox) to see if I had loose wires/ cpu cooler coming loose just examining while I cleaned it out and decided to retighten my gpu screws that hold the gpu in and stripped the case outpaet out so I don't have screws holding it in , I then noticed this case wasn't new when I bought this pc as the lower screws have been used and it wasn't by me so it was most likely stripped already, I have been doing things with this pc for a few days now to try to fix the issues I have had just to have this happen 😢, I'm fed up and tired of sinking money into this thing when I could of already built a pc with a better mobo/processor as much as I've spent upgrading things in this I didn't know needed upgraded when I bought it!

Anyways I'm looking for a case recommendation something not cheap made and easy to build in so when I do upgrade it will be here

I have a msi b550m pro vdh wifi motherboard.
Ryzen 5 3600 cpu stock cooler (might as we upgrade that while I'm at it)
Asus ko 3060ti 8 gb gpu
Seasonic gold focus 850 watt psu
I have 5 case fans in this (just ordered all the cables to hook them up finally)
1 m.2
1 ssd
I don't know what else you all need to know I'm Just super bummed out and want to get this headache over with, my next upgrade is a X570 with a 5900x
 
Go to somewhere like Newegg. Look in their case department.

Choose these 3 brands from along the left side: Fractal Design, Lian-Li, Phanteks. Those are 3 decent brands with a lot of different models.

Choose your budget range.

See what attracts your eye among the candidates. Do you want a glass side panel?

Case choice is highly personal, so you'll probably reject a bunch of them out of hand.

You have a micro ATX motherboard, so you could use a standard ATX case or a micro ATX case. If your next motherboard will be a full ATX, then you probably wouldn't want to select a micro ATX case.

Unfortunately, most micro ATX cases are nearly as large as a standard ATX mid-tower.

Try to get something where all fan mounts are at least 120 mm in diameter.

Preferably 2 intake fan mounts in the front and one in the rear. Maybe no more than that.

You will need to look at the spec sheet of any candidate to find out how tall of a cooler it can accept.
 

P0tluck94

Commendable
Nov 22, 2021
264
15
1,685
Go to somewhere like Newegg. Look in their case department.

Choose these 3 brands from along the left side: Fractal Design, Lian-Li, Phanteks. Those are 3 decent brands with a lot of different models.

Choose your budget range.

See what attracts your eye among the candidates. Do you want a glass side panel?

Case choice is highly personal, so you'll probably reject a bunch of them out of hand.

You have a micro ATX motherboard, so you could use a standard ATX case or a micro ATX case. If your next motherboard will be a full ATX, then you probably wouldn't want to select a micro ATX case.

Unfortunately, most micro ATX cases are nearly as large as a standard ATX mid-tower.

Try to get something where all fan mounts are at least 120 mm in diameter.

Preferably 2 intake fan mounts in the front and one in the rear. Maybe no more than that.

You will need to look at the spec sheet of any candidate to find out how tall of a cooler it can accept.
Black, glass side will be able to house the x570 mobo 5900x with the nh14 tower cooler by noctua , the case I have right now is so poorly designed and it's small can only put 2 fans in the front 2 on top one in the rear. I'll go look im just so disgusted right now avd I'll tell you why, I had a stroke in 2019 that destroyed my body I've been saving money to get dental implants so all this money I'm spending could be going towards that as I don't even know how much those will be,I also use the pc because im disabled and it helps take my mind off things while helps me with coordination and im without a pc for a while ahh nm this isn't a rant site I'll go look ty
 

P0tluck94

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Nov 22, 2021
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Looks like a good case benches well as far as thermals but does have a bit of some flaws (probably why it's$100 bucks), like the side door, magnets, hinges, this will also house my new mobo /cpu (X570, 5900x) and noctua d14 tower cooler when I upgrade or by that time I might be able to afford something a bit better,

Is there anything else I need to get with this case? brackets, cables, fans etc etc? And is there a case you or anyone else in this post that reads this that might recommend over this one? Or recommend other things I might need to buy with it
 
decided to retighten my gpu screws that hold the gpu in and stripped the case outpaet out so I don't have screws holding it in
If you stripped a screw, then just use a bigger diameter screw instead.
the case I have right now is so poorly designed and it's small can only put 2 fans in the front 2 on top one in the rear.
Can you show a photo of your current pc case with side panel removed?
Is it really that bad?
(upload to imgur.com and post link)
 

P0tluck94

Commendable
Nov 22, 2021
264
15
1,685
If you stripped a screw, then just use a bigger diameter screw instead.

Can you show a photo of your current pc case with side panel removed?
Is it really that bad?
(upload to imgur.com and post link)
The case screw hole is stripped out so I have the gpu being held up and it's unplugged, I definitely can't afford a gpu, the screws are still there but the bottom one that holds the card up is stripped. Top one is snug I didn't want to try to tighten it more, this case is super thin metal they should have a metal backplate that the screws screw into.


I've Been trying to add pictures to imgur for 2 days it will not let me. (got another site for pics?)

To put in a bigger screw is hard with this design the screws are tucked behind a lip which is probably how they got stripped cause there's no direct line to screw them in you have to do it on an angle.
 
Looks like a good case benches well as far as thermals but does have a bit of some flaws (probably why it's$100 bucks), like the side door, magnets, hinges, this will also house my new mobo /cpu (X570, 5900x) and noctua d14 tower cooler when I upgrade or by that time I might be able to afford something a bit better,

Is there anything else I need to get with this case? brackets, cables, fans etc etc? And is there a case you or anyone else in this post that reads this that might recommend over this one? Or recommend other things I might need to buy with it
The most important aspect of a performance case is Airflow. And it excels at that. Whatever is required functionally comes with it. For ease of use, you may get rubber grommets and zipties, not sure if those are included.

Phanteks Enthoo pro 2 is also a good case...
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxTP5y2qW9s
 

P0tluck94

Commendable
Nov 22, 2021
264
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The most important aspect of a performance case is Airflow. And it excels at that. Whatever is required functionally comes with it. For ease of use, you may get rubber grommets and zipties, not sure if those are included.

Phanteks Enthoo pro 2 is also a good case...
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxTP5y2qW9s
Yeah that's to tall lol
The most important aspect of a performance case is Airflow. And it excels at that. Whatever is required functionally comes with it. For ease of use, you may get rubber grommets and zipties, not sure if those are included.

Phanteks Enthoo pro 2 is also a good case...
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxTP5y2qW9s
Have to cancel the lancool also it's too tall as well ugh I have a corner desk with max height if like 18" the lancool is, 19.5"
 

P0tluck94

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Nov 22, 2021
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Looks fine (from what is visible in that extremely dark photo).
I'd prefer to see the whole pc case with appropriate illumination (not just RGB in the dark).

What model case is it?
What front does it have? Closed? Mesh?
That picture was from yesterday, what do you want to see, the pc is unplugged and won't be plugged back in until I can either get another case or somehow fix this screw hole,, I cannot afford a new gpu,or motherboard if the card decides to sag abs break the pcu slot, I can't risk turning it back on with a loose psu, maybe I'm over thinking it, I'll take a pic of the gpu and where the screws are, this case is a coolermaster master box but I have no idea what one as the ones I look up are 19" tall, it's 16"tall 16 " deep and like 9" wide, has mesh front with plastic sides that have holes one moment I'll get a pic
 

P0tluck94

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Nov 22, 2021
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Looks fine (from what is visible in that extremely dark photo).
I'd prefer to see the whole pc case with appropriate illumination (not just RGB in the dark).

What model case is it?
What front does it have? Closed? Mesh?
Here's pictures the bottom screw that's still in the hole is stripped, closest case I can find that will fit my desk is the phantex p400 it's 18.3"tall it's mid atx which is, what I want as it will hold micro ATX and ATX boards

Stripped screw
 

P0tluck94

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Nov 22, 2021
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The Phanteks P400 can accept coolers up to 160 mm tall.

No reason for you to get a low profile Noctua unless budget demands it.
The low profile is actually more expensive than the ones you recommended in my other thread, I am having an extremely hard time finding atx cases under 19" in height this won't be an issue after I redo my pc room and build/buy a desk, but right now there's absolutely no way so the case can't be over 19"tall , all lian li are 19.5-20, I had my hopes up On the lancool 2 mesh but it's too tall, the phantex p400 rgb is 18.3", do you know off the top of your head if fractal has one? even though fractal are Hella expensive lol, might as well just do the full upgrade if I went that route but i don't have the grand to do so, pcs are expensive lol I should of took up knitting
 
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Nothing saying you can't venture beyond Phanteks, Fractal, and Lian-Li.

Those brands are above average in cost.

There are certainly others that are more than tolerable.

But yeah....case prices are a lot higher than they were say 6 or 8 years ago. Not sure why...they were going up rapidly before the economic uproar of the last 2 years.

I haven't paid a lot of attention to cases in the last couple of years, but look at NZXT, Corsair, and Antec. Or even Cooler Master.

If you demand a glass panel, you may be eliminating some that are otherwise OK.

Maybe some ideas at link below:


 
That picture was from yesterday, what do you want to see
I'd like to see a normal photo of the case. Normal lighting. Nothing fancy. No RGB.
Just to see, if it's as bad as you say it is.
Here's pictures the bottom screw that's still in the hole is stripped
Just use a slightly bigger diameter screw.
You have shops, that sell screws in your area? Don't you?
 

P0tluck94

Commendable
Nov 22, 2021
264
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Nothing saying you can't venture beyond Phanteks, Fractal, and Lian-Li.

Those brands are above average in cost.

There are certainly others that are more than tolerable.

But yeah....case prices are a lot higher than they were say 6 or 8 years ago. Not sure why...they were going up rapidly before the economic uproar of the last 2 years.

I haven't paid a lot of attention to cases in the last couple of years, but look at NZXT, Corsair, and Antec. Or even Cooler Master.

If you demand a glass panel, you may be eliminating some that are otherwise OK.

Maybe some ideas at link below:


This one is coolermaster they are so poorly made, metals so thin that's why the screw stripped out, I like the phantex has good ratings also even better than the nzxt 340,
View: https://youtu.be/ZfXQQZtD_SI
 

P0tluck94

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Nov 22, 2021
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I'd like to see a normal photo of the case. Normal lighting. Nothing fancy. No RGB.
Just to see, if it's as bad as you say it is.

Just use a slightly bigger diameter screw.
You have shops, that sell screws in your area? Don't you?
I have to drill and tap the hole first which is impossible on this case or are you just saying use the screw to make its own threads lol
 
or are you just saying use the screw to make its own threads lol
Yes. That's exactly, what I'm saying.
If you use a screw just a slightly bigger diameter (1/10 mm - 2/10mm) - it fit right in.

Or you can also use a self threading screw.

self-treading-screw-250x250.jpg
 

P0tluck94

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Nov 22, 2021
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Yes. That's exactly, what I'm saying.
If you use a screw just a slightly bigger diameter (1/10 mm - 2/10mm) - it fit right in.

Or you can also use a self threading screw.

self-treading-screw-250x250.jpg
I actually found nuts that fit on the screws that putrude enough to get a nut on it, I'm still going to look for a car though I fact trust this forever unless I lock tight then to never come off 😂😂, it won't hurt anything if the nuts touching the case will itNuts on the screws
 

P0tluck94

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Nov 22, 2021
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Check Fractal Design Define series.

There are several. Some, perhaps all? are under 19 inches tall.

https://www.fractal-design.com/products/cases/define/?size=mid-size

Define Compact series below; a bit smaller.

https://www.fractal-design.com/products/cases/define/?size=small-compact
Absolutely love the look of this case but they can forget the$350 bucks 😂😂, yikes, the blackout edition which is scary my new build will be as I'm getting away ferrum mass amounts of rbg is $250 I believe which is better 😂😂 just have to see the thermals.

Fractal Devine s2 vision

Also I found nuts that fit the gpu screws, I don't know how much to trust it, they are super tight though so the nuts don't fall off, still think it's a good idea to get a new case

Vid
 

P0tluck94

Commendable
Nov 22, 2021
264
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1,685
Yes. That's exactly, what I'm saying.
If you use a screw just a slightly bigger diameter (1/10 mm - 2/10mm) - it fit right in.

Or you can also use a self threading screw.

self-treading-screw-250x250.jpg
Video Vid

I have them super tight, I don't know if I can have them too tight but I can't risk the nuts falling off as both screw holes got stripped. This case is horrible quality, I still think it's wise to get a new case, can I have them to tight?