Choosing a case (Node 304 vs Prodigy)

[Chou506]

I'm building the following config and I'm trying to decide on a case to use, between the Fractal Node 304 and BitFenix Prodigy. I like the relative portability of the node 304 as I could fit it in a gym bag and carry it on the train easily, but I don't think I'll be doing that much travel so I'm not sure how much that matters. I also don't plan to do much upgrading in the future (but you never know). Here is my config:

CPU: Intel Core i5-47990K 3.
CPU Cooler: Corsair Hydro H60 120MM Liquid Cooling Kit
Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-Z97N-WIFI Mini-ITX w/ 802.11ac WiFi + BT 4.0, Dual GbLAN, 1 PCIe x16, 4x SATA 6Gb/s
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (4GB x 2) DDR3/1866MHz Dual Channel Memory
Storage: 128GB ADATA SP900 SATA-III 6.0 Gb/s
Storage: 1TB Western Digital Caviar Blue SATA-III 6.0 Gb/s HDD
Video Card: EVGA Superclocked NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770 2GB GDDR5 w/ ACX Cooling PCIe 3.0
Case: Bitfenix Prodigy (Black) or Fractal Design Node 304
Power Supply: Corsair CX600 600W 80 Plus Bronze

Given my config, would either case be more ideal over the other to accommodate the components? Also, would anyone know how the two cases compare in terms of airflow, cooling, and noise? Where I'm getting it the price between the cases is just $10 so price difference isn't much of a deciding issue. Thoughts anyone?

 

[avarice]

A mini ITX and you want airflow? REALLY?

Ok - shocked amazement asside - you seem to be packing a fair amount of heat producing equiptment inside of that case - the GTX770 and the PSU - as well as wanting to mount a radiator for the HYDRO H60...Seems like a tall order.

Perhaps you need to find something a bit larger. Perhaps something along the lines of the Cooler Master HAF XB EVO.....Maybe? I know it's larger - but it has carrying handles and it would give you the option for a Full ATX MB. It also has the room for the cooler and has phenominal airflow.

 

[Rammy]

Ignore the guy above me, what you are trying to do is more than achievable - smaller cases are in a really decent place right now and they can comfortably pack in an insane amount of stuff.

Both of the cases you've picked around among the best airflow ITX cases, so you're off to a good start. Both have excellent graphics card cooling due to well vented side panels (unless you pick a windowed Prodigy - don't) so you don't need to get a reference cooler model like you might in say a Hadron Air.
Also, both have excellent provision for air and liquid cooling, so there's some decent flexibility there too. Obviously the Prodigy scores much higher here with extra radiator and drive bay locations, as well as optical drive support - it's the pay off for the significantly larger size. You can fit most 140mm fan-based tower coolers in both the Prodigy and Node (think monsters like the NH-D14 or PH-TC14) so there's a load of options.

If I had to pick one exclusively for airflow, it'd be the Prodigy, though that does come with a caveat - upgrading the fans. The Node comes with all the fans you need and a fan controller so it's basically good to go out of the box, while the Prodigy's stock fans aren't terribly powerful or well located. Stick a 140/200/230 on the front and you blow straight across the motherboard directly (not something many ATX cases can boast either), while you can upgrade the rear fan to a better 120/140 and you've got yourself some excellent airflow from only two fans. That's a not insignificant cost though, and it's worth factoring that in.

As for noise, it's predominantly down to the components you pick. The H60 probably isn't a fantastic choice here - it's not loud but you'll get better value (or performance, or noise levels, depending on what you get instead) with air. The Node is probably going to be the best case for keeping the noise levels down as it has a fairly solid front section and you should be able to step down the fan speed when you don't need the performance. You can add this feature to any case with a fan controller or via software/motherboard controls - but an external switch included with the case makes it very straightforward.


For your build, I'd definitely ditch the H60 for something better value and give some thought to replacing the PSU with something better quality. You don't need more wattage (in fact you can do with significantly less) but looking at higher quality units is definitely a good idea. I'd suggest the XFX550W if you are on a tight budget (and depending on where you are in the world). Pretty much all Seasonic/XFX are good, a lot of Antecs are - I'd say right now most Corsairs aren't worth the money unless you are doing a budget build, then the CX range can actually be very competitively priced.