Choosing a new PC case.

sutgon

Honorable
Sep 26, 2014
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Hello. I'm desperately in need of a new PC case due to current having a bit too many holes which result in way too much dust and that ending up stuck in the cooling thingies. I can't possibly cover them all up, basically whole front is a "hole" too.

So for the new case I'd need something not that expensive (on a little budget, need to also get few fans and fan dust filters but those depend on the case) and something that doesn't have a billion holes in them to cover with filters. To the local e-stores I went!

Anyways, I've been searching a tad and well, there are bunch of different case types and I can't even tell which one I can use. I guess it depends on MOBO size. The types are: HPTX, XL-ATX, E-ATX, ATX, mATX and ITX. I assume XL stands for, y'know, XL and m for rather small, so I guess those 2 are out. But I'd need lil' help to figure out which type I should be buying.

My MOBO is Gigabyte's GA-Z97-HD3. I know nothing about cases, so I apologize for my lack of basic case knowledge. Oh and if it matters, I'm not planning to upgrade any time soon. Oh and GPU is MSI GTX 970, maybe its size is relevant too.
 
Solution


So it has 2 preinstalled fans? Are they any good or would they need replacement? And do all 5 fan "slots" need a filter (I guess I just have 3/5 to fill, well, maybe not)? I can't even figure out where the second fan is placed... One is at the front and second... Eh. I guess the front doesn't need a separate filter as I'd guess the 2 "side-holes" at the front are already filtered? It'd be dumb not to have 'em with fancy filters.
 
A mid-tower would do the job. The brand and the design is mostly up to your taste. I've used the Cooler Master K380 for the past two years and it's not caused any trouble so I can recommend that based on the experience, in case you're on a tight budget. The PS11B‑W from SilverStone also costs around the same.
 


Follow the link I provided to Corsair's website and read about the case. All the info to answer your questions is there. Use the case (if you buy it) for a while with the 2 fans it comes with and then decide if it needs any more.