Five Gaming Enclosures, Rounded Up

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We've had a number of cases through the lab as of late. Today's excursion takes us away from HTPC or small form factor enclosures and straight into the realm of gaming chassis. Entries from ABS, Antec, Lian-Li, Thermaltake, and NZXT vie for a win.

Five Gaming Enclosures, Rounded Up : Read more
 
Proximon

Proximon

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Apr 10, 2006
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Thanks, good article. I have a comment and a request:
You said, "The other complaint came in having to remove the bezel of our optical drive so that the case's own bezel could take over." this was on the Lian Li case.
I would consider this a feature. Brushed aluminum cases look crappy with flat black optical drives and the only way normally to avoid that is a stealth mod, such as I have done with my TJ09.
I would like to see a picture of each case with the motherboard in place. This helps provide perspective and gives the less experienced builders a clearer idea of what they are actually getting.
 
neiroatopelcc

neiroatopelcc

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How flimsy/sturdy is the plastic cover for the connectors, and the power button ? looks like they're using the same parts as on my PC-A70 ; and on mine the power button feels as if it isn't big enough for its socket, and the top lid broke off quite easily.
 
Pailin

Pailin

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"The best-performing case, both under load and idle, was the NZXT Panzerbox."

err... not according to your own graphs its not.

The P193 beats the Panzerbox at everything on idle! and the Panzer only beat the P193 on CPU temp by 1 deg.

The 5870 "might" push me from my P182 to a P193 due to the extra length and me not wanting to loose HDD slots - but will prob just get a 5 and a qtr bay converter and hopefully only have to move one drive.
 
W

WheelsOfConfusion

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[citation][nom]Pailin[/nom]"The best-performing case, both under load and idle, was the NZXT Panzerbox."err... not according to your own graphs its not.The P193 beats the Panzerbox at everything on idle! and the Panzer only beat the P193 on CPU temp by 1 deg.[/citation]
Yeah, what gives? I could understand if we're taking points off for the effort that goes into assembling it and wire routing versus the Panzer, but "performance" would, I think, be measured by how well it cools and how quiet it was. It cools better when idle, almost identically under load, and apparently was the quietest case in the roundup.
 
icepick314

icepick314

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is side window going out of phase in these latest cases?

the cases themselves look great but what if i want to show what components i used to build my gaming rig?
 
Onus

Onus

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I'll also agree with Proximon. Additional data I'd like to see includes a pic of the final build (showing cable routing), decibel measurements at typical distances from floor to a desk, and total weight.
What power connectors are on the fans? I may have no desire to water-cool, but many do; so what about radiator mounting and pump placement? The article was interesting as far as it went, but could have included a lot more.
 
JackNaylorPE

JackNaylorPE

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"The best-performing case, both under load and idle, was the NZXT Panzerbox. The taller, more elegant cases, the ABS Canyon 595 and the Lian Li PC-X1000, were warmer throughout the tests."

Er......Not according to ya charts dude. The Antec and ABS looked better at idle. 27-81-28 The total (136) is 8% bigger than 24-78-27 (129)

30-82-39 (141)under load also looks like a virtual w/ 29-82-40 (141)
 
baddad

baddad

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Thermaltake has much better cases for gaming then the one you showed and you don't need to spend 400 to get a nice roomy case with lots of fans.
 
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Lavacon

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This is missing the Corsair 800D. I would have liked to have seen that against these cases since it @ $270 it is in the middle of the price range in this round up.

I wasn't impressed with the selection of cases for this review one bit.
 
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coconutboy

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Thanks for the well-done roundup and the timing is perfect! I'm currently in the process of ordering parts for two new gaming boxes and the case decisions for both has been, as always, the most agonizing choice by far. EVERY case has it's flaws, even the Corsair 800d and the Cooler Master Cosmos S. Drives me crazy. My biggest complaint is more cases need to make cleaning dust filters for ALL intakes EASY. Too many skip the side fans, or think the top-mounted exhausts don't need dust covers. Try living in LA or living in a house with crappy AC where you leave the windows open most of the time.

Question, I've never seen one in person, but looking at the pics both at newegg and at ABS' own website, it looks like the Canyon is taller than it is long which, if correct, would mean it's not 17" in height but rather 23.5 inches and the depth front-to-back would be the 17" measurement. Just asking since I dunno.
 
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iammalkav

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How about reviewing some cases that are a bit smaller than emperor penguins? I'd love to have the PCs in my house much smaller than these beasts.
 
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Lavacon

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http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1036/1/

This is a good look at the 800d Water cooled. My only complaint would be the built in 4x hot swap drive bay. It should have been made removable.
 
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