Help choosing a case

[GabeBB]

Hiya folks

i've only gotten a couple of items for my build so far but will probably be getting a case next. Hoping to spend $40 to $60 (considering sales and rebates). I do know that I want a white case and will need a atx mid tower and have kind of narrowed down to these here. If anyone has an opinion please post, it really helps to hear what others would choose. It's hard for me to tell what makes a good case, being a newbie.

Here are some cases I'm considering

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Productcompare.aspx?CompareItemList=-1%7C11-353-052%5E11-353-052%2C11-144-289%5E11-144-289%2C11-353-099%5E11-353-099%2C11-144-303%5E11-144-303

Btw, how many fans is enough for a gaming build, case-wise?

 

[Rawberries]

The amount of fans depends on what case you got and how you want the airflow to work.

But in general: 3 - 5 fans would be great.

I've gone a bit off-topic so:

Fractical design: Good because it dosen't sound so much, might not be the coolest case ever but..

NZXT: Cool brand but sometimes too noisy.

Corsair: Deluxe feeling and feels solid in general, are quiet as Fractical Design.

Pictures:

Corsair:

Fractical design:

NZXT:

 

[Zkye]

Hiya folks

i've only gotten a couple of items for my build so far but will probably be getting a case next. Hoping to spend $40 to $60 (considering sales and rebates). I do know that I want a white case and will need a atx mid tower and have kind of narrowed down to these here. If anyone has an opinion please post, it really helps to hear what others would choose. It's hard for me to tell what makes a good case, being a newbie.

Here are some cases I'm considering

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Productcompare.aspx?CompareItemList=-1%7C11-353-052%5E11-353-052%2C11-144-289%5E11-144-289%2C11-353-099%5E11-353-099%2C11-144-303%5E11-144-303

Btw, how many fans is enough for a gaming build, case-wise?

I would get the DIYPC VT380-W. It looks nice and allows good WM. It also has a dust filter on the bottom, plenty of space for GPU and 3 pre-installed fans. You should buy one more for the top. Cons: only two HDD bays.

 

[azaran]

Of those choices, the DIYPC look like the best options.

Other cases I'd suggest looking at
With rebate it comes in at $55
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16811854034


If you can extend the price out to $65
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA1UH4R96252

 

[GabeBB]

Hey folks, thanks so much for the suggestions. Some of you guys mentioned the DIY being the better of the ones I listed. Why is that? just so I can learn what to look for. I did notice the the DIY models have USB 2 ports in the front and the others don't. Is that important?

Rawberries, I was looking at the Carbide series too, they look awesome, just that I had decided to go with a white build. But I even considered having a case painted white. I wonder how difficult that would be. I did look at some videos of people who had painted their cases.
I will check out the other suggestions as well.

Azaran, I noticed that many people go for Phanteks and NZXT. They do look more expensive than the ones I was looking at. Other than that, do they have more features or is it the material?

Hi Zkye, the VT-380 was one of my main choices along with the X-Pioneer

 

[Zkye]

Hey folks, thanks so much for the suggestions. Some of you guys mentioned the DIY being the better of the ones I listed. Why is that? just so I can learn what to look for. I did notice the the DIY models have USB 2 ports in the front and the others don't. Is that important?

The most important thing is that you like it and that it meets your needs. For example, if you need a lot of HDDs, buy one with enough HDD bays. Out of the ones you listed, I don't like how those two APEVIA cases look like. DIYPC Shadow-H01-W looks fine, but I don't like that side fan which I also don't think it's good for airflow. Pros: it has 6 pre-installed fans, 4 HDD bays.
More expensive cases are usually made of higher quality material, which is somewhat good for noise cancelling.

 

[GabeBB]

Edit: Been writing on a phone, finally on a computer lol

Hi Zkye thanks for your answer. I see what you mean. I don't need a whole bunch of HDDs really. Maybe just 2 HDDs and 1 SSD. I'm just trying not to get a too crappy case that might overheat from playing games or adding a decent GPU.

I see a lot of very nice $70+ cases but just don't feel like spending that much... would only do it if the health of my components depended on it, so if you guys think that the VT 380 is good enough in terms of air flow and quality I might just buy it

I see lots of people recommending NZXT and they tend to have great reviews but most of the models I've seen have this plain, minimalist sort of design. They're not unattractive, just not what I'm thinking of for a kid's room but I'll go through them again, maybe I missed some models. Although I have to say, the ones posted by rawberries are kind of pretty, will have to look at prices.

Is a USB 2.0 port important to have in the front?

 

[Zkye]

Is a USB 2.0 port important to have in the front?

Not really. USB 3.0 works with 2.0 devices.

Something I forgot to mention: don't keep it on a carpet. Neither on the floor, if possible. And clean the dust filters regularly. Dust will reduce the airflow which will make your computer hotter.

 

[GabeBB]

Thanks, will keep that in mind I was thinking on keeping it on the floor below a desk but could just put it above.

One last question, ignoring the color of the case, are the Deepcool Kendomen or the Corsair Spec 02 much better than the diypc vt 380 or are they about the same? I'm considering just painting one if it comes to that because there seem to be few case models that come in white

 

[azaran]

Hey folks, thanks so much for the suggestions. Some of you guys mentioned the DIY being the better of the ones I listed. Why is that? just so I can learn what to look for. I did notice the the DIY models have USB 2 ports in the front and the others don't. Is that important?

Rawberries, I was looking at the Carbide series too, they look awesome, just that I had decided to go with a white build. But I even considered having a case painted white. I wonder how difficult that would be. I did look at some videos of people who had painted their cases.
I will check out the other suggestions as well.

Azaran, I noticed that many people go for Phanteks and NZXT. They do look more expensive than the ones I was looking at. Other than that, do they have more features or is it the material?

Hi Zkye, the VT-380 was one of my main choices along with the X-Pioneer

The Phanteks and Nzxt I listed were within your price range. They do have models that go up from there in cost, but those are the ones I thought fit your color scheme and were of good quality.

As for fans.. it depends on the case design and your environment. You need enough fans to provide intake of cool air and exhaust of warm air. And it also depends on the size of the fan, I'd rather have one 200mm intake fan moving slowly than three 120mm fans moving the same amount of air but faster an nosier. But then you'd need a case that supports that. In general at least one intake and one exhaust is recommended, from there it depends on if your case allows for more. Unless your running a computer thats filled with heat producing parts, or living in an environment where you're hitting incredibly high temperatures, 3-5 fans like Rawberries said is about right.

USBs... 3.0 is backwards compatible with 2.0 and is much faster. Front audio ports are also very nice if you ever use headphones/mic. Having a mix of 2.0 and 3.0 is fine as well, but you want at least some 3.0 in the front panel.

As for placement, it really depends on your case construction. If it has fans pulling air up from the bottom, including where the PSU is pulling air from, then like Zkye said, you'll want to keep it off of carpet or off the floor if possible. If its pulling air from the front, which most do, then floor placement is fine. Just keep in mind that if you have carpeting or animals or both that the every fan that pulls air in to the case will also pull dust,hair, etc in to the case as well. So placing it up off the floor can bring down the amount of stuff pulled in to the case. Thats not to say you cant put it on the floor, just be aware you'll need to clean it out more often. If your case does have the option of filters, look to see how easy they are to clean. I've lost count of how many towers I've had to all but dissemble to clean the built in filters.

 

[azaran]

Thanks, will keep that in mind I was thinking on keeping it on the floor below a desk but could just put it above.

One last question, ignoring the color of the case, are the Deepcool Kendomen or the Corsair Spec 02 much better than the diypc vt 380 or are they about the same? I'm considering just painting one if it comes to that because there seem to be few case models that come in white

The DIYPC looks like it'll be easier to build in. The Corsair Spec 02 is a bit tight to build in, tho they give a lot of room for cable routing behind the motherboard tray, same with the Deepcool. Quality wise, I know Corsair makes very well made cases, cant say anything about the DIYPC since I've never built with them before, but it has all good reviews.

 

[GabeBB]

Hi Azaran, thanks so much for the detailed reply

I was just checking out your suggestions, I will probably end up getting whatever of these goes lower in price in the next few weeks. It's difficult to choose just one case when there are so many that could fit my build lol

I guess I'm just cheap and was aiming for the lowest price possible, like I remember seeing one of the Spec models for $39, so I figured I'd consider them first due to price.

I'm also going to add the Phantom 240 to my list of possible purchases since people seem to really like NZXT and it looks nice, somewhat similar to the DIYPC VT380.

Oh that's great to know about USB 3.0, I thought 2.0 was supposed to be a different shape or something.

Yeah dust is always a concern lol. We don't really have animals but might get one at some point. No carpet either, so I'll either keep it on the floor or desk.

Let's say I grab an rx 480 and a year or two from now i get another one, Most of these cases will fit two gpu's right? Haven't been able to find that kind of info online but my guess is they would fit because the gpu's go side by side?

 

[azaran]

Hi Azaran, thanks so much for the detailed reply

I was just checking out your suggestions, I will probably end up getting whatever of these goes lower in price in the next few weeks. It's difficult to choose just one case when there are so many that could fit my build lol

I guess I'm just cheap and was aiming for the lowest price possible, like I remember seeing one of the Spec models for $39, so I figured I'd consider them first due to price.

I'm also going to add the Phantom 240 to my list of possible purchases since people seem to really like NZXT and it looks nice, somewhat similar to the DIYPC VT380.

Oh that's great to know about USB 3.0, I thought 2.0 was supposed to be a different shape or something.

Yeah dust is always a concern lol. We don't really have animals but might get one at some point. No carpet either, so I'll either keep it on the floor or desk.

Let's say I grab an rx 480 and a year or two from now i get another one, Most of these cases will fit two gpu's right? Haven't been able to find that kind of info online but my guess is they would fit because the gpu's go side by side?

USB 2.0 type-A, 3.0 types-A and 3.1 type-A all have the same style port. USB 3.1 type-C is the one with the different port style. Here's an example, type-A is on the right and type-C is on the left.
http://www.velocitymicro.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/UCABL021500_1.jpg
Type C is the new one popping up on motherboards but I've only seen one case so far with it, and its a $200+ case, so I wouldn't worry about that. Stick to USB 3.0 for now and you're fine.

As for running dual RX 480, as long as the cases are Mid ATX style cases you'll be alright. Micro ATX is where you'll run out of room. If you intend on running multi GPU's you need to make sure your motherboard supports it.