[SOLVED] Looking for a better case with good cooling?

[cbrocks06]

So right now I have the enermax ostrog adv and i was told that it is a horrible case for airflow/cooling.

So I am looking to get a case to help improve my airflow..

I can spend around $150.

I would like it to be black/red but its really not that important.. Thanks!

 

[The Original Ralph]

THE Lian Li PC011-AIR - good looking case, with mounting points for 12 120MM fans + 2 80mm fans

any more fans and the thing would hover like a british Harrier Jet

http://www.lian-li.com/pc-o11-air

 

[cbrocks06]

THE Lian Li PC011-AIR - good looking case, with mounting points for 12 120MM fans + 2 80mm fans

any more fans and the thing would hover like a british Harrier Jet

http://www.lian-li.com/pc-o11-air

wow! does it come with fans? i really might get this case lol

 

[terry4536]

I would suggest a Fractal Design R6.

Fractal Design Define R6 USB-C Gunmetal Brushed Aluminum/Steel ATX Silent Modular Tempered Glass Window Mid Tower Computer Case

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811352093

 

[The Original Ralph]

the R6 is the very case i'm building my new rig in, and it just doesn't compare to the LIan Li PC011-AIR in terms of air flow

and it comes with 3 fans, but just the fact it has mounting points for 12 fans is a big plus

I wish i could have gone with that case, but it's limited in HDD space, the R6 will hold 11 HDDs and 2 SSDs

that case also means a lot more options for radiator mounting

 

[cbrocks06]

tough decision!! im leanin towards the Lian with the front and side glass panel..

 

[terry4536]

the R6 is the very case i'm building my new rig in, and it just doesn't compare to the LIan Li PC011-AIR in terms of air flow

and it comes with 3 fans, but just the fact it has mounting points for 12 fans is a big plus

I wish i could have gone with that case, but it's limited in HDD space, the R6 will hold 11 HDDs and 2 SSDs

that case also means a lot more options for radiator mounting

Who in the world needs 12 fans?

The R6 is one that I've been looking at myself. I guess that Lian Li got away from the all aluminum cases.

 

[mgallo848]

What is the rest of your system specs? Do you really need a case with up to 12 cooling fans?

 

[cbrocks06]

What is the rest of your system specs? Do you really need a case with up to 12 cooling fans?

no i definitely dont! lol

Specs -
CPU - i7 6850k w/corsair aio "water" cooler
GPU - MSI Gaming GTX 1080 ti
RAM - 16gb
HDD, SDD
MOBO - Asus x99-aii

 

[mgallo848]

https://www.amazon.com/Mid-Tower-Computer-digital-lighting-CA-H700W-WB/dp/B075BBCJX9?th=1

Or the same case for $30 less without the "smart fan"

https://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?item=9SIA9H58HT1613

 

[terry4536]

There is another case that I saw in a video that is nice. It was in a Jaystwocents video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHAelSOF6f0

MasterCase MC600P ATX-Mid Tower Case w/FreeForm Modular, Tempered Glass, RGB LED, Sleek Air Ventilation Design by Cooler Master

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA6ZP71X2596

 

[The Original Ralph]

https://www.amazon.com/Mid-Tower-Computer-digital-lighting-CA-H700W-WB/dp/B075BBCJX9?th=1

Or the same case for $30 less without the "smart fan"

https://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?item=9SIA9H58HT1613

THat case's twin little brother didn't fare well in the reviews - supposedly it was designed to "work with negative air pressure" - it was delivered with all fans (2X) exhausting -- when the reviewers added a intake fan CPU temps went down by 4C. It was designed solely to appeal to a buyer's eye and not for function

https://www.gamersnexus.net/hwreviews/3309-nzxt-h500-case-review-thermals-noise-vs-s340

 

[The Original Ralph]

the R6 is the very case i'm building my new rig in, and it just doesn't compare to the LIan Li PC011-AIR in terms of air flow

and it comes with 3 fans, but just the fact it has mounting points for 12 fans is a big plus

I wish i could have gone with that case, but it's limited in HDD space, the R6 will hold 11 HDDs and 2 SSDs

that case also means a lot more options for radiator mounting

Who in the world needs 12 fans?

The R6 is one that I've been looking at myself. I guess that Lian Li got away from the all aluminum cases.

i don't know anybody does, but it's nice to have all those options for fan placement, plus super options for radiators.
One warning on the R6 - i didn't read the manual close enough and almost ordered a radiator that was 153mm wide - the manual states max width of 147MM. Quality on the R6 is pretty decent, and custoer svc isn't bad - had a broken power on button, and they sent one for free, but i had to send a pre-paid shipping label first. And in my R6 with four fans exhausting thru two radiators, i want four fans blowing in, so that's eight

But as far as putting a radiator up top - it needs more room above the motherboard - here's a shot, note the top rad fans are covering about 1/2" of the ram - and that, according to the guy that posted the video (iirc, jaytwocentz) was using a "slim" ekwb radiator

here's a shot of the Lian, note the room above the motherboard, mainly because the floor isn't elevated like it is in the R6

and that Lian Air is $111 on amazon, with Prime free shipping

https://www.amazon.com/Lian-Li-PC-O11DW-Tempered-Computer/dp/B07F2NPQPK/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1547038619&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=lian%2Bli%2Bpc011-air&th=1

 

[mgallo848]

https://www.amazon.com/Mid-Tower-Computer-digital-lighting-CA-H700W-WB/dp/B075BBCJX9?th=1

Or the same case for $30 less without the "smart fan"

https://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?item=9SIA9H58HT1613

THat case's twin little brother didn't fare well in the reviews

That's why I didn't post that one. The case I posted DID do well:

https://www.gamersnexus.net/hwreviews/3108-nzxt-h700i-case-review-better-if-it-were-dumber

 

[cbrocks06]

the R6 is the very case i'm building my new rig in, and it just doesn't compare to the LIan Li PC011-AIR in terms of air flow

and it comes with 3 fans, but just the fact it has mounting points for 12 fans is a big plus

I wish i could have gone with that case, but it's limited in HDD space, the R6 will hold 11 HDDs and 2 SSDs

that case also means a lot more options for radiator mounting

Who in the world needs 12 fans?

The R6 is one that I've been looking at myself. I guess that Lian Li got away from the all aluminum cases.

i don't know anybody does, but it's nice to have all those options for fan placement, plus super options for radiators.
One warning on the R6 - i didn't read the manual close enough and almost ordered a radiator that was 153mm wide - the manual states max width of 147MM. Quality on the R6 is pretty decent, and custoer svc isn't bad - had a broken power on button, and they sent one for free, but i had to send a pre-paid shipping label first. And in my R6 with four fans exhausting thru two radiators, i want four fans blowing in, so that's eight

But as far as putting a radiator up top - it needs more room above the motherboard - here's a shot, note the top rad fans are covering about 1/2" of the ram - and that, according to the guy that posted the video (iirc, jaytwocentz) was using a "slim" ekwb radiator

here's a shot of the Lian, note the room above the motherboard, mainly because the floor isn't elevated like it is in the R6

and that Lian Air is $111 on amazon, with Prime free shipping

https://www.amazon.com/Lian-Li-PC-O11DW-Tempered-Computer/dp/B07F2NPQPK/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1547038619&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=lian%2Bli%2Bpc011-air&th=1

I'm going to get the Lian Air, The one with the front glass.. Looks awesome!

 

[The Original Ralph]

ha - looking at it again i'm thinking of picking one up and selling this R6, which means i'll have to buy an external cabinet for my HDDs - i'll agree the glass front looks better, but airflow is going to be somewhat restricted over the first one i linked - that one der8auer helped design

if Terry above is interested, mine's white, no modifications - radiators have been mounted but still waiting for other LC components to show up to complete

I'm in VA, will ship it within a 3 state radius of me in RIchmond, Va for $110 , and mine has the USB 3.1 Gen II Type C connector on the front panel

I can accept Visa, Mastercard or paypal

 

[terry4536]

ha - looking at it again i'm thinking of picking one up and selling this R6, which means i'll have to buy an external cabinet for my HDDs

if Terry above is interested, mine's white, no modifications - radiators have been mounted but still waiting for other LC components to show up to complete

I'm in VA, will ship it for $110, and mine has the USB 3.1 Gen II Type C connector on the front panel

I can accept Visa, Mastercard or paypal

I'm still in the "just looking stage". But white would not work for me.
I'm looking at a I5-9600K or I7-9700K or I7 8700K. I am also looking at a water cooled CPU cooler with around a 360mm radiator.

 

[The Original Ralph]

and just for general info, here's one of the reasons i feel a little dis-appointed with the Fractal R6 - this is a shot of the top with the filter and cover off, Note how much of the fans are blocked - wtf were they thinking? And those are 120mm fans as the top rad is a 240mm. If i'd put a 280 up there, the 140mm fans would be a waste, as it is those 120mm fans are approx 50% blocked.

I work in metal, so it's not beyond my ability to correct that, but who wants to remanufacture something they just bought?

go look at the fan/radiator mounts that the Lian uses or supplies - full bore wide open, no restriction on the fans

below is a shot of the openings for the front mounted radiator (280mm) - whoever laid that out apparently knew if you're going to put fans there, you'd like them to be able to move air out unrestricted

 

[terry4536]

and just for general info, here's one of the reasons i feel a little dis-appointed with the Fractal R6 - this is a shot of the top with the filter and cover off, Note how much of the fans are blocked - wtf were they thinking? And those are 120mm fans as the top rad is a 240mm. If i'd put a 280 up there, the 140mm fans would be a waste, as it is those 120mm fans are approx 50% blocked.

I work in metal, so it's not beyond my ability to correct that, but who wants to remanufacture something they just bought?

go look at the fan/radiator mounts that the Lian uses or supplies - full bore wide open, no restriction on the fans

below is a shot of the openings for the front mounted radiator (280mm) - whoever laid that out apparently knew if you're going to put fans there, you'd like them to be able to move air out unrestricted

I don't really see that the fan ports are that obstructed. The fan and radiator mounts are perforated. A case with a steel mesh over the fan port is probably more obstructed than these are. And that is a common design for PC cases.

 

[LordVile]

Meshify C is apparently good. Would invest in Noctua Black or Be Quiet Fans though.

 

[terry4536]

Meshify C is apparently good. Would invest in Noctua Black or Be Quiet Fans though.

I have a pair of Noctua NF-S12A FLX 120 mm fans for front intake fans. Even at 100% (1200 RPM) you can barely hear them running. Noctua makes a great product.

 

[LordVile]

The 2 I listed seem to be the top of the fan/air cooling game atm. Personally prefer Be Quiet but I am a fanboy.

Noctua’s issue was the fact they were hideous but you can buy black fans from them now.

 

[terry4536]

The 2 I listed seem to be the top of the fan/air cooling game atm. Personally prefer Be Quiet but I am a fanboy.

Noctua’s issue was the fact they were hideous but you can buy black fans from them now.

I don't care about the color. I only see them when I open the case or clean the dust filters. So it isn't an issue for me.

 

[LordVile]

Case with a window can see the rear and cooler fans and Noctua stuff is ugly as sin. Be quiet is pretty much the same performance wise and is a billion times beater aesthetically so I’ve always just gone to them.