Part 2: Four More Gaming Enclosures Under $50

[lp231]

[citation][nom]stm1185[/nom]The Antec 300 is the only case in the roundup that doesnt look and feel like your buying a cheap ass case. It is well worth the extra money and I dont think anyone should really consider building with anything less.[/citation]

Notice how you can't install any external 3.5" (card reader) devices into a Antec 300, yeah some build quality that is.

 

[Userremoved]

Yay! More case articles!

 

[buzznut]

I'm telling you guys, you really need to look at this case from HEC:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811121099

Its been a pleasure to work with and is very high quality in its price range in my opinion. I got mine for $40 with free shipping. I wouldn't hesitate to use it again. Definitely lacking in the fan dept though..

 

[chris12bong]

That HEC looks very similar to the SilverStone reviewed here. I just purchased the SilverStone from Newegg for $35 with an additional $10 MIR. It seemed like the SilverStone had better build quality than the Rosewill Challenger, which I was also thinking about purchasing due to it's price/performance ration with the 3 pre-installed fans. I'm going to install 4 additional 120mm fans in the SilverStone later today to see how much the cooling improves compared to the single 120mm fan option reviewed here.

 

[f-14]

i like the silverstone case, the fact it's the quietest case makes it tops in my book as adding fans and back lighting is part of the modding fun. colors don't matter, but i guess that's because i custom paint most of the cases to preference anyways. i'm going to order this silverstone case and a swifttech H2o-220 water cooling kit and see if that radiator fits under the top cover. if single/dual radiators fit like the H50 and H70, H2o-220; silverstone will have succeeded way beyond tom'shardware review and expectations.
this is exactly what direction i think case makes should be moving to on their high end cases, elegant exterior case radiator mounting for liquid cooling that is well ventilated.

 

[falchard]

Like I said in the previous case review, right now Rosewill and NZXT are at the top of the ladder for best low cost cases. A year ago it would have been Cooler Master. When it comes to aesthetics, the Rosewill and NZXT models also look the cleanest and less gimicky. When I pulled up some great value cases including the 300 to people who wanted me to build them a system, they always picked the Rosewill's recently. So they definetly have the edge in this area. Ultimately the question most people will ask for cases is first how does it look, and second how much it costs. Noise, temp, and some room accomodations are things that can be corrected for.

 

[Proximon]

I'm glad you confirmed this about the Challenger. I have been recommending this case based purely on specs for low budget builds for a while now.

 

[duk3]

Now cases at $50-100 should start.

 

[bombat1994]

would buy the haf 912 over these 4 cases

 

[rrobstur]

**My conclusion** go with a 50-100 case

 

[theoutbound]

It's nice to see these breakdowns of cheaper cases as it is one of the easiest components to try and save money on. All things considered though, it's rarely worth it.

 

[JonnyDough]

This editor’s biggest nitpick is the similarity between power and reset buttons. Activity lights help, but touching the “wrong” button is far too easy with this model.

$2 mod. Use paint or something...mark them. Big whoop.

 

[youssef 2010]

Great Roundup. But I think the extra front fan in rosewills case will deliver cooler hard drive temperature.You really should include HDD temperatures as a benchmark as you mentiones before that western digital's HDDs become "sensitive" if the temperature exceeded 45. Of course, the extra front fan would be most useful to guys like me who live in 35-40 ambient temps.

 

[Deadstick50]

Ok, first of all while I will admit the Rosewill case looks pretty good I know from building with Rosewill cases in the past that the fans are CRAP...so you get 3 fans, well how quick will you need to replace them?

Next...yes these cases SELL for $50 or less, but good God when you have to pay $20-$30 in shipping for it and then face replacing/adding fans how are these considered a good value?
Go on newegg and look at the type you want plus shipping...then go look at that cases that total that amount but have free shipping and you get alot better case for the money!

Good article overall, but maybe should include info on shipping costs?

 

[randomstar]

Anyone Remember the Two Hundred?- these guys would just install a nice clean front bezel like that they would be a hit with me- I use on average 6 cases a month just supporting family and friends. (when people ask me about upgrading i almost always do a new chassis and then move over what we can as that way I can build the basics while they can still use their existing PC..

 

[spooky2th]

I have used the Challenger in 2 builds recently. And maybe not my last.

 

[simon12]

I have that case and it was sold to me as a Casecom 6788 see http://www.ebuyer.com/product/172779 it was the cheapest case I could fine with a bottom mounted PSU

 

[g00fysmiley]

i kinda dont see the point of the tubes for water cooling in this price bracket, if you were gonna do a water cooling system with a good radiator and such yu'd probably put it in a heavyier duty case... that said intresting article i'd love to see one with a few mid-level cases perhaps in the 80-120 range!

 

[RazberyBandit]

Only problem with the Antec 300 in cable management and there is not enough room for a big Graphics card.Otherwise, it is a solid case.

I disagree with the cable management part.

I've had great success hiding cables in Antec 300-based builds I've done. I just stick 'em on the right side of the HDD cage and tie 'em up with the included slotted-zips. Whatever cables are needed to power the mobo, graphics, and optical drive simply don't get wound-up and bound the same way. The HDD power and SATA cables are run down the same path along the bottom, around the front, then up and under each installed HDD. The key is to have the cable leads from the PSU close to the mobo, even if it means facing the fan downwards. And don't worry. There's a big enough gap along the bottom for it to get plenty of air.

Now, the 4 or 8-pin CPU cable can be a problem... I usually wrap it in either plastic tubing or colored electrical tape (to match), then tuck it under the graphics card at the rear of the PCI-E slot. It's that or run it over the card, which looks like crap. (Or bust out the Black & Decker and Dremel gear.)

It definitely needs longer USB and front audio cables, though. Depending upon the location of the header on the mobo, they can end up having to stretch over the graphics card.

As for graphics card fitment... You're right. The biggest of the big boys don't quite fit. Well, not without modifications made with the aforementioned "drill team."

 

[logan the huge]

[citation][nom]jestersage[/nom]Aw... Silverstone! What were you thinking with those top fan mount offsets? Oh well, I'm sticking to my mATX box for now.[/citation]
I don't know what the problem was here, but Cooler Master 120x25mm fans fit perfectly in mine and this other review used Antec fans:
http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1358/5/ (pic 3)

Also, 2.5 in drives can be installed into any of the hard drive mounts since they have the appropriate screw holes on the bottom.

 

[insightdriver]

I really like this review because, in my value chain, the case is very low. As I want to build a quieter computer, I have routinely thrown away fans that come with a case and installed low noise fans that push the same amount of air but at a whisper volume. I also keep the 40/60 rule; 40% of the air in, 60% of the air out. Another way of putting it, is if you have two front fans, have 3 rear fans. With different size fans, use the rule, but add up the Cfm of each fan.

Another reason I like this review as I have plenty of screws for cases, have used the rail systems and the clip systems and like to be able to go back to just screws. At some point, the extra rails get lost or misplaced. Being able to use screws makes it easier to work on a lot of different generations of builds.

The criteria I look at, and why I reject the Antec case is I need to have room for long video cards (Sorry Antec, this is one place where your cheap cases don't work well).

I don't like top mounted front panel and have had front panel mounts where the plugged in USB and headset cords did interfere with the DVD drive. I have a cat that likes to use my floor mounted case as a step up to the window. I had to put a plastic cap over my power switch as more than once he jumped and powered down my computer while I was doing something.

I also look at intake filtering (or the lack thereof), as I live in a dusty environment and do have my machine on the floor. I keep it clean but know a filter helps a lot in that area.

A review with this detail lets me rule out cases I would not like, so it is valuable to me, personally.

 

[wortwortwort]

I like my Antec 300 Illusion.

 

[ctBuckweed]

Well DUH! SilverStone had the highest temperatures and lowest noise levels. That's probably because they use fans have low CFM ratings. And who cares what the setup was. Just put an clothes iron in the cases end see which one kept the internal case temperatures to coolest. After all that said, I'd choose the Roswell.

 

[Crashman]

[citation][nom]ctBuckweed[/nom]Well DUH! SilverStone had the highest temperatures and lowest noise levels. That's probably because they use fans have low CFM ratings. And who cares what the setup was. Just put an clothes iron in the cases end see which one kept the internal case temperatures to coolest. After all that said, I'd choose the Roswell.[/citation]
Did you even bother to read that chart? There's a reason noise measurement is taken both empty and full, case materials and design do make a difference.

That's also why a noisy CPU cooler was used. Feel free to build yourself a case out of mesh, with NO case fans and the same CPU cooler, to see if you can get similar results.

 

[gilbertfh]

I personally have the NZXT and love it... runs cool and has plenty of space for me.