[SOLVED] (Revised) Got it down to 2 choices. Looking for feedback :)

iccanui

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*** Jump to the end, thread turned from Glass front case, to mesh design. Thanks ! ***




Hey gang,

So i have been spinning around and watching Gamers Nexus vids and reading articles for like a week or so and i was wondering if anyone had opinions on the ones im starting to circle around. I saw a darkFlash Phantom and wanted it so bad, but after digging im worried about thermals. I know steve said 1 inch space on a glass front for air flow and that i can use mobo risers to get that clearance, but i dunno. Id love a glass front with ARGB, but if there isnt one that has at least usable thermals, ill just go mesh i guess.

Ive dug through all the glass fronts i could find and just good cases in general and this is the list i have. Thanks for any feedback, all are welcome.



  • darkFlash Phantom Black - This is the one i want. But im really worried about the thermals, the front glass plate looks really close. I think even for a glass front, the airflow might be too bad. The fans seem low CFM also.
  • Spectra D100 - This one might be a compromise on the style i want and the airflow. The mesh isnt the look i want, but its hard to deny how good the airflow is and it does come with ringed RGB lights.
  • CULLINAN V500 RGB - This one i just like the case. Probably have to put new ARGB light system in so it syncs with my Tomahawk max, but the style is good and i like the air vents down the side. Kind of the pretty of the darkFlash, but with better cooling ?
  • Cooler Master MasterBox NR600 - Another good in between ? Glass side, mesh front but allows a lot of see through, so pretty and still functional. Probably for the low price i would gut the fans and put ones in that work with rgb fusion/etc
So thats what i have narrowed it down to. Open to suggestions of course. Like i said, i want pretty, but i dont want my stuff cooking either.

Thanks !
 
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Solution
Such a chassis doesn't technically exist. No chassis with 'walls' in the way of its fans will ever match the cooling potential of open mesh.
The more obstacles present, and the harder they are, the weaker the air pressure will be after it passes/goes around them.
If you want a glass front, then consider a chassis that allows for side fan intakes instead, like Antec's P120 Crystal or Metallic Gear's(owned by Phanteks) Neo Qube.

Preinstalled RGB/ARGB fans are especially weak in regards to the amount of air they can move - well, LED fans are weaker than their non-LED versions(if they exist), period.
Decent LED fans don't come cheap.

darkFlash Phantom Black
Ahh, I remember this one. There was a thread - has it been a year since...

Phaaze88

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Such a chassis doesn't technically exist. No chassis with 'walls' in the way of its fans will ever match the cooling potential of open mesh.
The more obstacles present, and the harder they are, the weaker the air pressure will be after it passes/goes around them.
If you want a glass front, then consider a chassis that allows for side fan intakes instead, like Antec's P120 Crystal or Metallic Gear's(owned by Phanteks) Neo Qube.

Preinstalled RGB/ARGB fans are especially weak in regards to the amount of air they can move - well, LED fans are weaker than their non-LED versions(if they exist), period.
Decent LED fans don't come cheap.

darkFlash Phantom Black
Ahh, I remember this one. There was a thread - has it been a year since? Perhaps several months...
The OP in that thread had that exact chassis. It is a hot box.

Spectra D100
I can agree with this.
Plus, since the fans are against open mesh/grilles, the preinstalled LED fans should be adequate.

CULLINAN V500 RGB
Oh dear...
I guess people forget that fans draw air in a conical shape through the inside of their circular frames, not the actual sides. The solid panel is mere millimeters away from the fans...
You may be able to mount the front fans behind their fan bracket to give them more 'breathing room', but it's going to distort the appearance somewhat.

Cooler Master MasterBox NR600
Can't argue with this either.
 
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Solution

iccanui

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Feb 7, 2018
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Such a chassis doesn't technically exist. No chassis with 'walls' in the way of its fans will ever match the cooling potential of open mesh.
The more obstacles present, and the harder they are, the weaker the air pressure will be after it passes/goes around them.
If you want a glass front, then consider a chassis that allows for side fan intakes instead, like Antec's P120 Crystal or Metallic Gear's(owned by Phanteks) Neo Qube.

Preinstalled RGB/ARGB fans are especially weak in regards to the amount of air they can move - well, LED fans are weaker than their non-LED versions(if they exist), period.
Decent LED fans don't come cheap.


Ahh, I remember this one. There was a thread - has it been a year since? Perhaps several months...
The OP in that thread had that exact chassis. It is a hot box.


I can agree with this.
Plus, since the fans are against open mesh/grilles, the preinstalled LED fans should be adequate.


Oh dear...
I guess people forget that fans draw air in a conical shape through the inside of their circular frames, not the actual sides. The solid panel is mere millimeters away from the fans...
You may be able to mount the front fans behind their fan bracket to give them more 'breathing room', but it's going to distort the appearance somewhat.


Can't argue with this either.

Good stuff, thank you. Yea, after sleeping on it im not happy with those choices. Man, the glass front looks soooo slick, but after gaming on a helios 300 laptop for the last year im intimately familiar with what heat does to your gaming experience. Feel dumb for trying so hard to go glass front.

I guess if im going mesh, then i might as well go for the best mesh.

Either Fractal meshy C, spectra 100, CM NR600 or Phanteks p400a. Im leaning none RGB 400a because i can get after market fans for the 400a and put them in and come out at a decent price point and have some slickness too.

Ahh well, thanks for the feedback. :)
 
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iccanui

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Ok, i narrowed it down to these 2

Spectra D100
Phanteks Eclipse P400A


I guess i know what im getting with the Phantecks, but not so much with the spectra. The fact that its not on any of the gamers nexus videos worries me that there is a build quality issue or some looming thing. Just looking for feedback on any reason i should not get it. I think i like the look of the Spectra, but we know where basing things on looks alone can get us lol.

Thanks !
 

iccanui

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Ok, i narrowed it down to these 2

Spectra D100
Phanteks Eclipse P400A


I guess i know what im getting with the Phantecks, but not so much with the spectra. The fact that its not on any of the gamers nexus videos worries me that there is a build quality issue or some looming thing. Just looking for feedback on any reason i should not get it. I think i like the look of the Spectra, but we know where basing things on looks alone can get us lol.

Thanks !

Nevermind, i went with the 400a. Im gonna get my own rgb fans and put it in. It has basically the best cooling for the price. Hard to deny it. Almost when with the Lian Li Dynamic, but for the cost of the fans and the case it would be like $200. Just not worth putting the money there right now. Maybe down the road though because it looks sweet.

Anyway, thanks for the help for myself and hello to any googlers. Hope ya got something from this.
 

Phaaze88

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Nevermind, i went with the 400a. Im gonna get my own rgb fans and put it in. It has basically the best cooling for the price. Hard to deny it. Almost when with the Lian Li Dynamic, but for the cost of the fans and the case it would be like $200. Just not worth putting the money there right now. Maybe down the road though because it looks sweet.

Anyway, thanks for the help for myself and hello to any googlers. Hope ya got something from this.
What happened with the side intake options I meant earlier? You could have your front glass and not have a 'hotbox'.
Not complaining about the P400A, just wondering if you overlooked the P120 Crystal and Neo Qube.
 
What will you have inside for cpu and gpu that needs to be cooled?
Will you have highly overclocked parts?

Without hot components, I say buy the case you love.
RGB bling is not to my taste.
I think pretty is as pretty does.
But if you buy a case that does not look good to you, you will forever regret it.
 
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