Understated PC case for under £50?

[dunnywoods]

Hi all,
On my current system I have an NZXT Phantom case, I loved it at first but have decided it is too big. I can barely get my chair under my desk with it in there. Also I'm not a huge fan of LED's and crazy power mad inspired cases. I have decided to sell my Phantom (any offers welcome? Haha) and want a Mid tower case which is preferably mostly metal, is an efficient cooler and has a sleek and understated design. I know I'm asking for a lot for under £50 but I'm a bit skint at the minute and am hoping to recoup a bit of money off the Phantom and have some left over after I buy a new case. Thanks!

 

[dunnywoods]

OK, under £80?

 

[Uther39]

Really need to no what hardware is going inside it?

 

[dunnywoods]

My motherboard is pretty small AsRock M3A770de a Artic Cooling Freezer 7 only 1 hard drive, blu-ray drive and a Radeon HD 6870.
Thanks

 

[Uther39]

OK sorry i see your system config now,

Heres the old favourite, not to big, plenty of cooling and understated. =£50
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/antec-300-three-hundred-black-midi-tower-ultimate-gaming-case-w-o-psu

Heres a good cheap one that looks nice and understated, it also runs chilli cool. = £54
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/bitfenix-survivor-core-black-mid-tower-case-with-handle-w-o-psu

Or with USB 3
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/bitfenix-survivor-black-mid-tower-case-with-usb-30-with-handle-w-o-psu

This ones a Lian LI beauty all aluminium, with pretty good cooling. = £73
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/lian-li-pc-a05nb-black-aluminium-mini-tower-case-w-o-psu

Then theres the king of understated design while being really good coolers. = £75
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/fractal-design-define-r3-black-pearl-mid-tower-case-w-o-psu

And last but by no means least is the king of small, understated yet very good cooling = £80
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/nzxt-panzerbox-black-aluminum-mid-tower-case-w-o-psu

 

[Silvune]

Maybe one of these takes your fancy:
Antec 100
Cooler Master 430/370
Bitfenix Shinobi
Silverstone Precision PS05/PS04/PS03
Cooler Master Centurion 5 II (25cm GPU clearance, so check the length of your current GPU and be prepared not to get a long/high performance card in later)
Zalman Z9 Plus (might not suit your style if you not like the look of the Phantom)
Lian Li Lancool PC-K58 £53
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/lian-li-pc-k58b-lancool-dragon-lord-k-series-mid-tower-gaming-case-w-o-psu
Asus Vento TA-M21 £48
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/asus-vento-ta-m21-black-gaming-mid-tower-with-side-mesh-w-o-psu

 

[dunnywoods]

OK, thanks for the great reply. I've been looking at the Antec 300 for a while and that does seem to be the natural choice for what I'm after. However something is putting me off it and I'm not sure what... I like the look of the BitFenix case actually, just watched a video review though and it still seems pretty huge. Not sure it would fit under my desk, looks too wide. I've always liked the look of Lian Li cases, are you sure this one would definately fit all my components, it says it's a Mini? Fractal design looks really nice and I might look into that case more. I really like the Panzerbox! That is exactly what I'm after but again I think it is too damn fat, just checked out the dimensions against my current case and apparently the Panzerbox is a couple of centimetres wider :/ Thanks again for the great reply. By the way do you have a favourite of these?

 

[dunnywoods]

Thanks Silvune. I do like the majority of the cases you have recommended. But I am looking for something less flamboyant than the cases you have mentioned. The Antec 100 is nice but I don't like the look of the front, mainly because it is plastic. If only that Panzerbox was a few centimetres thinner...

 

[dunnywoods]

Think I'm going for the Antec 300 guys. Thanks a lot. Just need to work out what to put my components in between selling my current case and buying a new one.

 

[Uther39]

The Lian Li will easily fit all your components in, as for those cases being to fat to go under your desk dont forget there not as high as regular cases because there fatter, also have you considered putting your case on your desk instead of under it, as this not only looks better but also is much better for your pc as a pc on the floor will act like a hoover and suck up all the dust and hair off your carpet, it is much better to have it placed on a desk, what are your desk dimensions, and my favourite is the Panzerbox, as it makes for a lovely understated clean and well cooled pc build.

 

[dunnywoods]

I would have the PC on my desk but I seriously dont have a lot of room to work with. I built my own desk and it's crammed between the end of my bed and my wall. The top of the desk, where my monitor is, is about a foot out from the wall and 30 inches in width. Here is a picture: http://www.freeimagehosting.net/f6675. I agree, I really like the Panzerbox, and to be honest if I moved it too the other side, to on the picture, it would be slightly under my bed and might fit nicely.
Thanks.

 

[dunnywoods]

Just tried the link and it's not working on here. It works if you copy into your adress bar though.

 

[Uther39]

Lovely little set up you have there, going to do something like that for my son to keep him out of my "NASA CONTROL ROOM" as the wife calls it,

Shame you dont have a micro atx mother board and a bit more cash as this case below would of been perfect for you, i have 2 of them and they are truly excellent.....

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/silverstone-fortress-ft03b-black-micro-atx-aluminum-mini-tower-case-w-o-psu

 

[dunnywoods]

Thanks man Yeah that is a pretty impressive setup you have there yourself lol. What do you use them all for? Do you do any gaming?