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Antec Skeleton vs. HSPC Tech Station

I

ihmcguinness

Limp Gawd
Joined
Nov 15, 2007
Messages
473
I'm putting together this build:

Core i5 750
Gigabyte P55-UD2
Radeon 5850 (hopefully)
2x SATA HDs
8gb Gskill Trident

I'm considering 3 cases:
Antec Skeleton (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129056&cm_re=antec_skeleton-_-11-129-056-_-Product)
HSPC Tech Station (http://www.frozencpu.com/products/1225/cas-287/HSPC_Tech_Station_ver_20_Standard_Size_-_Black.html)
LIAN LI Lancool PC-K7B (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112154&cm_re=lian_li-_-11-112-154-_-Product)

I am primarily concerned with noise, as this will be in my bedroom. Air flow will be fine in any of these, as I don't plan to overclock or anything. Any thoughts?
 
Well it really boils down to what you're looking for: closed case or open air. Are you planning on constantly swapping out/upgrading parts? Either the Skeleton or the Tech Station would fulfill those needs, the Tech Station probably better than the latter. Of course you could use either of those two cases (?) if you want to depart from the norm and try out open air for shits 'n giggles.

Reviews of the Skeleton say that the audio cables are extremely short, some not even reaching the motherboard in certain cases. Also, there seem to be CPU cooler limitations, but if you're not planning to overclock, then that doesn't really matter. The giant fan on top seems to be fairly quiet though.

The Tech Station is cheaper than the Skeleton but doesn't come with the giant fan or any of the conveniently located front panel ports. Plus it doesn't look as bad ass either.

I've heard great things about the Lancool series, so you can't really go wrong there. As I said at the start, it all depends on what you're looking for.
 
The skeleton is nice but limited. But that's what you pay for if you want both cosmetics and open air. The tech config makes most sense if you review or swap alot of products. Otherwise a closed case like the A900 would do even on low settings--since your concerned about noise.
 
i like the idea of going with an open air case just for fun (the lian li is the "head" decision). the most important thing for me is which will be quietest. if I went for the Tech Station, I guess I worry about vibration...
 
anyone? sorry to rush, but i have to decide by midnight, as one of my components get significantly more expensive then.
 
Either the Skeleton or Tech Station would suit your needs. The Tech Station is probably the quieter of the two, but it also doesn't come with the giant fan or convenient front panel ports. If I had to choose, I'd go with the Skeleton.
 
I've got both. I bougth the Antec Skeleton as a possible testing rig. It's terrible for that purpose. It is a case and is really designed for use as such. The HSPC Tech Station is another animal entirely. It isn't made for daily use as a complete system. There are no places to really mount anything. You can't secure the drives or power supply. It is nice for cooling and it's easy to swap out motherboards and expansion cards but that's it.
 
Thanks Dan,

Which one is quieter? Do you get any more vibration from the TS? The HDs aren't secured on there?
 
ihmcguinness said:
Thanks Dan,

Which one is quieter? Do you get any more vibration from the TS? The HDs aren't secured on there?
Click to expand...

Neither of them is actually very bad about vibration. The HSPC has a rubber mat that goes on the bottom level and there are rubber standoffs as well as rubber feet on the bottom.
 
Ok, I think I'm gonna go with the HSPC. Looks like everything is pretty well damped, with the possible exception of the HDDs. How are they in those acrylic rails? Sorry to keep asking about noise, but this will be in my bedroom. Compared to a regular closed case?

And is there the possibility of mounting additional fans to the side like the included 120mm?
 
ihmcguinness said:
Ok, I think I'm gonna go with the HSPC. Looks like everything is pretty well damped, with the possible exception of the HDDs. How are they in those acrylic rails? Sorry to keep asking about noise, but this will be in my bedroom. Compared to a regular closed case?

And is there the possibility of mounting additional fans to the side like the included 120mm?
Click to expand...

No you can only really mount the one fan. As for noise, vibration isn't a big deal but with fans, drives, and the PSU out in the open, it can get very noisy. The acrylic rails are fine and don't cause too much in the way of noise to occur. I've got Raptors in mine and they're inaudible compared to the fan noise. The Skeleton's large fan works well and doesn't make a lot of noise.
 
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I own 2 of the HSPC tech stations in my business. As far as fan noise, the 120mm is very quiet and the power supply's noise level will depend on the power supply you choose for this project. In both of these cases, the power supply is pretty much out in the open. Since everything is out in the open, if noise is an issue, you could try a passively cooled power supply,
 
If you like the idea of a test station, Cooler Master has one too:
http://cmstore.coolermaster-usa.com/product_info.php?products_id=332
Cooler_Master-Teststation-01.jpg
 
There is no bracket for securing your expansion cards.

FAIL
 
That would be nasty to snap your dual GPU setup.

I remember reading a bit-tech review on the Antec Skeleton and they meantion they couldn't install an a larger aftermarket hsf since there was conflicts with the Skeleton design. They were stuck to use intel stock hsf.

HSPC has my vote for an open air case. I really wish I snag one during the xoxide clearance sale... :(
 
DTN107 said:
That would be nasty to snap your dual GPU setup.

I remember reading a bit-tech review on the Antec Skeleton and they meantion they couldn't install an a larger aftermarket hsf since there was conflicts with the Skeleton design. They were stuck to use intel stock hsf.

HSPC has my vote for an open air case. I really wish I snag one during the xoxide clearance sale... :(
Click to expand...

Yeah the clearance there isn't very good. You can almost fit a Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme in there but it's about half an inch too tall. However if you want to be able to slide the motherboard tray out often, you are stuck to something about the height of the stock Intel cooler.
 
I don't really care about aftermarket coolers, as I don't plan on overclocking. So Dan, can you tell me how the HSPC noise under normal operation would be vs. a regular case or a skeleton?
 
ihmcguinness said:
I don't really care about aftermarket coolers, as I don't plan on overclocking. So Dan, can you tell me how the HSPC noise under normal operation would be vs. a regular case or a skeleton?
Click to expand...

The 120mm fan on the HSPC Tech Station could potentially make more noise than the Skeletons fan does. That depends on what fan you use. I don't remember if the HSPC Tech Station came with the fan or not. The Skeleton and the HSPC Tech Station are about the same as far as noise goes. Again the parts used are what generate the noise. They don't really make noise on their own. Since they are both open air they'll be about the same in regard to that. Compared to a normal case that's something else. I'd say the Skeleton / HSPC Tech Station could generate a significant amount more noise than a comparable system in an actual closed case. I don't know what to tell you on this point as I have never measured the noise levels. Depending on what's in your HSPC Tech Station or Skeleton, they could be relatively silent or the amount of noise the system makes could drive you nuts.
 
in tech station listed above of mine, it shows you could use some noiseblocker pwm fans in various ways, in mine i have 4 mounted, two mounted rightside blowing right to left across board and two mounted behind the heatsink, sucking from front to back.
its extremely silent and on 24/7 and since theyre all pwm fans only if needed do they ramp up

they also have upgrades from 7" to the 10 legs" if your heatsinks too tall.

for dust, i use an item i use on photo lenses; i bought an antistatic blower which blows negative ions and so things just fly off loose


.
 
Open platform/leaky case will be always more noisier with same components as proper case.
So it comes down to parts: Can they be cooled passively/with very low airflow or are they hotter high performance parts needing stronger cooling.


Dan_D said:
I've got both. I bougth the Antec Skeleton as a possible testing rig. It's terrible for that purpose. It is a case and is really designed for use as such.
Click to expand...
Skeleton isn't even case but plain marketroid's excrement as it totally fails in one the most important aspect of case, physical protection of components.
 
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