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Full Tower Recommendations

D

Darkling

n00b
Joined
Dec 1, 2008
Messages
10
Hi Everyone-

I am in the process of building a new PC - i7 920.

I am looking for recommendations on a full tower that is less that $200 shipped. I am looking for something with good ventilation and not too loud. I am not concerned about weight.

I have looked at tons of cases and am having trouble keeping the straight at this point.

Who is using what that will fit the above requirements?
 
The only good towers that I can think of for less than $200 are the Antec 1200, the Cooler Master Stacker 830, and the Cooler Master HAF 932.

Most of the top full towers start at $250+.
 
I've been very happy with my Gigabyte 3D Aurora 570. The three included 120mm LED fans are all temperature controlled and even with my overclocked Q6600 they have never kicked into a high enough speed to make much noise at all. The two loudest things in my system are my hard drives and DVD drives. Also with the 570 you can swap between a window and mesh vent for your side panel.

The only bad thing I can say about it (though for some people it may be a plus) is how the hard drives are mounted with their rear to the side of the case. Helpful for swapping drives, but a pain in the butt if you don't have 90 degree SATA plugs. I just don't swap drives on a regular enough basis to need easier access to them.
 
HAF 932 fits the bill. super quiet because the main fans are 230mm, very easy to work with, looks great, very sturdy.
 
Well after asking about the Thermaltake I decided to go with the Antec 1200 suggestion. The price was right and the 15% off with PayPal at Newegg did not hurt.

The Termaltake was the same price but had a rebate associated with it. Also it was a little on the ugly side.

I do remember reading some complaints about the Antec 1200 but don't remember them now. Anyway does not matter as I have ordered it.
 
I don't think you'll be disappointed at all. I know i was weary about the order but i have no complaints.
 
The 1200 is a good choice there's no major issues with it really, the only credible complaint I've ever heard is that you can only turn off the LED's for the top fan. It is really easy to work with, quite and has a lot of space. Only reason I went for the HAF over it (I was considering both after building systems in both) was that I prefer the industrial styling.
 
The only real complaint I had in looking at the Antec case was the front is a bit plasticky looking in the pictures. Hopefully it looks better in person.

Biggest reason I went with the Antec 1200 vs. the Haf 932 is the Antec had free shipping.

It would be nice to find a case I actually like and keep for more than a single build.
 
Darkling said:
The only real complaint I had in looking at the Antec case was the front is a bit plasticky looking in the pictures. Hopefully it looks better in person.

Biggest reason I went with the Antec 1200 vs. the Haf 932 is the Antec had free shipping.

It would be nice to find a case I actually like and keep for more than a single build.
Click to expand...

The front of the HAF is plastic too actually, thankfully it blends really well. The plastic on the 1200 is a bit of a low point but it doesn't look that bad really, from a couple of feet away it just looks like another part of the case.
 
Zalman gs1000, very nice case.

Just put my corei7 in there. pretty quite and has hot swap bays.
 
I also have an Antec 1200 and love it to death! The only logical complaint I can make is if you run a full 11" graphics card and have 9 hard drives, you might get a little squished in there. But lets be for real here, very few people need all those hard drive slots plus a huge graphics card.
 
Yes, but never found it worth it.

I got mine for € 119 with a 400W Chieftec PSU (pretty good one) back in summer 2005.

Don't have the idea that I'm missing something.

Vertical airflow is a no-go for me: I don't want intake at the bottom and I don't want any fan at all on the top.

200mm fans on the side destruct airflow more then they help it

The 4 in 3 modules are a pretty good idea, but that ain't it worth it for me.
 
I have a 1200 and love it a lot. Only complaints is that I end up having to turn it off at night because its too bright, even with the top fan off.
 
Recieved the Antec 1200 today. Looks better in person than in the pictures.

I had installed the Power Supply and DVD Burner today. If I have time tomorrow I will install the motherboard and begin to hook everything up.

I still need to the CPU and graphics card so it is not like I am in a huge hurry to get everything installed.

We will see how loud the fans are. I may end up having to replace them as others have done.
 
can the antec 1200 house an internal 2x120 rad for water cooling?
 
Darkling said:
What do you recommend they be replaced with? Looking for something quiet with good airflow.
Click to expand...

Scythe S-Flexes or Panaflo low speeds are king there; I'd recommend you get a fan controller for use with either though, and they're both pricey, at around $15 each for the Scythes and $20-25 each for Panaflos.

In the "cheap but still far superior to TriCools" category you've got Yate Loon low speeds at around $3-6 each.
 
I replaced all the case fans in my Twelve Hundred with S-FLEX SFF21E. Got them from Directron for 11.99 each and reasonable shipping. I ordered seven and also put one on my Xigmatek.
 
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