Has anyone fit a 6970 inside a Mid Tower Case? If so, which?

zamardii

2[H]4U
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Nov 22, 2004
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My buddy wants to buy my case from me for $100.

This one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133154

It's a amazing full size case that has enough room for me to move into, but it's a huge pain in-the-ass lugging this fully-loaded 45+ pound monstrosity around to LANs so I have been considering a mid tower that will fit my stuff in it.

My main concern is the videocard.

This one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161382

This card is freaking huge (11.61" x 5.51" x 1.81"). Even in my enormous case it looks huge. I had a stock HIS 6970 before I exchanged it for this IceQ Turbo version with the larger heat-sink and copper pipes that stick out about a inch from the side of the card.

Other components in case:

2 3.5" hard drives
1 disc drive
small sound card


Does anyone have any suggestions on a mid tower case that would potentially fit this card and perhaps be under $50? I found a couple cases I was interested in but not sure if it would fit. Reading through the comments, people have had to modify the cases in many cases so i'm not sure what to do. I'm leaning towards just keeping my case but I still want to know what my options are.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811121096

Like this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147153

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811822008
 
i've have 2 R6970 Lightning's in my 600T but i wouldnt consider it a mid-tower. i've put a reference 6970 in a Antec Solo 2 but the airflow isnt too great in that case. i've also put a reference 6970 in a Fractal Arc Midi and it fits quite nice.

pics for reference.
600T
7687667314_ea53e417f8_z.jpg


antec solo 2. ive replaced the 6970 for 2 7770s. less frames but less heat more importantly.
7687670270_709a0107f7_z.jpg


fractal arc midi
7687673124_88ecc00086_z.jpg
 
I've got my 5870 (which is a little over 11" long) in a 500R with room to spare. Not an easy case to carry though. Check out the Cooler Master Storm Scout. Nice sized and has a handle on top. I'm almost certain a 6970 would fit in that and it would be a lot easier to lug around to LAN parties.
 
I had a reference 6950, which I think is the same size as a reference 6970, in a Lian Li 7B Plus. Although I've long had the hard drive cage removed and lost so I'm not sure if it would fit with it. Not a case I would recommend though unless you get it very cheap as they are pretty old design at this point.
 
I have a reference 6950 in a Silverstone Temjin TJ08B-E, which I must say is a very nice case. Though there too the drive cage can be in the way depending on which of the slots you use.

Not in your price range I gather (and micro-ATX), but if I had to lug my computer around that's the case I'd use, because it's actually very light, which made moving it around while building a real delight.
 
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I've got my 5870 (which is a little over 11" long) in a 500R with room to spare. Not an easy case to carry though. Check out the Cooler Master Storm Scout. Nice sized and has a handle on top. I'm almost certain a 6970 would fit in that and it would be a lot easier to lug around to LAN parties.

We just fit a reference HD6950 into a Storm Scout- there was hammering involved.
 
My reference 6950 fit into my CM 690 II Advanced just fine. Don't think I could put the card straight in, but had to tilt it a bit.

I'm sure some of Corsair's cases should be nice for it as well.
 
Go with a small GTX 670 (sell your 6970 and upgrade) and get the same or better performance yet save space, save money on the case and spend extra on the card instead.

Just an idea, although I'm pretty sure the 670 can be found in much smaller dimensions, I haven't checked the dimensions of any particular card to be sure.

Maybe opt for a 670 and mount one of those prefab water coolers on it like an H70 or H100 to save a lot of horizontal space because the 670's pcb is much shorter than its cooler. Assuming money is not a huge issue.
 
The Bitfenix Prodigy is a horrible choice for a "portable system", it weighs A TON. So much thick steel in that case...
 
CM690 owner here also, had 2 6950 DCII's in it at one time.
 
fit's fine in a HAF912. Little tight with the extra HDD cage in but still fine.
 
The Bitfenix Prodigy is a horrible choice for a "portable system", it weighs A TON. So much thick steel in that case...

Ever carried around a P18x?

I don't think you know what heavy is. Try a gym or a good manual labor part time job?
 
Ever carried around a P18x?

I don't think you know what heavy is. Try a gym or a good manual labor part time job?

LOL

funny note, that vulcan build I posted was migrated FROM a P180, talk about huge difference!


the vulcan comes with a handle btw
 
We just fit a reference HD6950 into a Storm Scout- there was hammering involved.

Wow really?! I wouldve thought that thing was bigger than that. Hell, I was able to fit my 5870 in my old Antec 300. I had to use a pry bar but it fit and that 300 is a lot smaller than a Storm Scout, or at least I thought it was.
 
Wow really?! I wouldve thought that thing was bigger than that. Hell, I was able to fit my 5870 in my old Antec 300. I had to use a pry bar but it fit and that 300 is a lot smaller than a Storm Scout, or at least I thought it was.

It was a difference of about one millimeter, and it was the molded edge of the drive housing that got in the way- it became flatter.
 
not ideal but it does fit in a Antec 900. the drive bays directly behind them cant really be used. ssds will fit but not 3.5" drives.
plus its a older case and cable management isnt great.

7696273296_2187807887_z.jpg
 
Ever carried around a P18x?

I don't think you know what heavy is. Try a gym or a good manual labor part time job?

Yes, I own a P180. It's heavier than the Prodigy, but on the other hand it takes Extended-ATX (IIRC) instead of mini-itx. The Prodigy is very heavy for a 'smaller case'. It's so heavy I'm hesitant to carry it in the conveniently placed plastic-majingies.
 
BitFenix Outlaw? It's quite light.
Too bad there's no mATX Outlaw Mini
 
15lb's is heavy? A shopping bag can carry 15lb's.
The handles are ultra durable...

It's about four pounds (1.7kg for those of us who use real units) more than a similarly sized case like the TJ08B-E.

That's not how you shill BTW, here's how you shill: "Even though it weighs a mere 15lbs, it's built using 'merkan high quality steel for superior construction stability and minimized noise allowing care-free LAN gaming in a portable package."
 
It's about four pounds (1.7kg for those of us who use real units) more than a similarly sized case like the TJ08B-E.

That's not how you shill BTW, here's how you shill: "Even though it weighs a mere 15lbs, it's built using 'merkan high quality steel for superior construction stability and minimized noise allowing care-free LAN gaming in a portable package."

If I did that... it sounded so.. cheesy... :p
From past experience, that marketing blurb doesn't work really well on forums. That only works great on press releases. I find that people troll harder, and really, it doesn't blend with the community + the company. A flat marketing blurb doesn't bring the company along with forum people. Call me informal, but that's how I "shill"
 
I've got mine in a Thermaltake Armor+ MX. Kind of on the bigger side of the mid-tower spectrum, but well smaller than what you've got. You will need to take out the drive cage though. No biggie, it's got plenty of other bays.
 
My 6950 fits into my aerocool QS-200 quite well, and that is a micro-ATX case.
 
I used to have my 6970 inside of a first generation Antec 900. Fit just fine.
 
If I can shoehorn an MSI R6990 in to a Lian Li PC-A05Nb, you can fit the 6970's into a lot more cases. :)
 
Asus DirectCU II 6950 in a LL A05NB. And they said I couldn't fit anything over 11.5" inside...
 
Spend a little more money and get an aluminum case it will cut the weight down alot for lugging it around.
 
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