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Help Me Find A Case

S

Stupid_Newbie

Gawd
Joined
Dec 4, 2005
Messages
671
Hello everyone. Been a long time since I posted on this forum. But its time for a new PC, and figured people more in the loop then I am, might be able to help me. So I come to you guys.

Here is what im looking for:
Quiet
Mid tower (dont want a 4ft tall case, I wont use its room)
A nice clean look, I dont want it to look like its going to take flight. Nice simple lines.
I dont want a window (I have had a few windowed cases, or modded windows in, this time, im going quiet and not for show)


I plan on running a GTX570 inside, dont think Ill SLI it. And dont see watercooling as realistic option.

Now I looked at the quiet 480SLI thread. I do like that case, and it looks sharp in white, however it has a window, and Id rather not have that.

The other case I had my eye on was a white NZXT Phantom. But Id like to see whatelse is out there.
 
The Corsair Graphite Series 600T meets your requirements.

Also available in white starting in April.
 
I have a black one, although it is not that tall, it is really fat and deep, and kind of chubby and ugly to my taste.
 
Thats the one I was looking at. Sorry I guess maybe im out of touch with my terminology. But my current case is a 17" mid tower. And I keep thinking of the Lian-li and Old school antec, 3-1/2' tall cases, as full towers. Which is what im avoiding.

That 600T is a nice looking case.
 
Couple questions to narrow things down:
  • what's your budget? A high and low price range would help.
  • what are your must-have requirements? # of hdds, 5.25 bays etc?
  • Gonna be buying an external ssd soon? You'll probably want usb 3.0.
  • is dust a major concern such that you need frequent and easy access?
  • are you a stickler for fan/hdd noise or one of those guys who could care less?
  • the line between what constitutes a mid-tower vs full-size is blurred these days. Got a hard limit on external dimensions or not so much? WxHxD
  • do you need a PSU, or else what size is the one you'll be using?

Here's a few options till you narrow your list down:
~Antec sonata/solo or else the NSK series are (relatively) inexpensive cases that win over a lot of owners. Loads of plastic, but quality for the money. Can't remember if they'll hold a gtx570 though shorter stuff like the gtx560ti or radeon 5850 should be fine IIRC.
~Lian Li pc-9f or pc-7fn. Clean simple and functional although you might need to spend a little time silencing vibrations Pretty easy and cheap to fix IMO, but it can add to the overall cost.
~In addition to the aforementioned Corsair 600T, there's the upcoming 650d which does have a window, but there'll probably be a window-less side panel as an option.
~Silverstone ft03. Micro-ATX, forces you to use a slot-load optical or else go external, and it ain't cheap at ~$165. Still, it's pretty pimp and thanks to its small footprint is garnering a lot of attention as go-between from SFF to mid-tower.
~Another micro-ATX case is the Lian Li pc-a05n which is getting a lotta love here at the [H]. Might take some tinkering, but people are slapping dual gtx460s and Radeon 6950s into these things which bodes well since the reference gtx570 is the same 10.5" length as the Radeon 6950/6970

Edit - cNp from my post in another thread:
Also, if you wanna look at a lot of cases quickly, a great way to do so is to check out the various video reviews (most of 'em use youtube). 3dgameman, pcwizkids, hardwarecanucks, and even the retailers post vids. Most of these videos aren't really case "reviews", they're more of a tour just to get a look. Still, I found them really helpful back when I was searching for a new case because you can view a ton of different models vs the limited pics/angles you'll get in a text review. Once you've gotten a quick look, you can get more in depth.
 
Windowless FT02.

Quiet, sleak, amazing aircooling.

Essentially a very similar, but better, case then the RV02 used in the "Silent" 480 review.
 
coconutboy said:
Couple questions to narrow things down:
  • what's your budget? A high and low price range would help.
  • what are your must-have requirements? # of hdds, 5.25 bays etc?
  • Gonna be buying an external ssd soon? You'll probably want usb 3.0.
  • is dust a major concern such that you need frequent and easy access?
  • are you a stickler for fan/hdd noise or one of those guys who could care less?
  • the line between what constitutes a mid-tower vs full-size is blurred these days. Got a hard limit on external dimensions or not so much? WxHxD
  • do you need a PSU, or else what size is the one you'll be using?
Click to expand...

-There is no budget really, But I dont see myself spending 3-400 on a case.
-Really im going to have a blu-ray reader, and maybe a 2nd burner later. 2 HDDs.
-Dust is going to be somewhat of a concern, with monthy canned air cleanings.
-I never had an issue with HDD noise in the past, mostly just fans. But my last case also had all kinds of cheap 80mm LED fans. This one wont. Ill be rolling quiet fans, no LEDs, and hopefully 120-140mm to keep it quiet.
-I have no real set height limit. I just know a buddy had one the old Antec monsters, it was as tall as his desk sitting on the floor, and I wanted to avoid that height. Id say 25" or so would be the tallest, giver or take a few.
-I will be buying a PSU, im going to guess 700W area (plan on running 1 GTX570, though may SLI down the road as games come out)
 
Stupid_Newbie said:
-There is no budget really, But I dont see myself spending 3-400 on a case.
-Really im going to have a blu-ray reader, and maybe a 2nd burner later. 2 HDDs.
-Dust is going to be somewhat of a concern, with monthy canned air cleanings.
-I never had an issue with HDD noise in the past, mostly just fans. But my last case also had all kinds of cheap 80mm LED fans. This one wont. Ill be rolling quiet fans, no LEDs, and hopefully 120-140mm to keep it quiet.
-I have no real set height limit. I just know a buddy had one the old Antec monsters, it was as tall as his desk sitting on the floor, and I wanted to avoid that height. Id say 25" or so would be the tallest, giver or take a few.
-I will be buying a PSU, im going to guess 700W area (plan on running 1 GTX570, though may SLI down the road as games come out)
Click to expand...

Fractal Design R3 maybe? I'm considering it in white for my next build :)
 
check out the Lian Li PC-b10. Fantastic case and will fit all your requirements, but it is expensive. Though I would not recommend it if you go SLI in the future.
 
I think there is a high chance I will SLI. Just based on performance vs cost. For me to run this PC for a year or so, if I get games that dont run as smooth as I like, and dont like the effects of lower textures (Some games go to shit), ill add another card, and at that time it will be very cheap to do so. But I dont see myself throwing 800-1200 in videocards in a PC so i can run a game at 150fps, when my eye can see what? 72ish?
 
Lian Li A05NB. You can get the top with 120mm fan mount if you go dual GPU and need more exhaust power.
 
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