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Largest HTPC case?

Q

quicksilverXP

Gawd
Joined
Jan 24, 2004
Messages
887
The two largest components on my current system are my Ultra-120 and my 8800GTX. It would save me a lot of space if I had a case in my room that was horizontal rather than vertical. I was wondering what the largest HTPC case that was out there that is ATX and can fit the 8800GTX (the Ultra-120 doesn't matter as I'll just get another cooler).
 
It would pretty much have to be the case I'm using right now...... Thermaltake Mozart Tx.

http://www.thermaltakeusa.com/product/Chassis/fulltower/mozart_tx/MozartTX.htm

http://blog.mozarttx.com/


It's the largest consumer based PC case you can own right now. Though it does stand quite tall (vertical) it has a fairly small footprint in depth compared to most cases and is a bit less than the width of two regular PC's. It's shape looking down from the top is that of an almost exact square.

The room and workability in the Mozart Tx is quite fantastic and like noting I've come across sofar. There's enough space to mount two motherboards (a full-sized ATX & a Mini-ITX). One on each side of the main partition that runs through the middle of the case.
If you have a BTX board, there's a backplate conversion kit available from TT.

It's touted as a HTPC case, and I can imaginne some will use it as such, but it's quite flexible and I imagine many will come up with their own uses.
As for me... I'm just using it as my main PC for the moment.

Btw, my BFG 8800GTX fits in the Mozart just fine with room to spare. I don't see a 2nd card in SLI being an issue either.
Like I said, there's lots of room to work with, the only thing to take into consideration is that you may need some longer longer IDE / S-ATA etc.. cables since the drives are housed above the motherboard towards the top of the case.
 
jamiee said:
It would pretty much have to be the case I'm using right now...... Thermaltake Mozart Tx.

http://www.thermaltakeusa.com/product/Chassis/fulltower/mozart_tx/MozartTX.htm

http://blog.mozarttx.com/


It's the largest consumer based PC case you can own right now. Though it does stand quite tall (vertical) it has a fairly small footprint in depth compared to most cases and is a bit less than the width of two regular PC's. It's shape looking down from the top is that of an almost exact square.

The room and workability in the Mozart Tx is quite fantastic and like noting I've come across sofar. There's enough space to mount two motherboards (a full-sized ATX & a Mini-ITX). One on each side of the main partition that runs through the middle of the case.
If you have a BTX board, there's a backplate conversion kit available from TT.

It's touted as a HTPC case, and I can imaginne some will use it as such, but it's quite flexible and I imagine many will come up with their own uses.
As for me... I'm just using it as my main PC for the moment.

Btw, my BFG 8800GTX fits in the Mozart just fine with room to spare. I don't see a 2nd card in SLI being an issue either.
Like I said, there's lots of room to work with, the only thing to take into consideration is that you may need some longer longer IDE / S-ATA etc.. cables since the drives are housed above the motherboard towards the top of the case.
Click to expand...

That is one heck of a nice case tho, i wouldnt consider it a htpc. But i would use it for one >:- )
 
Yeah it is quite a unique case that's for sure.

Not everyone will like it, but it certainly will have a niche market.
It's been the best case I've worked with so far, in that it's roomy & has lots of drive space etc...

I had to modify my internal 3.5" media card reader's USB cable as it was far too short to reach down to the bottom of my motherboard from the 3.5" bay. But it was easy enough to do & works fine.

I also picked up the optional 7" LCD screen for the Mozart. It's kind of neat and works fairly well as a 2nd monitor (if you need to dump some files on a 2nd screen, or just throw a video on in the background). I also use it for my surround receiver's on screen display output, in which the screen works very well for this.


It would be nice if the Mozart came with slightly quieter fans. The five 120mm fans that are included aren't bad, but considering this case is being touted for HTPC use, I think they could be a little more on the silent side.
On the plus side, airflow & ventilation is very good. Considering the Mozart supports up to ten fans right out of the box (9x120mm + 1x80mm) I don't think anyone would have a problem keeping their system(s) cool.
 
I was considering the Mozart, just because I like it. But it will not fit the space where I want it too.

I'm looking for an HTPC with a max height of 9.5 inches.

I was thinking either a Silverstone GD01B:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811163076

or this SIlverstone:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811163080

But man... both are OHH so expensive and might take some modding to get my 8800GTX to fit. If I can find a similar size and style to these cases with any other brand for a smaller price that would be awesome.
 
that Mozart has the shape of a washing machine. its beautiful, but far too large, I would sooner get a rackmount system!
 
logrus,
That's a nice little case. Impressive that a single 8800GTX, let alone two of them will fit in there!
I'd worry about heat though... Even my single 8800GTX puts out some serious heat & the way the card is designed, it vents much that hot air into the case.

One of the reasons I got the Mozart TX was because my CoolerMaster mid-tower case just couldn't move enough air to keep things cool with having the 8800 inside it. As a result, within 10mins of booting the PC, the fans would be just about up to full speed incl. the PSU and that got quite loud. Even worse if I wanted to play a game...

With the Mozart all my fans run at their default speed even after a couple of hours of gaming. So things are quieter even though there's actually more fans running.
 
That Mozart TX is one sweet case. I need to think if reasons why I need an HTPC so I can convince the wife.
 
Hmm... convincing the wife could prove a challenge...
After all, the Mozart Tx isn't exactly small and unnoticeable.


Being single does have it's advantages :D
 
my silverstone 17 fits an x1800xt no problem.. just don't use the middle hard drive holder in the case and your good.. ur still have the one on the left side
 
jamiee said:
Hmm... convincing the wife could prove a challenge...
After all, the Mozart Tx isn't exactly small and unnoticeable.


Being single does have it's advantages :D
Click to expand...

She's already said she doesn't mind the case, she just doesn't get why we would need a computer in with the home theater when everyone in the house already has their own PC's for gaming (she's a gamer too).

I have an XBox 360 which can stream all our pictures and video content from our network, a high def DVR, and an HD DVD player. Sure, I can build an HTPC that does all that, and it would be nice to game on the big screen HDTV, but I can bring the gaming computer to the home theater if I really want to. I'm looking for an excuse to build one, but if I can't find a compelling reason, I can't really convince the wife it is worth spending money on.

Maybe I should post a query on the HTPC thread asking why I need one.
 
Bah, I've never understood the reason for the existence of the Mozart TX. Theres no reason to have a dual PC case marketed towards the HTPC community, it's a solution without a problem. Thermaltake has no idea what they're doing with that case.

To go back to the OP's orginal question: there is no HTPC case that will fit a tower heatsink and that long of a video card.

There are a few that will fit the video card though, the problem with the tower heatsink is that most in the community (actually I think they're more like a vocal minority) that wants their HTPC to be small, as low profile as possible but to fit full height cards and such.

I say bull, most receivers are tall suckers. Why does the HTPC case have to be smaller then a receiver when it carries more parts in it that produce just as much heat?

So, if you want a case to meet both of those needs then you're going to have to build it yourself.
 
I don't want to get too far off topic, but there is no real rule that says you have to use the spare side the Mozart to house a 2nd computer. I house all my watercooling gear in there and use it for cable managment.
 
Droopz said:
I don't want to get too far off topic, but there is no real rule that says you have to use the spare side the Mozart to house a 2nd computer. I house all my watercooling gear in there and use it for cable managment.
Click to expand...

You bought one just so that you could have a little cubby hole for WC gear and cable management?

Well it is your money.....
 
No I bought it so I could put anything I wanted into it. At the moment its watercooling. Next month who knows....
 
Thanks for the recommendations. I need an ATX HTPC, so that one mentioned earlier that supported 2 8800GTX's won't suffice.

The Mozart is an excellent case for what it can do. And it's big... but if you find the right space for it it won't be too much of an obstruction. It has much less depth than a Stacker or TJ09 so it can easily hide next to a desk.

But I'm still in need of vertically oriented HTPC... I'm not even using it for the purpose of an HTPC... only for its space advantages.

*edit* Thanks for recommending the SST-LC17 guys. I think that is my new case. It's got the largest fans of all the cases (80mm and 92mm) as opposed to smaller 60mm ones and it can fit an 8800GTX with the middle hard drive cage removed. You guys were a big help.
 
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