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Torn Between Full Towers

M

Manaknight

Supreme [H]ardness
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
5,446
heya

My Antec server case has finally been outgrown and between parts and wire management its just not working anymore.

i was researching cases and i've narrowed it down to 2 of them.

the first is the thermaltake armor, good price, and i would without a doubt mod a fan onto the window, however i'm torn because i have never been a huge fan of the look of the armor cases, however i am a huge fan of the hard drive location

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

the second is this apevia, which from what i have seen has received great reviews, though it costs more, it is a bit more stylistically to my liking. however it does not have the higher hard drive bay.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811144205

I'm really torn, i would lean to the apevia if the armor wasn't so damn cheap, can anyone give me some insight without immediate saying the armor case. i'm probably going to order later this afternoon, so feedback would rock
 
I use a Tt Xaser and like the apevia it has sideways mounted drive bays in the bottom front. I find the "holes" in the trays are mainly blocked by the drives and very very little of the intake air makes it on the drives or into the case. I too much prefer (now that I have experienced the issue) the drives "in line" with the fans at least you have that small gap in between the drives so they can get some air across their entire surface. If you could leave the middle bay unused, or use every other bay, it would not be nearly as big a deal as if they were all filled like mine are.


I like the apevia's fan setup much better, that sideways power supply mounting on the Tt scares me (for no good reason) and I agree it needs a side fan.

So, probally that did not help a damn bit. sorry.
 
haha no problem, i'm looking for feedback is all.

nice to hear other people sharing my concerns so i'm not the only crazy one out there
 
i have an apevia x navigator that i've been using for about 2 yrs and the cooling is pretty good but i cant stand the plastic, its everywhere and ALL of it has broken in one way or another. i'd rather move into a mid tower lian li or silverstone. the x navigator is taller than a mid tower but its no longer and more cramped than the cooler master centurion 5 that i had, imo the c5 was a way better case. i'll be moving to a silverstone tj07 for x-mas

out of your choices, i'd go with the armor cause its a real full tower, the apevia doesnt support extended atx and will be cramped between the end of the motherboard and the hard drive cage.

i'd look at this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811163036
http://www.silverstonetek.com/products/p_review.php?pno=tj05&area=usa
 
I would go with the second one, my friend has it, and he loves it, great cooling, graet looks!
 
Get the 1st one. That is what I have. Love it. never worry about losing screws in the MB again!!!. MY powersupply isnt sideways in mine. there is so much more you can do with this case.
 
still deciding

might end up getting both, giving the one i dont choose to the gf, she said she would be happy with either ;p, though she loves the mod work on my antec and might just repaint it.

anyway few questions.

first, whats the deal with lian-li? i have worked on 2 of their cases and seen plenty more while shopping, they just don't seem to justify the price to me. seriously.

second, i looked at the armor with the giant fan, is there any way to get one of those that isn't blue? or to replace that with a non blue fan, my case uses a green led/light design and that would look way out of place.

oh last for you armor owners, the side window, is that one sheet of plexi glass under that horshoe design thing? i hate that design and i want to just cut it off and make a rounded square (save for where the door latches are), is this doable or is each clear piece a seperate piece of glass cut to fit?
 
you can put any color fan/led you want. I believe they are separate pieces. But I am at work right now and can't look. sorry.
 
I'd get the TT Armor, I owned one and it was really nice.

The TT Armor has a optional side panel w/ a 250mm fan or you can buy one with it already installed.

Personally speaking, I'd go with a Lian Li, Very nice designs/stays really cool, But pricey, But well worth the cost. I sold my armor and got a Lian Li PC-A70 and couldnt be more happy as my armor was idling at 43c, While my PC-A70 idles at 22c.

And that Apevia reminds me of the raidmax case I bought a friend awhile back for his build, Cheap plastic look, But owell, It was what he wanted.
 
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