Spec me a case

youcancallmeal

Alright last time there was a case thread in here was about 3 months ago so here we go again
My main question is what case have you got and are you happy with it?

At the moment I've got a Silver Coolermaster wavemaster and it has served me well but things are starting to cramped. I've 2 Hard drive and 2 CD/DVD drives. This is ideal but I want to put another hard drive and this will cause a problem with airflow.
I've narrowed my choice down to 3 Cases
- Antec p180
- Gigabyte 3D Aurora
- Thermaltake Kandalf

The p180 has the psu at the bottom of the case which would not work for me unfortunately as it is a very nice case. I havent really looked into the Kandalf much but it looks nice also. So I'm pretty much decided on Gigabyte case, its got lots of room and looks ideal for a watercooling set up I may or may not get in the future. Also the Gigabyte has has 3x120mm for ultra silence. Anybody got any of these cases and have anything to add?

p.s. Wizzard I know you just a Gigabyte 3D Aurora with the rig you bought off Flacus, whats it like?

WizZard

I will be selling one of the cases described here very shortly, so give me a shout before you buy.

Gigabyte 3D Aurora
My first impression was that it's a lovely case. It looks great, kind of understated cool. The inside is neat, and very easy to work in. Tool-less, which is handy. I like the side honeycomb mesh "window". The stock fans are quiet, and push quite a lot of air. Both front door and side-panel are lockable, spearately. I particularly like the side activity LEDs and USB/IEE1934 ports. The front door is held closed with a strong magnet, which works quite well. However, being a light aluminium case the hard drives do create a little bit of vibration, especially with fast RPM drives. Apart from that I would class it as almost silent.

A case I would recommend for you:
Lian Li V1200
I have this case and find it great. It's made from heavy aluminium (4mm). Comes with castors for easy moving, which the Aurora doesn't. Plenty of space for drives, and also WC equipment for future expansion. Excellent thermal design means that everything is kept separate and cooled separately.
I love it to be honest - and have it's big brother too

youcancallmeal

I never really did get what all the fuss was about the Lian Li cases?
Most of them are quite ugly looking cases but they do have excellent design.
I have been reading a few reviews for the Lian Li v1200 and must admit it looks very nice indeed. Another thing though whats the difference between the v1000 and v1200, as far as I can see they have exact same design? EDIT: just realised the v1200 is 100mm deeper
Wizzard what colour is yours?

WizZard

Yeah, V1200 is longer/deeper - handy for larger PSU's and WC extras.
Mine is silver. Some of the Lian Li's are not pretty, but are very well engineered. Thus they are often the case of choice for people who build "heavy" (read: lots of WC/phase) rigs. in fact I think the Mach2 or another Phase Change unit was designed so that it would perfectly match one of the Lian Li cases.

Endurance Man

youcancallme>al wrote:

I never really did get what all the fuss was about the Lian Li cases?
Most of them are quite ugly looking cases but they do have excellent design.
I have been reading a few reviews for the Lian Li v1200 and must admit it looks very nice indeed. Another thing though whats the difference between the v1000 and v1200, as far as I can see they have exact same design? EDIT: just realised the v1200 is 100mm deeper
Wizzard what colour is yours?

Iv always found the Lian Li's to look very sterile, they look like they belong in an operating room.

TomCo

@ youcancallme>al & WizZard: -

Im interested in getting a good second hand case, so give me a shout when you're selling them

youcancallmeal

Looking at Lian-Li v1100 now, probably would suit me more cos it has a door to hide my horrible looking beige and black DVD drives.
The price is crazy though :eek:

Tomco: When I do get a new case I'll probably sell my wavemaster here on boards so i'll let you know.

WizZard

youcancallme>al wrote:

The price is crazy though :eek:

Well worth it

Also, they come with drive covers which your optical/floppy drives sit behind. Very handy for horrible looking drives and easier than sticking on the Coolermaster jobbies.
Extra/spare optical covers are not too expensive either.

youcancallmeal

Uh oh just realised my m/b is not compatible with the Lian-Li inverted type layout because of the heatpipe
I nearly had myself convinced about the lian-li, Guess its back to the gigabyte then.

jesus_thats_gre

Am thinking of getting the same motherboard soon enough.. Wizzard, can you clear that up?

youcancallmeal

I've just been checking random threads and it been pretty much confirmed that you run the risk of burning out mosfets because the heatpipe isn't designed to be used in an inverted case. Some people talk of turning their cases upside down as a workaround. Whats the point in spending 250euro on a case if you have to turn it upside down???
There are a few other fixes mentioned such as fitting a fan or even watercooling for it.

WizZard

I know people who have ran the Premium in a V1x00. The heatpipe is not as effective but it still works. However, if your airflow is adequate then it shouldn't be a problem, e.g. a slow 120mm fan moving air through the case.

jesus_thats_gre

1 + 1 = winner

po0k

*cough* stacker *ahem*

Creamy Goodness

SyxPak wrote:

*cough* stacker *ahem*

i agree with syxpak the stacker is one beast of a case.

i dont know if coolermaster still make their cases with removeable motherboard trays but i find that a life saver.

stacker + removeable tray = best case ever

youcancallmeal

SyxPak wrote:

*cough* stacker *ahem*

I definitely like the new stacker 830 but first of all you would have to find somewhere that have them in stock at the moment, then for me personally its fairly pricey and too big to fit under my desk. The old stackers are monstrosities :eek:

Removable m/b trays are handy but a case not having one wouldnt put me off buying it.

po0k

I was talking about the 'old' stackers.

Monsters, yes - but sexy

SilverPill

I was looking for a new case for my computers and my choices came down to the same case you did. I end up getting two:a Lian Li v1200B Plus and the Gygabyte 3d Aurora.:cool: I have two system water cooled and I needed more space for both. The v1200 is a great case, lots of room for hoses and the giant 12v asetek waterpump, but as you said, your asus MB doesnt like the upside position at all so yeah, stick with the gygabyte because it also has lots of room and the holes in the back for the hoses is very useful, at least for me. If you liked the 3D Aurora you are probably will going to like the NZXT Lexa. I looks very good but is a bit smaller. What kind of watecooling solution you are planning to get?

youcancallmeal

Well I just ordered the Gigabyte 3D Aurora yesterday so I'll maybe post up a review when I get it up and running. I dont know too much about water cooling setups as its only a notion at the moment. I was looking at danger den and swifttech, but if I do get one it'll probably be a kit as I reckon its probably the best place to start.

That NZXT lexa case looks ok, maybe a bit too 'bling' for my likings. That being said a lot of people hate the look of the Gigabyte case, its really a hate it or love it case.

youcancallmeal

WizZard wrote:

Gigabyte 3D Aurora
My first impression was that it's a lovely case. It looks great, kind of understated cool. The inside is neat, and very easy to work in. Tool-less, which is handy. I like the side honeycomb mesh "window". The stock fans are quiet, and push quite a lot of air. Both front door and side-panel are lockable, spearately. I particularly like the side activity LEDs and USB/IEE1934 ports. The front door is held closed with a strong magnet, which works quite well. However, being a light aluminium case the hard drives do create a little bit of vibration, especially with fast RPM drives. Apart from that I would class it as almost silent.

Well your were right on the button Wizzard. Case fans are virtually silent especially with my fan controller. It a beautiful case with loads of room and really easy to get everything installed. Unfortunately now like you said the hard drive noise is recking my head :mad:
Any tips for silencing them, i was thinking of doing the hard drive suspension thing, seen here

Alkers

Yeah - I was really dissapointed in the HDD noise. It seems so stupid especially considering the HDD mounts they used. Very similar to the ones Dell use, all they needed was two little rubber connecters, my Dell has them and it is silent.

WizZard

I'd go for grommets first to be honest. See if they work.

The suspension will remove any vibration noise, but you need at least one 5 1/4" bay free per drive.
Plus I wouldn't go spinning the case around either at LANs

unkel

youcancallme>al wrote:

Looking at Lian-Li v1100

That's what I have. Superb case - probably the best case out there

youcancallme>al wrote:

The price is crazy though :eek:

It is very expensive indeed. I could only justify getting one by asking Santi