Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie

Question About Cases...

Options
  • 12-12-2006 4:37pm
    #1
    WetDaddy
    Registered Users Posts: 1,399 ✭✭✭


    So, I'm thinking of upgrading my case to coincide with a new motherboard, processor and graphics card in the new year. First and foremost, quietness is a factor. I don't plan on doing any overclocking anytime soon, so I can afford to sacrifice heat dissipation in favour of a lower decibel count :)

    I know there's many other factors which influence how loud a PC gets, but a case with sound insulation in mind can always help. I've always been a fan of the Antec Sonata II (which got good review when it first came out), but I'm trying to ascertain something: How quickly to advancements in case technology come about? Am I correct in assuming buying a case now won't render it obsolete in 2 years?

    Edit: Meant to say that I'm a fan of a classy looking case and not a souped of Honda Civic of a chassis (think blue neon, side windows, screeching dragon motif & built in Andrew W.K. samples that play when you plug in a USB device).


Comments

  • Options
    #2
    magick
    Registered Users Posts: 2,478 ✭✭✭magick


    I'm a fan of a classy looking case and not a souped of Honda Civic of a chassis (think blue neon, side windows, screeching dragon motif & built in Andrew W.K. samples that play when you plug in a USB device).

    Cooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooool so going for that :D


  • Options
    #3
    L31mr0d
    Registered Users Posts: 8,067 ✭✭✭L31mr0d


    What's your budget?

    Oh and can a mod move this to building/upgrading. It will get better response there


  • Options
    #4
    hopeful
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,226 ✭✭✭hopeful


    For quiet and quality I still don't think an Antec P180 can be beaten. Link shows a silver one but I think the black is better :D


  • Options
    #5
    awhir
    Registered Users Posts: 4,227 ✭✭✭awhir


    hopeful wrote:
    For quiet and quality I still don't think an Antec P180 can be beaten. Link shows a silver one but I think the black is better :D

    can be beaten :D


  • Options
    #6
    L31mr0d
    Registered Users Posts: 8,067 ✭✭✭L31mr0d


    Will be posting pictures of my new P180b build... the more I work with it the smaller it seems to get, its an odd phenomenon, as when I first got it, it was like a monolith, but after straining my neck and back trying to cable manage and fit everything in i've realised how small inside it actually is.

    Still, I wouldn't change a thing, I love this case :D The silence is a bonus to the build quality of it ;)


  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #7
    awhir
    Registered Users Posts: 4,227 ✭✭✭awhir


    cough* Akasa Mirage 62*cough


  • Options
    #8
    WetDaddy
    Registered Users Posts: 1,399 ✭✭✭WetDaddy


    Cheers guys! Sorry I didn't reply earlier, but wasn't getting email updates on this thread. Assumed it had just died a death until I checked back; I should've known better than to doubt my fellow Boardsies :D

    Anyhoo, the best news for me is from hopeful: The P180 comes in black! I had no idea. Heard great thoughts about this before, and have always loved Antecs. Was planning on getting myself some Dynamat (http://www.dynamat.com) for whichever new case I buy, but that might even be redundant with a P180...

    The only problem is that this "new case" idea of mine has now slowly mutated into a "whole new build" idea... :( It all started when I received my Dell 2407WFP (http://www.trustedreviews.com/displays/review/2006/06/15/Dell-Ultrasharp-2407WFP-24in-Widescreen/p1) :D


  • Options
    #9
    Flaccus
    Registered Users Posts: 3,971 ✭✭✭Flaccus


    Don't like the the P180... The doors help keep out noise but at the cost of heat buildup...hence the number of fans needed to keep it cool...which means it does not cool any better then a simple 2 fan in/out setup (Akasa Eclipse)....the gpu cooling in particular is woeful. I had a 7900GTX sli setup which ran almost 10 degrees hotter then when they were in an Eclipse. Motherboard temps were crazy too. The gpu fan duct is a waste, even if you find a low profile fan to fit (Zalman OP-1) it does damn all to help temps. Also build issues with the side panel clips, panels popping loose, front door warping (fixed on new ones I believe). And it's very messy cabling wise due to psu on bottom and very narrow gaps to run cables through which usually blocks bottom pci slot. So pain in the butt to do any maintenance on. I have had 2 of them. And conclude any modern case can be made just as quiet, cost less and cool better....Lian Li PC-7, Akasa Eclipse etc.. As for the person above who mentioned dynamat - the noise decrease it not worth the temp increase. A quiet case starts with quiet components...always.

    I think this case does what the p180 does, but miles better. Can take 2 psu's. Fan controller built in. Cooling as good if not better. Proper aluminium.

    Lian Li PC A10B
    http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/LianLi/PC-A10B/3


  • Options
    #10
    sionnach
    Registered Users Posts: 2,543 ✭✭✭sionnach


    Aluminium cases resonate more than steel or composite cases and aren't suitable for a quiet build. Also the fan grills on that Lian Li look quite restrictive. Not a good case for a quiet build unless you mod it.


  • Options
    #11
    L31mr0d
    Registered Users Posts: 8,067 ✭✭✭L31mr0d


    Flaccus wrote:
    Don't like the the P180...

    Agreed the P180 is not the best. But for me it was the jack of all trades in the case world. It does everything good but nothing excellently. Its not too big, not to loud, not the worst to work in, not the worst for cooling...

    I have to say though i've had mine setup for about a week and already the tri-cool fans are starting to make a grating noise... both of the top exhausts :mad: I was planning on replacing them with some scythe sflex 12cm fans anyway, but still they are supposed to be silent on low.

    My other problem thus far with this case aside from the fact it took me over 2 hours to sort out the cooling, is that the botton chamber, even with the 12cm fan in the middle does not cool my HDDs AT ALL. I had to retrofit a 92mm fan in front of the bottom HDD cage with some pull ties to help cool them, they idle at around 51'c :eek: and they're not raptors.

    Plus this case is only quite if you use quite components, like flaccus said, you'll find that because the heat levels will be higher than other cases you'll add more fans to it, raising the noise levels to that of a similar case with half as many fans.

    ... and IT... IS.... HEAVY!!! You won't fathom how heavy this case is until you put your computer in it. I practically drag it along the floor when I have to move it. Its probably the weight of 2 hollow blocks to lift (was helping to build a shed on the weekend ;)) and even though it is made of steel, it still vibrates, you can feel the vibrations by just putting your hand on top of it when its running.

    Still like I said, it fit all of my needs for a case large enough to house modern components, quite enough to have in a room I watch movies in and cooling enough to allow me to overclock... it just doesn't do any of these things excellently :o


  • Advertisement
Advertisement