Case Recommendations...

livEwirE

Hi guys,

I'm attempting to build my first htpc but I'm on a budget. How do you guys rate this slimline case please? Is this an 'ANTEC' Sonata case? I'd be putting in 2x 3.5" hard disks. Would the 220w power supply be enough. I will probably go for a motherboard with integrated video capable of playing 1080p hd so it wouldn't have to power a separate graphics card.

http://cgi.ebay.ie/Sonata-Media-Centre-PC-Case-Slim-HTPC-220w-Power-Supply-/220616219160?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Computing_DesktopComponents_RL&hash=item335dc05a18

I would also appreciate any suggestions on a good motherboard/cpu combo to fit this please

~livEwirE~

Solitaire

That seller and case look waaay dodgy. And that case has nothing to do with Antec btw

Its annoying how TFX (Slimline mATX) cases have suddenly gone out of fashion... there are very few affordable branded models on the market nowadays

livEwirE

That seller and case look waaay dodgy.

Why do you say this mate, I see its from a top rated seller. Do you mean a dodgy case as in a 'crap' case Would you recommend any other cases. I was looking at an Antec Fusion case but at €140 it's a little pricey for my first htpc build:eek:

Overheal

seller has poor taste in styles and formatting but the product looks fair i suppose, and i havent had a bad experience when i've relied on ebay's buyer feedback system.

I'd be putting in 2x 3.5" hard disks. Would the 220w power supply be enough. I will probably go for a motherboard with integrated video capable of playing 1080p hd so it wouldn't have to power a separate graphics card.

That sounds like a damn stretch to me but I could be wrong.

lmimmfn

cheap HTPC cases are absolute crap, its a niche market and the good cases cost about 120euro minimum.

Mate bought one for 70euro and after attaching the mobo he noticed that the holders on the case for the screws had frayed and he could never take the mobo out without having to replace the case.

I use my media centre for gaming so ive an E7200 in it overclocked to 3.3Ghz( lol, i cant help it ), and an overclocked 8800GT and 500W Corsair PSU( its also my backup pc if summit happens my gaming rig ). If i wasnt interested in using it for games i would probably get an Atom cpu but get a decent passively cooled gpu to handle HD movies.

Atom ION is a good solution for HD playback

Overheal wrote: »

That sounds like a damn stretch to me but I could be wrong.

Depending on the end build, but i would say it would be perfectly fine

livEwirE

Cheers for the feedback guys, going for an Antec Fusion case is looking a lot more tempting now

bette

This is what i'll be ordering shortly!

livEwirE

Nice case there bette but would be a bit big for my HTPC.

bette

livEwirE wrote: »

Nice case there bette but would be a bit big for my HTPC.

That Antec is a nice case! I have a Tower from Antec which I find excellent.

Solitaire

You do know the Fusion is flippin' huge don't you?!? :eek::o Easily the same size as that Lian Li, only sitting on its side.

If you really want an mATX-based HTPC you'd probably be better off with a MicroFusion instead

lmimmfn

Solitaire wrote: »

You do know the Fusion is flippin' huge don't you?!? :eek::o Easily the same size as that Lian Li, only sitting on its side.

If you really want an mATX-based HTPC you'd probably be better off with a MicroFusion instead

yeah the one i have is huge too lol, tbh i think the size would go well with seperates( as long as wherever youre putting is deep enough to take the full case ). My main issue with the HTPC cases is the damn height, i got 2 coolers i couldnt use on mine because they were too high.

livEwirE

Dammit, after doing some measuring I'm scrapping the idea of getting a case such as the two I had narrowed it down to - the Antec Fusion above or the Lian-Li C-39.
Both of them are way too big so I am now considering a MUCH smaller case. Thanks for the recommendation on the MicroFusion Solitaire, I will check that out