PC Peripherals Suggest the right Full-ATX Cabinet for my PC

idclev888

idclev888

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Disciple
Hey!
I'm on the market for a good cabinet to house my PC in. Please suggest what you think I should get. Below are the factors:

- Need nice and large full-ATX (non-negotiable, as I want lot of space inside the cabinet).
- Preferably want a pull-out motherboard tray, but that's optional (I've grown used to my CM Stacker 830 :p).
- Need features as much as possible (USB3, tool-less, etc).
- Cooling has to be pretty good by default, in addition to water-cooling ability. Wide availability of parts for the cabinet is a plus.
- Price under Rs. 10k, as less as possible but can increase budget if the result is dramatically better than the Stacker 830.

The Antec 1200 strikes me as uninspiring, and ThermalTake has very less presence in my place. Lian Li and Corsair do have good stuff, but they seem to be priced unrealistically. CoolerMaster has the geographical spread and stocks/availability; but the HAF-X is plagued with build quality issues (too plasticky and arrives damaged) and price of the other models is such, that I would not buy them unless somebody could attest to the model's worthiness.

Any other brands that are available in Bangalore? Or any model from the above brands that you are totally convinced about?
 
Dang! Pull-out motherboard trays and top-mounted PSUs have STILL not come back into fashion. And wherever i see, people are whining about how "huge" a full-ATX case is... Excuse me, but it is MEANT to be that way! They don't care for such a case so why spoil the mood by complaining, and speaking about SFF (or worse, they make a philosophical comment about how "desktops are dying anyway, with laptops becoming what they are...)

The NZXT Phantom does look interesting (coincidentally, NZXT has a Hades too as you'd know, to go with your handle!). But somehow it just doesn't... "feel" comfy. Plus my usual vendor for such stuff has no official contact with NZXT (meaning I won't get the absolute max support i get for brands that he can rustle up immediate help).

I seem to be down to making a choice now. CoolerMaster HAF-X (Rs. 11-odd k) and Corsair Obsidian 800D (16k?).

HAF-X: far less metal on body than my current Stacker, and less "volume" available internally, though design changes do obviate this a bit.

C800D: feels very decent and "solid". But it's a bit older, has very long waiting times and though i'm willing to pay, the extra price does not seem to add as much value.

Please help sway me onto one or the other - or recommend anything else that you think is good.
 
Actually the problem is that u dont like almost every famous case... lol... :) HAF-X is a good case Phantom too... companies just use plastic to make their cabby look attractive... And Phantom is the prettiest looking case (IMO)... If u dont like any current famous case then i wud suggest u to wait for new cases to launch... and the case u currently have right now is also a good case...

NZXT Phantom & Hale90 650W Review - Page 7/7 | techPowerUp
 
Ah, not that i don't like, I'm actually ending up considering CoolerMaster again... :)

I followed the review link you gave (besides the others on google), and it still leaves me nervous, haha.

Silverstone still in India? Nice, shall look up more info on the 90-degree rotated mobo case (only seen 180-deg rotations uptil now).

Do let me know what else i should consider! Do you think the HAF-X can be chosen over the 800D?

Looking at confirming a case purchase by today (Friday) noon.
 
This is coming from a guy who bought a70f and "observed" some individuals who change their pc case regularly. If you're buying a case because it looks "nice", then you're doing it wrong. Not that I am saying it does not matter, but usability and space is something you need to talk about rather than features. Tooless design? Just how many companies gets it right? Only tooless thing I use on my case are the PCI secure latch and for rolling in hard drives inside the cage. Securing motherboards? Always the trusty screw driver.

2 Questions- 1 is budget (is it 10k or 16k) and second do you REALLY need a high tower? What the pc config these cases going to house.
 
ALPHA17 said:
The 600D Graphite mauls both of them in my views.

Corsair's Graphite Series 600T enclosure - The Tech Report - Page 1

Hands-on with Corsair's new Graphite 600T case | bit-tech.net

But if the need of a high tower is not felt best buy goes too the NZXT TEMPEST EVO clearly the ultimate AirFlow King \m/ \m/

NZXT Tempest EVO Review - Page 1/6 | techPowerUp

NZXT Tempest EVO Case Review | Overclockers
Click to expand...
HAF-X is better than 600D... HAF-X is a fulltower case whereas 600T is a mid tower case... HAF-X is more feature rich than 600T... HAF-X supports XL-ATX And E-ATX motherboards whereas 600T only supports ATX motherboards and smaller size motherboards... HAF-X has 2 Front USB3 ports where as 600T only has 1... HAF-X has hot swap bays whereas 600T doesn't.. .Plus HAF-X comes wid a great GPU cooling solution... And last but not least HAF-X costs 11K whereas 600T costs 10.2k... for just 800 bucks more HAF-X is far more superior than 600T

Legitreviews said:
I see the HAF X as an alternative to the Corsair 700D. I say this for couple of reasons. First being taste for overall look; HAF leans more, "hey look at me", 700D leans more laid back. The HAF X can support quad video card setups, 700D triple. Both can handle the same amount of drives and motherboard types. Both can handle water cooling, the Corsair Obsidian 700D is a little more roomy in that respect but it is also 3" deeper and 1" taller than the HAF X. The biggest thing the HAF X has over the 700D is it costs less -- $50 less -- and has other features like USB 3.0 and hot-swap drive bays not found in the 700D or really any other case in this price range. Cooler Master says that the HAF X will have an MSRP of $199.99 and will be available worldwide early June 2010.

So if you're in the market for a case that can hold up to 4 video cards, water cooling, hot swap bays and looks cool, then Cooler Master has you covered with the HAF X. At under $200 you would be hard pressed to beat it.
Click to expand...

Review: http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1311/1/
 
ThermalTake Level 10 GT not available in Bangalore, but not surprised about the availability situation, it is VERY new anyway.

The Corsair Graphite 600T (review link) is a classy and well featured case for sure, but it is mid-ATX (plus costly) and I just seem to be spoilt by full-tower ATX... The other extreme, is nice too as I found with the VIP "Jerry" cabinet (image below, comparing it to a standard desktop one, good for HTPC and compact office PC).

compact-360-jerry.jpg


The Sorcerer said:
If you're buying a case because it looks "nice", then you're doing it wrong ... usability and space is something you need to talk about rather than features. Just how many companies get tooless design right?

2 Questions- 1 is budget (is it 10k or 16k) and second do you REALLY need a high tower? What the pc config these cases going to house.
Click to expand...
I agree, looks is secondary to functionality for me. Config of PC, well worth the cabinet, trust me. ;)

Glad to see your post on my thread, budget was a flexible thing depending on result, with 10-16 as a ball-park... :)

@Hades - yay i finally did it.

Ladies and gentlemen, unveiling with image below is the CM HAF-X ! :D

SHhtd.jpg


Yes i know, it is still messy, that low-res pic was taken from my phone midway through assembly, hehe.

You can already see how small my mobo looks relatively, and how it looks pretty okay despite a ton of HDDs and cables running around within it, all cable managed, baby!

Had one scare while setting it up, have some old complaints against it, have a peeve that it is not all that much an upgrade over my faithful cabinet of 3 yrs, its tool-less wins some and loses some over the Stacker, compromises compromises...

Good thing is, atleast I knew what to expect, the thing was actually available from my usual guy who can give awesome support, and I got a pretty decent price on it (i think).

Damages? Rs. 12,775 in all (11,850 + 5% VAT + 2.67% card charges).

While I was at it, got myself some other accessories (90cfm fan for an already loaded Stacker, paste, extender cables, blah) from the CoolerMaster godown which added a bit more to the above.
 
idclev888 said:
Dang! Pull-out motherboard trays and top-mounted PSUs have STILL not come back into fashion. And wherever i see, people are whining about how "huge" a full-ATX case is... Excuse me, but it is MEANT to be that way! They don't care for such a case so why spoil the mood by complaining, and speaking about SFF (or worse, they make a philosophical comment about how "desktops are dying anyway, with laptops becoming what they are...)

The NZXT Phantom does look interesting (coincidentally, NZXT has a Hades too as you'd know, to go with your handle!). But somehow it just doesn't... "feel" comfy. Plus my usual vendor for such stuff has no official contact with NZXT (meaning I won't get the absolute max support i get for brands that he can rustle up immediate help).

I seem to be down to making a choice now. CoolerMaster HAF-X (Rs. 11-odd k) and Corsair Obsidian 800D (16k?).

HAF-X: far less metal on body than my current Stacker, and less "volume" available internally, though design changes do obviate this a bit.

C800D: feels very decent and "solid". But it's a bit older, has very long waiting times and though i'm willing to pay, the extra price does not seem to add as much value.

Please help sway me onto one or the other - or recommend anything else that you think is good.
Click to expand...
I hear you. Another Stacker 830 user here looking for a cabinet change (Stacker is getting too cramped for me). For some reason removable motherboard trays are just not the thing these days and manufacturers are charging the same kind of premium for steel cabbies without any of the features that deserve such a premium. Cabbies like NZXT Phantom are way overrated. I actually think Phantom is a downgrade from a Stacker 830. HAF-X on the other hand is a pretty decent cabby although I think it should have been priced a solid 3k lower.

In any case, I am looking forward to the Xigmatek Elysium myself. Hope it releases soon. HAF-X was also an option I considered in case I couldn't get the Elysium. So how are you liking your HAF-X coming from a Stacker 830?
 
Lord Nemesis said:
I hear you. Another Stacker 830 user here looking for a cabinet change (Stacker is getting too cramped for me). For some reason removable motherboard trays are just not the thing these days and manufacturers are charging the same kind of premium for steel cabbies without any of the features that deserve such a premium. Cabbies like NZXT Phantom are way overrated. I actually think Phantom is a downgrade from a Stacker 830. HAF-X on the other hand is a pretty decent cabby although I think it should have been priced a solid 3k lower.

In any case, I am looking forward to the Xigmatek Elysium myself. Hope it releases soon. HAF-X was also an option I considered in case I couldn't get the Elysium. So how are you liking your HAF-X coming from a Stacker 830?
Click to expand...
You gonna get an EVGA SR-2 or something? :p

Atleast from what I can tell of the video preview, the Elysium has no significant difference from HAF-X in internal space available (other things might be different of course).

Price and misgivings about less metal apart, I am simply being... lukewarm about the HAF-X after the Stacker 830.

I wasn't intent on changing but the internals grew to the point where I had to change cabbie.

Yes I now have better cable management and a PSU shut off at bottom, yes a bit more space, and more airflow without having to use an army of smaller (120mm) fans.

But no, it largely feels the same, the side panel design/screws are a downgrade in a way, the tool-less simply swapped one set of screws for another (this is for my config, i can understand that ppl with fewer internal components may actually find it needing less "tooling" so to speak).

I also hate it that the HAF-X external surface has just so many "ridges" in a bid to look military-ish, all it means is more dusting time required when cleaning time comes (surfaces designed straight/flat are much better that way). Yet it has no "holds" to grip while moving around.

Temps on a sustained and tested basis? At idle, the GPU went down by 2 degrees (from 56 to 54 Celsius), the CPU and HDDs stayed at the same point; at full load they all reach the same numbers as on the Stacker 830.

The main areas I am now happier about is that HDDs are much nicer managed (even though the "hot swap bays" are an unusable joke, and I get less HDD slots as compared to the 830 on which I had a 4-in-3 module to allow for 9 HDDs in all), and that triple GPU feels less cramped.

That is what I think about the move, hope it helps you. I do wish more options were available. But I did know what to expect and got nothing more/less.

Also think twice about the Elysium, IMHO (the release may unleash something more, but this is what I felt at the moment).
 
Yeah, cm and dust aren't the best of friends :). Someone said that Stacker 830 "felt" cramped even compared to an ATCS 840. Glad to be of some help :). Cheers
 
I would have gone for the atcs any day. The haf x is a great case but it just can't match up to the features of the arcs.
 
idclev888 said:
You gonna get an EVGA SR-2 or something? :p

Atleast from what I can tell of the video preview, the Elysium has no significant difference from HAF-X in internal space available (other things might be different of course).

Price and misgivings about less metal apart, I am simply being... lukewarm about the HAF-X after the Stacker 830.

I wasn't intent on changing but the internals grew to the point where I had to change cabbie.

Yes I now have better cable management and a PSU shut off at bottom, yes a bit more space, and more airflow without having to use an army of smaller (120mm) fans.

But no, it largely feels the same, the side panel design/screws are a downgrade in a way, the tool-less simply swapped one set of screws for another (this is for my config, i can understand that ppl with fewer internal components may actually find it needing less "tooling" so to speak).

I also hate it that the HAF-X external surface has just so many "ridges" in a bid to look military-ish, all it means is more dusting time required when cleaning time comes (surfaces designed straight/flat are much better that way). Yet it has no "holds" to grip while moving around.

Temps on a sustained and tested basis? At idle, the GPU went down by 2 degrees (from 56 to 54 Celsius), the CPU and HDDs stayed at the same point; at full load they all reach the same numbers as on the Stacker 830.

The main areas I am now happier about is that HDDs are much nicer managed (even though the "hot swap bays" are an unusable joke, and I get less HDD slots as compared to the 830 on which I had a 4-in-3 module to allow for 9 HDDs in all), and that triple GPU feels less cramped.

That is what I think about the move, hope it helps you. I do wish more options were available. But I did know what to expect and got nothing more/less.

Also think twice about the Elysium, IMHO (the release may unleash something more, but this is what I felt at the moment).
Click to expand...
Thanks for the insight. I am myself looking for better cable management and a bit more more room to work with. Good cable management option in itself will clear out a lot of room inside the cabby.

As for Elysium being same size as HAF-X, I think it should be a bit larger (3" larger in both width and height) judging from the dimensions of (W) 9" x (H) 24.3" x (D) 26.1" as compared to HAF-X's (W) 9.1" x (H) 21.7" x (D) 23.2".
 
^Not taking into account the removable motherboard tray option, have you considered the Lian Li's full ATX lineup? The enclosure has not given me any hiccups by far and offers plenty of room for the components and a neat cable layout.
 
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