Which case?

Big Dee · 25 May 2006 at 12:46

Hi,

I'm considering building my own PC which would be my first one and it will be used for normal home office use.
I was considering the Antec brand and in particular the P180 but having read through numerous OCUK posts I feel that this is not highly recommended.

I am prepared to pay around £80 for a first case as I think my PC build will be around the £1000 mark.
My PC will rarely get used for Gaming and will be sitting on the floor under my desk.
I would like the PC to have minimal noise, good cooling and I'm considering a black aluminium case.

The cases that seem to get recommended here, over and over again, are Lian-Li PC7+, Lian-Li P100+ and the Akasa Eclipse 62.
I have seen some of the feedback people have given and hopefully someone can answer my queries and help me decide what is suitable for me:

Antec P180
- is the flimsy door still an issue or has that been resolved?
- is the cooling not as good as the manufacturer make out?
- not a good build
- assembly is difficult
- everytime I need to access the drives I'll have to use that flimsy door.

Lian-Li PC7+
- there are different versions of the model and no guarantee it'll be the latest one when you buy.
- it has a smaller case and the build may be difficult
- the standard fans are noisy - does that mean that they need to be changed with the Akasa ones?

Lian-Li V1000+
- maybe a bit pricey for me
- the cooling is not so good
- the standard fans are noisy and may have to be changed

Eclipse 62
- the panels are thin but good build
- better cooling than P180 and Lian-Li
- it's a large'ish case - will all the component cabling be long enough to reach other components?
- is the plastic door a real problem and that bad looking for a home office PC?
- Looking at the pictures, this case looks nice. I find the PC7+ a bit boxy and plain in design.
- is this a better case under £100 and a good compromise between PC7+ and V1000+, regarding the features ?
- are two 120mm fans Ok for an average PC? will I need any additional?

Some of the components I have considered for my build are:
- Seasonic PSU
- Seagate Barracuda HDD
- Plextor DVD + - RW drive

I'm totally confused now and don't know how much in-depth I should look at the pros & cons of these cases.
Why is it that out of all the brands and models available (looking at OCUK) that only these three models get recommended?
It's going to be my first build so I want it to go as smooth as possible and would like it to be a solid build that'll see me through for a few years.

Can you suggest one case that'll suit my needs please?

Thanks

Yewen · 25 May 2006 at 13:33

Easiest way to respond to that is to add me to MSN.

Here is a brief view, the Eclipse you have to buy 2x 120mm fans for as it does not come with any, so it costs the same as the V1000+ almost, but with fans of your choice.

The PC7+II (What OcUK have in stock) it is almost a certainty that you will get 120mm/120mm, if you do not just send it back!

The V1000+ can be a good cooler, MORE than up to anything you put it in, dont get sucked into the PSU wattage trap, a 430w PSU is good enough for virtually any rig, unless you go more than 2 card SLI really, don't get sucked into the temperature trap, any case OcUK sells that gets mentioned regularly on here will have good temperature, my V1000+ has a GPU temp of 51 and I currently don't have any case fans running!

I would not recommend the P180 for a first build, you have to factor in PSU cable length etc and you will have enough on your plate as it stands, the v1000+ aswell is not really a good option as it can be a little tricky to get optimum performance out of it, and as you say it is out of your budget.

The PC7+II is the value king, no doubt about that. The most case per £ you will get, period.

Eclipse, it is basically a PC7+ that has gotten fat, plastic front is ok, but it is plastic.

The PC7+II is a much better case when you see it in the flesh, nothing like any pictures I have seen of it.

Anyhow, add me to msn and I may be able to throw some ideas around with you.

Big Dee · 25 May 2006 at 14:19

Hi Yewen,

How do I add you to MSN? but may not be possible since it's a work account and laptop. So may be easier to give me any feedback here if that's OK.

We'll rule out the V1000+, in this scenario then.

I can see PC7+ but not PC7+II on OcUK.
Whats the price difference?
Are the two 120mm fans OK on PC7+II or will they need to be changed (upgraded)?
Will the PC7+II be quieter than the Eclipse-62?

Do you think the components I have mentioned be compatible with either Eclipse-62 or PC7+II?

What fans would you recommend for the Eclipse-62?

Thanks.

BigDom · 25 May 2006 at 14:38

Lian-Li PC7+ - there are different versions of the model and no guarantee it'll be the latest one when you buy. - it has a smaller case and the build may be difficult - the standard fans are noisy - does that mean that they need to be changed with the Akasa ones?

Not quite right...

The PC7+ is very easy to install in. The fans I think are a little noisy but I just swapped mine out. However I understand 7ving them quietens them nicely.

Mekrel · 25 May 2006 at 14:39

Big Dee said:
Hi Yewen,

How do I add you to MSN? but may not be possible since it's a work account and laptop. So may be easier to give me any feedback here if that's OK.

We'll rule out the V1000+, in this scenario then.

I can see PC7+ but not PC7+II on OcUK.
Whats the price difference?
Are the two 120mm fans OK on PC7+II or will they need to be changed (upgraded)?
Will the PC7+II be quieter than the Eclipse-62?

Do you think the components I have mentioned be compatible with either Eclipse-62 or PC7+II?

What fans would you recommend for the Eclipse-62?

Thanks.

The PC7+ and PC7+II are the same case in essance, the PC7+ used to have a removable motherboard tray and an 80mm fan, they have no started producing them with no removable motherboard tray in order to fit a 120mm fan.

So the models with the 120mm fan are refered to by Yewen as the PC7+II but they stopped producing the 80mm fan version some time and these should have sold through retailers by now, meaning you should get the 120mm version.

The 120mm are ADDA fans which are widely used by a lot of manufacturers, I think Seasonic PSU's use ADDA fans. They are pretty good spec, they are not the quietest but they shift air, you could swap them for quieter fans at the compromise of performance.

I have L1A fans installed in mine which are louder, but the hotter weather means I have to, but soon I'll be getting a V1200 with watercooling installed.

Your component choice will be fine for both cases, the only thing to watch out for is if you buy an upside down ATX case (such as the Lian-Li V1000) and a heatpipe motherboard, because being upside down, the heatpipe would not work correctly which could lead to the possibility of a overheating chipset

.

Big Dee · 25 May 2006 at 15:48

Thanks Mekrel, BigDom & Yemen.

Seems that the best solution would be to upgrade the two standard fans.
I saw Akasa Amber fans mentioned in the forum. If these are Ok, could you give me the details please.

What does "7ving" mean?

Can you adjust the speed on the replacement fans?

I don't think I'll be going for the V1000, so my "other" component choice looks good. Nice to know

I've had a look at some other websites for photos of the PC7+ and it looks quite good actually, just a Yemen said. Hmmm, I might just be tempted.
Looks like the black case will do nicely as a home PC.

I still appear to have had no answer from my first post why it is that out of all the brands and models available, that only about few models get highly recommended in these forums? I'm just curious.

Messiah Khan · 25 May 2006 at 16:10

Big Dee said:
What does "7ving" mean?

Heres a guide to it;

http://www.cpemma.co.uk/7volt.html

Rick_Barnes · 25 May 2006 at 16:21

P180 comes with 3 120x fans, and mounts for upto 4.

Theyre pre-fitted and come with switches for slow/medium/high speed.

The install is SLIGHTLY harder than on a regular case, but the instructions are clear, and its nowhere near the level of difficulty of changing a GPU cooler, or even fitting some high-end CPU heatsinks!!

The PSU is isolated which means it usually never spins up above its lowest speed. The PSU and Hard drives are all mounted on rubber to stop vibrations passing through the case too.

The sides are aluminium-plastic-aluminium Which helps keep the noise down once the sides are on. The cooling is great and the top exhaust and rear exhaust really help keep CPU temps low. The door can be opened till it is inline with the side panel, if u dont like the look of it, and its not THAT flimsy at all.

Most importantly, the case's intakes have dust filters pre fitted which are a real boon, and they shock you with the ammount of dust they stop getting into your case, which you will really notice if the case is gonna be on the floor.

MOST importantly with the P180 is.....

GET IT IN BLACK
GET IT IN BLACK
GET IT IN BLACK
GET IT IN BLACK

Yewen · 25 May 2006 at 16:38

Big Dee said:
I still appear to have had no answer from my first post why it is that out of all the brands and models available, that only about few models get highly recommended in these forums? I'm just curious.

Well, some models are more specialised than others, and some are overpriced. You can not recommend a case to someone based on looks, as everyone prefers there own style, so you take them out of the equation.

PC7+ is 120mm/120mm so able to run 7900gtx SLI, built well to Lian Li's standards so will look new in 5 years time if you look after it; no sharp edges etc.

Eclipse, I think it is one of the most unnatractive cases ever, its a fat sumo wrestler in my eyes, BUT; its cooling is about the best in any case, will beat a Stacker and TJ07 unless you fill them with Deltas, it offers the best cooling/noise ratio on a easy to use case, loads of upgrade potential and the ability to fit a custom watercooling system into it, but 2x the price of the PC7+ with fans.

P180, I do not personally rate this case awfully highly, it is superb once you get a good one, and Antec's customer service is along with Logitech in my opinion the best there is. Door warping would be sorted in a week easily with them sending you a new door.

Thermaltake, just buy a NEW case, not a old Xaser as they fall apart when you breathe on them! The Soprano is a good solid case, beats the Tsunami but it is priced so closely to the PC7+ that it makes it hard to recommend, as it is built worse and shows its age easier, so unless someone specifically says they like the look of it or a Tsunami it is hard to recommend; so few do.

Antec Super Lanboy at £35 is probably the second best value case about after the PC7+; good cooling, the drawback is it has a door, looks a little childish dare I say it and it is a little fiddly to install everything in such a small space.

You should get the idea, I could go through every case on OcUK I have used and say the same things, short listing is great as it saves just recommending the PC7+ as that is the current all round value king, great quality and cooling at a low price point, bar the looks if they are not to your taste, not much more you could want!

gr1mey · 25 May 2006 at 18:15

I Love my Antec P180, just a shame I dont have bits to put in it as I love my TJ-03 more

Yewen · 26 May 2006 at 02:29

Is your P180 the silver fridge or the nice black one?

Big Dee · 26 May 2006 at 07:45

So if I went for the PC7+II, then you recommend I upgrade the two standard fans?

Which fans do you recommend I buy, and is the fan speed adjustable?

Mikey1280 · 26 May 2006 at 08:35

Get 120mm akasa ambers, the fan speed is adjustable with a fan controller, I dont think you can 7v ambers (someone correct me if I'm wrong)

Yewen · 26 May 2006 at 10:39

You can 7v Ambers.

It is very very easy to do, you do not really need the speed adjustable just set them to 7v and your set for the summer.

Just remember that graphics card stock coolers make a racket in any case, if you are aiming for quite low noise then you will need to stick a Zalman VF900 cooler on your graphics card, or along those lines.

Mikey1280 · 26 May 2006 at 11:06

My ambers came with 3 to 4 pin adaptors but you couldnt do the 7v mod with them as they dont have all four wires

Messiah Khan · 26 May 2006 at 11:53

You can still 7 volt them with 3 wires can't you? Im sure the missing wire will just be one of the ground wires. I might be wrong though.

Yewen · 26 May 2006 at 11:57

messiah khan said:
You can still 7 volt them with 3 wires can't you? Im sure the missing wire will just be one of the ground wires. I might be wrong though.

They can be modded, the third wire is for repoting fan speed.

Big Dee · 26 May 2006 at 13:32

Hi Mikey1280,

Thanks for your fan recommendation, looks good to me. Is there are point in going for the colourful ones? I guess the PC7+II is fully enclosed.

Cheers.

Messiah Khan · 26 May 2006 at 13:44

With the Akasa Ambers, its not the colour your going for, its the fact that they are known for their silence. The pretty colour is just a bonus(Or not, depending on your view).

Noni · 26 May 2006 at 16:41

Akasa Ambers are good for their noise to cfm balance, but I dont think they are renouned for silence.

YATE LOON D12SL/SM are the best for silence, espically when you 7V them.

Akasa Ambers are great fans though!