Looks like this might be my new case...

[Clocker]

I have $100 in Newegg gift certificates to blow...maybe I'll throw in some extra cash and pick up one of these in March or so:

Antec P180

http://www.silentpcreview.com/news452.html

 

[MaxBurn]

Wow, nice case. Looks like it has the potential to be much quieter than my Sonata.

 

[ddrueding]

That is definatl my next case. After reading though the thread on SPCR about it, it has just about everything I'd want.

 

[Handruin]

Looks good. If the case comes out in a reasonable amount of time, I'll be interested.

Anyone else have a problem with that site using firefox? I had to use IE to see the images (not a big deal, just weird).

 

[Clocker]

FFox works fine for me at the link above...

C

 

[Handruin]

Guess it's just my FF.

More pics here if you didn't look through their forum thread:
http://www.thetechlounge.com/article.php?directory=ces_05_antec&page=5

 

[Tea]

Not for me. I hate cases with stupid doors on them - sort of destroys the point of having a nice fast computer in the first place if everytime you want to burn a CD or something you have to fiddle about opening extra doors. (And yes, I am perfectly at home in a tent, thankyou.)

But I can see where the attraction is: if you don't mind doors, it's plain and elegant, and really looks the goods.

 

[Mercutio]

It looks decent enough. That flat exterior just BEGS to have things done to it. Looks like *I* could cut wood veneer for it, for example.

To me it looks like there's not nearly enough places to put hard drives.

And why are we so worried about airflow when Athlon64s don't get too much warmer than the water I draw for my bath?

 

[Bozo]

There is also a 500w silent power supply, rack mount cases and more Antec goodies starting on this page.

http://www.thetechlounge.com/article.php?directory=ces_05_antec

Bozo :mrgrn:

 

[time]

I agree with Tea. Cases with doors covering the CD/DVD drive are a PITA - and usually look like crap with the door open.

 

[Buck]

It looks like a mini-fridge.

 

[Buck]

Anyone else have a problem with that site using firefox? I had to use IE to see the images (not a big deal, just weird).

Not me -- version 0.9.3 Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.7) Gecko/20040803 Firefox/0.8.

 

[Mercutio]

I can't be the only one here who has ever had to clean banana out of a CD-ROM drive because someone left junior (or Tea) too close to a door-less PC.

 

[Gilbo]

That's a very well designed case. It's been good to see the innovation in the case market the last year or so.

It really ties a lot of good practices together eh?
1. The power supply and hard drive cage duct is good stuff.
2. The positioning of the duct's fan in the middle of the case is also a good idea.
3. I like the use of 120mm x 38mm fans (is it just the duct fan or the front intake as well?).

The only problem that I personally see is that they should have flipped the motherboard to shorten the ATX cable length. I think other manufacturers who have gone with the power supply & HD duct have all done this.

P.S. Thanks for the link Clocker. I hadn't seen this guy before and I like to keep up on potentially cool/quiet cases.

 

[Handruin]

Yes, thanks for the link Clocker. I've been underwhelmed about the current case offerings for many of the companies. I was very close to buying the coolermaster stacker case, but I wasn't sure I wanted it. I was debating between that case and the Antec P160. Now, seeing the P180, I am excited to see it released. My only fear is that Antec will price it like a Lian Li.

 

[Clocker]

I think the price will be close to $200 at first because it will be really popular. Probably settle down to about $170 after a while. Just guessing though.

C

 

[ddrueding]

The P160 was also quite expensive when it forst came out...I didn't buy it until it came down to $120. I don't think I'll be able to wait that long with this one, though. I mount my LCD screen on the side of my chassis, and the composite case sides would be much better than the 1mm aluminium I'm using now. And with the case that close to you, any noise can be annoying. As for doors...I never turn off my system at all, and perhaps use the optical once a week in a burst of DVD encoding. Having a door to maintain the sleek look AND keep the younger fingers away is a perfectly acceptible plan IMHO.

 

[RWIndiana]

Wow, looks very sleek and elegant. I might add plain, which is an attractive feature for me. I don't like flashy computer cases that stick out like a fat lip in an office. But I'm also another one who doesn't like doors. I like to see what's there. It annoys me to have to open ten thousand drawers and cupboard doors to find what I am looking for, I don't really need a computer with doors yet. I have the case off half the time anyway.

It would be handy for when kids are around, yes. I've cleaned out soda, milk, and other tasty liquids from keyboards, and extracted quarters, papers, screwdrivers, and who knows what all else from disk drive doors. So yeah, I can see the benefits if you have young children around much of the time.

 

[Clocker]

The door is probably removable. At worst you can leave it open all the time since it swings 270 degrees...

C

 

[Groltz]

I am really liking that case....Damn it.

More overtime.


As far as doors go, I've been running a Cooler Master ATC-110 for a couple years now and admittedly
I usually just leave the dumb thing swung open.

:roll:

 

[time]

The door is probably removable. At worst you can leave it open all the time since it swings 270 degrees...

The review explicitly mentions that it isn't ... However, after actually checking it out, I'll try to be a bit fairer:

o Composite panels are a great feature. Although thick steel isn't that bad an alternative - avoiding straight aluminium is the main thing.
o Placing the power supply at the bottom probably lets you get away with a slower fan in the PS, although it's even more useful to use a reversible CPU cooler with the Prescott-compliant side duct (i.e. as an exhaust).
o The so-called duct for the lower four drives is absolutely no substitute for a cooling fan in front of them.
o The USB/Firewire/Audio ports are in the best possible location, i.e. half way up.
o Most cases don't have top fan openings for a reason. It tends to stamp this case as suitable for enthusiasts/nutters only.

Summing up, I can see that this case offers certain advantages over a YY Cetus or an HEC 6A19, namely composite side panels and better front port location.

But will it be realistically priced?

 

[Clocker]

EVERYTHING is removable...it just depends on how far you're willing to go.

Also, are there any modern drives that really require more cooling that this case will provide for them?

C

 

[time]

Whoops, I missed the fan half way along the bottom duct. Although I suspect they've located it there mainly to assist their Phantom power supplies, it should be quieter than having it at the front, and as you say, it's probably adequate for modern hard drives.

There are much better pictures over here.

 

[Bozo]

Heat rises. Why would you wan to put heat generating devices on the bottom of the case? So you could warm up the motherboard?

Bozo :mrgrn:

 

[Clocker]

Almost everything in there generates heat so I guess it depends on what devices get your cooling priority. PSU in the bottom is OK since it has a fan that blows the heat it generates outside the case. BUT, I can see what you're saying. With properly deisgned airflow in there, the heat rises thing probably becomes pretty negligible.

C

 

[CityK]

It looks like a mini-fridge.

Indeed, where's the vegetable crisper go?

 

[Handruin]

I'm now able to see the images. I had to hunt around to completely uninstall firefox. It seems firefox keeps all my extensions under my documents and settings directory for my user account. Once I removed those and reinstalled, firefox renders the images.

 

[time]

Okay, forget the Antec. I'm surprised someone hasn't mentioned the Silverstone TJ06.

• Isolation of the CPU(s) reduces temperatures throughout the case
• The hard drives are vertically mounted, taking advantage of convection
• An exhaust fan (the PS) sits right on top of the drives and increases the effect
• Rotating the board means the graphics cooler faces up - at last!
• Particularly heavy case is unlikely to have resonance problems
• Four front USB (+ 1394 and audio)
• The lock actually works
• There is no stupid drive bay door

Dans Data has some nice piccies, and Anandtech tested the thermal qualities. Unsurprisingly, it was the best tested.

 

[Bozo]

BTX case????

Bozo :mrgrn:

 

[sechs]

No, you just mount the motheboard on the other side of the case, allowing use of the wind tunnel.

 

[ddrueding]

Not interested in the silverstone at all. Too restrictive WRT what motherboard/CPU/HSF you use. I still like the Antec better.

 

[time]

David, have you heard from anyone who actually has the case and had incompatibility issues? Like with the NCU-2000 heatsink, for instance.

 

[Groltz]

When is the Antec P180 going to be on the market?

 

[Handruin]

I thought I read March in the Antec p180, but don't quote me. The silverstone is interesting, but I'm still leaning towards the antec.

I'm going back to read those threads related to the P180 to see if there is any updates.

 

[Handruin]

I found a pcmag article that was it will be out in Q1 2005. March fits into Q1, so it may be available soon. They speculate the price will be $169. I was expecting worse, but they could be guessing.

 

[ddrueding]

David, have you heard from anyone who actually has the case and had incompatibility issues? Like with the NCU-2000 heatsink, for instance.

This case got a lot of attention over at SPCR...this was the opinion of the reviewers and several people in the forum also had concerns.

 

[time]

That's the reason I asked. I spent quite some time scouring that thread (and others) and no-one actually owning the case has had a problem. The reviewer became increasingly frustrated with an idiot called Bluefront, who made it his mission to badmouth the case - despite never having seen one.

One owner took the trouble to measure everything and came up with a maximum clearance of 17cm above the board - the NCU-2000 is 14cm high. The duct also reaches to about 14cm from the edge of the board, which ought to be enough to include the CPU socket. Even if it doesn't quite fit, there's a cutout in the duct at that point to allow for this sort of thing, or you could just trim a piece out of it.

The Silverstone is third on the recommended list at Silent PC Review. I'm not here to evangelize it - I just wonder if you've got your facts straight.

 

[ddrueding]

To be honest I stopped looking at it after I saw the P-180, then stopped looking at it after I started designing my own case...

 

[Handruin]

To be honest I stopped looking at it after I saw the P-180, then stopped looking at it after I started designing my own case...

Care to elaborate on designing your own case?

 

[GIANT]

Care to elaborate on designing your own case?

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First of all, you start off with one of these. Then, you get a power supply and a mobo, then...