The hunt for a new PC case

[Thrash123]

Ok, I'm looking for a new PC case. Here are my requirements;


Side window (Without a fan smack in the middle of it; I want the side fan towards the back or something so I can get an etched applique from Directron)

Comes with a power supply (350 watt)


Silver color


Easy to work inside


No more than 70 bucks in price


And, some optional things I want to point out.


I don't really want a tri-color LED fan. I'm planning on putting in red lights, and ONLY red.


I'd like the case to be made of aluminum.


Ok, that's all I can think of for now.

[KJAX]

Check out Directron.com for your case, dude. There selection of cases at your price point is awesome. Newegg.com also could be another great place to search.

[FireSlash]

Shipping is a bitch at most places on cases. :hmm:

[KJAX]

Shipping is a bitch at most places on cases. :hmm:

True but NewEgg's shipping prices are quite low on a number of their cases..if not free.

Thrash: Check out the following link.

http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProduct.asp?description=11-156-113&depa=1

[spineblaZe]

I agree, newegg has some great cases. That is where I got mine :) Actually, I got everything except my hdd and ram from newegg... Even my Radpadz mouse pad :D

Here is the pic of my case before I hacked it up....
http://www.newegg.com/app/Showimage.asp?image=11-132-014-01.JPG/11-132-014-05.jpg/11-132-014-03.jpg/11-132-014-02.jpg/11-132-014-07.JPG/11-132-014-08.JPG/11-132-014-06.JPG

And here is is after
http://www.minot.com/~tande/casel.jpg
http://www.minot.com/~tande/caser.jpg
http://www.minot.com/~tande/caset.jpg
http://www.minot.com/~tande/casedark.jpg

I know I know, it's a shameless plug. I just can't help it :D


Newegg does rock though, I do all my parts shopping there.

[Hunter]

look at coolmaster cases, they are aluminum, but they do come with 4 ball bearing fans

[BesigedB]

any coolermaster/lian li which has a window should do you.

[Deathmaker]

any coolermaster/lian li which has a window should do you.

If you can find any for $70 let me know. ;)

[Thrash123]

I already looked at Directron, they really don't have the exact kinda case I want.

This one might work. http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproduct.asp?DEPA=1&submit=Go&description=11%2D156%2D113&searchdepa=0&page=1

[Hunter]

nice case, like that 2 fans at the bottom

[KJAX]

nice case, like that 2 fans at the bottom


My thoughts exactly.

Thrash, from what I've searched for so far, that case is your best bet. But, I'll do some more digging...because I like doing this. :D

[Hunter]

lol, i would love 2 fans at the bottom it would get rid of dust lol

i'm planning on a cheiftech case (matrix one) over summer hopefully

[Thrash123]

Thanks KJax - If you REALLY wanna help me out, you'll find me my best option for 2 red fans for that case ;)

I'm going to get a custom etched applique from The Shattered Web too. ( http://www.shatteredweb.com )

[KJAX]

Thanks KJax - If you REALLY wanna help me out, you'll find me my best option for 2 red fans for that case ;)

I'm going to get a custom etched applique from The Shattered Web too. ( http://www.shatteredweb.com )

Okay...

If you want to put a UV light in that case, you can purchase the following fans to glow red in the presence of that light.

http://www.directron.com/dfs802512m.html

Fan price: $3.99 each

If not, the best price I have found on red fans can be found at the following link:

http://www.coolerguys.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=001&Category_Code=F-80

Fan price: $12.95 each

[Assymilator]

Tigerdirect.com

Really good prices. I subscribe to their newsletter and they're always having sales.

[KJAX]

Tigerdirect.com

Really good prices. I subscribe to their newsletter and they're always having sales.


Thanks dude, I just bookmarked the site.

Here is your best option, Thrash:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?sku=A453-1046

Antec Red Light LED Translucent Fans: $9.99 each.

[Thrash123]

Ok, here's a question...

Is there any way I can replace/cover my drive faces to match the case? I have a Liteon DVD ROM and a Cendyne 40x CDRW.

[Cap'n Beeb]

Frozen CPU (www.frozencpu.com) has alot of really good stuff, and might prove beneficial.

[KJAX]

Frozen CPU (www.frozencpu.com) has alot of really good stuff, and might prove beneficial.


Hmmm...yes indeed. Thanks for the site, BB.

By the way, here's the link to my current case which might suit your needs, Thrash. It was $75.00 when I brought it back in October.

It's now $59.00 (shipping included).

http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProduct.asp?description=11-150-043&depa=1

[phatcat]

Frozen CPU (www.frozencpu.com) has alot of really good stuff, and might prove beneficial.

I'm sure they get alot of money from you beer, and your slippery little light dropping fingers :D

[Thrash123]

KJax: What advantages does your case have over the other one I was planning on getting? How easy is yours to work inside? How is it cooling wise?

[KJAX]

KJax: What advantages does your case have over the other one I was planning on getting? How easy is yours to work inside? How is it cooling wise?


I have yet to have problems working inside the case. When installing the motherboard, you can remove the motherboard tray from the case and then easily put it back in with the motherboard attached.

Also, depending on the size of your CPU fan, you should be able to go ahead and put your CPU and fan on as well before placing the motherboard tray back into the case.

As for cooling and space, I have dual fans on my power
supply which means there plenty of room in the top of the case. I only run on case fan (the side fan) but have room for 2-3 more fans. Overheating isn't a problem.

*edit*

Honestly, I think the other case has the advantage of the option of two side fans to get rid of dust.

[Neddaf]

Hehe, if you want to go overboard and never want your PC to get over 90 degrees F...

www.koolance.com

[KJAX]

Hehe, if you want to go overboard and never want your PC to get over 90 degrees F...

www.koolance.com


Ahem. Too rich for my blood. :)

[spineblaZe]

Ok, here's a question...

Is there any way I can replace/cover my drive faces to match the case? I have a Liteon DVD ROM and a Cendyne 40x CDRW.


That's not too hard. Just save the drive covers, gets some double-sided tape, set the drives back just a little bit and viola!! Instant hidden drives. Put an extra piece of tape over the eject buttons and you can just press on the front to get it to eject, or just right click the drive in My Computer and choose eject... Either way works :D

http://www.minot.com/~tande/caser1.jpg

[Shane]

I heard that using Velcro strips and those sticky things you can get for the bottom of furniture work good for covering up the drives. And there's not a chance in hell you'll get a Lian Li with a window for under $70. I spent $100 for a PC-60 with no window and no PSU.

[Thrash123]

That's not too hard. Just save the drive covers, gets some double-sided tape, set the drives back just a little bit and viola!! Instant hidden drives. Put an extra piece of tape over the eject buttons and you can just press on the front to get it to eject, or just right click the drive in My Computer and choose eject... Either way works :D

http://www.minot.com/~tande/caser1.jpg

It's a cool idea, but I want to be able to see the LEDs on my drives and have access to the play button and volume controls.

[Shane]

One word: Dremel

[Thrash123]

One word: Dremel

NO! I don't want to punch holes in anything.


... Plus, I don't own a dremel. And I hated shop class. :)

[Shane]

Lazy bastard... I'm sure if you owned a drill, you could make a trip to your local Home Depot and pick up a right-sized drill bit for the LED. As for the why-in-the-hell-would-you-still-use-it play button and volume control, I don't know what else would work.

[Clayeth]

good place to look for cases:

http://www.colorcases.com/

** don't know why they're so obsessed w/ spiderman right now...

[Amanda]

Why don't you just build your own case? I know someone who would mod your case for you for a bit of cash or something. He's awesome. If you'd like to talk to him about it, you can just either respond to this or PM me.

[Thrash123]

spam808: Because drilling is permanent. What about when I replace my drives, and the holes aren't in the right spot anymore? And sometimes when someone in the dorms wants to listen to a CD, I tell them to bring their own headphones and plug into the CDrom drive rather than letting them work with the software.

[Shane]

Ahh... makes a little more sense now. And if you wanted to go real cheap, get a cardboard box. Pretty easy to replace it if you mess up.

[Rukee]

some cool cases here (http://www.internetishop.com/product_list.asp?main_cat_no=HW&sub_cat_no=01&Supplier=ALCASE&main_cat_eng=Hardware%2FComponents&sub_cat_eng=Cases%2FPower+Supplies)
I just picked up a real nice Vapochill case, link in my sig, runs the processor @ -20.0C!!
Removes up to 170 watts of heat from the inside of the case and it looks sweet too!!
http://www.justwebit.com/sites1/42124/coveroff.jpg
http://www.justwebit.com/sites1/42124/newhome.jpg

[BringItDown]

Heres an old one of mine :)

http://www.bringitdown.net/images/case/frontdooropen.jpg

http://www.bringitdown.net/images/case/sidelight.jpg

http://www.bringitdown.net/images/case/sidedark.jpg

[Rukee]

Heres an old one of mine :)

NICE!! :)

my clear case unit before the light kit...
http://www.justwebit.com/sites1/42124/pa220013.jpg

[spineblaZe]

Heres an old one of mine :)
[/IMG]


:eek: oooo pretty :) Rukee's is bitchin too....

[SugarBear]

Dude, you have to stealth your drives.

you don't need the play button, it's called right click on your cd drive and select play.

you don't need the headphone jack....don't you have speakers with a headphone jack? it works the same way.

why do you need to see your activity lights? either way, if you must see them for some odd reason, just solder some wires and move them somewhere else, takes about five seconds.

for the eject buttons only the lazy and weak go with "press the corner" eject button, just solder a momentary switch onto some wires attached to the leads on your CD drive, then you can move the eject button anywhere you want.

and if you get that Raidmax, of which I have three, the front flip down USB port has two holes for headphone jacks which fit a momentary switch perfectly.

[KJAX]

Those are some great cases you have there, dudes.

[Thrash123]

SugarBear: Because I don't trust people on my machine back at college - a few people made some mistakes a couple years ago :) If you need a CD player on my wing in the dorm, you are free to come into the room and plug in your headphones and listen on the CD drive.

Also, I am NOT steady-handed enough for soldering. I have some minor thing that causes my hands to shake. It's not bad, but bad enough to make soldering a real challenge.

[Deathmaker]

Thrash, you can pick up a variety of different bezels from LianLi, CoolerMaster, etc; they do them for different drives, typically in black or aluminium (but there's nothing saying you can't mod them slightly or spray them the same colour as your case).

http://www.theoverclockingstore.co.uk/productpics/800873.jpg

Failing that, you can always get some vinyl dye and just paint your drive fronts.