Help with cooling please!!

[GuitarKalle]

OK, I've got some options for my new computer.

1: Buy a FullTower case: Chieftec Dragon Series: DA-01WD
and fans.
http://www.chieftec.com/products/dragon/da01wd.htm

I can have 5 fans in this case, 2 on the top, 2 on the bottom and 1 at the side..
One guy I talked to also suggested 1 sidefan, 1-2 on the bottom and then carve a hole in the roof for a 120mm fan..

OR

2:
http://www.thermaltake.com/products/cases/6000a.htm
Buy a Thermaltake A6000 Xaser II Aluminium..
Which includes 5 fans..

OR
the cheapest alternative
http://www.thermaltake.com/products/cases/5000.htm
Thermaltake Highest Xaser II 5000 Plus

What's the difference between steel and aliminium? other then weight?

The number 1 option will be about 60 dollars cheaper..
What should I do? Both considering price and not..

Sorry for bad english,
Thanks

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by GuitarKalle on 11/10/02 08:17 AM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[lhgpoobaa]

You usually dont need THAT many casefans.
2 should be sufficient provided your case has good airflow, In the front/side, out the black.

A big case certainly helps though. More room to fit things and less constriction/blocking of the airflow.

Steel cases ARE heavier than aluminium ones, and less expensive. Problem is they are usually also of a lower build quality. I have yet to see an aluminium case that was poorly built.
Aluminium also dissapates heat quicker, allthough in the instance of cases this makes little or no difference.

So its really down to personal prefrence. Do you want that huge steel full tower, or a smaller lighter aluninium one that costs more.
Personally i think aluminium cases look more stylish too.
I have just taken the leap from a cheap (crap) steel generic case to this black beauty! <A HREF="http://www.auspcmarket.com.au/show_product_info.php?code=CA-CSSF201B*" target="_new">http://www.auspcmarket.com.au/show_product_info.php?code=CA-CSSF201B*</A>
Its got room for 6 80mm casefans, not including the PSU... but im just going to run 3 at really slow speed. That should be more than enough cooling.

<b>LHGPooBaa + Evil Hamster Sidekick: Serving Toms Hardware community for 2 years as of the 11th of November</b>

 

[mrwhipper]

I agree with PooBaa, but the cases that you are talking about are ALL good. The Thermaltake cases are very good. I dont think it woud matter much if you were just concerned about quality. I do like the AL Thermaltake case better, but for no reason other that appearence. Good luck with your choice. Last month I ordered a new case also. I'm getting a Blue Koolance 601 case. It sould be in this week. Post your choice. Take care

Hang in there. It can only get better!

 

[HammerBot]

I'm not sure what is more noisy: 1) Two fans running fast, or 2) 5 fans running slow. Thinking about it, 2) may be less noisy, but you would need to reduce the speed of all the fans.
Anyway, I agree with LHGPooBaa, you really don't need that many casefans. I have two, that I run at reduced speed. They are more than sufficient to cool the internals and the harddisks.

That aluminiumcase really looks cool. But I'm surprised it still weighs 8.5 kg! My steelcase is 11.5 kg, so the aluminium one is only 3 kg lighter.

<i><b>Engineering is the fine art of making what you want from things you can get</b></i>
<A HREF="http://www.btvillarin.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=655" target="_new">My systems</A>

 

[mrwhipper]

That is a good question. I would GUESS that more fans at slower speeds woud make less noise. Good luck. Post your results. Take care.

Hang in there. It can only get better!

 

[GuitarKalle]

Hello.. I think I'm going to buy the Thermal Take Xaser II 6000A case.. It has 5 fans and weights about 6 kilos..
You'll stay under 30 degrees at least..