Archived from groups: alt.comp.periphs.mainboard.asus (
More info?)
In article <3a3637F651u09U1@individual.net>, "JF Fortier" <doh@nospam.com>
wrote:
> "Paul" <nospam@needed.com> wrote in message
> news:nospam-1903051139210001@192.168.1.178...
> >
> > The only question I have about your order, is the computer case.
> > The P160 is similar to the Sonata I've got. The bottom drive tray
> > is a bit of a PITA, because the cables plug into the drive protrude
> > forward (towards you when facing the side of the case), and the ends
> > of the cables make is inconvenient to put the side panel on. The other
> > thing is cooling - on the Sonata there is a 120mm in the back and no
> > fan in the front. My Sonata doesn't have enough vent holes, to really
> > benefit from the fan. For all the bother, they might as well have used
> > an 80mm.
> >
> > I ended up removing the lower front plastic piece from my Sonata, so
> > the case could breathe better. I would have preferred to stick a fan
> > down low, in the front of the case, but in the Sonata there isn't room
> > for one. My personal preference is to go with a slightly larger case,
> > even if it is ugly - you want something that has room for low velocity
> > cooling solutions, so the case can remain quiet. Some of the old
> > fashioned cases have better provision for fitting fans than some of
> > the newer cases. So, those are just a couple of minor quibbles with
> > the Antec.
>
> The P160 is among some of the larger cases around. Are you certain we are
> talking about the same case?
>
> The one gripe about the P160 I read kind of echoes yours, in that there is
> somekind of issue with putting a fan in the front that requires "minor"
> tweaking on the user-end to "easily" fix. So it didn't scare me /that/ much.
>
> I weighed the thing in person. It's paper-light. That is a gigantic plus. Of
> course, just LOOKING at it makes me cringe, but I'll have to get over that.
>
(Ever try biting into aluminium as a kid with led fillings? The
> experience stays with you for life.)
>
>
http://techreport.com/reviews/2004q2/antec-p160/index.x?pg=5
>
>
> Which case would you recommend? I'd rather not buy a $300 CND case, but if
> it's really worth it for what you're getting, I'll consider it. Here are my
> options (available in-store) :
>
> CASE ATX ALPHA MID X-CLIO SILVER 420W 17866 $95
> CASE ATX COOLERMASTER STACKER BLACK/BLACK 19185 $325
> CASE ATX COOLERMASTER STACKER BLACK/SILVER 18824 $325
> CASE ATX LIAN-LI ALUMINUM PCV1000 BLACK 18041 $309
> CASE ATX LIAN-LI ALUMINUM PCV1000 SILVER 17539 $319
> CASE ATX LIAN-LI ALUMINUM PCV1100 BLACK 18131 $379
> CASE ATX LIAN-LI ALUMINUM PCV2000 BLACK 18042 $389
> CASE ATX NIKAO OGRE DELUXE CHROME 17552 $99
> CASE ATX NIKAO SAMURAI BLACK 17549 $89
> CASE ATX NIKAO SAMURAI RED 17551 $89
> CASE ATX NIKAO SAMURAI SILVER 17550 $89
> CASE ATX SILVERSTONE SST-LC10B-M ALUM BLACK 19312 $309
> CASE ATX TSUNAMI VA3000BNA ALUM NOPS BLK 19184 $179
> CASE ATX NIKAO VIPER BLACK/RED 500W 19102 $165
I was going by the mechanical drawing shown on the Antec site.
The P160 looks similar to the Sonata.
http://www.antec.com/pdf/drawings/p160_uk.pdf
http://www.antec.com/pdf/drawings/Sonata_en.pdf
If you are referring to tie-wrapping a fan onto the left hand
side of the lower drive tray, that will swirl the air around in
the case, but it won't necessarily draw a lot of fresh air
in through the nostrils. I considered doing a mod like that
on the Sonata, but it just wasn't worth it.
The nostrils on the P160 are likely a more effective air
input than on the Sonata. When I remove the lower plastic piece
on the Sonata, I am left with roughly what the P160 looks like.
I guess I'm just a traditionalist - I like a defined location
for the fan, near the bottom front of the case, and room for
fans on the top rear of the case. Lian-Li is just too expensive
for my tastes (and the one I looked at locally, seemed kinda
wobbly).
The Nikao Viper has a more standard layout, but the colors would take
some getting used to - I would have to drop a blanket over this
thing
http://www.tradexinfo.com/viper.htm
It is hard to tell if the Samurai has room for a front case fan.
The description says it has room for one rear fan, but the
picture shows grills for two rear fans ? The appearance would
take some getting used to.
http://www.tradexinfo.com/samurai.htm
The Tsunami has a nice interior layout, but I'll leave it to you
to decide if you like the outside of it.
http://www.thermaltake.com/xaserCase/tsunami/bna/internalEnlargedView.htm
http://www.thermaltake.com/xaserCase/tsunami/bna/bna.htm
On the Tsunami, it looks like the bracing bar that goes across
the case, is high enough up, that you should be able to drop the
motherboard into there without too much trouble. I have one old
computer case here, where the bar is lower down, rivetted in place,
and is a royal pain to work with.
You can click on the pictures of the Tsunami here:
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=11-133-137&depa=0
I'm not going to look at the $300 cases, because no home computer
is worth that
Paul