Cases, okay, I need some help on selecting one, any takers?

[Kronos76]

Long time reader, recently just starting to post…. Need some help these days. Right now I am getting ready to build a completely new system and need to select the right case for my new system. Basically I could use some help from many of the experts out there and all the experience every has had to date.

Basically I am open to any case right now, some basic considerations for me is the following, space, enough space for my intended build, airflow, since I am not going liquid cooling and I would like to overclock a bit, not a lot, I want to be able to put the right amount of fans, case, and otherwise, in the right spaces for good airflow and cooling, also ease of use, how easy can I work on the system etc. Brand, isn’t a big deal at this time, unless it has a real band rep behind it. One problem though, I haven’t decided on my PS just yet, what ever it is I will have to support the build,

Below I listed my build ideal and I also mentioned some of the cases I have looked at so far, any recommendations as to a better case, or something more inline with the system, would be greatly appericated.

Thanks.

Cases to date I have considered
CM Stacker 830/832, or the Mountian Mods U2-UFO.
Silverstone Temjin TJ09W (SST-TJ09-BW, SST-TJ09B-W, SST-TJ09BW
LIAN LI PC-V1200Bplus II Black Aluminum ATX

OS would be Vista Ultimate (64)

Processor would be Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 Kentsfield 2.66GHz LGA 775,

I would be going with DDR2 Ram, 8 Gigs,

Harddirves would be a 160 Raptor with two 750G back ups in Raid 1. Basically I would use one 750 for media storage and backup of the 160 and than run that with the second 750 under Raid 1

Graphic Cards, I am leaning towards running two EVGA 768-P2-N831-AR GeForce 8800GTX 768MB so I think SLI is a must.

One big problem, I haven’t decided on the MoBo yet, but so far I have received recommendations on the:

DFI LP UT NF680I LT SLI-T2 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i LT SLI ATX. I am still open on the MoBo.

Also, as I mentioned, I haven't figured on the PS yet either so if anyone would like to suggest something I am very open at this time.

Thanks again!!!

 

[tlmck]

I am partial to this case:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119047

It stays very cool due to the dual fans, and dust free due to the front filter. For maintenance, you just pop put the filter, vacuum it off, and pop it back in.

For something a little fancier, I vote for this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133021

Or this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133154

 

[APieceOfCheese]

Whatever case you get you'll want to have a removable mobo tray, tooless features and plenty of room. They make life a lot less frustrating. I'd go with the CM Stacker. I have one myself and it's spectacular, albeit a little heavy and friggin huge.

 

[aevm]

I love the TJ09. It's great for SLI because it has a fan between the video cards.

Not sure about the Lian-Li you looked at but I looked at the Lian-Li pC-73 and it's very tempting.

Check out the Antec P190, that also solves your PSU problem very nicely (1200W 8O )

 

[Yoosty]

I have both the Stacker 830 and Armor with 25cm window fan. Both are equally good, with the stacker costing a bit more.

If money is no object you might want to take a look at this *** NEW *** Cooler Master Stacker 830 EVO Tower w/ Window & Dual 120mm Fan Intakes - Silver

http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=21376

Remember you mention you would like to go SLi with 8800GTX. What you need to take in consideration is having fans bringing in cool air over those cards.

With your wish list, then you are definately going to ned at least a 850w and up Psu. Some of the newer Psu's are longer now and you will to mod the Armor series cases for the Psu to fit. That means you will have to take out top Usb/Sound ports connections and do with top fan.

This is one of the top Psu you should look at. PC Power & Cooling Turbo-Cool 1KW-SR EPS12V 1000W $499.99
http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=20928

OCZ GameXStream OCZ1010GXSSLI ATX12V / EPS12V 1010W
$284.99 ($254.99 after $30.00 Mail-In Rebate)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341007

Thermaltake W0133RU 1200W Toughpower SLI, Cross-Fire Ready Modular Power Supply $349.99
http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=21561

Then you have ENERMAX Galaxy EGX850EWL $279.99 and ENERMAX Galaxy EGX1000EWL $329.99, both which use Modular cables.

Hope this help you out a bit more.

 

[aevm]

Between OCZ GameXStream and Thermaltake Toughpower, which would you say is quieter? Just curious, because I'll need one of them myself soon. Thanks!

 

[Kronos76]

Thanks, in simple words, all the input is great, I will try and narrow down what I am looking at and come back with a top three....

Something that Yoosty posted that I should point out, yes I am looking at the two 8800GTX cards via SLI, is there any other way or am??? Anyway would 850W be enough, given the extra drives, optical and storage, fans, and other such small things that always creep up…

Oh, and BTW, I checked out the Stacker 830 EVO, oh yea, if money was no object.... (I Wish, I Wish, I Wish) Then yea, maybe I could flip for something such as the 830, but for now I must remain ever practical if I am to buy the two graphic cards..... Nice case though, real Nice

 

[aevm]

8800 GTX SLI needs 56A. Here are some high-quality PSUs that would do. Prices are from newegg but not very recent.

Seasonic M12 700W 56A $210.00
Silverstone Strider 850W 64A $220.00
Silverstone Strider 1000W 70A $280.00
Silverstone Zeus 750W 60A $180.00
Thermaltake Toughpower 700W 56A $170.00
Thermaltake Toughpower 750W 60A $175.00
Thermaltake Toughpower 850W 62A $260.00

I'll get the last one for myself, if it's also good enough for 8900 GTX SLI. Nobody knows that yet...

 

[APieceOfCheese]

Oh yeah...If you go with the CM Stacker you're going to have to bust out the dremel and whack off the tabs that hold the top blow hole fan thingy in place. PSUs that are any longer than the standard length won't fit. My Silverstone 600w was a 1/4 inch too long...

 

[antonwalker]

For the looks of your budget I say you can afford a P190

 

[ausch30]

Oh yeah...If you go with the CM Stacker you're going to have to bust out the dremel and whack off the tabs that hold the top blow hole fan thingy in place.

I could be wrong but I believe they changed the positioning of the top fan hole for the 832. I have the 832 and I have seen the 830 and the top hole on mine is a little further forward to allow for extra long PSU's without modification.

The CM Stacker cases offer outstanding air flow and exceptional ease of use. They are very well built and almost completely tool-less. That said I'll give you the negatives. Due to the case being little more than a big screen you hear every noise the components inside are making so special attention is needed to quiet things down. The sides are a pain in the a$$ to get on and off but if your only doing it once in a while it's not such a big deal. Lastly something I found out is that cables coming from the front panel are not very secure. What I mean by this is that there isn't anything holding them on their headers so if you pull them, during cable management or something, they might come off causing you to have to take apart the top front of the case which is a pain (it happened to me). This is the case I have, $240 is a lot to spend but it's worth it.