ladybastilla

Distinguished
Jul 24, 2010
37
0
18,530
. is proving to be a massive pain. Not sure if I simply expect too much, if so I need to figure out what I am willing to give up. To better explain... This is my current setup:

mypc1.jpg


The books are not there because I'm messy. :p They're there because they prop my mouse so that my wrist does not get tired since my case is not tall. My room is very small so I do not exactly have space for another table for my mouse. This computer was designed to play WoW. My next PC is being designed to play Final Fantasy XIV and what I'm putting in it is a lot more demanding. I need a case / cooling in general that will be up to the challenge of making sure my parts do not get damaged.

Here is what I would like from a case:

What do I *NEED* from a case?

-- It must fit the large video card(s) that I am putting in here (5850 / 5870)
-- It must provide enough cooling for the parts I am choosing; this is a gaming rig
-- The top should be flat as I tend to use that to rest my mouse on.
-- I need USB ports, mic and headphones at the front of the case, ideally at the top.
-- I need a power button that will be easy for me to find but that I won't accidentally hit
-- I am either putting an SSD in now or will be in the future; I want a case that supports this.
-- I have heard that having the power supply be at the bottom is "better".

What would be "NICE" from a case?

-- Black interior; becomes more important if you can see in, not so vital if you can't.
-- Tempted to make this my first case with LED fans; would prefer the ability to turn on/off.
-- I am hoping to get a tower that will have a bit more height since I do use it to hold my mouse.
-- Fans that have filters seem to be a good thing from what I have read.

I'm not sure if I need to consider a different way to set up my computer or whether I have overlooked a case that might fit my needs. I am planning to buy my PC from Canada Computers. Any suggestions would be most welcome. :) Thanks for your time!
 

johnnyq8

Distinguished
Jun 10, 2010
321
0
18,810
i will give you some options and then your one your own
you want big case atleast from inside you have this options
thermaltake speedo is very good case check tigerdirect blog if you want to on youtube they have done review on that case its very strong big case inside and outside and you still have option for installing liquid cooler its very nice case and it comes from factory with maybe seven fans there is two diffrent version from this case like all other thermaltake cases there is advance package or reuglar at my opinion the advance package have big large fan mounted on the side of the case and the regular doesnt if you want good and great locking case you must have spedo
my other option is the haf 932 full tower case its very good case but its smaller from the spedo and it also perfect with airflow and cable managment options haf 932 will be a perfect choice too and at last for ssd drives you really dont have to worry about getting case withought ssd support you can buy ssd bay converter 2.5 inch to 3.5 or 5XX from amazon it wont cost you more than 15 or 20 bucks thats all you need and for the 2 cases i told you dont worry you wont accidently turn your pc off and yes if the power supply mounted in the bottom is better because you will have better cable managment and better airflow and the psu is really heavy thing you dont want to put it on top and for today any mid tower case or better there is jacks a lot of jacks for the usb and mic .. etc and those cases i told you about are very good from inside you will have big place ofcourse because its full tower case your hd 5850 or hd 5870 will fit propaply and the both of this cases have flat roof or top so dont worry about your mouse pad and the both of this cases have black interior and i dont know about them if you can turn the fans on or off but you can buy nzxt fan controller its better option for controlling fans and the both of this cases have fillter for fans i guess the bottom fan will have filtters
good luck for any other help you can private messaging me
 
How much are you willing to spend.?? If money is not the criteria then i'd recommend the Lian-Li PC A70F.. It has got all your requisites covered up except the LED turn ON/OFF feature (its found in very few cases, much less with a flat top).. The Corsair 700D is also an option.. As for the suggestions given by Johny above, am skeptical about the speedo's build quality.. As for the HAF 932, it comes with a top exhaust fan.. So any objects placed on the top will obstruct with the airflow structure.. As a suggestion, if you can replace your current table by a bigger one, you get more cases to choose from.. That way you wont even be bothered by height considerations..
 

ladybastilla

Distinguished
Jul 24, 2010
37
0
18,530
It certainly is tempting to switch that. I am legally blind and we thought that getting me a 37" tv would help me do stuff better but since I sit further back then I would to a more standard monitor I am not so sure how much I am gaming. Perhaps I will try running WoW on my parents' PC and see whether I can read stuff better? Really did not want to start fooling around with that end of things but I am in the market for a new monitor right after I get the PC so its worth a thought.

The case that I am really interested in is the CM Storm Sniper Black, but as you pointed out my situation would essentially be defeating a large portion of the purpose in getting it as I would be disrupting the top fan.

I'm very amused that I'm having more trouble getting a good case for this PC then I had getting just any case for my last one though. :p

Thanks for the replies though. ^.^
 

Helltech

Distinguished
This might help you a little bit...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=Property&Subcategory=7&Description=&Type=&N=100007583+600006304&IsNodeId=1&srchInDesc=&MinPrice=&MaxPrice=&PropertyCodeValue=548%3A8289&PropertyCodeValue=562%3A8427&PropertyCodeValue=562%3A8431&PropertyCodeValue=562%3A34740&PropertyCodeValue=562%3A34741

Its every full tower desktop (which means it will be tall), that has front audio and usb ports. There are only 81, so I'm sure you can find one that like after that.

By the way, you can always buy a sound card that comes with a front bay panal, which you could put in the top front bay of the case and have your audio there, if its that necessary (I just use an 3.5mm extender and extend my headphone cable three feet from the back of the case, was only a couple dollars).
 

ladybastilla

Distinguished
Jul 24, 2010
37
0
18,530
I actually broke USB ports on my last case from repeatedly not seeing where I was hooking stuff in. That is why I figure getting some at the front would save me some grief. I survived headphones at the back but the cable clutter is bad and I would prefer to be able to plug them in when I need them and take them out when I don't.

By the way, that case is really nice. They do not have it where I am getting my PC built, unfortunately, so I would have to find out whether I can supply something outside of their store if I decided that I want to use it. Its only $67 Canadian on Newegg.ca as well, which is quite cheap.

Can't win though, I tell you. :p I have half the people I know telling me to get a $300+ case of some sort (yeah, right...) and the other half saying that if I pay over $50 I'm wasting money that could be spent on the insides of my PC. (Sure it could, but then I would have some very nice BBQ six months from now. :eek: )

Yet again, thanks for the feedback. :)
 

Helltech

Distinguished
Well what I linked you is acutally a list of cases with audio and usb port, you dont need to get that first one that is 69. I figured that list would help you find a case you might like.

Have you thought about getting a keyboard that has a USB and Audio port? I know one of the Razer keyboards has usb and audio ports, that could save you a lot of grief.

And also like I said, getting a sound card with a front pranel would be another option. :D
 

ladybastilla

Distinguished
Jul 24, 2010
37
0
18,530
Keyboard with them? That would be very nice. I suppose if I *did* get an obnoxious case with the USB on the side (I thought the NZXT Lexa S was interesting) I could get one of those USB extension things so that it would sit up top and I would plug that in once and forget about it as well. Interesting...