Is this Antec Six Hundred a must "value" buy?

[TopGun]

Antec Six Hundred for $49.95...the link says $59.95, but with promo code it goes down to $49.95. I'm guessing it's just a deal for today.

I have other deals on my pricewatch, but this deal kind of stood out to me...3 120mm case fans (2 blue led), +1 200mm blue led case fan!

Other deals that may or may not come around again include...

COOLER MASTER HAF 922 for $59.98.

COOLER MASTER CM690 II Advanced for $55.00

Antec Three Hundred Illusion for $45.00

Maybe I should just get it now and if I can get one of these other cases later?...then try to sell it on eBay?

One last thing...on Newegg, the case sidings look all black. On eBay and amazon the sidings look like silver or something...I'm hoping for the all black. What color are they really?

Help!!! Pull the trigger or no? Is this one of those home run, slam dunk, best bang for the buck type deals...or just a decent deal?

 

[o1die]

Cases are very personal; any number of them will work fine. Don't buy anything until you're sure what you want.

 

[TopGun]

Cases are very personal; any number of them will work fine. Don't buy anything until you're sure what you want.

I know pretty much anything will work fine...I'm more concerned about "value" and getting a great deal. I'm trying to build a mid-high end PC over the next year but at a low-mid budget price range by hunting down incredible/amazing deals (my lone example so far being an XFX 850W BE PSU for $89.99...excellent quality/reviews + teeny/tiny price). I'm mostly wondering if this qualifies as one of those deals.

 

[MadAdmiral]

I'm not sure you got that price on the HAF 922 right. Are you sure it's not the HAF 912?

If the $60 for the 922 is right, that is easily the best deal I've ever seen. The 922 is the best value case on the market, even when it's at it's usual $90. It's an absolute steal at $60.

If it's the 912, I don't like it. The 912, while it looks like a good deal, it isn't that great. It doesn't come with a lot of fans, which greatly impacts it's value.

All of the cases are black, except for the ones with windows, which are clear.

I really don't typically consider the 600, and I'm not exactly sure why. I guess I just don't really like how it looks. It certainly has a lot of cooling, and it's fairly big.

The choice of the case really depends on what GPU you're going to use, assuming the HAF you mentioned is actually the 912. If it's a smaller one, the 300 Illusion is the best value. It's smaller, but has a lot of cooling. It's also cheap. If you're using a larger GPU, the 690 II is a great value. It doesn't have as much cooling as the 300 Illusion and 600, but it's really big. It's cooling is good enough for most setups, and you can always add more fans.

As for buying and reselling, it won't earn you anything. The cases will cost a lot to ship. If you found the deal on the case, it's very likely that everyone else can as well. So you're not likely to get a higher price than what you paid on eBay.

 

[TopGun]

I'm not sure you got that price on the HAF 922 right. Are you sure it's not the HAF 912?

All the other cases and prices I have listed are deals that I found that they sold for at one point last year (at least I think that is where I got that number), and what I have my pricewatch set for to alert me if they get to that price again.

 

[TopGun]

The choice of the case really depends on what GPU you're going to use, assuming the HAF you mentioned is actually the 912. If it's a smaller one, the 300 Illusion is the best value. It's smaller, but has a lot of cooling. It's also cheap. If you're using a larger GPU, the 690 II is a great value. It doesn't have as much cooling as the 300 Illusion and 600, but it's really big. It's cooling is good enough for most setups, and you can always add more fans.

I am hoping to get either the 560 Ti or the HD 6950 2GB. I know the CM690II has a lot of options for additional case fans too.

But...I'm not really trying to decide between these cases...I consider all the other deals I have listed for my pricewatch as the kind of SUPER DEAL I'm looking for...I'd be extremely happy with any of the 3 pricewatch examples if I could get them for the listed price. What I really want to know is does the 600 for $49.95 fall into that group, or am I better off waiting and hoping to catch one of the other ones that may or may not come around again?

 

[o1die]

The 600 is an average case; I don't like the looks either. Pay attention to the direction of the 3.5 inch bays inside, and whether you like the plastic tabs for tooless usage. The 3.5 inch bays facing towards the side of the case are easier to access with the board installed, if you like changing out drives.

 

[WR2]

Antec Six Hundred V2 PC Case Review @ Legit Reviews confirms it's 'average' rating.
I think it would be OK if you're OK with the style.
Personally, I'd pay the extra $5 for the CM690 II Advanced.

Sometimes those 'good deals' are on stock that isn't selling, and there's often a reason for that.

 

[WR2]

http://camelegg.com/ will let you get price change alerts sent to you.

"camelegg provides free Newegg price drop alerts and Newegg price history charts, helping you buy when the price is right"

 

[rolli59]

All the cases listed are good for what they are. The 300 and 600 are good budget cases and the CM690 II advanced and the Haf 922 are just a notch above with better drive bay arrangement than the former two.

 

[geekapproved]

I like that 690 II, right up my alley.

I'm still in love with my Antec 300 though, not ready to leave it. That Antec 600 is UGLY though.

 

[TopGun]

Personally, I'd pay the extra $5 for the CM690 II Advanced.

Oh, I definitely would pay the extra $5 for the CM690II...if it were on sale for that price right now.

Unfortunately, it boils down to a gamble...I can for sure get the 600 for $49.95 right now. Any of my other wishlist/pricecheck cases might not ever sell for my pricecheck price again (none are currently at the price I listed...I'm not sure if that is confusing people or not).

From your replies it seems like it isn't one of my SUPER DEALS that I'm looking for though. I actually don't mind the look of the all black one at all though. I don't know though...3x120mm fans, and 1x200mm fan...still seems like an awfully good deal. I guess I have until the 14th to decide.

 

[TopGun]

http://camelegg.com/ will let you get price change alerts sent to you.

"camelegg provides free Newegg price drop alerts and Newegg price history charts, helping you buy when the price is right"

Man, if that site is what it sounds like it is (haven't really checked it out yet)...that would be perfect for me. Why did you keep this info from me for so long? ...and thanks!

Edit: Site rules!

 

[cadder]

I have used a lot of Antec 300 cases, bought a couple of years ago for around $50-60. I always add 2 fans to mine anyway.

I like the Antec 300. I like the looks of it. I like how sturdy it is and how easy it is to build with. I've used various other low priced cases in the past and the Antec is much better than them. I understand that there are more expensive cases available, maybe they are built better, maybe they just look different. Our local Frys has a large display of cases so you can look over each one. If I wanted to buy something other than Antec for some reason I would go there and study the ones that I might be interested in. In my opinion if you spend less than $50 you will get a cheap case and there will be issues that you will have to deal with, if you want a nice case you have to expect to spend a lot of money for it, so an Antec at $50 is a pretty good compromise.

I don't have any experience with the Antec 600.

 

[TopGun]

Hey, while I have you all here...what are like the top 3-5ish DVD burners and your great deal price points for them? SuperBiiz is having a 15% off Paddy Day sale on stuff (up to $15 total).

Some deals I'm considering...

Prolimatech Megahalems REV.B CPU Cooler for $50.99 (I think I'd like to hold out for a good deal on a Scythe SCMG-2100 though...it comes with a fan, and is about 1/2 the price...also, I doubt I'll need nearly as much performance as either of these will give)

Samsung SpinPoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB for $50.99 (think I'm going to get this, but I'd like to get a DVD burner too to take advantage of the whole $15 total amount)

Also, when they say "Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders"...is that the same thing as OEM? Is there any real good reason to get Pro over Home?

 

[o1die]

Pro, just like ultimate, supports old windows xp files, if you want to run any. I loaded my old word 2000 without any problems with ultimate.

 

[cadder]

Also, when they say "Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders"...is that the same thing as OEM?

Essentially "system builder" and "OEM" are the same thing. You license the OS to work on ONE computer. If you buy the full version you can load it on your computer, then late you can throw that computer away, build a new one, and load it on that one. You can't do that with the OEM version.

 

[TopGun]

I don't think anyone directly answered this...

Help!!! Pull the trigger or no? Is this one of those home run, slam dunk, best bang for the buck type deals...or just a decent deal?

Most answers were about how they didn't like the look or how good some other case was...which was not what I was asking...but, I do want to give out a best answer...and the camelegg site was very helpful. The same member also provided a link for a mediocre review of the case in question.

 

[TopGun]

Best answer selected by TopGun.