Suggest a case for 670 SLI, <$200.

[sherlockwing]

I plan on getting a Case that can enough ventilation for 670 SLI
Key components:
CPUI5-3570K-Cooler PH-TC14PE(lowprofile Ram, 170mm HSF clearance needed)
Mobo: ASRock Extreme 4, standard ATX length, support SLI and have the CMOS battery & a PCI slot between the two PCIE3.0 slots so cards won't be on top of each other.

Cards: Currently weighing the Gigabyte Windforce 3X(399.99) or the MSI PE/OC(404.99), Windforce from the reviews I read is cooler and quieter, MSI have been claimed to Boost and OC higher although whether that's Silicon lottery or superior design I am not sure, feel free to give a recommendation on this as well.

Priority for the Case:
1. Enough Cooler for all components, especially the two GPUs, fan controller is needed.
2. Dust Protection: Top and Bottom Dust Filters are a must.
3. Noise level
4. 4 Front facing USB ports, including 2 USB 3.0
5. Easy Cable Management & Drive mounts
6. Not Price sensitive, but it does matter.
.
100000... Aesthetics/matching colors etc

Please post your suggestions(links appreciated), if you done SLI with Custom Cooler GPUs(I heard these are really hard to SLI with) please share your case and build.

 

[killerhurtalot]

Uh.... I would suggest coolermaster cosmos... (out of production though, but you can still find it for around $200)

but no usb 3.0 though since it's a old case... (but you can easily add a PCI-E usb 3.0 card or a front panel 5.25" USB 3.0 hub)

I would recommend coolermaster cosmos 2 but that's $330-$350.... but it's basically everything anyone would ever need in a beautiful case with great noise isolation...


http://www.coolermaster-usa.com/product.php?category_id=18&product_id=2700 Cosmos 1



http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119252&Tpk=coolermaster cosmos 2 Cosmos 2 It's $325 on amazon.com

 

[mark4685]

I'd recommend the NZXT Phantom Full-Tower. It's very sturdy and runs cool. It holds 3x200 mm fans (2 on top 1 on side) 4x140 mm fans ( 1 rear 2 side 1 front). It has excellent cable management, plenty of room, and great cooling. price is at 119.99 w/ 14.99 shipping: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146068

 

[Uther39]

Corsair Obsidian Series 650D (CC650DW-1) Black Steel structure with black brushed aluminum faceplate ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139006&Tpk=650d

SilverStone Fortress Series FT02B-USB3.0 Black Aluminum / Steel Computer Case with 2 x USB3.0 ports (Black)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811163201

 

[sherlockwing]

Corsair Obsidian Series 650D (CC650DW-1) Black Steel structure with black brushed aluminum faceplate ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139006&Tpk=650d

http://images17.newegg.com/is/image/newegg/11-139-006-TS?$S300W$


SilverStone Fortress Series FT02B-USB3.0 Black Aluminum / Steel Computer Case with 2 x USB3.0 ports (Black)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811163201

http://images17.newegg.com/is/image/newegg/11-163-201-TS?$S300W$

I like both of those options but the closed side panel really would be a problem for me as I read the Gigabyte Windforce 670 exhaust most of its hot air to the side and having a closed side panel really doesn't help the heat escape.

 

[Uther39]

Dont forget the FT02 is inverted, and as heat rises it will all go out the top anyway..

Watch this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMcKvI-zWi0

 

[Uther39]

Please note USB2 ports in video are now USB 3

 

[manofchalk]

Coolermaster HAF-XM. Its a "mid-tower" thats only an inch or two shorter than a full and comes with all the features you say you want.

So the HAF-XM (will link to reviews and such below). $130
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119257

Plus my fan-controller of choice. The NZXT Sentry Mix. May have to wait a bit for it to come in to stock, its usually around $40.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811992009

Reviews for HAF-XM
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/CoolerMaster/HAF_XM/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SM4EVGaXek
http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/cm_haf_xm/

 

[das_stig]

Fractal Design R3 / R4 matches you needs.

 

[sherlockwing]

Fractal Design R3 / R4 matches you needs.

I have considere R4 as an option before, but I am a bit concerned it might not be able to handle the hot air exhausted by Custom Cooler GPUs like the Windforce inside the Case.

My current Fan Mod plan for it(picture not mine):

PH-TC14PE $75.00

2X Front intake,1X Bot intake goes to the fan controller, Rear and Bottom exhaust goes to the Mobo header

To explain the fan set up in more detail:
The 2 stock 140mm fan will be located at the front intake, I 140mm intake mounted at the bottom infront of PSU, the exhaust fan are located at the rear and the top rear fan mount.

Total Fan CFM count, 2X 67 CFM +1X 60 CFM intake, 2X 60 CFM + 1/2 Blower GPU exhaust.

Mounted on a Standard length slim(12"X8.6") ATX board: ASRock Z77 Extreme 4(support SLI), there is another PCI slot inbetween the 2 PCI3.0 slots so the GPU won't be right next to each other.

If for the blower style EVGA FTW, would moving either the bottom intake or top exhaust(both 140mm) to the side panel slot(should be level with the second GPU ) solve the heat problem of SLI Custom Cooler GPU?

 

[giemer]

I'm a fan of the antec 300 illusion:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129066&Tpk=antec%20300%20illusion

Cheap, lots of cooling capacity, roomy. Only down side, is it has no built in mounting for front panel 2.5" bays (ie. internal mounting only). Thus if you want front panel access you'd need a conversion kit. It's got a few LEDs that you may want to disable too.

I've plopped an ASRock Extreme6 in it when I did my build, haven't gotten the 2nd 670 to SLI yet, but that was a point of order.

edit: ...Meh, no front panel USB 3, I neglected it becasue the MoBo I got had the addon to make that work (with a front bay conversion kit). The 900 does have the USB 3, but I haven't any first hand experience with it, but it has gotten pretty stellar reviews. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129021

 

[Iluv2raceit]

Corsair 400R or 500R case. Both have tons of cooling and are directly capable of top-mounting the Corsair H100 2 x 120mm radiator. I just bult a new system using the 500R and was blown away by the high quality and it even comes with a built in fan controller that allows you to adjust the fan speeds (3 settings; low, medium, high) and also provides an on/off switch for the two front blue LED lit fans...wow! And another cool feature is that you can buy the case in black or white! Other features included are: USB 3.0 ports, 240mm door fan, bottom mounted power supply design, integrated cable management, black interior, removable upper hard drive cage, motherboard CPU cutout for easy access to the back of the motherboard for installing aftermarket CPU cooling bracket mounts, fan compatibility for both 120mm and 140mm fans, and is made of molded lightweight steel.

Black version: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139009

White version: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139010

 

[sherlockwing]

Corsair 400R or 500R case. Both have tons of cooling and are directly capable of top-mounting the Corsair H100 2 x 120mm radiator. I just bult a new system using the 500R and was blown away by the high quality and it even comes with a built in fan controller that allows you to adjust the fan speeds (3 settings; low, medium, high) and also provides an on/off switch for the two front blue LED lit fans...wow! And another cool feature is that you can buy the case in black or white!

Black version: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139009

White version: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139010

I really like 500R except I hate how the fan controller only works with stock Fans, which means I can't replace the front 2X120mm intakes with 140mm, only having 2 front facing USB is another downside. Beside those I really like this case from an airflow standpoint.

Currently I am leaving a +3 Fan mod of the Define R4:
My current Fan Mod plan

all fans 140mm, 2X Intake 67 CFM, all other 60 CFM

To explain the fan set up in more detail:
The 2 stock 140mm fan will be located at the front intake, 1 140mm intake mounted at the bottom infront of PSU, one exhaust fan mounted on the side panel next to the GPU slots and the other exhaust fan are located at the rear.

Total Fan CFM count, 2X 67 CFM +1X 60 CFM intake, 2X 60 CFM exhaust

so 4 for the 5 140mm will be located near the bottom, forming a Circulation Loop at the bottom for the 2 Custom Fan CPUs.
The CPU will have to live by itself and its Phantek PH-TC14 PE Cooler + the Rear Exhaust fan.

I am considering 3 options for the top(you can seal the top fan mounts to keep out dust and keep noise in):
Leave the seal on/Take the seal off/take the seal off and mount another fan there. I think I will just buy another fan and experiment with it.

Overall Case cost: 109.99+ 21.56/28.7(3/4fans)=131.55/138.7, I think this is one of the best I found so far in overall Cooling/Noise balance.

Would this be good enough to handle 2 Custom Fan Cooler mounted 2-3 cm/1-1.5" apart(there is a battery & a PCIE2.0 slots between the 2 PCIE3.o slots) or do I have to stick with the noiser Blower style GPU?

 

[arvalin_dakaria]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146089
Incredible case at only $169 with tons of positive reviews.

 

[sherlockwing]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146089
Incredible case at only $169 with tons of positive reviews.

It is decent for that price+the 15.99 shipping(not liking how Full tower cost an arm in shipping and you can't even get rid of that with shop runner), but I don't need the side panel window and would really appreciate a Fan there to exhaust the Custom Fan GPU.

 

[timarp000]

Buy the Corsair 500R!

its as large as the 650d, it has usb 3.0 via internal header and a side exhaust to keep your windforce gtx 670 cool.


its a wonderful case and easy to work with AND ITS ONLY $140!

 

[sherlockwing]

Buy the Corsair 500R!

its as large as the 650d, it has usb 3.0 via internal header and a side exhaust to keep your windforce gtx 670 cool.


its a wonderful case and easy to work with AND ITS ONLY $140!

Actually on newegg it is only 114.99 with rebate(black version), downside being you can only control stock fans with the fan controller(only workable with stock fans, and only 2 front facing USB header). I am also considering HAF XM which is 109.99 with rebate(-10) and promo code(-10).