Smart, quiet small case with front IO panel

ouch

Distinguished
Nov 15, 2009
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I'm spec/pricing up a general purpose build for the home office, and I'm struggling to find a case to suit my needs.

I'm looking for a case that' is:

  • subtly styled, no windows, LEDs, gun-turrets etc
    quiet
    compact (less than 450mm tall)
    good filtration
    has an IO panel/controls that are near/at the top of the front.
    Has at least 1x 5.25" external drives bays.
I'm intending to suspend the case under the desk, and as close to the desk as possible, hence the front IO. Colour not important, though extra points for white or silver.

There are a few that come close, but none tick all the boxes, for example, below tick the style boxes at least:

  • Thermaltake Urbans S1 would be there apart from the Bottom IO panel
    Fractal design Arc and Define Mini has top mounted IO panels
    FD core 1100 has no filtration
    Bitfenix Prodigy M has side panel mounted IO (wtf?)
I'm building on an mini ATX board, and by budget is no more than £100 - ideal would be £60-£70

Am I missing something? Am I asking too much?
 

BlueJays92-93

Honorable
Oct 8, 2014
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10,560
Hi ouch,

Might I suggest looking into the Cooler Master N200. The only box of yours that it doesn't tick is the one about it being white or silver. It has front IO, a single 5.25" bay in the front, and well as pretty good airflow (the grill on the front protects a bit from dust, you could slap a dust filter in the front mesh part if you really want one, and there is a dust filter on the bottom). In addition to all of that it's pretty cheap (appear to be about £40 on amazon) and it's made by cooler master so you'll know it's likely not going to fall apart (cooler master cases are pretty good as a general rule).

Hope this helps.