Help Picking Case - NZXT Phantom Enthusiast vs NZXT Phantom 820

[UK-Boy]

Hello,

Been a long time viewer of Tom's videos on youtube. Love his reviews, even if he does have the tendency to ramble on a bit at times (I am like that too. lol).

I also love white and want a white case. Was considering a Corsair 600T and a NZXT Phantom Enthusiast. But after doing a few days of research I have decided to not to bother with the 600T.

My question to you guys and Tom if possible is the following.

How much better is the cooling on the NZXT Phantom 820 vs the NZXT Phantom Enthusiast? I can get the NZXT Phantom Enthusiast for like half the price or less compared with the 820. Can add a few fans to it and still be much cheaper.

Are the fans on the 820 better quality ones regarding cooling/sound?

Just an overall breakdown of what the 820 does better would be nice apart from looks.

I think if I recall correctly in the 820 review Tom mentioned the NZXT Phantom 820 was vastly better. Did you mean regarding cooling?

I do not have any problems with the side of the case, so no points deducted from me regarding that. Though I do see where Tom is coming from. The extra features of the 820 are nice indeed. Just wished that case was like £150 or £175 max really. Some places are trying to sell it for £230! lol

Thanks guys for any help.

 

[tinytomlogan]

The original Phantom shouldnt even be a consideration now.

Either get the 820 or the 630.

 

[UK-Boy]

The original Phantom shouldnt even be a consideration now.

Either get the 820 or the 630.

Nice one Guvnor! Will likely be going for the 820 then. That is in pole position for my next case.

I am actually doing the research nice and early. The case will be for my intel haswell rig. There could very well be a new NZXT or even Corsair case by then which may change my mind. But if I do see a Phantom 820 on a special deal on sale somewhere, will snap that up now I think.

Thanks again Tom. Keep up the good work ^_^

 

[Jason-CL]

Tom is right, the Phantom is outdated now. The 820 and 630 bot have features that the original just can't touch, along with more standards met for current hardware.

 

[UK-Boy]

Thanks for that XNine.

The case is on special offer on Scan's eBay shop for £179.94 which seems like a decent enough deal vs the rest of the prices here in the UK.

Bit of a dilemma, whether to buy it now or risk waiting to see if something else comes out by June that I may like better.

 

[Jason-CL]

I understand, trust me, over the last 5 years I've owned more than 20 cases from various MFG's and I always see something I want. I've spent more on cases than all other hardware combined... kind of sick, lol.

 

[UK-Boy]

That is a lot indeed. Since 1999 when I got my first PC, this is now my 6th case.

So yeah. Went ahead and got the NZXT Phantom 820. It is huge! Had a bit of a problem getting the side panel off. It was super tight, I thought I was going to end up breaking it while trying to pull it out. The motherboard side panel came of easily however.

I will be gutting this old PC out and sticking it into the 820 until I build my Haswell in June

Could you please tell me how many watts max this case uses to power up all the lights and fans?

 

[Jason-CL]

I honestly have no idea. Considering each LED is about 12v, and the Fan controller handles 15w per channel (x4) I'd say between 5w and 100, depending on how many fans you have hooked up to the fan controller. It's very low.

Depending on your hardware you could go with a solid 750w PSU and see no trouble whatsoever.

 

[UK-Boy]

Really happy with the case so far. Looking to buy a NZXT FZ-200mm fan when they become available in the UK and will probably get the Corsair H110 water cooler (extra warranty vs kraken) and slap that under the 200mm fans for a push/pull effect

 

[SolarNova]

Im glad i stumbled on this post

I also recommend the 820 (i know uv already got it). I was planing on getting the White version myself for some work im doing on my rig in the next couple months. The fact u found it for £180 has now prompted me to buy it early as thats a damn good price considering its usualy around £210 to £230.

And a bonus is it arrives on my birthday monday 11th.

 

[UK-Boy]

It is a pleasure being able to help out someone from this community. I have got lots of help and tips reading these forums.

You won't regret buying the Phantom 820. It is close to being a perfect case in my opinion. I can foresee it being my main case for a good 4-5 years

Just wish it had 20mm spacing for mounting an H110 cooler. Would go for the X60 Kraken, but the fact that it costs more, has poor fans and mainly only 2 years warranty has put me off.

 

[Jason-CL]

The 820 actually has slots on it for mounting, not holes. So you should be able to get a 20mm spaced rad up there.

 

[Signex]

Atm i got the phantom 410, it's quit big for a mid tower.

Too bad the 820 was out of my price range.