New case advice

VengeanceUK

New member
looking to start putting together my new rig, but cannot decide on the new case.

I would love a CM Cosmos 2, but the budget simply won't stretch to it.

Looking at several cases online i found these :

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/coolermaster-rc-1100-v2-cosmos-s-sport-black-full-tower-case-w-o-psu

although aging now, it looks very similar to the cosmos 2, but has the added benefit of being about £200 cheaper, the original review was glowing for it, does that still stand now?

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/coolermaster-cm-storm-trooper-black-full-tower-gaming-case-with-usb-30-w-o-psu

cm storm trooper, again a very good looking case with glowing review

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/coolermaster-haf-x-v2-black-full-tower-performance-gaming-case-inc-side-window-usb-30-w-o-psu-new-ve

cm haf-x-v2, i used to like the look of these, but i think the industrial design is starting to bore me a bit

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/aerocool-x-predator-orange-ultimate-mid-tower-gaming-case-w-o-psu

aerocool x-predator, i love the orange/black colour scheme, but didn't get an "awesome" review

any help would be appreciated whether you have used any of these cases, have views on them or have simply missed a "stunning" case

the only provisos are :

they have to be able to house a H100 in the roof

and preferably be black
 
Any reason as to why a full tower?

I know you can fit more in and stuff, but I think it's kind of a cheap way to get round a case tbh
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Not as in cheap to buy or anything, just that it's more of a credit to the owner if they got a mid tower and still managed to fit the ridiculous hardware in

I do understand if you're wanting an extended ATX motherboard and stuff, or a crossfire setup with watercooling where you'd need a larger rad, but thats just my opinion.

Anywayyyy....The HAF X is great if you like the design and everything, just all those cases are kind of 'cliche' if I can call a case that. Just they are the standard cases everyone seems to want based on looks and reviews. The BitFenix Shinobi XL or the Switch 810 may be an idea to make yours a little more unique, but regardless, all the cases you've mentioned are good, and you wont be disappointed with any of them.
 
hmmm the 810 is interesting.

the reason for full tower choices was the amount of hdds i have, due to video / photo editing and storage rental i already have 3 very nearly full 1TB drives and better airflow because of more space between components

and obviously with hdd prices being as high as they are, i was going to carry over my existing drives whilst adding 1 x 3Tb and an SSD so space would be a premium, but it might squeeze in an 810 so long as the H100 is compliant?
 
Seeing as your gonna use a H100 what about an Arc Midi? Yeah it's a mid tower case but there's plenty of room, it can fit a H100 extremely easily and has 8 hard drive bays and the cable management options are superb. It's so lovely to work with, such an amazing case
 
i love haf series myself but the storm trooper is also very good, cosmos is probably overkill.

you should consider some other good brands li nzxt and the switch 810
 
Yeh, I definitely think a full tower is too much. 3 hard drives will fit in basically any mid tower, and airflow wont be that restricted as in most mid tower cases these days you can get a side panel fan and a bottom fan.

Personally, I'd only consider a full tower if I needed something for some very high end watercooling. Otherwise mid cuts it, and I think looks better too!
 
argh, done some more research and my shortlist has gotten longer lol

i now like the arc midi because of the extra space

and i quite like the corsair obsidian 550d + 650d, carbide 400r + 500r, the graphite 600t including the white ones (ttl will be impressed lol)

added to the above i also quite like

the xigmatek pantheon, the nzxt phantom + switch 810,

and even the CM 690 II (which has grown on me recently)

so my choice has been made even harder lol
 
right got my choices down to the last few, just need some help as i'm at an impasse here trying to decided further

the candidates are (in no particular order) :
  1. Fractal Arc Midi
  2. Corsair Obsidian 550D
  3. CM SGC-5000 (Storm Trooper)
  4. CM HAF-X
  5. Corsair Carbide 400R
  6. Corsair Graphite 600T (Both White & Mesh Variants)

Am really stumped as to which i prefer as they all have features that i like
 
The Arc is amazing. The only real drawback to it is the fact there's no side panel window option, if you were to mod one it would be the perfect mid tower case imo. All the other cases listed are great too. The 600T is awesome, but it's a bit on the expensive side of things.

EDIT: A H100 in a 400R is quite a tight fit btw
 
yeah i like the arc, its just the side panel that really lets it down, and my modding skills with metal are not great, much better at electrical modding lol.

the 600t is a beautiful piece of kit and it was the price putting me off slightly too, but the side panels are perfect lol

saw the videos about the h100 in the 400r, all depends on the motherboard i choose i suppose

and my current personal fave the obsidian 550d seems to have everything except the front is bland and the top i/o port looks odd being such a drastically different colour

thanks for the input, but it looks like it might be time for a lucky roll of the dice to seal the choice unless i get some devine inspiration lol
 
Yup, the 600T is a popular choice, but it is pricey. I was going to ask if you considered the 650D, but that's in the 600T price range.
 
out of curiosity, would the fractal midi fir both the h100 (in the roof) and a

[font=arial,helvetica,sans-serif]PNY GeForce GTX 580 1536MB PCI-E HDMI XLR8 OC Liquid Cooled[/font] in the rear exhaust?

it looks like it might, but seeing as can't get a hands on with any of these cases its hard to be sure
 
The Fractal Design Arc Midi. You can fit a Corsair H100 in there with push/pull fans without any mods.

The CM690II is also worth looking at (H100 fits but only with a single set of fans).
 
well i'm down to 3 now,

the fractal arc midi, the 600t (in white with window, shock horror, [its ttl's fault]lol) and the corsair obsidian 550D

all the others i've looked at are good, just lacking that special something and is it just me or does the exterior of the 810 look cheap, flimsy and far too shiny? inside it looks great but outside, i'm kinda meh on it
 
all the others i've looked at are good, just lacking that special something and is it just me or does the exterior of the 810 look cheap, flimsy and far too shiny? inside it looks great but outside, i'm kinda meh on it

I feel the same about the 810, hence why I wouldn't even consider it.
 
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