Struggling with a case decision.

[DerwenArtos12]

I know most of the popular brands and models and can cite my favorite cases and their rough newegg price from memory so, finding one isn't my problem. I've found a few that I like. My problem is more one of fundamentals.

I currently have a homogonized HTPC/fileserver crammed into a single system. It works perfectly well it's even cooled well and quiet. I'm running out of space though. It's got about 300gb total and it's nearly full. I've already decided to just add more space to it. I'm working on a deal on a pair of 500gig drives but, if that falls through it'll more than likely just be a single 750 going in. That will take my hard drive total up to 5 or 6 drives.

I have the option to offload all but one of those to another machine and just re-host the files from there but, that would croud up my main rig pretty well and I'd rather not. I could just transfer the existing data off to the new drive(s) and keep them for back-up drives and just run the new drive(s) and my OS drive. Or I could just cram all 5 or 6 into a case and call it a day. Thats where I get stuck.

I currently see my options as such(given my budget)

Get a CM330 elite, not very attractive, only $35 and has a pair of 120mmfans, can hold all the drives I need for the file-server aspect but, it'll have to sit off to the side of my entertainment center.

I have a silverstone lascalia lc-10. It's very sleek, but doesn't cool very well, has noisy 60mm fans for exhaust and could hold a max of 4 hard drives.

Finally, I really like the looks of the Lian Li PC A05. I have a nice 450antec with the 120v and 12v lines on the same side that I could mount to pull air up from below the case and blow it out the front and add an extra 120mm fan over the expansion bays to make sure my two tuners, my 8500gt and my Emu 1010 stay cool enough but, again, it can hold a max of 4 drives and thats with a new adapter to mount hdd's in the spare 5.25 bay. And it's short enough to fit in my entertainment center but, it's $90.

What to do? I have a total of $300(with a little wiggle room) to get a new case or modify an old one, get fans for it and I'd like to upgrade my cpu cooling to something that cools better than the stock at 7v.

 

[Oupavoc]

hey take a look at the coolermaster cm690, i just got that case last week and its great. you can mount up to 7 fans into it. plenty of drive bays and hard drive bays. tooless design, very roomy it can easily fit 2 8800 series cards no problem and the best part its only 69cdn prob get cheaper in the states.

 

[WaTaGuMp]

My case of choice. http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16811119042

Strong Points:
Big enough to hold a small house
Attractive
Good Cooling
Pretty much tooless
Price is now 119.00

Weak Points
Extra HD's require purchasing HD bays which also hold the front intake fans
Front mesh grills annoying to remove and clean

Other then that this case is very very good, it even comes with wheels you can install.

 

[aigomorla]

you need to decide how much quiet you need in your file server.

I went from a roswell -> P180 -> CM Stacker T01 because i needed the hard drive space. [also the watercooling gear was a big bonus to fit] The P180 with fans near high was about the same quiet as my Stacker with medium fans.

But, the 330 elite, and the 690 arent the best cases if your looking at silence. A P180 might end up being a better file server if you can find one on sale. There darn quiet, good airflow for the hard drive section, and they dont look bad standing alone being controled by romote.

 

[DerwenArtos12]

Thats the issue, it's not just a file server. It's a file server and an HTPC. So I need a lot of quiet. And any case can be made quiet. The current case it's in is a freebie old POS with an 80mm front, 80mm rear, an 80mm on the side and the psu fan and it's SILENT and keeps a passive 8500GT and a A643500+ at about 42C and 30C idle. I can make it quiet, thats not an issue.

I don't dislike the cm690 Oupavoc. I don't but, it's overpriced, really overpriced when it's not on sale.

 

[aigomorla]

Originally posted by: DerwenArtos12

I don't dislike the cm690 Oupavoc. I don't but, it's overpriced, really overpriced when it's not on sale.

Have to totally agree with you on that. Lucky for me i got my CM690 for cheap, thats probably why i borked my first cutting job on it, because i wasnt worried about cuttin into a 200 dollar case that i normally do.

 

[DerwenArtos12]

The Elite 330 is just so damn ugly. It fits my size requirements, my number or bays requirement, my cooling requirements, it's just so damn ugly though. It kills me.

I guess, I'll have to get it, throw away the front panel and make a custom acrylic facea for the case.

Edit: on second thought, I'll flip the side panels, make a new facea, replace the fans, cut some holes in the MB tray for routing, cut out the fan grills and install some filters. Will keep everyone updated.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Any updates on the CM330 project? I have a couple of those cases and like them very much. I'm surprised to hear that you find them ugly.

 

[DerwenArtos12]

Originally posted by: VirtualLarry
Any updates on the CM330 project? I have a couple of those cases and like them very much. I'm surprised to hear that you find them ugly.

Unfortunately no, teh 330 is still sitting in it's box in the other room waiting to be loved. I've been having some health issues the last couple weeks and haven't had a chance to do much of anything besides soldering some custom cables for local guys. The system that was going to go into the 330 has been slapped into an old silverston lc13 for the time being and I've been pretty impressed with it all over again, with the exception of the airflow, which was my initial problem with it and the reason it sat in my garage for over a year. The 330 may just stay in it's box a while longer and you all may get a project gallery on an LC-13 instead. I need to get healthy before I start thinking about power tools though.