Spec me a case (micro-atx)

Alexrose1uk

Alexrose1uk

Alexrose1uk

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Joined
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Hi Guys,
Looking for recommendations here because the range is a bit mind boggling.

I've done a bit of parts scrounging, and filled the gaps, and managed to put together a relatively nice HTPC. The trick is that the old Antec Sonata II case it's in is just a little bit too big for the room it's in.
(42.5cm H x 46.3D x 20.6W)

Ideally, I'd like a case that'll take an M-ATX motherboard, an ATX PSU and ideally, the Gelid Tranquillo cooler (which I believe is 153mm high), and be as small (with ok airflow) as possible.The Gelid is the awkward part, but ideally I'd like to keep it to a) keep down costs b) the machine is running an unlocked Phenom II quad so would need a reasonable cooler to stay cool at low RPM.

Given our room aesthetics, white would also be a bonus.

The machine doesn't need much in the way of 5.25"/3.5" drive bays, as I'm running the OS off a USB stick, and it will only have a maximum of one DVD drive. Additionally the machine only uses one PCI-E card for graphics/HDMI capability.
 
Alexrose1uk said:
Hi Guys,
Looking for recommendations here because the range is a bit mind boggling.

I've done a bit of parts scrounging, and filled the gaps, and managed to put together a relatively nice HTPC. The trick is that the old Antec Sonata II case it's in is just a little bit too big for the room it's in.
(42.5cm H x 46.3D x 20.6W)

Ideally, I'd like a case that'll take an M-ATX motherboard, an ATX PSU and ideally, the Gelid Tranquillo cooler (which I believe is 153mm high), and be as small (with ok airflow) as possible.The Gelid is the awkward part, but ideally I'd like to keep it to a) keep down costs b) the machine is running an unlocked Phenom II quad so would need a reasonable cooler to stay cool at low RPM.

Given our room aesthetics, white would also be a bonus.

The machine doesn't need much in the way of 5.25"/3.5" drive bays, as I'm running the OS off a USB stick, and it will only have a maximum of one DVD drive. Additionally the machine only uses one PCI-E card for graphics/HDMI capability.
Click to expand...

Do you have a budget in mind at all ?
 
Looking to buy come payday, so budget not an issue within reason. Obviously I don't want to spend the earth but I'll take a look at all decent options.
 
The trend now is more or less to go into cube form factor for small cases. Such cases are Xigmatek Aquila, Aerocool Deed Silence, Bitfenix Prodigy, Bitfenix Phenom, and quite a lot other more expensive and bigger solutions. They might be pricey and not fit into the space you have but are superior with regard to airflow, sometimes (hopefully) cable management, and general volume they take from your room. I would recommend to scout the reviews of those four, their features, their drawbacks and pick one of them as they are a viable option even for a high end system so come update time, you can chose a mATX mobo and plug a 780Ti and 4930K if you want while still maintaining reasonable sizes. :)
 
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Space aside for the cooler and aforementioned requirements isn't a big issue as the machine is a pure htpc. Space saving is the only goal here (without shelling out for a top end NUC etc). So even come upgrade time the machine will never need much room for high end GPUs etc :)

Will take a look at the cases recommended though.
 
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The problem is that there is a limit to how small you can make a tower mATX case. They are all going to be about 21 cm wide to accomodate a full-size PCI-E card (unless you by a thin HTPC case and stand it on its side). Height is limited by the size of the mobo + PSU. Technically I guess you could re-arrange it so that the PSU was at the front insrtead of the drive cages but I don't know if such a design exists.

The Fractal Define Mini is about as small in height (395mm) as you're likely to get at the expense of being a bit deeper. Theoretically a case without the top-mounted fan could take another 2-3cm off I suppose.

EDIT: Turns out I'm wrong about the width. This case is 185mm wide: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-016-AD&groupid=2362&catid=2278. I assume the narrowness is because there is no cable routing behind the mobo tray.
 
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Fundamentally trying to shave those few CM where I can. Mad as it might sound, this PC could survive without ANY drive bays. As you say, this is a HTPC build, and some builds for those are small. Its the trade-off between size, cost, and cooling!

My other half would also really like white, because she believes that dark colours make a room see smaller, and with all our walls being white right now, I see her point.

Thanks for the feedback.
 
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