I need a small, lightweight ATX case that can easily be transported. Nothing fancy, very straightforward (I like the Sonata II, for instance, but I think the steel construction would make it too heavy).
Thanks
Thanks
Advice Needed
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RallyMaster
Diamond Member
- Dec 28, 2004
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yeah the ll pc7b plus II is probably the best aluminum case for the $$$.
The ultra aluminus (I don't know if it's a good case or not) can be found for $30 AR.
The ultra aluminus (I don't know if it's a good case or not) can be found for $30 AR.
RallyMaster
Diamond Member
- Dec 28, 2004
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OP, since I know you personally and you mentioned that you have a micro ATX board, why not just get an Ultra MicroFly? Order one off RadioShack.
Super Lanboy.. they give you a strap too!! only thing i don't like is that there is no intake/exhaust port on the transparent left panel for CPU fan to draw air from.
The Aspire X-Sonic is small and light weight - pretty much the same chassis as the original Lan Boy. They seem pretty flimsy out of the box (some would wonder if there is even a case in the box when they receive it, if it wasn't for the included, junky PSU 
), but stiffen up a bit when you get your components in and tied down. Some Sky Hawk/Eagle (aka Skyhawk) cases (some places that still carry some: Newegg, mWave, Dealsonic) are a bit stronger - one of their MSR series I had here weighed about 12 pounds net and all the better ones left that I've seen out there lately use 1.0mm Al, while the MSR series was 1.2 mm, so they should be even lighter. I'd be wary of any Al made with thinner than 1.0mm Al as even 1mm can seem flimsy. These could be considered your budget options.
Aspire and Chenming have Al versions of some of their cases. And Enermax has some Al cases that aren't very expensive - I have no direct experience of the sturdiness or lack thereof of the Enermax. And directron has some remaining TTGI/Superflower Al cases they sell both rebadged as Directron and the original brand. These are your mid-range options. Directron has a long list of "Al" cases but many just have Al bezels, the rest of the case is steel (e.g. the CM Centurion series and Mystique).
Then there are Thermaltake, Coolermaster, Silverstone and Lian Li whose all-Al cases are all approximately as well made (some would differ on the Tts ) and as expensive. But most won't be considered too lightweight as they use pretty heavy gauge Al and have features like mobo drawers and heavy extrusions on the doors, bezel, etc. If your mobo is microATX as someone mentioned, take a look at the new Silverstone SST-TJ08. It's not really light and is quite expensive for a microATX case. But it is nize. Aopen has one Al case in current production, the Nouveau - you can find pix of it on Newegg. It comes with a decent PSU
. Lian Li probaly has the edge due to their endless number of models and variants, some of which are pretty pared down on fearures so they should be lighter than their higher-end boxes. But I just don't like L-L the company - they seem arrogant to me and their cases are often lacking in features that are expected even of $50. and below cases these days.
And there is one AOpen A600A (discontinued model) available on mWave.com that would normally be considered in the high-end category but selling in the mid-range price area. Unfortunately it comes with a PSU that you might not be able to use as it is probably an old design with a relatively weak 12V rail, but it is still a good Fortron PSU that should bring some money on eBay or in the FS/T section here. I have no idea as to the weight - looked it up - net wt. is about 15 pounds (but IDK whether that includes the PSU).
.bh.
), but stiffen up a bit when you get your components in and tied down. Some Sky Hawk/Eagle (aka Skyhawk) cases (some places that still carry some: Newegg, mWave, Dealsonic) are a bit stronger - one of their MSR series I had here weighed about 12 pounds net and all the better ones left that I've seen out there lately use 1.0mm Al, while the MSR series was 1.2 mm, so they should be even lighter. I'd be wary of any Al made with thinner than 1.0mm Al as even 1mm can seem flimsy. These could be considered your budget options.Aspire and Chenming have Al versions of some of their cases. And Enermax has some Al cases that aren't very expensive - I have no direct experience of the sturdiness or lack thereof of the Enermax. And directron has some remaining TTGI/Superflower Al cases they sell both rebadged as Directron and the original brand. These are your mid-range options. Directron has a long list of "Al" cases but many just have Al bezels, the rest of the case is steel (e.g. the CM Centurion series and Mystique).
Then there are Thermaltake, Coolermaster, Silverstone and Lian Li whose all-Al cases are all approximately as well made (some would differ on the Tts
) and as expensive. But most won't be considered too lightweight as they use pretty heavy gauge Al and have features like mobo drawers and heavy extrusions on the doors, bezel, etc. If your mobo is microATX as someone mentioned, take a look at the new Silverstone SST-TJ08. It's not really light and is quite expensive for a microATX case. But it is nize. Aopen has one Al case in current production, the Nouveau - you can find pix of it on Newegg. It comes with a decent PSU. Lian Li probaly has the edge due to their endless number of models and variants, some of which are pretty pared down on fearures so they should be lighter than their higher-end boxes. But I just don't like L-L the company - they seem arrogant to me and their cases are often lacking in features that are expected even of $50. and below cases these days.
And there is one AOpen A600A (discontinued model) available on mWave.com that would normally be considered in the high-end category but selling in the mid-range price area. Unfortunately it comes with a PSU that you might not be able to use as it is probably an old design with a relatively weak 12V rail, but it is still a good Fortron PSU that should bring some money on eBay or in the FS/T section here. I have no idea as to the weight - looked it up - net wt. is about 15 pounds (but IDK whether that includes the PSU).
.bh.
I added some more to my earlier thread.
The Ultra case you linked is pretty small for an ATX case, but not particularly light. It's about the same as many similar Antec, Aspire, Chenming, etc cases. And Ultra is hooked in with TigerDirect, so it's not on my shopping list. I just found out that Ultra Products is in Fletcher, OH, so they are part of InfoTel which itself is a division of the TD/Systemax/InfoTel/etc. conglomerate. The Ultra Wizard is a counterfeit Antec - looks very similar on the outside, but lacks the nice features inside.
Take a look at the Rosewill R6A series to find a LOT of case for little money (except for the bezels, they are the same, as in mfr'd by the same company, as the Antec SLK-3000B). And about the same size/weight as the one you linked. See my thread in this section on the new Rosewill cases - I just bumped it back onto the the first page in C&C.
Mount a handle or two to the top and the R6As would be fairly easy to carry.
.bh.
The Ultra case you linked is pretty small for an ATX case, but not particularly light. It's about the same as many similar Antec, Aspire, Chenming, etc cases. And Ultra is hooked in with TigerDirect, so it's not on my shopping list. I just found out that Ultra Products is in Fletcher, OH, so they are part of InfoTel which itself is a division of the TD/Systemax/InfoTel/etc. conglomerate. The Ultra Wizard is a counterfeit Antec - looks very similar on the outside, but lacks the nice features inside.
Take a look at the Rosewill R6A series to find a LOT of case for little money (except for the bezels, they are the same, as in mfr'd by the same company, as the Antec SLK-3000B). And about the same size/weight as the one you linked. See my thread in this section on the new Rosewill cases - I just bumped it back onto the the first page in C&C.
Mount a handle or two to the top and the R6As would be fairly easy to carry.
.bh.
herm0016
Diamond Member
- Feb 26, 2005
- 8,522
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http://www.dealsonic.com/almsrse.html
i have a varent of a this skyhawk case, got it on the egg on clearence for under $30, i drilled out the fan holes and some simple mods, i now have great airflow, its all alum. fairly light, and cheap. you should look into them if you dont want to spend a lot and are willing to do a little bit of modification to them.
oh, and 300th post!! yay!
i have a varent of a this skyhawk case, got it on the egg on clearence for under $30, i drilled out the fan holes and some simple mods, i now have great airflow, its all alum. fairly light, and cheap. you should look into them if you dont want to spend a lot and are willing to do a little bit of modification to them.
oh, and 300th post!! yay!
I was going to reccomend that case, when I saw this thread title I though of that SkyHawk right away :thumbsup:
Yup, the case Herm linked is an MSR series Skyhawk like I mentioned up the thread a ways. But they've just about doubled the price. I went to Dealsonic doing research for my posts here and didn't see it. Still worth the price asked though and under 12 pounds empty. A little work on the noise (industrial mounting tape for the HDD bracket) and cooling (open out the rear fan openint to 92mm, put a 92 to 120 adapter out the back with a nice 120mm fan on it), and you're good to go. But the R6Ax are still more case for the money if you can deal with the extra 5 or 6 pounds - they already have the cooling and noise issues covered.
.bh.
.bh.
VinDSL
Diamond Member
well this one is ATX , made for Lan Parties , and weights 22 lbs :
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811119098
Peace & ciao !!!
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811119098
Peace & ciao !!!
And if your mobo really is a microATX, check out the Chenming 118, Aspire X-QPack or the Ultra variant of the same. Compactness and portability all in one. Ultra claims theirs is an inch or so deeper than the others so it can take a full-sized ATX PSU. Well, all the others can too - just no modular and best if the wire bundle exits the PSU near the top of the case as mounted in the case. Short chassis optical drives work best too.
.bh.
.bh.
VinDSL
Diamond Member
Speaking of which, he can really go whack if he wants!
My pick: Zero-Footprint-PC: ZPC-9000? -- Flash presentation...
VinDSL
Diamond Member
Heh! OMG!!!
Not trolling, but my Mountain Mods U2-UFO (monster case according to some) only weighs 12.5 lbs! :laugh:
There has to be a better solution out there for this guy...
RallyMaster
Diamond Member
- Dec 28, 2004
- 5,581
- 0
- 0
Thermaltake Matrix VX?
EDIT:
Links:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811133009
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811133008
EDIT:
Links:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811133009
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811133008
VinDSL
Diamond Member
MM is best for showing teh hardware inside the mean machine , but the price is High .
Peace & ciao !!!
BlueWeasel
Lifer
- Jun 2, 2000
- 15,944
- 475
- 126
I used the Lian Li PC-7B for the first time on 2 systems I recently built for a friend. I was very impressed with it and EXTREMELY lightweight. :thumbsup:
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