antec 1080 vs Xaser V

[rookie1010]

I recently made myself a PC. P-4 1.2 GHz based with a gigabyte 81875 ultra mobo.

my case sucks, it was one of the cheap cases that dabs offers. i want a new case with more cooling (my pc always complained when i played a graphics intensive game, beep, beep...), and more space

i narrowed my choices to the xaser V and the antec 1080. don't know much about cases. discovered on the way, that there are aluminium cases and non-aluminium cases. i discovered that aluminium cases are 1/2 as heavy as non aluminium cases. what are non aluminium cases made of?

what do you guys recommend Xaser V (aluminium/non aluminium), Antec 1080(which comes with an antec 430 watt PSU, recommended by people) or something else. problem with antec 1080 is it is not available at the moment, but if it is a good buy, i can wait for it. antec 1080 is possible a non aluminium case, looking at the weight.

i came across references that aluminium cases are better at heat dissipation, which will improve the cooling(?), in that case the xaser V(aluinium) will be a good one. and if i were to go for a Xaser V what PSU should i go for? Antec 430 watt or a thermaltake. i want to keep the cost of the overall case + PSU under 150 pounds (i think that would equate to 150 dollars since comp stuff in the UK is much expensive than stuff in the US)

 

[CheesePoofs]

The xaser v plus a psu would cost more than a antec 1080, since it comes with a psu. I've worked with both cases, and i prefer the 1080, mostly because the fan wiring on the xaser v is terrible and very hard to use. Also, the pci slot bracket clips don't work well, you have to cut a peice off of them to be able to put in a tall graphics card, like any of the 6800's.
You won't get better cooling with an aluminum case versus a steel case because the case its self doesn't cool any components, its the air moving through it that does.

 

[rookie1010]

thanks for the reply. i was wondering what are the benefits of an aluminium cases since the king of cases, lian li(are they the best?) use only aluminium cases.

i am really npot sure if i will need 3 5.25 inch bays or 4 5.25 inch bays? do you know what people use a 4th bay usually for?

so you would stay away from thermaltake cases in general?, i would have gone for a lian li, but it is outside my budget.

how does antec provide a case + PSU (430 watts!) for less the money that thermaltake sell their xaser V series?

i have heard good stuff about the antec 1080 but it idoes not seem to be available in the UK at the moment.

what do you think of the lanboy?
http://www.microdirect.co.uk/P...D=5468&GroupID=424

the sonata (it comes with a 380 watt PSU)
http://www.microdirect.co.uk/P...D=5471&GroupID=424

the performance one p160
http://www.microdirect.co.uk/P...D=5472&GroupID=424

lian li's pc700 & pc60 seem to be in the same range as the antec's i am looking at, but dont seem to be available. how do you classify if one is a tower and one is a mid tower, they seem to be of the same size
21 cm x 49 cm x 45 cm

 

[CheesePoofs]

1) The benifits of aluminum are that it is lighter and easier to shape, so the manufacters can more easily make rounded corners, strange shapes, etc with an aluminum case.

2) 3.5 inch bays are really only used for optical drives, tape drives, and fan speed controllers. 4 bays is just more, most people who get cases with 4 bays do so because they like the case, not because it has another bay.

3) Thermaltake's cases aren't the best, but they arent cases to avoid. I don't think all of the xaser V's come with the fan controller that i described above, there are some that have just two big knobs on the front to control the fan speed, and my guess is that those cases don't have as many wires, but im not sure.

4) The antec is less because it is made of steel, doesn't have a window, doesn't have all the lights the xaser V has, and doesn't have the fan controller. Thermaltake might also charge a premium for their cases, but im not sure about that.

5)Any of those cases will be great, but with the lanboy and p160 you will also ned to purchase a power supply.
Or, if you like the Antec 1080, you could get the Antec Plus 660AMG which is essentially a smaller version of the 1080. I use this case for my main computer, and i like it a lot. The only problem is the power supply isn't huge (330W), but it will easily power your system. And, because its a very high quality PS, it will probably perform better than a lower quality 400w PS.

BTW, microdirect says the 1080 will be in in 1-3 days, i don't know if its been saying that for weeks, but i thought you might like to know.

 

[Mik3y]

antec 1080.

thermaltake = ugly, not as good as antec in quality, and psu sux.

 

[Mrvile]

Hmm I heard that aluminum dissapated heat better, but if you're so sure of yourself I may be wrong...

 

[CheesePoofs]

Originally posted by: Mrvile
Hmm I heard that aluminum dissapated heat better, but if you're so sure of yourself I may be wrong...

Aluminum does disipate heat better than steel, but the walls of the case aren't used to dissipate heat, it is the air moving through the case that disipates the heat.

 

[rookie1010]

thanks for the reply. microdirect has been saying the 1-3 day availability for almost a week now.

does one really need a fan controller if the fans are heat sensitive, and move more air if things get hot.

the thing i liked about the 1080 was the 430 watt antec PSU, which would save me the need of upgrading the psu in sometime.

should i go for a cheap (? ) lian li case for aboue t 60 pounds and stick an antec PSU in instead. or i could go for the lanboy which is alumnium again and stick a 430 watt antec PSU again (50+60) versus 75 for the 1080, damn the maths is not in favour of the lanboy combination. looked at the 660, it is reasonably priced, but it has 3 5.25 inch drives. i have figured i will have a dvd writer, cd writer(old one) and the audigy 2zs in those leaving no other slots. that is why i am thinking about 4.


your thoughts on my wandering thoughts

 

[CheesePoofs]

Originally posted by: rookie1010
thanks for the reply. microdirect has been saying the 1-3 day availability for almost a week now.

I kind of figured as much, but i thought i'd let you know just in case.

Originally posted by: rookie1010
does one really need a fan controller if the fans are heat sensitive, and move more air if things get hot.

No, but neither of the antec's come with heat sensitive fans. However, the antec doesn't come with heat sensitive fans. My friend who has the 1080 has all of his case fans (5 total) plugged directly into the power supply, and to tell you the truth its not really that loud.

Originally posted by: rookie1010
should i go for a cheap (? ) lian li case for aboue t 60 pounds and stick an antec PSU in instead. or i could go for the lanboy which is alumnium again and stick a 430 watt antec PSU again (50+60) versus 75 for the 1080, damn the maths is not in favour of the lanboy combination.

I don't think the lian li is really worth it, because for that little you probably won't be able to get a great one, plus the extra cost of adding a PS will raise the price to near what the lanboy would cost, and a cheap lian li might not be much better than the lanboy.

Originally posted by: rookie1010
looked at the 660, it is reasonably priced, but it has 3 5.25 inch drives. i have figured i will have a dvd writer, cd writer(old one) and the audigy 2zs in those leaving no other slots. that is why i am thinking about 4.

If you needed to fit in another drive you could always unplug the audigy's front thing, but if you need the audigy thing or want room to expand, then this case really isn't for you. I know where you are coming from though, I like to have lots of room to expand in my computer .

 

[rookie1010]

thanks for the reply, clears a lot of mky confusions. looks like i might just wait fot the antec 1080. if you are in the UK, can you recommend me a online seller which would do the 1080.
overclockers.co.uk say they have it, but i think they would sell it without the psu. and they dont have it, now they dont seem to have it on their website, i wonder if antec has withdrawn the case for some reason.


hey do the lian li's have removable mobo floorings, what i mean is, is the flooring of the lian li's removable, so that you could plug in the mobo onto the flooring and stick the mobo back in.

 

[CheesePoofs]

I live in the US, so i know of no uk online vendors. I don't think a merchant can sell the 1080 without the PS though. there is a version of it sold called the plusview1000amg which is the same case but it has a window and no PS.

Some of the lian li's come with a removable motherboard tray, which i think is what you're talking about, but others don't. They will list the feature on their website if they have it.

 

[rookie1010]

do you think the 1080 is worth the wait, it's got the right number of 5.25 bays and a powerful PSU and quite a bit of cooling? and 3 fans thrown in, that is real nice.

does the 430 watt PSU have its fan blowing air downwards instead of outside?

is a removable mobo a good thing to have?

 

[rookie1010]

look dude, no PSU
http://www.overclock.co.uk/cus...ct.php?productid=16603
you think the merchant is exceeding his remit?