Antec 1200 overkill?

[Lee Saxon]

With multiple spindle drives, a GF100 card (Quadro 4000), and possibly an Adaptec 3405 RAID card down the road, I'm pretty concerned with getting the coolest case I can.

Is the Antec 1200 overkill? Would I be fine with a 902? Or are there better options? I won't be overclocking, I don't want to get into watercooling, and size/weight is not an issue.

Here's what I'm planning:

Power Supply....................Corsair AX750
CPU.............................Phenom II X6 1055
Motherboard.....................Asus M4A77TD
RAM.............................G.Skill 16GB DDR3 1600
Boot SSD........................Force F90
Scratch SSD.....................Force F90
Media/Noncritical Storage.......Samsung F3 7200RPM 500GB
RAID 1 Storage..................Samsung F4 5400RPM 2TB
RAID 1 Storage..................Samsung F4 5400RPM 2TB
Video Card......................Quadro 4000
Sound Card......................Xonar Essence STX

 

[Arik5405]

I love my 1200. I know that doesn't really help you with your decision, but I just thought I would let you know.

 

[Bl0cks]

Coolest as in, keeping components cold, or the hippest case out today? If you concerned about hot swapping drives, with my experience with my 900, changing out hard drives can be a pain. Have to remove the hard drive cage, then remove the screws from the hard drive cage to remove a hard drive.

 

[fluffmonster]

902 is a bit cramped if you have a lot of components on the inside.

 

[CurseTheSky]

The Antec 1200 isn't a bad choice if you want something with a lot of space and cooling potential. I find that it's a bit too loud and blingy for my tastes.

The Silverstone Fortress 2 (FT02) is another option if you value lots of air movement and quiet operation. The Coolermaster ATCS 840 is another good pick.

 

[Zap]

I won't be overclocking

That tells me you will be fine with just about any case that has halfway decent airflow. No need for a wind tunnel.

 

[Harrod]

They're pretty nice, I have one with 2 240 mm radiators in it, it's nice to have the extra room. The only thing is the fans move alot of air even when turned down to low, so you will definitely want to keep it under a desk to keep the noise down.

 

[Petey!]

Silverstone RV02 as an alternative maybe? Enough room for all your stuff and an excellent air cooler while being silent.

 

[Lee Saxon]

Is an FT02 worth spending $100 more than a 1200?

Considering I don't need the hot-swappable bays, what are the advantages?

 

[aigomorla]

need moar power!!!

seriously tho, larger the psu does not mean more power draw.
Infact larger the psu, can be a double edged sword.

Because large psu's are sometimes not efficient at lower load levels, but are more efficient at higher load levels, and vice versa.

So its really down to the Quality of the PSU, and not the pure wattage.

 

[Lee Saxon]

Huh? We're talking about the Antec Twelve Hundred case, not a 1200w PSU?

 

[aigomorla]

Huh? We're talking about the Antec Twelve Hundred case, not a 1200w PSU?

OMG... i need a face palm on myself...

i read antec 1200 + overkill... i automatically assumed 1200W psu from antec.

 

[videogames101]

No joke, it literally is a wind tunnel. If you like the looks, go for it, but be prepared for the noise.

I love mine, if that helps.

 

[BoomerD]

IMO, there's nothing at all wrong with buying a larger case than you need. More room equals more air space...which means it takes more to heat it up...and your cooling should be more efficient/easier to keep things from overheating.
(not always exactly the case, but you get my drift)

I'm about to start a build with a Coolermaster HAF 932 even though I'm only going to have one video card, (EVGA GTX460 Superclocked) and one hard drive. I certainly don't NEED a case that big...but it's what I WANT...plus, I have oversized hands, and having a larger case makes it easier for me to work inside doing connections and such.