Best Athlon Case?

[MidiGuy]

I'm planning to build a system with a 800-1000 Mhz Thunderbird (possibly 800 oc'd to 1000) and a KT133A mobo. Does anyone have any suggestions for the best case to use? I was thinking of using the Fong-Kai-603 ATX Mid-Tower. There's a review at http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.html?i=1138&p=1

-MidiGuy

 

[crash2much]

I love my At901 from www.pccase.com. Don't let the price fool ya. For $64 plus s&h, it's pretty sweet. Check it out.

 

[ZeroBurn]

i have the fong kai 320 and love it, it has more room then you'd need and works well for my tbird setup as well. the cpu shroud really kicks butt when it comes to cooling that socket a. you can pick one up at directron, which you can also get your 603 at as well. from what i understand the 320 is the big brother to the 603

 

[MidiGuy]

Thanks for the input! I have three questions:

1.) What are the advantages of the FK320 over the 603?

2.) Is the default power supply good enough?

3.) Should the fan duct system be used with an active heat sink?

 

[ZeroBurn]

1) i've actually not used the 603 or seen it, however after reading several reviews i just got the idea it was simply roomier, and had a different front style (which i thought looked better, this played in my decision for the 320 as well). i figured if the 603 was so great, and they didn't change anything but a few design specs to the 320 it could only be better, not worse. more room, better style? i'll go for that

2) yes, the fong kai approved PSU is awesome, just might want to consider changing the PSU fan (which i highly reccoomend).

3) i have a modest fan on my alpha pal6035 heatsink which doesn't create much/any noise at all (the quiet adda fan from pham computer) along with a 92mm panaflo L1A running at half volt, and does the job. i'd strongly reccommend a running heatsink fan, if not a strong one then use the ADDA fan which won't create noise at all. keep in mind the fan duct isn't going to directly cool your CPU, simply the general area AROUND the cpu. the hot air above the heatsink gets pulled out through the duct, the duct doesn't do anything for the cpu directly.

 

[MidiGuy]

Thanks again. Sorry if I'm asking some newbie questions, but as far as building goes, that's what I am! This is my first system.

How do you replace a PSU fan? And what would you recomend putting in?

 

[ZeroBurn]

MidiGuy- hehe quite alright, i remember when i was afraid how to open my PSU (acutally until quite recently, until Tonec showed me the way ) this forum's all about helping the new guys. read my thread here about how to replace a fan, i just did it on my fong kai 320 psu.

 

[MidiGuy]

Where would I get the crimper and butts that you mentioned in the other post?

Also, is there any reason that I need to replace the fan besides noise?

 

[ZeroBurn]

no other reason to swap the PSU fan besides noise issues.

you can pick up the butts and crimpers from radioshack. the crimper should be roughly $10 with a pack of a dozen or so butts for $1.80 or so, i can't remember and i tossed the receipt. they're red and blue wire connect butts, and you just stick one wire in each end and then smash the tube, which keeps the circuit connected. here's an image i just took real quick of them so you know what to look for.

 

[MidiGuy]

Is the psu noise high pitched or low? Is it really loud?

 

[ZeroBurn]

depends on the fan, mine was just a regular humming noise.

 

[Shu8]

the best case i've ever used [and is using] is the antec sx830. my cybermax carries a fong kai case, and i don't like it too much. i know a lot of people like the fong kai's but it's nothing compared to my antec. to me the fong kai is just a piece of plastic

 

[MidiGuy]

Thanks for all your input, ZeroBurn! After looking at those two cases, I'm leaning more toward the fk-603 than the fk320, though I'm still not entirely sure. My reasons for leaning toward the fk-603 include the extra 3.5 inch drive bay and the $30 or so extra for the fk320 for not many improvements.

If I were to get the 603, I would want a different power supply. Would any of the upgrades offered by directron.com be good? http://www.directron.com/fk603atxcase.html

I could also order it without a psu and buy one somewhere else. Does anyone have any suggestions on that?

 

[ZeroBurn]

if you could splurge on an enemax or sparkle PSU then by all means go for it- just get a FK w/out a PSU included. shave off a few bucks there for the new PSU. it'd be a lot better then anything stock. but i figured since the $30 difference in the 603 and the 320 are bothering you then a stock PSU would be good enough

yea, i was leaning between the two myself and went w/ a 320 since i felt i didn't need the extra drive bay and much and would rather have something a little smaller- oops the FK320 is pretty massive in itself. also i just prefered the front bevel and sliding plate more then the 603, but i can definitely see your swaying decision

but either way you're going to be extremely satisfied i'm sure, so it's it's not picking between good and bad, it's just which is the better of the two goods at this point