Antec300 or Coolermaster Elite. Both can be had for that price.
I have both.
Coolermaster is better cooling if you add fans. Coolermaster only has one fan stock in the front. Adding fans to either the top, side or back can make a very big big difference. Rosewill makes a decent fan that fits this case well that is on sale for $3.99.
Otherwise- stock the Antec comes with more fans so stock performance is better. it has fans in back and top. You can move one to the front if you needed.
I left it alone on the Antec300 as it came stock because I use the Antec for a HTPC in my A/V closet and it's only SSD with no HDD build so no need the front fan on HDD's; SSD makes no heat. I decided I would rather have cooling in back and on top for the CPU. I use integrated graphics on 3570k and stock Intel cooler. It runs really quiet and really cool.
Using 6% CPU to playback a 1080p movie might have something to do with that. I run the fans on the low setting.
I use the Coolermaster Elite for my office PC. It's an OLD LGA775 build on Asus ROG board. Core2 DUO E8500. I run it at 3.8ghz overclock. DDR2 800 is soooo slow... I can hit 4.0 no problem on stock cooler with this case and run it all day. The Coolermaster case is solid choice and on sale now. $30-$40 shipped. With the extra fans it cools better than the stock Antec. Without them it's slightly worse.
You can't go wrong with either one.
Some people like the heavier gauge metal on the Antec300, and the fact it comes with extra fan ($4 value) and it has fan control (cheap plastic switches with high/med/low setting).
Others dislike the Antec300 for that although the metal ply is thicker- the motherboard tray flexes more than the coolermaster because the coolermaster is reinforced in key areas better and the Antec is just sheet ply metal.
The cooler master has a better fit and feel inside. It's that black powdercoated finish on all the metal vs the bare industrial metal unfinished on the Antec300. This has a nicer feel to it IMO as it feels more a finished product and not something just stamped together. Coolermaster is a bit more gamer like with a clear side. I think in person the coolermaster actually looks better but online pictures show the Antec looks better. The antec300 is uglier in person IMO... than it in the pictures Newegg It's a bit bigger and heavier too.
My biggest issue with Antec was I got two defect. First the power switch did not work. I've built 25 PC's this year. I know how to hook up the power LED leads to the motherboard. It just did not work. The replacement worked fine. But the replacement was mislabeled. They labeled two the same and did not label one properly. I had to figure it out by testing but I eventually got it too work. Antec just stamps those things out so there is not much attention to detail IMO. Both issues were disappointing.
I posted pictures in a build thread on AVS and got flamed because I suggest the Antec300 was overated a bit. It's a great case for the money- but it's simply on par with others. There is some odd cult following thinking it's like head and shoulders above the rest. It's not. It's about the same.
I own it. I also own the Coolermaster Elite. I also have my desktop in a COSMOS II so I know what a good quality case feels like. My WHS2011/FlexRaid server is in an old Thermaltake Armor 10 bay tower. I am in process of upgrading that into a NORCO4224. I've built a couple Silverstone and Corsairs too.
Please no flamers. Antec300 is a good choice for OP and I think it's a good case under $50. One of the best under $50. But it's on par with the better ones out there. That is all I am saying.
It's popular cause it sells cheap and has thick metal ply. It has decent room and build options so it's like one size fits all for so many. But it has a decidedly stamped out feel to it that lacks the fit and finish of a high end case.
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