Question Case help please

[SlayerOfMead]

Hi there

Can some of you good folk help me out....

I am looking for a case that has front USB ports as most cases have them on the top of the case, I know I can add ports but just wondered if any cases having them front facing.

I am also putting this in the case so I suppose this has to be in mind when buying one...............


ASUS Prime H610M-A D4 Intel H610 (LGA 1700) m-ATX motherboard, Noctua NH-U12S, Premium CPU Cooler with NF-F12 120mm Fan

And for about £100.00, and about 400mm tall maximum

Many thanks for any help.

 

[mikeymikec]

The basic cases I use for computer builds have front-facing USB ports, Antec VSK-3000B (one USB 3 and one USB 2.0 and VSK-3000 Elite (2x USB 3 IIRC).

 

[SlayerOfMead]

Oooh they are a bit cheapy looking though I was thinking something a tad better.

 

[Fallen Kell]

Unfortunately in the £100.00 range, it is tough. Maybe if you could go to the £150.00-180.00 range you would have better options. But you are squarely in the value/budget build cases, which will mean they have made sacrifices in that they will be a steel core with plastic for many pieces.

In anycase, here are some others to look at:
Factal Design Core 1100 (little taller at 478mm)
Thermaltake Core V21
Gamdias MARS E2 (little taller at 425mm)
ASUS AP201 Type-C Airflow-focused (little taller at 460mm)

 

[SlayerOfMead]

Core 1100 looks like the exact case I am after.

 

[bonehead123]

Oooh they are a bit cheapy looking though I was thinking something a tad better.

Antrek + cheap = a match made in heaven, or hades, depending your p.o.v.....

 

[SlayerOfMead]

Core 1100 arrived and went straight back as so did a Focus G mini, awful construction, I can spend about £150 now so any other ideas anyone may have.

 

[Tech Junky]

FD Node 804 is a nice case. Has the USB on the front side right.

 

[SlayerOfMead]

FD Node 804 is a nice case. Has the USB on the front side right.

Umm eeew.... I was hoping for a more tower design, my old Arc Mini R2 was the business......

 

[Tech Junky]

Well, then you're on your own to sift through the thousands of case designs available. Have fun.

 

[SlayerOfMead]

Well, then you're on your own to sift through the thousands of case designs available. Have fun.

I will indeed, thanks for all of your help

 

[mikeymikec]

Core 1100 arrived and went straight back as so did a Focus G mini, awful construction, I can spend about £150 now so any other ideas anyone may have.

I bookmarked the 1100 as a result of this thread What didn't you like about it, out of curiosity?

 

[SlayerOfMead]

I bookmarked the 1100 as a result of this thread What didn't you like about it, out of curiosity?

I was thinking airflow would be a bit restrictive as there is no front fan showing and cable management was a bit missing

 

[mikeymikec]

According to the specs it has a 120mm front fan included. The rear 92mm fan might have turned me off it though.

I think the VSK3000B has a rear 80mm fan mount and the VSK3000 Elite has a rear 120mm mount. I prefer to use the rear fan mount point more than any other, as it seems to put the noise further away from the user.

 

[SlayerOfMead]

According to the specs it has a 120mm front fan included. The rear 92mm fan might have turned me off it though.

I think the VSK3000B has a rear 80mm fan mount and the VSK3000 Elite has a rear 120mm mount. I prefer to use the rear fan mount point more than any other, as it seems to put the noise further away from the user.

You know what I would really like is a desktop case like a HTPC case, the thought of having everything at eye level and accessible right in front of you is a great thing but alas this is all seen as old hat nowadays, when I first used a PC this was the norm and such a great idea.

 

[mikeymikec]

You know what I would really like is a desktop case like a HTPC case, the thought of having everything at eye level and accessible right in front of you is a great thing but alas this is all seen as old hat nowadays, when I first used a PC this was the norm and such a great idea.

It has the advantage of putting ports right in front of you, but the disadvantage of putting the noise-maker right next to you. I've found that avoiding putting a PC in the corner of a room, particularly at eye level is good wrt avoiding it being much more noisy during usage than it needs to be. My tower is at floor level and is virtually silent aside from the HDD whine.

 

[SlayerOfMead]

It has the advantage of putting ports right in front of you, but the disadvantage of putting the noise-maker right next to you. I've found that avoiding putting a PC in the corner of a room, particularly at eye level is good wrt avoiding it being much more noisy during usage when it needs to be. My tower is at floor level and is virtually silent aside from the HDD whine.

I do a lot of video stuff so bending down under a desk to insert a USB or other connection is a pain and I would most likely fidget and kick the thing lol

 

[mikeymikec]

I do a lot of video stuff so bending down under a desk to insert a USB or other connection is a pain and I would most likely fidget and kick the thing lol

I ran a couple of USB extension leads, one USB 2.0 to and a hub on the end for stuff like the mouse wireless receiver and misc USB stuff, and a second USB 3.0 extension lead for plugging in my main USB 3.0 stick. It sacrifices a bit in cable neatness (esp. since I've run two more long cables from the back of the PC, one for USB micro and USB-C).

 

[SlayerOfMead]

I ran a couple of USB extension leads, one USB 2.0 to and a hub on the end for stuff like the mouse wireless receiver and misc USB stuff, and a second USB 3.0 extension lead for plugging in my main USB 3.0 stick. It sacrifices a bit in cable neatness (esp. since I've run two more long cables from the back of the PC, one for USB micro and USB-C).

I don't really want to have cables routing where I don't need them if you get my drift, I just looked at the old Arc Mini 2 I had bought in 2015 for £65.99 amazing case and yet now the same price and sort of similar case the Focus G Mini that I just sent back was of a horrendous construction, I get costs have gone up but jeez the materials are a bit jank.

And most cases have USB ports on the top which is dumb af and no 5.25 bay or come with a smoke side panel.... ok the panel is OK 'ish but it's a task to find a relatively good case.

 

[kschendel]

...
And most cases have USB ports on the top which is dumb af and no 5.25 bay or come with a smoke side panel.... ok the panel is OK 'ish but it's a task to find a relatively good case.

5.25" bays are very nearly pointless any more. If you need one, fine, but the vast majority of new builds don't. I wasted money on a DVD drive in my main build in 2018, and I think I've used it maybe twice.

As for USB on top, I suspect that it's at least partly to make construction easier and airflow better. If you have front USB, either the front panel becomes unremovable, or tethered which is a PITA, or segmented which adds parts and cost. Speaking for myself, given a choice, I'd prefer USB on top anyway; most of my computers sit below eye level in use.

 

[Fallen Kell]

You know what I would really like is a desktop case like a HTPC case, the thought of having everything at eye level and accessible right in front of you is a great thing but alas this is all seen as old hat nowadays, when I first used a PC this was the norm and such a great idea.

Well, you can always get a HTPC case. I use a Antec Fusion Remote MAX in my living room. It matches well with my other AV gear so it doesn't even look like a PC. The nice thing about this one is that you can fit a Noctua NH-D14 heatsink in it and it has 120mm rear fan (something almost no HTPC cases have). Problem is that the case is from something like 2008, so harder to find now (and if you do find it, people are typically asking a premium on it, like $250-300 when it was originally a $150 case). Heck, anandtech even review it: https://www.anandtech.com/show/2637/8

That said, there are HTPC cases out there. Silverstonetek still make some nice ones especially if you can get away with low profile CPU heatsinks and stick with lower power CPUs/GPUs. But if you want a full powered system, the Antec Remote Max was hard to beat (it even had the option for a 120mm fan that blows across the PCIe/GPU slots from the front of the case, but you sacrifice one of the 3.5" hard drive slots to use it, however that is a small price to pay). Cable routing is a bit of an issue, but then again, that was an issue for all cases of that age.

A Silverstonetek GD11 is probably the closest in terms of a HTPC case that would work with a modern full powered system. But again it is on the larger size (not quite as tall as the Fusion Max, as it only has room for 80mm fans in the rear), but it does have space for 280mm radiator. But if you want something a little smaller a GD09 is pretty good. You need to think of these a little different than the typical case in terms of cooling. They are designed to cool from side to side, with 120/140mm fans on each side (one side as intake the other as exhaust, which is why they have smaller 80mm fans in the rear, just to help with the CPU area).