Case Material Types?

[rkarsk]

Hi,

I've been looking around for some cases and noticed that there are many different types of materials used to create these cases. I'm just wondering what the differences are between them.. namely:

ABS
HIPS
SECC
Steel

Thanks!

 

[rkarsk]

Anybody?

 

[canadageek]

most cases are steel. it's cheap and strong, easy to work with. the rest are usually made of aluminium, which is more expensive but lighter. ABS is (obviously) a plastic, which is fairly shatterproof, used in making water pipes, among other things. and i have no odea what HIPS,SECC stand for, wish i could help you with those

 

[akira34]

ABS is a plastic.
SECC is a type of steel or a process done during fabrication (example: Material: 1mm SECC Steel)
Steel is... well, steel
Not sure what HIPS is, except everyone has a pair.

Material you generally find in quality cases includes aluminum (there are different alloys used, which do make a difference) and steel.

Any better???

 

[drpootums]

Originally posted by: akira34Not sure what HIPS is, except everyone has a pair.

...

 

[rkarsk]

lol @ the hips comment.

Thanks for the help, althought its unfortunate that nobody knows what HIPS is, because thats what my budget case is made of

http://www.ncix.com/products/i...mp;manufacture=Tsunami

 

[BonzaiDuck]

Aluminum conducts heat three times better than steel. Steel is heavier.

Now -- as to the first advantage of aluminum. With effective case cooling, the difference between using your case as a heatsink and having those properties voided somewhat by using steel case material -- is negligible. If you are optimally cooling your system, then the motherboard, processor, chipset, VGA card and so on are kept so cool that very little heat gets absorbed by the case anyway. I suppose it all depends on how warm you allow your system to get -- how warm you allow the case interior "ambient" temperature to get. If your case interior is more than just a few degrees above room temperature, I suppose that the choice of an aluminum case over a steel case may make some difference, but I do not know how "noticeable" it will be.

Aluminum is lighter, looks prettier, costs more. Steel can be bent more easily -- that is -- for "working" it to a particular shape, and doesn't break as easily when bent.

The problem cited with acrylic, crystallite, plexi-glass or Lexan windows is supposedly that the use of these materials reduces the case-as-heatsink properties. But as I said, this factor may be negligible, given your particular cooling solution.

For a really nifty acrylic-case project, check out a water-cooled system known as "ORAC 3", which you should be able to find in a web-search.

 

[akira34]

HIPS is probably something akin to High Impact PlasticS... :disgust:

BTW, cheap cases are cheap for a reason... They're made with cheap materials and/or cheaply made... Neither one is good.

 

[Tiamat]

Originally posted by: akira34
HIPS is probably something akin to High Impact PlasticS... :disgust:

BTW, cheap cases are cheap for a reason... They're made with cheap materials and/or cheaply made... Neither one is good.

Either that or they are 2-3 years old. I sited a LianLi PC60 for under 100$. Back in the day I spent 180$ on it...

 

[Insomniak]

Originally posted by: BonzaiDuck
Aluminum is lighter, looks prettier, costs more. Steel can be bent more easily -- that is -- for "working" it to a particular shape, and doesn't break as easily when bent.

Uh, correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe Aluminum bends far more easily than steel....

 

[akira34]

Originally posted by: Insomniak

Originally posted by: BonzaiDuck
Aluminum is lighter, looks prettier, costs more. Steel can be bent more easily -- that is -- for "working" it to a particular shape, and doesn't break as easily when bent.

Uh, correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe Aluminum bends far more easily than steel....

Depends on the alloy. Some bend easier/better than others. Not all alloys are created equal.

 

[rkarsk]

Originally posted by: akira34
HIPS is probably something akin to High Impact Plastics... :disgust:

Damnit. I'm going to regret buying that case, i think it actually stands for High Impact Polystyrene, which is a great INSULATOR.

GRRR

 

[akira34]

Originally posted by: rkarsk

Originally posted by: akira34
HIPS is probably something akin to High Impact Plastics... :disgust:

Damnit. I'm going to regret buying that case, i think it actually stands for High Impact Polystyrene, which is a great INSULATOR.

GRRR

If that's true, you are SOOOO boned... :shocked: :laugh: :laugh:

 

[shinotenshi]

amm no aluminum always bends more than steel. steel is far far more rigid per weight/thickness. aluminum is popular becuase its lighter and can be machine into more aesthetically pleasing shapes. personally i think silverstone hybrid aluminum/steel cases are the best designs. you get the nice aesethic aluminum bezel, but in my opinon the superior aspects of steel over aluminum, namely superior rigidity and increase density which means less vibrations and its also cheaper. Unless you need it to be light, i think these hybrid cases are the way to go.

 

[akira34]

Actually, properly annealed steel works just as easily as aluminum. Properly heat treated and tempered aluminum is just as strong as steel. Why else do you think the aviation industry uses aluminum in aircraft and not steel?

It all comes down to the alloys. Good alloy aluminum will be much better than cheap alloy aluminum or decent alloy steel. Great alloy steel will give great alloy aluminum a run for it's money. BUT the aluminum WILL be much lighter at the same thickness.

BTW, I've worked with both steel and aluminum before, so I had to research the alloys to make sure I selected the correct alloy for the job. There more alloys of steel than I can even think of counting. I know there are several high quality aluminum alloys that (as mentioned) once heat treated are JUST as strong as steel. How else do you think motorcycle manufacturers will use aluminum in critical areas (to save weight) and not just go with steel. IF aluminum really was weaker, they wouldn't even THINK about it. Going 80mph+ and having one of those aluminum pieces fail is NOT an option.

 

[shinotenshi]

Thickness for thickness im pretty sure iron alloy(steel) is always stronger than aluminum. becuase iron is much denser than alumimum. however aluminum alloys can be stronger on a perwieght basis, but as i already said unless wieght is an issue (planes, motercyles) you might want to pick aluminum, but for things where weight is not an issue ie, a pc case or a bulding, you go steel.

 

[Nessism]

Originally posted by: akira34
Actually, properly annealed steel works just as easily as aluminum. Properly heat treated and tempered aluminum is just as strong as steel. Why else do you think the aviation industry uses aluminum in aircraft and not steel?

It all comes down to the alloys. Good alloy aluminum will be much better than cheap alloy aluminum or decent alloy steel. Great alloy steel will give great alloy aluminum a run for it's money. BUT the aluminum WILL be much lighter at the same thickness.

BTW, I've worked with both steel and aluminum before, so I had to research the alloys to make sure I selected the correct alloy for the job. There more alloys of steel than I can even think of counting. I know there are several high quality aluminum alloys that (as mentioned) once heat treated are JUST as strong as steel. How else do you think motorcycle manufacturers will use aluminum in critical areas (to save weight) and not just go with steel. IF aluminum really was weaker, they wouldn't even THINK about it. Going 80mph+ and having one of those aluminum pieces fail is NOT an option.

Not to nit pick too much but...steel alloys have a much wider range of material strength than does aluminum. High strength alloy steel are available that are significantly stronger than the strongest aluminum alloys.

Regarding common low grade materials used for cases, steels main advantage is that the material is much stiffer per unit area. For this reason, aluminum must be made much thicker for the same stiffness and dent resistance.

I think the main advantage of aluminum over steel is the low density; it will build into a significantly ligher case than steel. For lan party types this can be important. One thing many people tout but I don't think is very significant is the heat conductivity of aluminum. Yes, aluminum transports heat better than steel. But this matters very little since the important parts of the computer, such as the heatsinks, are not directly connected to the case. Aluminum can't hurt but I don't think it helps much.

Ed

 

[stevennoland]

Most cases I'm familiar with are made with aluminum, steel, acrylic, plastic, and even wood (why, I don't know). The material a case is made from has to do with it's cost and target. People looking to get a CHEAP case usually get a steel and plastic one. Hell, for the longest time, this was all you could get! I hope it is common knowledge that plastic (and acrylic) are crappy heat conductors, with steel being not much better. Aluminum is the best choice (albeit expensive). It has good heat absorption and dispersion qualities, easily molded, and light (for you LAN party fans). I don't know what HIPS and SECC is. Sorry.

 

[shinotenshi]

The heat conductivey between aluminum and steel are meaningless in pc cases. people have tested this many times, if you do a google search i'm sure you will find it. Aslo as i and nessism have already pointed steel will always be more rigid than aluminum which is more important for a pc case. there are some advantages to the greater molecular denisty of Iron that no amound of aluminum engineering can overcome.

 

[stevennoland]

Originally posted by: shinotenshi
The heat conductivey between aluminum and steel are meaningless in pc cases. people have tested this many times, if you do a google search i'm sure you will find it. Aslo as i and nessism have already pointed steel will always be more rigid than aluminum which is more important for a pc case. there are some advantages to the greater molecular denisty of Iron that no amound of aluminum engineering can overcome.

Why would I need my case to rigid? Is it holding up my desk (feet). No!

Hell, I would buy a case made of cardboard if it were quieter and cooler.

And what the eff does molecular desity have to do with it? Please.

 

[TheGeek]

titanium is the best

 

[shinotenshi]

Im not sure about that one. I think titainum is stronger when we take into account wieght. but if i remember my chemistry right cube for cube steel is stronger becuase of its higher denisity. so while gram for gram titanium is stronger, cube for cube i think steel is better.

 

[Insomniak]

Originally posted by: shinotenshi
Im not sure about that one. I think titainum is stronger when we take into account wieght. but if i remember my chemistry right cube for cube steel is stronger becuase of its higher denisity. so while gram for gram titanium is stronger, cube for cube i think steel is better.

Also, IIRC, Aluminum is something like 4x as heat conductive as Titanium...So a titanium case would insulate, something you'd prefer to avoid.

I myself think steel is the material of choice, simply because it gives you the most bang for your buck - steel and aluminum at the same cost point = steel stronger, not quite as thermally conductive, but still good at it.