Coolermaster Wavemaster Vs. Antec180

[Thetech]

I can't decide which case to get the Coolermaster Wavemaster (which has a pull out motherboard tray) Versus the Antec 180 (which is a quiet case with great airflow but lacks a pull out motherboard tray)

Could anyone make me aware of a good case thats in between these two cases, e.g a nice looking case with great airflow,pull out motherboard tray, and quiet?

Thanks.

 

[scrawnypaleguy]

Well, it really boils down to personal preference. My wave master (in my humble opinion, of course) looks better and is higher quality than a P180, but I also recognize that I had to work very hard to get it to be quiet, and because of that, it does not have anywhere near the cooling capacity of the P180. My temps are by no means ridiculously high, but if you're concerned more about temps and silence than overall looks and quality, I'd go with the P180. Otherwise, my vote goes to the wave master.

 

[Thetech]

Would my system be that loud considering I'm not going to overclock anything?

 

[Bona Fide]

Originally posted by: Thetech
Would my system be that loud considering I'm not going to overclock anything?

Loudness seems to be quite subjective. People like Dynamix3D and the SPCR crew seem to think anything over 25dBa is "loud". [just playing with ya guys ]. Meanwhile, I personally don't mind sound as high as 35-40dBa, as long as it's in-game where the fans need to be moving fast and the in-game sounds drown the noise out.

But honestly, there's no contest. The P180 is "the" case to get right now, until the P190 or something comes out.

 

[imported_Kensai]

I would say the Antec P180.

 

[JEDIYoda]

well if Zalman made a p180 I would say go zalman all the way!!

But alas......
Your stuck with Antec P180!!!

 

[Shadowknight]

Actually the SPCR crowd things anything over 20db is loud. I'm one of them.

 

[Thetech]

Does the antec P180 have a hard drive activity light on the front?
One of the things I don't like on the Wavemaster is the front usb ports are on the top
Besides how usefull is a motherboard tray?

 

[ayabe]

Not trying to derail the thread but I'm very happy with my Silverstone Temjin 6 that I got last weekend, doesn't have a removable mobo tray but there's enough room to manage without it. My CPU temps went down about 4 C because of the wind tunnel and the case fans included are quiet. My only gripe is that I had to buy 24pin atx and 4 pin 12v extensions for my Powerstream 520 and MSI K8N Neo4 because in this case the mobo is inverted.

 

[Snowice]

antec p180... the wavemaster is so damn old.

yes. HDD activity light on the front behind the door.

 

[valkator]

Originally posted by: Snowice
antec p180... the wavemaster is so damn old.

yes. HDD activity light on the front behind the door.

Who cares that it is old it is still a really nice looking case. And the quality is quite impressive. I have the wave master and i love the thing

EDIT: Although the P180 is really nice too. I like the design of that case it is sweet if you like that sort of design

 

[imported_NightOps4Ever]

Both are extremely good choices. I just received my P180 about a week ago and I'm thrilled. I threw in another 120mm fan in the lower front portion for my hdds and I still can barely hear a thing with Cool n Quiet enabled. Wait, wait...I think I hear.... nah, it's just my Raptor's running in RAID 0 ;-) I even polished the aluminum on both sides with a flame look to it, so it looks pretty slick right now. I don't think I'll mod further than that... The door swinging a full 270' is a great touch, but I would have liked it even more if they would have used metal hinges instead of plastic...but it still feels pretty solid. My Wave tower was sweet and I really enjoyed it...but I wanted something that was a tad quieter and had really good airflow... Other than that, I'd say the looks are equal. If you want an even slicker looking P180, go to www.endpcnoise.com and find their custome SPCR 180 (it's all black...nice). Neither is a *bad* choice.

 

[BW86]

Originally posted by: Kensai
I would say the Antec P180.

qft

 

[Thetech]

Originally posted by: NightOps4Ever
Both are extremely good choices. I just received my P180 about a week ago and I'm thrilled. I threw in another 120mm fan in the lower front portion for my hdds and I still can barely hear a thing with Cool n Quiet enabled. Wait, wait...I think I hear.... nah, it's just my Raptor's running in RAID 0 ;-) I even polished the aluminum on both sides with a flame look to it, so it looks pretty slick right now. I don't think I'll mod further than that... The door swinging a full 270' is a great touch, but I would have liked it even more if they would have used metal hinges instead of plastic...but it still feels pretty solid. My Wave tower was sweet and I really enjoyed it...but I wanted something that was a tad quieter and had really good airflow... Other than that, I'd say the looks are equal. If you want an even slicker looking P180, go to www.endpcnoise.com and find their custome SPCR 180 (it's all black...nice). Neither is a *bad* choice.

Nice post. Thanks for the site and info

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: ayabe
Not trying to derail the thread but I'm very happy with my Silverstone Temjin 6 that I got last weekend, doesn't have a removable mobo tray but there's enough room to manage without it. My CPU temps went down about 4 C because of the wind tunnel and the case fans included are quiet. My only gripe is that I had to buy 24pin atx and 4 pin 12v extensions for my Powerstream 520 and MSI K8N Neo4 because in this case the mobo is inverted.

Not trying to derail the thread but

Then why post....dohh

 

[Gamingphreek]

n my humble opinion, of course) looks better and is higher quality

While aesthetics is an opinion you cannot claim that buld quality is an opinion. With that in mind, the Antec is MUCH higher build quality than the Wavemaster. The P180 comes with sound dampening strips, double hinged door, and instead of aluminum (lighter but noisier) it uses IIRC 1.0MM Cold Rolled steel. Therefore it is up to looks.

Get the wavemaster only if you prefer the looks and if you need a lighter more portable case. Other than that the P180 trumps it in all categories.

-Kevin

 

[andyliu88]

I've seen the P180 at Fry's and it seems very well built. Steel material may have its positive and negative for different users. Perhaps a little blah in the looks departement, and psu cables must be long for good wire management. Otherwise, this is probably the best case out there.

I have the wave master, and it is beautifully made w/ thick and solid alluminum alloy. Vibration shouldn't be a problem. However, vibration noise is easily created because it lacks rubber grommets and a separated hdd cage. It also uses 80mm fans for cooling. So you can't have the best of both cooling and silence. Mine is setup for quietness wth 4 80mm Nexus and 1 92mm Nexus on XP-90. With this setup, my hdds become the primary noise source. Personally, I'd go with P180. Even though I've been very happy with the wave master.

ps. for those who think all alluminum cases are light, you are wrong. the wave master is very heavy.

 

[Shadowknight]

Look at it this way... You're not going to be pulling your motherboard that often, so a motherboard tray isn't as useful as you might think.