Critique this case

[wiredvibes]

Has anyone used this case or seen this case in action. Im getting a good deal on it and was thinking of buying it. i need a case to house a ASUS P5NSLI, 7950GX2 and HDD's that dont touch each other. Ive heard that it is a problem in some cases. this case has alot of cooling and gives me the option of liquid cooling for the future. all critiques are welcomed.

PS will the P180 work for me?

 

[Hochi]

p180 should be fine as the HD's are in the bottom of the case so your vid card won't have space issues. But the mobo tray is a ATX size not an extended. TBH , the coolermaster stacker is alot better than the armor.

1. The HD cages on the armor only holds 3 hd's and it blocks airflow. On the stacker one it can hold 4 HD's and still have decent airflow.

2. The stacker can hold 2 PSU's if you don't use 2 then you can have more space below the mobo tray.

3. Coolermaster support is alot better than thermaltake. I know from experiencing both :|

 

[wiredvibes]

thx hochi

 

[Zepper]

Actually since the Armor's (not Armour's) HDD rack only holds three drives in the space the stacker cage holds 4, it should at least have equally good airflow (and the first three HDDs (in the upper rear rack) aren't much involved in the general case airflow anyway). but it is obvious that CM put more effort into the design of the stacker cage. See my review of the stacker cage with an overview of others including Tt's here: http://www.techimo.com/reviews/ .

Basically the Armor is riced-out a Stacker wannabe. One can get the original stacker (STC-T01) at a good deal thru the end of the month (after rebate)- check ZZF. One nice thing about the Armor is that you can have 3 HDDs in there w/o taking up any of the 5" bays while the stacker uses cages in the 5" bays for all of its HDD mountings - though you could rig something to fit into the top or bottom PSU bay on the stacker if you needed all the 5" bays for other things. And you could always use the stacker cages in the Armor if you wanted to.
. I'm pretty sure that part of the reason you're getting a "good deal" on that Armor is that most smart dealers will shift to carrying the new version w/ the 25cm fan in the door and want to jettison current stock before everyone gets wind of it.
. You can also get the Aerocool CoolView at a super deal thru the EOM - it and the Masstige are called the "Poor man's Stackers". The CV has been discontinued so it's catch as catch can. $30. rebate thru EOM.

All-in-all, there's nothing much wrong with the Armor. The OE fans are much noisier than their specs would suggest, but they can easily swapped out for nice black ones that don't offend the senses (eyes nor ears ).

.bh.

 

[Hochi]

Originally posted by: Zepper
Actually since the Armor's (not Armour's) HDD rack only holds three drives in the space the stacker cage holds 4, it should at least have equally good airflow

Well the Armor's cage has bars between each HD , so it does disrupt air flow Pic

The bars as shown in the pic

but it shouldn't matter that much

 

[warbean]

Is there an updated version of the Stacker yet? For my new Conroe build, I want something made newer than 2 years ago...

Originally posted by: Zepper
Actually since the Armor's (not Armour's) HDD rack only holds three drives in the space the stacker cage holds 4, it should at least have equally good airflow (and the first three HDDs (in the upper rear rack) aren't much involved in the general case airflow anyway). but it is obvious that CM put more effort into the design of the stacker cage. See my review of the stacker cage with an overview of others including Tt's here: http://www.techimo.com/reviews/ .

Basically the Armor is riced-out a Stacker wannabe. One can get the original stacker (STC-T01) at a good deal thru the end of the month (after rebate)- check ZZF. One nice thing about the Armor is that you can have 3 HDDs in there w/o taking up any of the 5" bays while the stacker uses cages in the 5" bays for all of its HDD mountings - though you could rig something to fit into the top PSU bay on the stacker if you needed all the 5" bays for other things. And you could always use the stacker cages in the Armor if you wanted to.
. I'm pretty sure that part of the reason you're getting a "good deal" on that Armor is that most smart dealers will shift to carrying the new version w/ the 25cm fan in the door and want to jettison current stock before everyone gets wind of it.
. You can also get the Aerocool CoolView at a super deal thru the EOM - it and the Masstige are called the "Poor man's Stackers". The CV has been discontinued so it's catch as catch can. $30. rebate thru EOM.

All-in-all, there's nothing much wrong with the Armor. The OE fans are much noisier than their specs would suggest, but they can easily swapped out for nice black ones that don't offend the senses (eyes nor ears ).

.bh.

 

[Cookie Monster]

Link

The front intake fan of the armor does VERY well. It doesnt block airflow as someone suggested, but rather keep the hard drives very cool.

Not to mention you have a total of 6 hard drives (if necessary) in the armor and BOTH HDD cages are cooled by some sort of air flow.

Not to mention this case will be pretty good for WC with those holes located at the back just for WC. The air flow should be even better with the 25cm side fan. The 120mm intake fan plus 25cm side fan should roughly equal to a 120mm outtake fan plus 2 90mm outtake fan that are located on the top left hand corner. Excellent for airflow as the cold air seeps through the bottom and the side and then rises to be exhuasted from the back and the top.

Check some reviews if you arent sure.

 

[Zepper]

When they get a design right like with the original Stacker (STC-T01), they don't really need to change it. Still one of the most geek'O'licious cases out here. And at a nice price (AR) thru the EOM.

.bh.

 

[wiredvibes]

thx ... keep it all coming