Enermac Chakra vs. Tagan Monolith II

[superstition]

Will the coolers fit?

Which case is superior?

 

[superstition]

OK, I just read that there is less than 130mm to work with, so the Tuniq won't fit. Any suggestions?

 

[Zepper]

Generally cases with those large side fans won't work as well with sidedraft CPU coolers. You'd want a downdraft CPU cooler in those cases. I don't think any of the quality downdraft HSFs out there will challenge either of those cases dimension wise.

.bh.

 

[superstition]

It seems counterproductive to have air blow onto a CPU fan that's pushing air at the side fan. Isn't that oppositional?

 

[superstition]

http://www.frostytech.com/arti...iew.cfm?articleID=2197 This cooler is 130mm tall. I wonder if it will work.

 

[Zepper]

Most downdraft HSFs have the air going in the direction toward the CPU so the side fan would work in concert with the CPU fan, which is what one wants. The side draft cooler you just linked would have more difficulty with the cross flow from the case fan(s).

.bh.

 

[superstition]

OK. It seems odd that a cooler would expel hot air down onto the motherboard.

 

[Zepper]

A: it's not all that hot
B: it spreads out and helps cool other devices on the mobo like the voltage regs, bridge chips, etc.

And the Monolith is more comparable to the Uber Chakra than the standard Chakra. I'd go for the Mono (or the XClio WT (WindTunnel) which is the same case) over the Uber Chakra.

.bh.

 

[superstition]

And the Monolith is more comparable to the Uber Chakra than the standard Chakra.

The Monolith II cases I've seen in midtower format only have a single 250mm fan and cost less than the Chakra midtower.

 

[Zepper]

Oh, I see the "II" now. I was thinking the big, dual fan guy - sweet box. IDK that much about the II, but I'd probably pick the Chakra as it's made of heavier metal. I think the Monolith II is only 0.6mm steel while the Chakra is 0.8 - the WindTunnel is 1.0mm metal... Not much diff in the other features. Or if your MII is the same as this XClio:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16811103009 - then it is only 0.5 metal.

.bh.

 

[Skott]

As far as the 'original' Enermax Chakra goes (there is a newer bigger model) the biggest hsf you can put in it is the Zalman 9700. I have a 9500 in one and between it and the two 120mm fans (1 front, 1 rear) and the side 250mm fan it keeps things nice and cool inside. Plus its quiet. I cant hear anything unless I put my ear up against the 250mm fan.

 

[Ika]

My Enermax Phoenix (basically same internal design as the Chakra, I think) won't allow a 150mm cooler into the case. My old Scythe Mine *almost* fit, but the knobs on top of the heatpipes were in the way of the fan.

 

[superstition]

So, one can use a sink higher than 130mm?