Fong Kai 603 or Antec 830 ????

[ride525]

I'm looking to buy a Fong Kai 603 or Antec 830.

Any thoughts on which one is better and why?

Thanks

 

[TuffGuy]

depends what you wants. i have the fk-604 and i think that it's almost the same as the fk-603. the fk-603 is a much smaller case. the power source is over the cpu/mobo, so you have to remover it to install them. air circulation is godd if you don't overclock. the antec sx830 is one of the best overclocking cases. it is sturdy as he**, whereas the fk-603 is not. it is roomy so you can easily work in it. no power source problems. it comes with 2 fans and has slots for 4. removable hard drive cage. the case is easy to open. (no screws) it has a 300w smart power source which is extremely quiet. if i remember right it was ranked #1 by ars.

hope that helps

 

[ride525]

Tuffguy

Thanks for your reply.....

Anyone have any more thoughts?

Thanks....

 

[Mikewarrior2]

SX830, because it has way better stock cooling.


Mike

 

[yo2tup]

um i have a fk 603...you dont have to take the power supply off to install the mobo and cpu, here's a picture of the inside of my case when i was putting together my tbird set up http://www.geocities.com/civic27/other/Dcp00466.jpg

as you can see, that's an a7v and there's A LOT of room to work with..

 

[TuffGuy]

yo2tup - thanks for posting. it's bigger than the fk-604. on the fk-604 the hard-drive cage is right on top of the front fan mount.

 

[cdrakejr]

Here are a couple of reviews that might be helpful.
The FK603 comes standard with a 250W p/s; SX830 with a 300W p/s.

FK-603

SX830

 

[broadwayblue]

I'm thinking about getting this case (830) but I am a little concerned about it's lack of bays. 5 total seems like too few. If I have a dvd-rom, a cd-r, and a live drive, then my 5.25's are full. After I add the floppy and a hard drive the 3.5's are full too. No more room even to add a second hard drive. Am I missing something?

 

[Mikewarrior2]

No,

You are mistaken... It has 5 total internal 3.5 inch bays. 2 on top of the removable hd cage, and 3 in the cage itself.


Mike

 

[ride525]

Yeah, Mikewarrior2 is right...there are a total of 8 bays in the 830, in fact the model number (830) comes from the fact there are 8 bays and 300 watts.

From Antec-Inc website for the 830:
Drive Bays 8
- Front Accessible 3 x 5.25", 2 x 3.5"
- Internal 3 x 3.5"

 

[Chex]

I only know the Fong Kai 603. It is very easy to use. I have been pleased with its cooling capabilities and it is very quiet. I just bouight a second case.

 

[Jaraxal]

If you want another review of the SX830, go here : The Tech Report's Review of the Antec SX830 case.

I was looking at the Tornado 1000 from 3DCool, but after seeing this case I think this is the one (actually 3) that I want to get.

 

[Snapper]

Go with the SX830. Great case!!!

 

[RichieZ]

Well the FK-604 (little brother to the 603, hey I got it for free from microcenter, or esle I would have got the 603) is an excellent case. Really quiet and the case is so easy to work with, yes the PS over the CPU is a little annoying but I'm using a FC-35T instead of the PEP66 so it all fits.

THe only problem i have is the lack of drive bays. I need more. I have a DVD/CDR/CDROM. The DVD is sitting in the 3rd bay under the bezzel and I have to take the bezel off to use the DVD. Really annoying. I'm looing into getting the SX830 or the 1030 because I want the 300W PS or else I'd get the 603.

 

[ride525]

RichieZZZZ,



<< Well the FK-603 (little brother to the 604, hey I got it for free from microcenter, or esle I would have got the 604) it's an excellent case. >>



Did you mean you have the 604 which is the little brother of the 603?

If you look at the Fong Kai website the 604 is smaller than the 603:
Fong Kai 600 Series Website

 

[RichieZ]

Oops you are correct. I always get it mixed up. Got it for free back during the $400 Etrade/Microcenter deal. I can't understand why the smaller case has a larger number, should the bigger one have a bigger number?

 

[CADbad]

I have built systems with both-603 and 604-(the smaller of the two)-both are great cases-but I was curious why the 603 ships with two bezels and the 604 only the the smaller-hence having to remove it to utilize all external??(unsightly)
I would use the 604 for low $$ builds except for the apparent unavailability of the optional bezel-If ya all know where to get these (the bezel)-let me know-
thx

 

[wizz0bang]

I too am faced with this decision. The Fong Kai 603 only has a 250watt PS... but it is supposidly a QUIET case. Being quiet is number one on my list. I have an Elan Vital T10 case now... it is the best case I have ever seen (and I have used many antec, enlight, inwin and addtronics, just not the Antec 830) I'd buy the T10 again in a heartbeat... except for the fact that it's all metal construction causes the fans in it (I have 6 including the cpu fan) to sound loud.

After reading many accounts of how quiet the Fong Kai is (due to the plastic exterior layer). I must ask, how quiet is the Antec SX830?

I used to wok on a lot of Dell and Gateway systems... and due to their plastic cases, some models are indeed VERY quiet (even with added fans). I'm hoping Fong Kai (who makes some of Gateway's &quot;premium&quot; cases) 603 won't dissapoint (and I'm even considering the FK320 for an additional $30, which comes with a 300watt PS)

FK603 250watt PS Mid tower ~$85 delivered from directron.com
FK230 300watt PS super(?) tower ~$115 delivered from directron.com
Antec SX830 300watt PS midtower $81.32 delivered from onvia.com

Anyone else consider noise as a primary criterion?

Brad

P.S. My Elan Vital case is EXCEPTIONALLY quiet with just the Powersupply fan (has &quot;noise killer&quot and a stock Intel fan. But once I add dual case fans, slot cooler and a GlobalWin celeron cooler (dual high RPM) it sounds like a high pitched refrigerator! I'm afraid the Antec will do the same (as most all-metal cases do).

 

[ride525]

Thanks for all your feedback.....

It's looking like......
.......................
.......................

Antec 830 !

 

[Mikewarrior2]

the Antec PP303X power supply in the sx830 is pretty quiet(though not as quiet as enermax dual-fan p.s's, imo).

The fans that come stock in the antec are 24cfm/24db. They are pretty quiet. Overall, i don't know if this case is quieter than the elan-vital, cause i haven't played around with the elan-vital yet.



Mike

 

[Essence]

ride 525

before you settle on the antec or the fk 603, why not take a look at the fk 320, i know this might be tangential, but the case has better air flow, is very sturdy, a little more expensive than the fk 603, but has preinstalled slots for larger fans and still is quite (although not as much so as the 603.)

 

[Nessism]

The Antec SX830 is listed as a workstation case and I think this is a good classification for this product. It is set up with lots of ventilation and thus lots of vent holes and fans. Unfortunately, all of this ventilation adds noise. For example, the Antec lets a fair amount of hard drive noise out because it has an air vent right in the front of the case that allows air to blow over the drives (good) but allows hard drive noise out (bad). The case also comes with two case fans in the back that will add some noise if you use them. I would not call this a noisy case per say but it is not designed to be quiet either.

 

[MelvinPSquidmond]

The FK-603 was rated by Intel as an entry-level server / workstation class chassis see below link
http://support.intel.com/support/motherboards/server/l440gx/chassis/fk-600atx.htm

If you are looking for high performance then you may consider the FK-320, which is really a high-end workstation product.

The Antec product is also getting good reviews as well.

There is some merit to the plastic chassis being more insulated against acoustic problems.
Thanks
Melvin