Fong Kai Cases - opinions?

[Slapus]

hi i've been looking at the Fong Kai FK320 case for my new system. opinions/suggestions anyone?

 

[SWScorch]

I have the FK-320 and I love it, except it has one glaring problem. It is damn near impossible to remove the side panel (the one you remove most often) It is a very stylish case and has great airflow, and the CPU shroud really helps with CPU temps. The case feels very sturdy and solid and well-built. If you want, you can read my review of it here. I do not think I mention the side panel though, which is really a very big problem for me. If you remove the side panel with regularity, I would recommend an Antec case instead. But if you dont work on the insides of your computer too often, then I'm fairly sure you'll love it.

 

[cdternie]

I have the case, too, and love it. The side panel is difficult to remove/replace like SWScorch said.

All around, it's a great case, but an Antec might be a good one too consider as well. I liked the look of the FK much more when I bought, though.

Good luck!

 

[alisajid]

The only negative I would mention is that it is very heavy. That may be an indication of sturdy construction and good quality, but the case is a pain to lug around. Also, if noise is a consideration I would substitue your choice of quiet case fans as replacements for the stock case fans. Lack of a slide-out motherboard tray is more than compensated by the voluminous interior of the case.

 

[clumsum]

The F-K 320 is a great case, ....... the side panel takes a bit of getting used to, but don't let that discourage you from the other benefits:

Great cooling design, ....... (plus tough plastic air duct).
Plenty of room to work in.
Tight fitting structure, less vibration and noise than most.
Case designed for dual Xeon processors and multiple 10K+ RPM hdd's.
Enhance 300W (AMD Approved psu)

I just ordered my third Fong Kai case ......... the F-K 611L ... mATX case equipped w/300W Enhance psu. (Re-designed for P4).

 

[MarkM]

re the FK320 -- does that fan duct limit your choice for CPU coolers (it goes over trhe CPU as I understand). In other words, are some hs/fan setups too "tall" to be able to fit under the duct (I guess, on that note, are there any restrictions on which oards you can use based upon the placement of the CPU on the mb?) I am thinking of going with the "standard," the PAL8045, or something equally quiet & affordable, so hopefully there is someone with experience on this?

Also, hopefully a case owner can clear up a point of confusion for me -- the PS in these cases are the enhance ENP-0730, right? I ask because some reviews/ads give the model number as "ATX-730," which is a BIG difference -- while both are 300w, the ENP- is rated to handle a 1900+, while the ATX- only goes up to athlon 950 or something ...

Thanks.

Mark

 

[SWScorch]

I had to remove the CPU shroud in order to use an Alpha PAL8045. As for the power supply, lets see... *opens up case* Mine is a ENP-0730.

 

[MarkM]

SWScorch -

Thanks for the reply. Is it possible to use any kind of decent Athlon cooler at all with that shroud, I wonder? I would think so, otherwise I'd think you'd see more criticism in reviews. re the PS, I wrote newegg to ask what their PS is, but haven't heard back; directron clearly indicates the default PS on the unit they sell is NOT the ENP. When you go to look at the PDF specs on the FK site, it indicates the ENP-0730 is the power supply in the "Enhanced Option," which would seem to mean it could be something else (but it doesn't say anything about a "non enhanced" PS ... maybe its a translation things. It's frustrating, anyway.

Is the ENP-0730 really as loud as I've seen said by some?

 

[clumsum]

I'm still running a Taisol CGK 092 on an Abit KT7-R mb with no clearence problems with the fan duct ..........

It just all depends on which mb/hsf combination you use and exactly where the 462-pin ZIF socket is located ........ relative to the air duct placement.

You may get lucky and have no problems, then again you may need to trim or modify the duct to suit your needs ........?
It's plastic, so you can get creative with the duct, or just remove it and go conventional .........!

I have not read or heard of any psu problems with the unit that normally ships with the F-K 320, I'm not sure which one I have, but it has been very dependable for over a year and the other case fans and hsf make more noise that the psu anyway.

 

[MarkM]

I just got the reply to my question on the PS from newegg:

Dear Customer, I just checked that case you were talking about, the picture we have shows that its an Enhance Power supply, but I'm unable to determine the model of the power supply. Sorry couldn't be of more help. Thank you Dave Newegg.com Customer Service

unfortunately I'm stuck pretty much where I started -- you don't know which enhance 300w PS you get with it. one is not bad, but the other is usless for any AMD cpu 1ghz and above. Based on posts on this and other threads in the forums, it sounds like it is a crap shoot.

 

[Paladin]

Excellent case, just built my new A7V266E, XP 1800 system with it two weeks ago.

Get it here , great price and a big choice of PS. I went with the Enermax EG365P-VE-FC (Fan control) 350 Watt. Great power supply.

They also have all of your black peripherals on that site. Picked up my Black floppy and Toshiba DVD on there also.

Using an SK6 with a 30cfm Delta. Gets very good temps.

 

[SWScorch]

it is possible to use almost all types of heatsinks other than the Alpha PAL8045 or Swiftech MC462 I would assume. I had a GlobalWin FOP32 and a ThermalRight SK-6 both in there, and they fit with plety of space, and the shroud did an excellent job.

I bought mine from Directron witht he standard PS option and it has the ENP PSU.

 

[clumsum]

MarkM,

I am missing your point on the Enhance psu's ...................... ?

All of the 300W and up, ...... ATX "Enhance" psu's are Approved by AMD as suitable for ALL of the Athlon/266's up to 1.4G (which is AMD's biggest power hog)
I have never personally had a Fong-Kai that did not come with an "Enhance" brand psu as standard fare (I know you can specify other brands from different re-sellers) ............... so the included psu should work fine with any AMD cpu!

You can get a bad psu with ANY brand or model ................. so you RMA it and try again!

 

[MarkM]

I am missing your point on the Enhance psu's ...................... ? All of the 300W and up, ...... ATX "Enhance" psu's are Approved by AMD as suitable for ALL of the Athlon/266's up to 1.4G (which is AMD's biggest power hog) I have never personally had a Fong-Kai that did not come with an "Enhance" brand psu as standard fare (I know you can specify other brands from different re-sellers) ............... so the included psu should work fine with any AMD cpu!

Here is AMD's power supply listing. Select athlon 950 (or anything lower than that), atx form factor. search for text "atx-730" -- look at this, then look at the ntry four postions below for the ENP-0730. Now you can see that your statement "All of the 300W and up, ...... ATX "Enhance" psu's are Approved by AMD as suitable for ALL of the Athlon/266's up to 1.4G" is simply not true. Both are Enhance, both are 300W, but they are DEFINITELY of differnt worth to Athlon users, as you can see if you followed my instructions. The key to the diffference is that the ATX-730 only puts out 165W on ther 3.3/5v outputs, while the ENP-0730 puts out 220w.

If you look at various reviews & even posts in these forums (eg mustanggt's just yesterday in this one), you'll see that some of these cases come with the ATX-730, while clearly others are getting the ENP-0730. Go to directron, you will see the ATX-730 is the default, you have to pay $15 more to get the ENP-0730.

I am not saying the ATX-730 is a "bad" PS, I am just saying that it's design does not take into account the heavier demand on the 3.3/5v outputs by the K7s, like the ENP-0730's do. Does this clear up the point I am making?

 

[clumsum]

MarkM,

OK, ........ I get it now .......(Duh)! ................. (slaps self in forehead)!
Thanks for the explanation, ...... I took a too quick glance at the AMD chart for the 1.4G Athlon.

My F-K 320 is over a year old and it DOES have the ATX-730 psu (165W combined) and is currently running an Athlon 700Mhz.

I have another system, (not F-K case) with the ATX-730 Enhance psu running a 1.2G/266 on the ECS K7S5A.....(no problems so far) but I think I would pay the extra $15. for the ENP-0730 if given the option............... !

I should find out tomorrow which 300W psu comes in the F-K 611L ..........?

Up-date,

Just got the F-K 611L via Fed-Ex ......... it comes with an ATX 300W Enhance Model No. 1125BTA ......P4-Type leads w/the 4-terminal square 12V plug for most P4 boards .........
It's happily running a 1.2G Athlon cpu, Radeon LE and Global Win CAK-II 38 hsf.

 

[MarkM]

I just received my FK320 black case from newegg today. To answer the question I first posed here, this case does include the ENP-0730 case (the better one, rated all the way up to 1900+ by AMD). Or at least mine does -- when I asked newegg they wouldn't give me an answer, and so I chanced it.

The deal is dead, but I'm folowing up just in case anyone orders it anyway, or a new deal starts.

Mark

 

[dew042]

<< hi i've been looking at the Fong Kai FK320 case for my new system. opinions/suggestions anyone? >>



the single best air-cooling case i've ever used. you can get amazing results from air-cooled fong-kai 320 systems.

dew.