I Need A Case That's Big Inside, But Not Outside

[DefRef]

I'm currently pulling together a build that's most likely to be an i7 setup with an ASUS P6T and SLIed 8800GTs. My current case (not being recycled) is a Thermaltake Soprano with dimensions of 19.5" x 8.3" x 18.9" and not really enough room inside. Because the hard drives mount straight in, I had to forgo the intake fan to cram the HDs (a mix of PATA and SATA) as far forward as possible to clear the length of the 8800 GTs. Not good and no way to fit a GX2xx or similar video card.

So, just buy a bigger, deeper case like the ENERMAX Uber Chakra and the problem's solved, right? WRONG! It's too big to fit under my desk. Heightwise, the top USB ports are lost because my keyboard tray just clear the tower's height, and it's too deep to fit under. I need something about 20" on a side (H & D) though I can go a bit taller. (I had an Antec SH1030 that fit fine.)

My previous rig was built in Aug. 2003 in an Antec Sonata case which had sideways HD mounting and if I could find a case that picked up the room that today's huge mobos and GPUs need by mounting that way and still fits under the desk, that would be ideal. I just don't know what fits that bill.

I currently have a windowed case and that's cool, but not mandatory. I need a roomy case with good airflow, but that is still fairly quiet. Any suggestions? I'd like to keep the price under $120 if possible. I'm not looking for something that looks like it should turn into a Gobot either - I'm not 15-years-old. Thanks!

 

[CurseTheSky]

I don't have time to research any cases right now, unfortunately, but I can say one thing that may or may not be obvious:

To get the most interior room for a given exterior size, look into cases that don't have all kinds of cages, dividers, etc. For example, the Antec P180 / P182 is fairly large for a mid tower; it's just roomy enough inside, but would be much more spacious if it had an open-air design rather than separate chambers. You also gain a lot of room for various extra components by removing at least one of the hard drive cages.

 

[zagood]

Ultra m998
http://www.ultraproducts.com/p...Path=652&productID=652

Dimensions:
Depth: 20.47"
Width: 9.45"
Height: 18.11"

 

[zerogear]

Lian-Li A20.

 

[EvilBob]

sorry, but this instantly popped to mind when i read your thread title...

T.A.R.D.I.S.

 

[aigomorla]

lol!!

i want a air heat sink that can pull temps lower then ambients without TEC's!

umm....

Black hole is our only solution!

 

[ayabe]

*Shrug*

Dunno, I just bought a Lian Li 7110B, for my new rig, should be tall but I'm not sure how tall yet. Almost went with a X500 but that thing is too damn small for anything useful, interior wise anyways.

Should about the same size as my Silverstone TJ-07, which fits under my desk just fine.

Edit: Doh, you're not gonna get one of those for ~$120.

 

[DefRef]

Ultra m998: That looks nice and it's $120 shipped from Tiger Direct; New Egg doesn't carry it. Definite contender. Thanks.

Lian-Li A20: Too big and way too expensive. Thanks for nothing.

 

[Zepper]

The Rosewill R560x cases are amazing for the price and have 11" of measured card space. I currently like the R5605. It is well within your measurement limits. You can find my review of the R5600 series in Google's cached pages. Search on this- Rosewill R5604 zepper - and it will be one of the top few hits (the one that says it's on TechIMO). Click on the Cached link at the end of the hit - voila. When I had the 5604, I had 3 types of drives (PATA, SATA and SCSI) in it and they all fit with minimal finagling.

The Rosewill Conqueror (same chassis as the Silverstone PS01 and the small Kublai as well except for the bezel) may also be one to look at but I'm not sure of the measurements. I just checked the measurements and it will fit too.

.bh.

 

[DefRef]

Thanks, Zepper! The Rosewills are quite impressive for the money, but the reviews for the Conqueror are uniformly harsh on the hard drive mounting setup, so that's out of the running. The R5605 looks ideal for $65 at NewEgg, but I have to ask are you sure there's enough room in those for really long cards? I'm not at home with my PC and a ruler, but the space for cards and mobo is critical, as you can surely understand. Thanks.

 

[Zepper]

Yup, I measured the space in my 5604 and it's 11", but you won't have any more than that if cables connect in line with the end (as it's right up against the HDD rack at 11") instead of perpendicularly to the card. 10.5" card is the longest I'd want.

.bh.

 

[QuadDamage2k]

The Thermaltake Soprano is so loud, I have one and it's super loud, it needs different fans for sure, the size is not very big inside as well

 

[Zap]

Lian Li Lancool case

It is under 20" deep and around 18" tall, with 5 HDD mounts, two 120mm intake fans and room for GTX 280 video cards in SLI. Only drawback for you would be that the front panel stuff such as USB ports are on the top.

 

[DefRef]

Originally posted by: Zepper
Yup, I measured the space in my 5604 and it's 11", but you won't have any more than that if cables connect in line with the end (as it's right up against the HDD rack at 11") instead of perpendicularly to the card. 10.5" card is the longest I'd want.

That's the problem; the damn plugs on the END of the cards and not the TOP. How long are GX260s? According to what I've found, they're 10.63" long :Q so it'll be tight, but most of these monsters are putting the power sockets on the top now, aren't they? I have to believe that future cards built on smaller processes will be shorter for expedience sake.