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Looking for Cheap but Good Case and Power Supply

D

dakotagts

Senior member
I am starting on my journey down the path of building my first PC. I am not going to buy the components yet, but I want to get a solid case and powersupply.

What are some of the good but cheap cool cases out there? and same with power? I am not going to be using this as a killer rig so I dont need anything fancy, only reliable.

My system will be

AM2 or Conroe????
1 7900 vid card
2 HD sata
1 Audigy
1 DVD
1 DVD-DL
2 gig ram


I dont need fancy lights, and I would like a case that has all of the fans in it already. I want to stay cheap, maybe $150 at most total. I know that I dont want to use the power supply that comes with a case so dont show me those unless you have good reason...


I have seen these

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811119068
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811129150
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811119042

Thanks in advance.

 
That?s a pretty decent budget.

For tight budgets I usually go with InWin, I think they are a bit nicer then the cheaper Antec such as the one in your link. Here is one of several to check out.

With a $150 budget you should also be able to get something much nicer such as one of these Lian Li; PC-G50A and PC-V600B.

As for the PSU any quality 350+ watt unit will be sufficient. This Seasonic would be my first choice. Second choice would be one of these Forton-Sources FSP400-60GLN or AX400-PN.
 
thanks for the info... I am looking at the Seasonic, and it doesnt say anything about SLi dual 12v, I may add a second card down the road do I need to look at that type of supply right now?
 
Originally posted by: dakotagts
thanks for the info... I am looking at the Seasonic, and it doesnt say anything about SLi dual 12v, I may add a second card down the road do I need to look at that type of supply right now?
Click to expand...

If you mean a 2nd 7900GT then the 380watt S12 shouldn't have a problem with that since those cards don't draw too much power. There is only one PCI-E connector on the 330, 380 and 430 watt versions (500 and 600 have two and are SLi certified) however so you'll need an adapter to power the 2nd card, normally included with the card.
 
The main things I look for in a case are 120mm fan mounts f/r, some type of isolaton for HDD noise (rubber grommets, etc.) and an indirect noise path at the front (like a door or side/bottom facing air intake vents - some doors have air vents that open to the front so they won't help too much on the noise front). Some that include the above are already mentioned like the 3000-B and some models of the Evercase 42x2 series and their new one (I forget the number right now). You may have to order the HDD grommets separately on the Evercase as most resellers don't order them optioned properly. I was recently looking at a new Tt case called the Matrix XP or some such and it looks like it may have the bases covered too at around $90.

.bh.
 
for good, cheap PSUs, check out Sparkle Power or Fortron. Sparkle is part of Fortron, and offers PSUs that are almost identical to their Fortron counterparts for less money. For example, the Fortron 400W PSU with +18A/+16A on the 12V rail costs a bit over $40. For about $10 less you can get a Sparkle 350W that has the same amperage ratings on the +12V rail.
 
Originally posted by: adammthompson
What about this case (Micro Center's store brand)? Is it really a Centurian 5? If so, that might be a good deal if you have a Micro Center near you.
Click to expand...

Wow, that IS a Centurion 5! Wonder what they did to the thing...
 
Originally posted by: pkme2
PSU
Case 1
Case 2

These would be a good start for a case and PSU. Good building....
Click to expand...

True, these suggestions are over his budget but we've seen the problems of buying cheap combos on previous threads.
I'm hoping to avoid that, saving the possibility of grief, headaches and heartbreak.
Our advice should be the best that we can give, and in my opinion we have an obligation to do that.
He did say ". I am not going to buy the components yet, but I want to get a solid case and powersupply. "
If he saves an additional $33, he can get the PC-7B and S-12 430W for $183. Would anyone disagree with that choice?
To overcome future overheating, PSU problems and whatever, wouldn't it be better to spend more now? We see these problems everyday in frequent threads.
Buying better will correct future problems we know will definitely occur.
Hopefully we can learn from our past mistakes, but what do I know. Just an old guy........

 
Boy, they really slice and dice the English in that MicroCenter blurb on the C5 - sure looks like the CoolerMaster. Not all aluminum either, just the bezel.

.bh.
 
Originally posted by: pkme2
Originally posted by: pkme2
PSU
Case 1
Case 2

These would be a good start for a case and PSU. Good building....
Click to expand...

True, these suggestions are over his budget but we've seen the problems of buying cheap combos on previous threads.
I'm hoping to avoid that, saving the possibility of grief, headaches and heartbreak.

Hopefully we can learn from our past mistakes, but what do I know. Just an old guy........
Click to expand...
It's not like cheap cases are guaranteed to be bad. AFAIK, there aren't any non-minor problems with the cases I linked, and they're both under $50 shipped.
 
Originally posted by: Howard
Originally posted by: pkme2
Originally posted by: pkme2
PSU
Case 1
Case 2

These would be a good start for a case and PSU. Good building....
Click to expand...

True, these suggestions are over his budget but we've seen the problems of buying cheap combos on previous threads.
I'm hoping to avoid that, saving the possibility of grief, headaches and heartbreak.

Hopefully we can learn from our past mistakes, but what do I know. Just an old guy........
Click to expand...
It's not like cheap cases are guaranteed to be bad. AFAIK, there aren't any non-minor problems with the cases I linked, and they're both under $50 shipped.
Click to expand...

My preference is aluminum cases. I've had the cheaper steel but once you go aluminum like LL, I find it difficult to use anything else.
Again, aluminum dissipates heat better and since we see everyday those threads on overheating, why not aluminum?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811144014
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811112103
I prefer the 120mm fans on the LL, but its your choice.

 
No significant difference in temps between aluminum and steel case of the same design. Proven over and over again... Weight yes, temps no.

.bh.
 
Originally posted by: pkme2
Originally posted by: pkme2
PSU
Case 1
Case 2

These would be a good start for a case and PSU. Good building....
Click to expand...

True, these suggestions are over his budget but we've seen the problems of buying cheap combos on previous threads.
I'm hoping to avoid that, saving the possibility of grief, headaches and heartbreak.
Our advice should be the best that we can give, and in my opinion we have an obligation to do that.
He did say ". I am not going to buy the components yet, but I want to get a solid case and powersupply. "
If he saves an additional $33, he can get the PC-7B and S-12 430W for $183. Would anyone disagree with that choice?
To overcome future overheating, PSU problems and whatever, wouldn't it be better to spend more now? We see these problems everyday in frequent threads.
Buying better will correct future problems we know will definitely occur.
Hopefully we can learn from our past mistakes, but what do I know. Just an old guy........
Click to expand...


I think I am going to go with the PC-7B, because I wanted black if I could find a good one. How ever I feel that I may need to save a little on the PSU and not get an SLi rated one. Because I am working with about $1100, and I am not going to be able to drop 2 vid cards at that level.

So I guess I need to figure out the power supply thing...

 
Originally posted by: dakotagts
Originally posted by: pkme2
Originally posted by: pkme2
PSU
Case 1
Case 2

These would be a good start for a case and PSU. Good building....
Click to expand...

True, these suggestions are over his budget but we've seen the problems of buying cheap combos on previous threads.
I'm hoping to avoid that, saving the possibility of grief, headaches and heartbreak.
Our advice should be the best that we can give, and in my opinion we have an obligation to do that.
He did say ". I am not going to buy the components yet, but I want to get a solid case and powersupply. "
If he saves an additional $33, he can get the PC-7B and S-12 430W for $183. Would anyone disagree with that choice?
To overcome future overheating, PSU problems and whatever, wouldn't it be better to spend more now? We see these problems everyday in frequent threads.
Buying better will correct future problems we know will definitely occur.
Hopefully we can learn from our past mistakes, but what do I know. Just an old guy........
Click to expand...
I think I am going to go with the PC-7B, because I wanted black if I could find a good one. How ever I feel that I may need to save a little on the PSU and not get an SLi rated one. Because I am working with about $1100, and I am not going to be able to drop 2 vid cards at that level.

So I guess I need to figure out the power supply thing...
Click to expand...
Honestly, it makes more sense to spend a little more on the PSU and lower the case budget a bit, than the other way around.

Doesn't really matter if you end up picking a good PSU, though. Just remember that you don't need to pay top-dollar to get good performance.
 
Believe it or not, but here's a $26 PSU that will power your rig as spec'd with full stability. If you want a bit more oomph, then go with this one for $70.

For cases, a few good ones have already been mentioned such as the SLK3000B. Add to the list the Compucase 6A19 (something like that) available at Directron and elsewhere for $40.
 
http://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/wis...cWishDetail.asp?WishListNumber=3412446

I made a rig on newegg that I think is a bit better. It's basically based off of your AMD rig but tweaked. The biggest difference is moving from 939/DDR to AM2/DDR2. Theres no use in buying a DDR based PC setup now. Of course with Conroe coming out and the almost inevitable price drops on AMD's and Intel's side, maybe buying a new setup right now isn't really the best idea if you can hold off for a month.
 
I like that rig... and I can wait a month no problem. My question is about the CPU, I want a Dual processor, so I guess I need to wait a month for the 3800 to come down in price or look at the conroe...
 
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