My first impression of Zalman GT-1000 case

[nZone]

WOW! Cooling way way better than Antec P180 and way way quieter. This case is going to be my forever case. Wire management is way better than P180 and clean looking; no more spaghetti mess.

I have one grip about this case. The EVGA 680i SLI motherboard I/O backplate is not compatible with the case. I don't know if it is Zalman or EVGA fault; the I/O backplate just doesn't line up. Now I am running my system without the I/O backplate. Is there any harm/hazard running the system without one? I think the I/O backplate is for safety and EMI shielding -- would this be harmful to human? I know one hazard is that I won't be putting my fingers near there with all the capacitors exposed.

Specs:
Cooler: Ultra ChillTec w/92mm 1600RPM for the cold heatsink, 92mm at 1200RPM on the hot sink.
Q6600 @ stock
EVGA 680i SLI
Patriot 6400 LLK @1200Mhz
Corsair HX620W
RAID 0

Thermal Performance (P180 had Pentium D 945 @stock):
CPU: idle @ 23C; normal @ 25-27C; load @ TBA
(P180: idle @28C; normal @ 30-31C; load @ 45C)
SYSTEM: idle @ 31C; load @ TBA
(P180: idle @ 37C; load @39C)
GPU: 8800GTX idle @ 58C
(P180: 8800GTX idle @ 66C)

Noise Performance:
No instrument to measure it, but it seems very quiet I would say 5x better than P180 (P180 with all Antec standard fan on low)

 

[Zepper]

The I/O shield installation can be persnickety on any case. Remember they are installed from the inside of the case. Just really eyeball the opening inside and out to see how best to get the friction springs on the shield started into the hole - sometimes the friction springs need some "help" to go into place but don't force it too much. Those darn things are often made of paper-thin metal and can easily be pranged... I like the I/O shield to be in place to keep little critters from setting up residence in my case.

.bh.

 

[Corporate Thug]

nZone. how about some pics? I would love to see the wire management.

 

[nZone]

I've been trying for hours adjusting the I/O plate -- I concluded that there is no way this will align. It's about 1/4 to 1/3 inch overlapping.

 

[nZone]

Originally posted by: Corporate Thug

nZone. how about some pics? I would love to see the wire management.

I've got a chance to take some pics yet. I'll upload them once I clear up the desk.

Once the case closed, looking through the case window I don't see any other wires except two thin fan wires. They were too short that I couldn't hide them.

 

[Ika]

The P180 uses Antec TriCool fans, right? If so, if the Zalman is running quieter than the TriCools on low, then those things must be quiet as HELL... I have my TriCool on Medium and it doesn't bother me much (and I consider myself a pretty picky guy when it comes to noise)...

I also find it hard to believe that fans running that quiet will be pushing much air.

 

[nZone]

My last P180 had all Antec fans. The Antec cool fan is 25dBA @low. My fans were: rear @low, top @low, bottom chamber @low, front @low. So 25dBA x 4 = may be around 30-40dBA overall.

While Zalman has 1 120mm rear @ 5v (20dBA -+ 15%); 2 92mm front @ 5v (20dBA -+ 15%). The case itself helps obsorb noise as well.

It's not totally quiet, but it is silent enough that I can place the pc on the desktop next to me. With the P180, I couldn't stand the noise while it was placing next to me.

 

[Cookie Monster]

Are you talking about the $399 case from zalman?

 

[Old Hippie]

I like the I/O shield to be in place to keep little critters from setting up residence in my case.

Just do what I do, charge 'um rent.

 

[nZone]

yep, the $399 one. It seems small but it is roomy...air flow is excellent. I just can't believe a single 120mm @ 5v can cool my pc this well and it's quiet. I'm consider myself a novice at routing wires but this case makes it very easy. The craftmanship of this case is superb.