Thinking about switching from Silverstone GD05 to Corsair 550D

TheAdvocate

Platinum Member
Mar 7, 2005
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Inspired by the "big case = waste of space" thread...

I have been using SFF style cases for about 10 years now. Last proper case I had was something like an Antec SX630?

I bought my Silverstone GD05 intending to build another mixed use value gaming/htpc box. But i have found myself gaming a lot and htpc'ing not very much. My family is wearing out the roku instead.

Then I saw the Corsair 550D. I'm in lust. Been thinking about switching over to it and adding an H100 cause I have never done any liquid cooling before...

Also toying with the idea of SLI, which I cannot do in my current box.

1) Will it make that much difference in terms of airflow/temps/sound? May sound like a dumb question, but I am so used to these cramped little SFF cases. Wondering how much is marketing and how much is real?

2) How loud will the H100 likely be? In that case? (compared to my current rig which has 3x120mm intakes and 2x80mm quiet silverstone's for exhaust)

3) Is there any secondhand market for HTPC cases, or is it just too niche to bother?
 

dma0991

Platinum Member
Mar 17, 2011
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1. With the 550D, it depends on what you want and what you need. You're given the option to have better airflow by removing the panels or silence with the panel on. I'm pretty sure the 550D works as advertised with the sound dampening materials and you might only need the top panel off for the H100 while leaving the side panel on for silence.
2. The stock fan on the H100 would be quite loud from what I've read and heard in the past and you could do just as well with quieter fans. Plus there is the 3 fan speed adjustment preset on the H100 itself should you need silence over performance.

The only advantage that I could see with the 550D over your current case is that it offers more expandability, bigger heatsink choices and should be able to fit any GPU in the market. Else, your current casing is sufficient.
 

Charlie98

Diamond Member
Nov 6, 2011
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I'm thinking about replacing my HAF922 with the 550D simply because of the case filtering, sound deadening and (marginally) smaller size. I may wind up building my HTCP in one as well...
 

TheAdvocate

Platinum Member
Mar 7, 2005
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thanks for the reply dma. I think I'll go check to see if you can swap out the fans on the h100 for something quieter. I believe I read that you may not be able to because the rad requires a certain level of power from the fan that the replacements may not offer.

I have a problem with heat accumulation in my case in long sessions. It's just so cramped with my setup.

I had it running with the stock cpu cooler and no vid card for a while and it was wondeful. Great HTPC, but I really need something with more expansion capacity and better ventilation.

Id probably remove one of the HD cages if I got the 550D, for airflow.
 

dma0991

Platinum Member
Mar 17, 2011
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Whatever power consumption that the H100 stock fans requires, I'm pretty sure that any aftermarket fans except from Delta or Sanyo Denki would be usable. However I would still prefer if the fans are connected to the motherboard header instead as the fans will ramp up if the temps increase. If connected to the H100, the fans will only remain at 1 of the 3 speed preset and a hassle to switch from quiet to performance as the button is inside.

I did remove the extra HDD cage on a 600T belonging to a friend of mine, I find it a good feature to have.