Would like a quiet and well cooled case.

[spat55]

I've had my budget case for awhile now and the lack of any cable management options makes it a mess. I would like a case that is nice on the eyes (I hate the ugly Cooler Master HAF) with a side window and maybe room on the side panel for a fan to cool my crossfire setup.

I like how the NZXT Phantom 410 has the side panel like this but I find the front kinda egly.

So far the Fractal Design Arc Midi R2 looks my best bet but the only thing I dislike is the lacking of the option for a fan on the side window, but if I but if I had three 140mm case fans I think I should be ok right?

 

[Blain]

Fractal R4 Black Pearl without window.

 

[spat55]

Fractal R4 Black Pearl without window.

No way I can get a side window version? It does look nice and slick though

EDIT: Just had a look on partpicker and found it with a window, not sure if it is discontinued or not though also has no side fan but I might just skip that part as an optional extra so to speak.

 

[Charlie98]

With the R4, you get a window or a fan port... not both.

To be honest, if I was going to put another fan in, mount one on the bottom to make use of the included dust filter.

You can't go wrong with the R4...

 

[lehtv]

I find a side fan port pretty much a useless feature unless it's for a 200mm fan and you don't care about noise. My experience with using a 140mm side fan on the Define R3 wasn't very good, it just increased noise without any noticeable effect on cooling performance.

So if you like the windowed version, go for it. I own the Black Pearl R4 without window, it's pure class.

 

[Freddy1765]

I've got the Arc Midi R2. With 2 front in-takes and one rear exhaust my 670 WF stays sub-60 in Bf4, and my 2500k tops out at ~63 degrees.
Cable management is also excellent in this case, plus it's got a window if you're into that.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

Maximum PC, February 2014, page 74-75 -- Asrock M8:

http://www.asrock.com/nettop/Intel/M8 Series/

But it's "Mini-ITX," so probably not your cup of tea. I hadn't even read the review: they gave it an "8."

I like my HAF midtowers, and I understand -- even from friends I know -- how people think it's a bit ugly. But the airflow and fan options are great, and it's more quiet than a church-mouse.

I haven't even done my fan-exchanges or any other mods-of-inspiration I've concocted in past weeks. But today, I twisted up my Sandy Bridge for another 100 Mhz to 4.7Ghz. With the NH-D14 cooler in the HAF, the average of four cores under (preliminary) Prime95 small-FFT loading is ~70C with room-ambient 79F. I'm gabbing about this in several threads, beee--cause . . . .

I'm happier than a pig . . . in . . . s**t.

 

[Blain]

No way I can get a side window version? It does look nice and slick though

Of course you can get a window version, but you want performance. Sound dampening is reduced with the windowed version.
You did say you wanted a quiet well cooled case.

Besides, windowed side panels went out of fashion a few years ago.

 

[46andtool]

I've had my budget case for awhile now and the lack of any cable management options makes it a mess. I would like a case that is nice on the eyes (I hate the ugly Cooler Master HAF) with a side window and maybe room on the side panel for a fan to cool my crossfire setup.

I like how the NZXT Phantom 410 has the side panel like this but I find the front kinda egly.

So far the Fractal Design Arc Midi R2 looks my best bet but the only thing I dislike is the lacking of the option for a fan on the side window, but if I but if I had three 140mm case fans I think I should be ok right?

I dont know your budget, but for the price the Corsair 300R is a stellar case. Both side panels are removable, you can fit 2 140mm fans on the side panel, screwless harddrive trays, cable routing behind mobo tray, and there is a cut out on the rear of the motherboard tray should you ever need to swap CPU coolers or anything. Not to mention the case itself looks great! :awe:

oh oh, also there is a removable dust filter in the psu intake, and the top of the case is perforated and has room for 2 more fans. Very good build quality overall. I'm in love.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

Of course you can get a window version, but you want performance. Sound dampening is reduced with the windowed version.
You did say you wanted a quiet well cooled case.

Besides, windowed side panels went out of fashion a few years ago.

I now miss my "Chrome Lightning" case mod from a '95 Compaq Proliant server case:

http://webpages.charter.net/psywar_sentinel/chrome window.jpg

I gave it to my brother because I was in too much a hurry to build my SB system, and had grown weary of such a beast in a small room.

That was a big project -- for me. I spent a lot of time at my workbench with dremel, drill, Lexan bending and scoring tools. On the other hand, as a learning experience, I can take a $95 case and do things to it so that it serves my needs.

I had been doing this sort of . . . case recycling for a long time. I also invested in $200-something CM Stacker -- and still have it. But now that I'm tired of searching recycle piles for an old beige box, I'm enamored of my HAFs for the airflow, low price and versatility. Yes, again -- maybe they're "ugly." Thing is, I could turn the Stacker into a Stacker with HAF fans and airflow. That can happen when my other bro here at home needs a new computer.

 

[Charlie98]

I like my HAF midtowers, and I understand -- even from friends I know -- how people think it's a bit ugly. But the airflow and fan options are great, and it's more quiet than a church-mouse. .

I would beg to differ on that. My original build was in a HAF922... sure, you can mount fans all over the thing, and the big 200mm's moved some air... just not very efficiently. I even blocked up the side grill and taped every crack trying to get positive case pressure... nada. And quiet? It's an open case with no sound damping material.

I swapped into a Define Mini... smaller case, fewer fans, sound damping... I get lower temps with fewer fans running at a lower RPM with very little noise. Positive case pressure FTW!

For the OP's purpose... 'a quiet well cooled case' I don't see how you could pick ANY open case, not just the HAF series.

 

[46andtool]

I've had my budget case for awhile now and the lack of any cable management options makes it a mess. I would like a case that is nice on the eyes (I hate the ugly Cooler Master HAF) with a side window and maybe room on the side panel for a fan to cool my crossfire setup.

I like how the NZXT Phantom 410 has the side panel like this but I find the front kinda egly.

So far the Fractal Design Arc Midi R2 looks my best bet but the only thing I dislike is the lacking of the option for a fan on the side window, but if I but if I had three 140mm case fans I think I should be ok right?

http://www.corsair.com/us/pc-cases/...carbide-series-330r-quiet-mid-tower-case.html

your welcome.

 

[spat55]

Thanks for all the answers, I have decided that I am going away from the side fan like someone said the amount of dust they bring in and I could just use a bottom mounted 120mm fan pointing upwards to the GPU's to cooler them down. I like the Fractal Design Define R4 With window, but they seem to be difficult to get in the UK. I also like the Corsair Obsidian 750D, for the price no more than £150 really although cheaper is better if I like it.

 

[coffeejunkee]

Are you aware 750D is a fulltower? Reviews I read so far showed it inferior in cooling/noise compared to FD R4. It's more suited for watercooling. I prefer Lian Li myself but you really can't go wrong with the R4. Nanoxia Deep Silence is good too.

 

[spat55]

Are you aware 750D is a fulltower? Reviews I read so far showed it inferior in cooling/noise compared to FD R4. It's more suited for watercooling. I prefer Lian Li myself but you really can't go wrong with the R4. Nanoxia Deep Silence is good too.

I wasn't no, I've just been looking through lots of cases and seeing which ones I like cosmetically then I can choose which one I like best on what features it has. Hoping I can get one of those Fractal Design cases if I see one in stock somewhere with a window