antec 900

[Nightrain]

I like how the case cools everything down well, but it just isn't my style. I'd prefer a full tower case as well with watercooling, as there doesn't look like a whole lotta room for pump/rad/res etc.

Im not a huge fan of the mesh type fronts. I always have an issue getting the dust out of those. Even with a can of compressed air.

But performance is what matters though, so in that respect I do like the case.

 

[newguy5]

i can't tell with that zalman, but does the fan on it point towards the exhaust fan on the back of the case or does the cpu fan face the front of the case?

 

[StrangleHold]

The fan points toward the front of the case

 

[JohnJSal]

Yeah, the Quad Silencer has a ton of cables. In retrospect, I wish I would've purchased a modular PSU.

What's a modular PSU? As opposed to what other kind? Maybe modular is what I've been looking at all along, but never knew it....

 

[zer0_c00l]

Thanks! The underside looks so good, it's nice and shiny, but I can't see it with the card faced that way! Any ideas on how to showcase the card? Maybe a mirror in the slot below? Haha.

put mirrors on the bottom to showcase the card face,,like a showcar! lol
__________________

 

[mep916]

What's a modular PSU? As opposed to what other kind? Maybe modular is what I've been looking at all along, but never knew it....

Modular PSU. Take a close look at the pictures Omega and MatrixEVO provided. They both own modular PSU's. Basically, that type of power supply allows you to plug in only the cables that you need. You'll notice that I have a standard PSU, and all the cables that are left unused are sitting there below the case creating clutter.

That's the advantage to having a modular power supply. It's a great way to keep your case clean, and avoid unnecessary cables hindering airflow or hitting fans.

 

[JohnJSal]

Modular PSU. Take a close look at the pictures Omega and MatrixEVO provided. They both own modular PSU's. Basically, that type of power supply allows you to plug in only the cables that you need. You'll notice that I have a standard PSU, and all the cables that are left unused are sitting there below the case creating clutter.

That's the advantage to having a modular power supply. It's a great way to keep your case clean, and avoid unnecessary cables hindering airflow or hitting fans.

Thanks! Very interesting to know! I suppose I've been looking at standard ones then.

 

[mep916]

Thanks! Very interesting to know! I suppose I've been looking at standard ones then.

All of these are pretty good: Corsair 520W, OCZ 780W, Thermaltake 700W. <- I think that's the one MatrixEVO owns, but I'm not sure.

 

[JohnJSal]

All of these are pretty good: Corsair 520W, OCZ 780W, Thermaltake 700W. <- I think that's the one MatrixEVO owns, but I'm not sure.

Thanks again! Always nice to have a few leads.

 

[MatrixEVO]

Thermaltake 700W. <- I think that's the one MatrixEVO owns, but I'm not sure.

Yes it is. It's rock solid and quite, and powerful enough for future hardware.

 

[JohnJSal]

Yes it is. It's rock solid and quite, and powerful enough for future hardware.

Is there any other difference between it and a standard PSU, besides the cable management and price? Is it bigger, maybe?

 

[Kornowski]

The Corsair HX520 is also a great Modular PSU

 

[SirKenin]

I just bought this case and wow! It cools everything down so much. my CPU averaged around 50 c now it averages 42 c. It looks the part too. I'd reccommend this to anyone.

Matt

It's a terrible case if you do what I do. I use one myself and I seriously regret it. The drive cages are the worst design in Antec history. They don't use rails and you have to completely dismantle the case to remove them because some genius decided to put screws on both sides.

The fan cage on the middle drive cage jams up against the cabling and motherboard.

The PSU on the bottom is the stupidest thing ever if you use a dual fan PSU, which I do. I'm swapping parts out constantly and one time a screw fell in the PSU. It took me over an hour to get it out and resulted in disassembling the PSU and a lot of cursing.

Cable routing is a real pain. Often you have to use extensions (fortunately my PSU has long leads).

The 3 1/2" drive adapter is the most hideous, awkward design I've ever seen.

Overall this case was *very* poorly thought out. The cooling is definitely good, but for the tinkerer this case is absolutely terrible.

 

[Geoff]

It's a terrible case if you do what I do. I use one myself and I seriously regret it. The drive cages are the worst design in Antec history. They don't use rails and you have to completely dismantle the case to remove them because some genius decided to put screws on both sides.

The fan cage on the middle drive cage jams up against the cabling and motherboard.

The PSU on the bottom is the stupidest thing ever if you use a dual fan PSU, which I do. I'm swapping parts out constantly and one time a screw fell in the PSU. It took me over an hour to get it out and resulted in disassembling the PSU and a lot of cursing.

Cable routing is a real pain. Often you have to use extensions (fortunately my PSU has long leads).

The 3 1/2" drive adapter is the most hideous, awkward design I've ever seen.

Overall this case was *very* poorly thought out. The cooling is definitely good, but for the tinkerer this case is absolutely terrible.

You are one of the few, and to each his own.

I personally love the drive cages, granted I don't plan to install any additional drives since I built the computer, but I found it much easier to install my 4 hard drives using the cages then the traditional way of removing both side panels.

The PSU on the bottom actually is an ingenious idea, because the large fan on the top allows much better removal of the hot air from the processor. I'm not sure what you mean by "dual fan PSU", I have a fan on the bottom of my PSU, so it's facing up towards the case which helps draw some of the hot air out as well.

I've worked with several cases, from cheap Rosewill to expensive Lian-Li's, and the Antec 900 has to be the best designed case I have ever worked with.

 

[SirKenin]

Hot air rises.. The fan on the PSU has no effect on drawing heat from the processor. Having a PSU on the bottom means that a lot of PSUs will need extensions for the cables to reach. It does allow the PSU to run cooler, but it also means that stuff can fall into it... I was not a happy camper, believe me.

For the drive cages, thumbscrews on both sides was stupid. With the SOHO cases especially, it's a latch on the one side. Flip the latch and the cage slides out. A far superior design. For the optical drives it used drive rails. Attach the rails and slide the drive in or out. Now you have to remove both panels to swap out optical drives and harddrives. Not fun for me at all.

Once it's built, as long as you never touch it again it's hunky dory.. Unfortunately my config never remains the same very long.

 

[Geoff]

Hot air rises.. The fan on the PSU has no effect on drawing heat from the processor. Having a PSU on the bottom means that a lot of PSUs will need extensions for the cables to reach. It does allow the PSU to run cooler, but it also means that stuff can fall into it... I was not a happy camper, believe me.

For the drive cages, thumbscrews on both sides was stupid. With the SOHO cases especially, it's a latch on the one side. Flip the latch and the cage slides out. A far superior design. For the optical drives it used drive rails. Attach the rails and slide the drive in or out. Now you have to remove both panels to swap out optical drives and harddrives. Not fun for me at all.

Once it's built, as long as you never touch it again it's hunky dory.. Unfortunately my config never remains the same very long.

You may have misunderstood me, I didn't mean to say that the PSU on the bottom helps to draw more hot air out then if it was on the top, I was referring to the top case fan being able to remove much more air then to only have the PSU on the top.

As for the cables, it can be a problem but it depends on the motherboard. For me the cables attached to the motherboard went around it so nothing crossed over, and I had plenty of room to spare.

 

[Kornowski]

Sorry to revive an old thread, but I'm thinking of getting this case, do you think it'd be worth it? Would it help the temps at all?

Also, would the cable managment be a problem with my MOBO and PSU? Thanks!

 

[taylormsj]

DONT GET IT !!

IMO it wont help your temps out much to justify the cost.

I dont like it, its too small, and way over rated

Youlll also have a messy build

 

[Kornowski]

Think you could recomend me a case, something that has a side pannel, excellent cooling and isn't too expensive?

 

[Cleric7x9]

matrixevo, i love that board. im using the 680i right now, but i have had such great experiences with that. i see by your overclock that you have been pretty successful with it, are you happy iwth it?