Case upgrade hell!

MrMajestic · **Posted:** Tue May 13, 2003 5:40 am

OK, I'm considering upgrading my old Chieftec Dragon bigtower to a more quiet case. The cases I'm considering are:

Lian-Li PC-6070 - This is a nice case, although it is expensive here in Sweden. It's lined with foam already, which is good. It does not have a decoupled drivecase, but it might be possible to modify. Maybe put in NoVibes in it. I havent seen too many reviews of it. Only found three:
http://www.icrontic.com/?action=article&id=412
http://www.onepc.net/index.php?view=docs&doc_id=157
http://www.explosivelabs.com/reviews/lianli_pc6070/

CaseTek CK-1018-BM - Basically an OEM Thermaltake Xaser III or Enermax 10181. Has decoupled drives, but mounted in a weird angle which might prevent airflow to the drives and thru the case. It's is cheap though. Plenty of reviews out there but none that focuses on silence.

Compucase CI-6926 or CI-6A21 - Same as Antec SLK3700, but the 6926 is slightly taller but does have a door, the 6A21 does not. Nicely decoupled drivebay and does take two 120mm fans. Most reviews I've seen are on the Antec version.

Another option I'm considering is to build a custom case from scratch. This would take a lot of my time and money so I'm not so sure. I have a small kid that needs my time more. Would be kinda cool to build and i have plenty of ideas for it though.

So, anyone has some advice to give on which case to get, please do. Im in upgrade hell right now.

aphonos · **Posted:** Tue May 13, 2003 8:05 am

MrMajestic wrote:

I have a small kid that needs my time more. Would be kinda cool to build and i have plenty of ideas for it though.

So, anyone has some advice to give on which case to get, please do. Im in upgrade hell right now.

Since you asked, though this was not one of the options you listed....I've been able to get pretty good noise reduction (no scientific measuring equipment--just my ears) in my Cheiftec Dragon midtower by using some of the DIY methods from the Cases & Damping forums (roofers tape and carpet underlay--though I'll probably go with the Melamine foam rather than carpet underlay the next time). Have you already tried/given-up-on sound damping?

I vote for whatever option allows you to spend more time with your small kid.

MrMajestic · **Posted:** Tue May 13, 2003 8:15 am

aphonos wrote:

Since you asked, though this was not one of the options you listed....I've been able to get pretty good noise reduction (no scientific measuring equipment--just my ears) in my Cheiftec Dragon midtower by using some of the DIY methods from the Cases & Damping forums (roofers tape and carpet underlay--though I'll probably go with the Melamine foam rather than carpet underlay the next time). Have you already tried/given-up-on sound damping?

I vote for whatever option allows you to spend more time with your small kid.

Well, one of the reasons I want to upgrade besides noise, is that I dont really like the HDD moutings on the Chieftec. I also want better fanmounts instead of the plastic non-standard ones in my case. And the Chieftecs are kinda rattly if you know what I mean. I have 2 at the moment. They are great cases, just not SPCR great

. I could buy Magic Fleece here, but I would really like a new case, so I havent really tried it in mine. And melamine foam is not available here in Sweden by the way.

And of course I would like more time with my kid, hence the readymade cases options. :lol:

aphonos · **Posted:** Tue May 13, 2003 8:30 am

Yeah, I hear you about a ready-made case being a time saver. In my Chieftec, I removed the plastic fan mounts, cut out the fan grills and drilled new mounting holes to put EAR isolators on my fans. I also removed the lower HDD cage (not difficult, it was removable to begin with) to make room to suspend my HDDs with some bungee cord--so I guess I agree with you on the drive mounting, too.

The stock Chieftecs may not be SPCR great, but I've been happy (so far :wink:

) with my results. It seems most cases discussed here go through some kind of mod process to meet "SPCR standards" (ie remove grills, isolate drives, add noise damping, etc).

[EDIT: I noticed you are looking at some 120mm cases and I just wanted to take space on your thread

to say that I've gotten good cooling results with my undervolted 80mm in my case. Hope Katana Man doesn't see that

]

Sorry I can't weigh in on your other case choices. I hope other folks will...

MrMajestic · **Posted:** Tue May 13, 2003 2:57 pm

Thanks for your replies guys. Leaning heavily towards the Lian-Li case even though its the most expensive. Just have to persuade my wife that our kid cant have any more diapers for a couple of years :lol:

I'll hang for a while though, so people can comment on my case options.

Marvin · **Posted:** Wed May 14, 2003 11:49 pm

This found in here. Now all i have to do is to find out if theres a dealer in Finland, or shippingcosts to here anyway.

And I also vote for solution that gives you most time to be with your kid, as I have an 7 months old daughter myself

Raygun wrote:

MrMajestic wrote:

I wonder what the shipping to Sweden... <snip>

Illbruk, the maker of the foam, actually have a reseller in Sweden. I received this address from their customer support.

TTS Scandinavia AB
BOX 1007
SE - 40521 Goteborg
Sweden
Phone: 0046 / 85 97 980 - 60
Fax.: 0046 / 85 97 980 - 01

I haven't contacted them yet. So I do not know if they sell this particular product or in small quantities. If they do carry the melamine foam good news, otherwise they seem to have a few alternatives.

Their website: http://www.illbruck.com/en/

Athlon Powers · **Posted:** Thu May 15, 2003 8:38 am

Antec Sonata? I like 'em...

MrMajestic · **Posted:** Thu May 15, 2003 11:49 am

AtomicDude512 wrote:

Antec Sonata? I like 'em...

Yeah, its a nice case but Im not so sure about the glossy finish on it. My options are down to the Lian-Li PC-6070 or the Antec SLK3700 which look better than the CompuCase version plus a better PSU. Not sure about the clearance behind the door since I have a Zalman fanswitch that has to fit .

tragus · **Posted:** Thu May 15, 2003 12:52 pm

My 8-yo daughter would *not* vote for that yucky glossy black stuff. She'd say, "Go for the Barbie case!"

Of course, she's been lobbying for her own computer AND her own TV AND her own phone...

MrMajestic · **Posted:** Thu May 15, 2003 1:01 pm

tragus wrote:

My 8-yo daughter would *not* vote for that yucky glossy black stuff. She'd say, "Go for the Barbie case!"

Of course, she's been lobbying for her own computer AND her own TV AND her own phone...

He he, well, my son is just 9 months old so he doesnt protest. Its mostly my wife who is making strange noises when I buy new hardware. :lol:

happykingcow · **Joined:** Sun Aug 11, 2002 3:26 pm **Posts:** 28

I have the lian li pc6070 and its a damn nice case. My vote goes for that case

MrMajestic · **Posted:** Fri May 16, 2003 10:41 am

happykingcow wrote:

I have the lian li pc6070 and its a damn nice case. My vote goes for that case

Yeah, I am trying to find someone here in Sweden who has it in stock. Found a friendly retailer who is in contact with Lian-Li. Hopefully I will know on monday. Otherwise I will probably get the Antec SLK3700, which is cheaper than the compucase for some weird reason.

Liquidated · **Joined:** Fri Apr 11, 2003 12:53 am **Posts:** 110

I was about to get a lian li 6070 before this site clued me into the beauty of 120mm fans.

Thanks to the forum and k man's list of cases I narrowed it down to the globalwin YCC 61F1 aluminum midtower.

I absolutley love this case.

it's got a 120mm fan for intake behind an average venting scheme (the bezel is sloted about 3/4" at the bottom + front slits) as well as a 120mm exhaust fan.

nothing other than that geared towards silenting the pc but it's easy enough to mod it yourself as it's very easy to work on and has space to dangle drives etc.

As for price, um I got mine w/o psu for 160ish USD after taxes and shipping but I'm local in California. Compared to the 220 ish the lian li would have cost me, it's a steel (p.intended). With you in sweden though that's a whole different market comparison.

for a good overview that doesn't butter it up, http://www.motherboards.org/articlesd/hardware-reviews/1011_1.html

Cheers!
-Liq

MrMajestic · **Posted:** Fri May 16, 2003 11:01 pm

Liquidated wrote:

I was about to get a lian li 6070 before this site clued me into the beauty of 120mm fans.

Thanks to the forum and k man's list of cases I narrowed it down to the globalwin YCC 61F1 aluminum midtower.

I absolutley love this case.

it's got a 120mm fan for intake behind an average venting scheme (the bezel is sloted about 3/4" at the bottom + front slits) as well as a 120mm exhaust fan.

nothing other than that geared towards silenting the pc but it's easy enough to mod it yourself as it's very easy to work on and has space to dangle drives etc.

As for price, um I got mine w/o psu for 160ish USD after taxes and shipping but I'm local in California. Compared to the 220 ish the lian li would have cost me, it's a steel (p.intended). With you in sweden though that's a whole different market comparison.

for a good overview that doesn't butter it up, http://www.motherboards.org/articlesd/hardware-reviews/1011_1.html

Cheers!
-Liq

Looks like a nice case, except for the dull front bezel. Too bad noone sells GlobalWin here.

MrMajestic · **Posted:** Tue May 20, 2003 9:11 am

Ah crap, my dealer cant get hold of the Lian-Li case. I will have to get the Antec SLK3700 instead. I'll save a bundle of cash though since the Antec cost almost a third of the Lian-Li plus I'll get a pretty good PSU included. The Lian-Li would cost around 320USD and the Antec is 120USD here in Sweden.

Case upgrade hell!

Who is online