Hi gang,

After over a week of dealing with a badly manufactured HAF X, I'm in search for another full tower case.

But it seems that even with a higher budget there's no perfect case out there:

1) FT02, which SPCR likes a lot for its cooling and silence. I like how that even though it is made of aluminum, it is layered enough that it doesn't vibrate. But it's too small to fit my needs. The H100 which I already have is unlikely to fit into this case. I also have an Accelero Extreme Plus on my GTX 580 and there seems to be no definitive answer that it will work in this case's 90 degree orientation at all.

2) FT11, regardless of cost, this case again doesn't seem to work with the H100, at least not without some heavy modding. Again the same question about the 90 degree orientation applies to aftermarket VGA cooling.

3) Lian-Li offerings: A77, V2120, and so on. I'm already using a A71B for another computer. Great craftsmanship as expected from Lian-li... but the problem is that they're all made out of aluminum, and there's no telling if they'll be as noisy as the A71B that I'm using right now.

Also LL's design all seem to be quite outdated; cable management out of the box is sort of lacking. And what's with the lack of 200mm or 230mm fans? Lian Li should take note from CM and other lower-tier case makers and use larger, but lower RPM fans instead of stacking multiple 120mm and 140mm fans together.

Is there a full tower case out that has excellent heavy construction that is made of really sturdy steel with aluminum plating that absorbs noise? Preferably one with larger fan configuration and allows me to mount the H100 on top?

P280?

Pretty good suggestion. But is there anything "higher" up than this? I'm looking for a full tower, even though the P280 is larger than the usual mid tower.

Corsair Obsidian or Graphite series?
http://www.corsair.com/pc-cases/obsidia ... -case.html
http://www.corsair.com/pc-cases/graphit ... -case.html

Yea but they are fairly loud. What about the Define XL?

If I read your requirements correctly you want a case to fit:
Antec H100 watercooler with 2x120mm fan on top and
graphics card with Accelero Extreme attached
with good construction and dampening.

Antec P280 has been mentioned and is the only one that has it all.
Coolermaster ATCS 840 is bigger, made from aluminum, but has no dampenning.
Silverstone TJ-07 is a little bigger than the P280, highest quality aluminum case available, but no dampening and grills all around (+ nasty 92mm fans).
Bitfenix Colossus has 230mm fans and a lot of room.
Coolermaster Cosmos big, lotsa 120mm fans.
Coolermaster Cosmos II huge, more fans up to 200mm.

Corsair just announced the 550D, it looks like a noise dampened 650D. http://www.pcper.com/news/Cases-and-Coo ... -149-price

Most 'silenced' cases aren't very expensive. My R3 was only $110 and it's probably 22~db @ 1m with 8 total fans and good fan control on my part.

You really only need some sound dampening and good airflow right The rest of the parts are up to the builder.

Get the desktop again.It saves space.

What?

I'm too lazy to mod anything. I'm also pretty set on getting as big of a case as possible.

But those are good suggestions indeed.

Actually the Corsair 600T looks interesting. It's a bit on the small side but it has most of the features I'm looking for.

I think the Fractal cases won't easily mount a H100 on top as most can only take one fan on the top panel, nothing more.

The TJ-07 doesn't seem to work well for air cooling. It's also a bit outdated. It doesn't come with any USB 3.0 connections (I believe its front IO's are also on the bottom of the case) and I'm not digging the price for what I'm getting either.

BitFenix's cases look like LEGO to me . But yeah, in terms of functions, the Colossus will work.

After a bit of going back and forth, I think I'm set on getting a Cosmos II. It's a bit extreme in terms of price and size, but it looks to have everything I need. And I also find it visually appealing. The only drawbacks are the weight (49lbs!) and very low clearance for a top rad (you can only push or pull the H100, I don't think there's enough space for a push+pull).

Maybe you could take a look at the Bitfenix Shinobi XL
The little brother (not XL) had really good review, specially for the absence of noise
I'm pretty sure your H100 will fit in it without problem.