I was wondering when you guys were finally going to post something like this ;P

Great, now I"m going to have a case, just gotta wait for the prices for the expensive stuff that's going to go inside goes down ;P

EDIT: Neither are taking preorders, at least according to each's respective website.

Yeah hopefully they'll have it up tomorrow.

You mention in the article:

"For minimal noise, the best strategy is to use only the back fan and close up the top vent because when placed on the floor, the top vent provides a direct sound path to a typically positioned user, which may increase perceived noise."

Is there a way to block off the top vent included with the case, or will we have to create something ourselves. I would love it if there was an optional top panel without a hole in it available to purchase.

Damn you Mike, making me question my previous decision to go with a cheaper case!!

I feel very back-and-forth about this case. It is undeniably pretty darn cool. And it does look like it holds quite a bit of promise for silencing. But it's so expensive!! *Sigh* I guess I'm not working two jobs for nothing

But yeah, this nice little visual tour of the P180 does somewhat rekindle my previous lust for the case. If I were to invest in it, I would (of course) have to buy that kick-ass spcr P180 version.

And I had no idea before today that Mike was the consultant for the P180 design! I'm impressed!

Oh and I agree with Arcticfox: it would be nice if it came with a pre-manufactured thing that we could use to close up the hole in the top. I know that that's not exactly what Arcticfox said, but I think that some sort of manhole-cover being included in the box is more likely than having an entirely different top panel that has no hole in it.

this looks excellent, however i think the case is a bit too big for me :/ i think i'll wait for the sonata 2 instead maybe

Wow!

Imagine mounting a little-arse heatercore at the top, with a 45 elbow ducting from the back. That would be sweeeeeet.

I know i will be dissiapointed if i get anything other than this case (was planning on the slk3000b)... but the price of 160, w/o the PSU included (which is a good thing) just makes me WINCE w/ pain, esp since i cna ge tthe 3000b shipped for under $50... but that case sure does look terriffic, esp. the SPCR one

That black-anodized spcr version is just sweet.

This thing certainly looks the real deal.

Any chance of the black version making it to the U.K? (or Europe in general)

I'm a little surprised that given the price Antec aren't shipping it with one of their new PSU's - or at least offering a saving if you buy it bundled with a phantom or truepower/smartpower 2.0. This way people get the choice of what they want at a good rate, or those who already have a good PSU don't have to pay more for something they don't need. I would have thought that the fan configuration of the new SmartPower 2.0's would be perfect.

Just a suggestion.

Congratulations Mike on being involved with this. Lets hope more people with your knowledge of what customers want get involved in product design.

Dane.

I agree, a bit too big for me. Too many external bays. Will there be a smaller version?

Forgot to mention, nice case.

All Hail Mike. All Hail Antec.

I would have thought that Antec would want to sell this case with the 500W Hybrid Phantom (as the 350W might not power everyone system).

From the outset this case looks the mutts nuts, it looks even better now it's nearly released.

Am I going to have to wait for the SPCR Black one, or the standard black one in the UK.???

Andy

Wow. Looks like an amazing case and perfect for achieving silence & good aesthetics... if only I could justify, nay afford the thing Still, it's definitely a 'no modding needed' case, a bonus for many people.

As for the black version... you could always stick an SPCR logo onto it

dude... did my eyese decieve me, or was there not already an spcr logo on it?

Mutts nuts? This must be Brit English at its best.

AFAIK (and about Antec's marketing I know not much), there was a desire to make the case appeal to power users from all walks -- they rarely if ever buy a PSU with the case, preferring usually to choose their own.

As for a SPCR black one in the UK, we're inquiring now about who might handle it.

Re the "cover" when not using the top fan -- this was discussed at some point, but long after the build was "fixed" (for the first run anyway). It is easy to block the hole with many different types of materials. It's probably one of the few areas a silencers might want to actually do a MOD... that's not so scary, is it? The other thing is that the top fan actually may be a bit more effective, maybe because of convection.

How permanently is the cage for external drives attached? I'm still harboring vague dreams of cramming an EATX board into one of these cases, but it looks as if it'll take a fair amount of surgery to pull it off.

One thing I didn't notice:

When is the release date for the silver version? If that can be said? I know its late May/Early June, but is that date still holding, or has it solidified any more than that?

Will the black SPCR version cost more than the Silver version? Who is going to be selling this? Just SPCR? Or will you guys warehouse it out to other places too?

When will the review be up on SPCR? From what I read, am I right to think around the second or third week of June? I understand that you guys are busy, so I'm just looking for a rough estimate if you have one! I'm still thinking that no matter what, especially that I just saw Mike had a hand in this case, that I will be getting one...

I have one question: Why are the front intakes in a square pattern, and the fan outputs in the honeycomb? Is there a difference in performance between these two formations? Just asking because curious about putting a front fan in... I always thought that the honeycomb was better?

Also, how quiet are the fans? Does anyone have a tricool? I looked for this on the search, but maybe I missed something? I know they aren't listed as a recommended, but considering they are part of the cost of the case...

Thanks! And congratulations!

Mike,

Hope you are well. Could you also enquire about getting the black SPCR case down under too? ie Australia. Also, are there going to be problems with a Zalman 7700Cu in one of these. At the moment I have the Sonata and the Zalman works fine in this case... but i am beginning to have my doubts whether it can fit in one of these. May just have to get another heatsink fan

Thanks in advance!
feeras

Question, though I'm sure it affects other cases that feature this layout also. What about PSUs that have shorter ATX 20/24-pin main connections? I know for a fact that the OCZ Modstream (though not the quietest PSU) doesn't have very long of an ATX main. Going from the bottom of the case all the way to the top is not possible on some PSUs. Having less slack also means less opportunity to hide that bulky cable for maximum airflow...

I love the way it looks. The black one pulls it off even better. I'm sure if I had either version of this P180, more "normal" users would think my rig looked like a refridgerator. A quiet one at that.

Just curious as to which person at SPCR will actually be reviewing this case. Let me be the one to play devil's advocate here , BUT, is Mike C really qualified to review this case if he co-built it


...just sayin, so that there is an impartial and just review for this hulk of a case (I REALLY wish it wa sin ym price point!!!!!!!!)

as a side note, im sure any impartial reviewer not affiliated w/ SPCR that knew their stuff would probly say the same things you guys will probly say about this impressive and well planned case

I made mention of this privately to MikeC and the SPCR crew. To have a review that MikeC doesn't at least edit, if not co-write, is virtually an impossibility.

I'm sure Devon will have a large hand in writing the review, and hopefully they will be extra critical of anything negative points about the case.

Wow. It looks really great. Kudos to you MikeC for getting it done.

Oh crap,

how am I going to explain this to my girlfriend...

"Hi honey, just bought a new case... again..."

Anyway, I was surprised to know between the co-operation between MikeC and Antec. I must say it is a good thing and something MikeC should be very proud of. This kind of thing is not very common. Good job!

I just wanted to say,

Welcome to SPCR, feeras!!


Also, thetoad30, I think i remember in a different SPCR review some mention that the square grille pattern for fans does a better job for EMI shielding, while honeycomb does a better job with airflow. Not sure I remember this correctly, or even (assuming I did remember it correctly) whether or not it would have been the reason for the design. But just a hunch -- if there's anything susceptible to EMI, it's more likely to be in front of your case than behind it, right? So maybe that's why...

I agree with an earlier poster - this looks like the perfect case to fit with an Antec Phantom PSU - looks like it was designed for it. Plenty of room in front of the PSU for an over-length unit, quiet 120mm fan to keep it cool - this might be perfect for those wanting Phantom 500 performance from a Phantom 350

I third the question about getting the black bad boy down to Australia - I really want one. This case has just about everything I want in it. And I can get it with an SPCR logo? Oooooh, yeah!

The big question is: do I want one, or two?

Okay, awsome case, no doubt.
Now for my questions...
1) The black one looks cool and I love you guys at SPCR and all but... is the SPCR badge easily removable? I like a very flat/plain look.
2) What about HDD suspension? Is there any hidden design if you remove an HDD cage to set up some elastic?
3) Is there rubber between the fans and the case to dampen fan vibration?
Hope that's not too much info to ask for...

hmm, now I have to wait even longer. . . .

. . . . so I can get the black version here in Europe

I have to say that this does look like a nice case. A bit too tall for my purposes, if there was a shorter version I'd likely buy one (though it looks like that might not be feasible due to the height of the lower chamber, which is presumably determined by mounting the drives vertically).

Yeeeesss! There is a black version

but...



Since the SPCR version is exclusive to a Canadian retailer and one in the U.S., does this mean that the black version won't be available in Europe before 2006 unless you find European dealers for the SPCR P180....?


Oh, and we could use a bit of info about the fan mounting methods. The top one looks like it's mounted directly on the metal, which can't be good.

Until then, I'll just have to do with my 3700BQE....I'd pay double if I could get a black edition NOW (hint hint)