Any ideas? I have already committed to mATX (unfortunately) and want good circulation, quiet operation and a relatively low price. Need to run a future full-size GPU, and possibly a sound card but just one 3.5 or 2.5 hard drive and no optical drives. My first idea was to place the case inside a TV cabinet, which limits the space available to (width x height x depth) 45x40x45 cm, minus whatever circulation and fans are needed.

I have only now realized that mATX cube cases are just as rare (not to mention expensive, poorly designed and ugly) as they were when I bought my Aria. Might have to take a crack at modding the Aria, but since it is so fundamentally flawed (proprietary 300W PSU etc etc) I don't know if it is even worth my time.

I have looked at the Lian Li PC-V351 but I am not convinced. Seems later designs are a lot better, but also too expensive. Then there is the SilverStone Temjin TJ08-E which might work, but only gives about 3 cm clearance above the PSU intake/outlet.

The Xigmatek Gigas might just be what you need.
An all aluminum mATX case with 4 120mm fans. At 10.94*12.68*15.59 inches W*H*D it's taller than other cubes. And it's not available yet, delivery est. March 30th for the one etailer that lists it already.

The "proprietery" PSU might not be as proprietary as you think. It's probably a Micro-ATX power supply; Newegg carries replacements that might work for you if you want to salvage that case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductLi ... IsNodeId=1

Also, micro-ATX motherboards are compatible with full-ATX cases, so you shouldn't have any problem finding something that will meet your needs

Unless OP's trying to fit it in a mITX case, that is.


Not sure what you mean by this. If you need a GPU for gaming, it's likely to be two PCI slots tall, but the length can vary dramatically. Different cases will support different lengths, but sometimes, you'll need to remove hard drive cages to do so, which may be limiting, if you're looking for a small case already.

Thanks, I'll look into that. Never heard of the brand but they are being sold here in Sweden as well. I'll take a look at the Gigas once it's available.



I don't think any other PSU will fit without modding. And then I could just as well hang an ordinary ATX PSU on the outside. Antec Aria:
http://techreport.com/r.x/antec-aria/psu.jpg

Full-ATX cases don't really help since I want to fit the case inside a TV cabinet. A cube format is preferable.



Sure. I was just laying out the specs to indicate that I DIDN'T need a ton of 3.5'' and 5.25'' bays and was instead looking for good ventilation and, as you say, enough headroom for the GPU. I had a feeling some people would suggest low profile HTPC-style cases otherwise.

-----

Alternatively, if I wanted to mod the Antec Aria, where would I start? Originally I thought about running a PicoPSU and how it would solve all my problems, but I scrapped that idea when I realized how expensive it would be to find model that supported even low-end GPUs. Most mods I've seen revolve around fans in the side panels:
https://www.google.com/search?um=1&hl=e ... 29&bih=970