Cases|Damping

The Inwin Maelstrom is a modestly priced gaming case with sturdy construction, plenty of ventilation and a large 22cm fan on the side panel blowing directly over the graphics card area. You may have to look beyond its appearance, though, to see its high performance and value.

The SilverStone Fortress FT02 is an amalgamation of the Raven RV02's design and the Fortress FT01's construction and appearance. It features a rotated motherboard tray, three 18cm and one 12cm fans, damped side panels, and easy hard drive mounting with optional SATA backplanes.

Soon after the original model was released, SilverStone went back to the drawing board with the goal of creating a second generation Raven with wider appeal. The Raven Two dispenses with EATX support for less imposing dimensions, yet adds another 18cm fan and is said to be cooler and quieter.

Antec keeps rolling with isolated-chamber cases descended from the P180. This time, the Fusion gets shrunk to a half-height version in the NSK1480.

The Twelve Hundred is essentially a larger version of the Nine Hundred Two, sharing the same core design, but taller, accommodating two extra fans, an additional hard drive cage and support for the excellent Antec CP-850 power supply. It'll be interesting to see how much difference this combination makes.

The first Atom-embedded mini-ITX board from Intel to feature the mobile 945GSE Express Chipset. You can hear the cheers from minimalist, green, and silent PC enthusiasts. Along with the lower power profile, the physical profile has also been dramatically reduced, allowing fanless operation in the 1.2-liter Morex T1610 case.

A pair of small form factor cases, from Cooler Master and a lesser known brand called SEED, are the latest to pass through SPCR's test labs. Can either drive an ION-powered system without offending our sensitive hearing?

SPCR's exploration of new mini-IXT cases continues: The Luxa2 LM100 Mini is as far as you'll get from a junky beige box - it is downright beautiful. It's a highly priced, high quality, low profile Shuttle-like enclosure with a sturdy and elegant aluminum body, a small LCD display and remote control. How fares it against the more pedestrian boxes from Antec and Silverstone that we've reviewed recently?

Silverstone's SG05 and SG06 are mini-ITX cases with a twist: They can house a gaming system with a midrange graphics card. Low noise is also promised in these diminutive "classic" 11-liter breadbox style cases. We take them for a typical SPCR ride, long and hot in our anechoic chamber.

For a gaming machine, a case needs to have lots of ventilation and plenty of room for expansion, especially for extra long graphics cards. The Antec Nine Hundred Two fits the bill: It's spacious, affordable and, hopefully, quiet.

The Antec Sonata's fundamental design has undergone only minor internal and cosmetic adjustments through three different generations. The Sonata Elite is more a departure, but hopefully it still retains what made the original Sonata such a mainstream success.

The ISK-300 is the first of a new series of mini-ITX cases from Antec. It is small, comes with an external adapter and internal DC/DC converter for power, and affordable. Is it a product that can be placed beside Antec's best?

Moneual sent us its Mon Caso 301 HTPC system, but unfortunately the components selected were not suitable for a silent PC. The Mon Caso 301 case had a lot going for it, however; with the right parts, it could be the foundation of a quiet HTPC. We decided to take a close look at this sleek sturdy case.

The Fortress FT01 is Silverstone's second uni-body case with lots of other notable features. Low-speed 180mm fans, positive air pressure design, foam-dampened panels, and grommet-mounted hard drives all make this an interesting case for the silent power PC builder.