Need Help Choosing Case! - Antec P180 vs Antec 900 vs CoolerMaster HAF RC-932

**xactly** · #1 21st Mar 2009, 11:09

My budget is £120 for a case and I need help choosing one I can only purchase one from either Microdirect.co.uk or Aria.co.uk, I have narrowed it down to:

. Antec P180
. Antec Nine Hundred
. CoolerMaster HAF RC-932

My system specs are in my sig and as it states it's not a powerful PC that produces much heat I mean even my cheap £10 generic piece of

for a case under my bed keeps the system stable for hours and hours ( Never crashed so far ).

IF it was down to looks and build quality which would you guys go for? If it was down to anything else please mention other cases within budget. Thanks

**4D(Fordy(Ford) Ollie** · #2 21st Mar 2009, 11:16

Coolermaster are good... but personally I'd straight away narrow it down to just the two Antec's.

However if you wanted the most hardcore gaming look without doing any modding, the coolermaster probably provides that, and would seem impressive to any mates you showed it off to! (Although in the gaming world - I understandm as I don't exactly fit into it - the Antec Nine Hundred is the case to have, so you may want to consider that also if your going for the gaming look.)

So having weasled down to the P180 and 900, you're basically looking at different styles. The P180 I think looks quite smart, sort of buisness like and would fit into any desk arrangement (although I understand window side panels are sold seperately)

And the 900 gives you a more techy gadgety gamer type look.. really just your personal choice.

Mine would be the Antec Nine Hundred. But it does just depend what look you're after.

**xactly** · #3 21st Mar 2009, 11:32

I was inteding to show it off to my mates I forogt to metion, I do like the P180 but it's just too plain and a bit boring. The Nine Hundred was my favorite at first and as you pointed out it is THE Gamers case however it does not look as good from when I first saw it. Over the past days I have grown a connection with the Coolermaster plus it has the space for a 240mm Rad on top for when I gain the *Cough* courage to water cool.

I am reaaly confused, I want to listen to your advice and get the Nine Hundred however I am really fond of the 932 its all done for you; no mods required, it looks like a gamers case, It looks huge and strong which I like and thats what I look for in a case.

If you can find any images that show off any of the cases ( fitted with components inside ) then please post, but for now I seem settled on the 932

.

My Current Case and build:

http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/5205/picture003drd.jpg
http://img3.imageshack.us/img3/2219/picture012orz.jpg

**4D(Fordy(Ford) Ollie** · #4 21st Mar 2009, 11:44

[IMG]file:///C:/Users/Fordy/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot.jpg[/IMG]

Ok, just looking around and getting pics is making me want one..

but I think pete still wins over inspiring me to make my own!

And the CM below:

Inside I think it's actually a great case, it's just the outside is a bit boxy...

I'd have an Antec 900 just so that I had one... But if you made the window easily accesible ie. you noticed the inside without looking for it, and you did a bit better cable and WC management than this guy, then it could look really nice.

Post some pics when you've got it all done, I love drooling over other peoples PC's

gives me inspiration for my own working progress too

**Carbon** · #5 21st Mar 2009, 11:46

The 900 is one of the worst cases to ever be on the market, much less recommended everywhere. It is a piece of shit: cable management is horrific even with a modular PSU, its only HDD "bay" is a slideout that catches easily and requires three levels of screws to be fully disassembled, it has no toolless design and the HDD "tray" mechanisms are opaque, it is a pain to work in. Build quality is a joke and I've cut myself at least four times assembling it, much less later working on it. The reason I have it was because it was my only choice. Now there are better cases on the market that have something beyond 'steel box' to sell themselves on.

The 932 is definitely a step up but the poor bottom-mounted PSU design can really be an issue since it can't be inverted. It comes with no dust filters. It's much better than the 900, though.

You should consider functionality over XXXTREME GAMERZZZZ looks: in that respect the P180 (cable management, quiet, toolless, easy to work in, build quality, design) blows both of them away. I also think anyone who buys a LED filled case will quickly tire of the look (well at least the blue, it looks a lot better with red).

**4D(Fordy(Ford) Ollie** · #6 21st Mar 2009, 11:50

Ah ok, words of wisdom. Sorry Carbon didn't know about all that. As I say I'm not into PC gaming so I didn't know, only what I've heard and read. :D

**Carbon** · #7 21st Mar 2009, 11:58

Really, I wouldn't trust anything you hear from "enthusiasts" or "the gaming scene". They're the ones buying $3000 computers with i7 Extremes to get 2000 more WhateverPoints in ArbitraryBenchmark 2009. Places like Anandtech and TechReport aren't perfect but they're good places to start research. I remember one of those two absolutely blasted the 1200 when it came out saying that its main attraction was that it was a 900 that costed more money.

edit: And if you want proof of how bad the cable management is on the 900 I can take a shot of mine right now with everything as best tucked in the bays as possible. :p

**4D(Fordy(Ford) Ollie** · #8 21st Mar 2009, 12:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by Carbon

I remember one of those two absolutely blasted the 1200 when it came out saying that its main attraction was that it was a 900 that costed more money.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Carbon

And if you want proof of how bad the cable management is on the 900 I can take a shot of mine right now with everything as best tucked in the bays as possible. :p

EDIT:
I think it's probably an Antec thing.. My Sonata III is pretty shocking for cable tidying too... theres just nowhere to put them.

**Carbon** · #9 21st Mar 2009, 12:37

Well, the P180/P182 are great for cables, they have the holes and such beneath the motherboard tray and it looks really clean, but it's a much more expensive case than the Sonata so that makes sense. Antec can't really be judged on the whole as they put out a very wide variety of cases: some that are crap (300, 900, 1200), some that are decent (Sonata), and some that are exceptional (P180/P182). They're so huge they can afford to just throw everything at the wall and see what sticks.

**4D(Fordy(Ford) Ollie** · #10 21st Mar 2009, 13:08

Yeah I guess that's right really. I tried to remove the side plate that doesn't have the handle on, so that I could tuck cables in there. But the damned things riveted on. I may remove the rivets at some point and replace them with screws/nuts and bolts, depending of course on how thick the sheet metal is, as if it's not that thick then the screw may not latch into anything.

Of course I might just upgrade to a P180/P182 before then, I'm not sure yet.. a lot of stuff that needs sorting out first..

Anyway, sorry xactly it's your thread

Yeah I think really what all this babble means is that the P180 is your best choice. However if you don't like the look of it (bear in mind that like I said window panels are available) then you could go for the Coolermaster, sacrificing tidiness.