Best Gaming Case?

[JCGhz]

Ive had the nine hundred for a year.. longest ive ever kept a case.. the cooling is awesome.None ive had previously have cooled as well for me.

im running a q6600(oc'd 3.6) 2 8800gt's that stay under 70c under load on air.. 4 HDD.. 2 of which are raptors. I even squeezed a Swifttech H20 Compact watercooler inside.. I probably wont ever get rid of it... if i ever upgrade this case will go in my second system.

Point is the 900 is a perfect case for a case and a moderately hardcore ovr clckr.

The one con of the case is its size.. little tight on the inside, just have to take your time with it.

EDIT: for spelling

 

[jonmcc33]

Originally posted by: JCGhz
Ive had the nine hundred for a year.. longest ive ever kept a case.. the cooling is awesome.None ive had previously have cooled as well for me.

Same for me in both how long I've had it and that it has cooled the best out of all my previous cases (including P180 and Sonata II).

 

[BlueAcolyte]

I've read that using only 3 fans gives optimum airflow, don't put one in the front as it is blocked by the drive cage
hardforum thread

 

[TraumaRN]

I bought the CM690 and it's been delivered. Awaiting the rest of my new computer parts to build my system but so far I love the 690. I can post a couple pictures if the OP or anyone else wants to see a barely built rig in this case.

So far just on looks I love this thing, even over the Antec 900 which can be semi-gaudy to me.

Also OP consider if you want a clear/acrylic side panel.

 

[Inspector Jihad]

Is a gaming case like putting Nismo decals on a civic hatchback? I hear it improves performance in both cases.

 

[jonmcc33]

The CM-690 is a good case, especially for that price. I'd consider it if I didn't have the Antec 900.

 

[lilbabimac]

Thanks for the offer to post some pics, but I went with the CM 690 over the 900 (can't go wrong for $15 AR). My case has been shipped to me already and I had for a few days now. Just trying to buy the rest of the parts so that I can start building my rig!

 

[konakona]

I thought the newest intel cpus and nvidia/ati GPUs run relatively cool.
Isnt all that crazy airflow a bit excessive? At some point, I would rather migrate to watercooling. I mean, arent so-called gamers concerned with noise at all?

on CM690, the VGA duct seemed like a good idea if it worked (this is a genuine question: does it really help CPU/GPU appreciably?), but not sure how well it would work with a fan blowing up from the bottom and all...

Tri-cools are not known for their high CFM/dba, but I am inclined to reason they should be in the same ballpark as whatever CM puts in their cases. If so, I would rather take a 200mm running at a lower RPM over a couple of 120mms running faster.

At the end of the day, I fail to see what makes either stand out high and tall above antec solos. Maybe someone could clue me in with some hands-on head-to-head comparison results

 

[lilbabimac]

If you're looking for some in-depth anaylsis/reviews of certain cases, head over here and browse through the database. I'm sure after doing some reading, you'll be able to decide easier.

And when you said you would rather take a 200mm fan over 120mm fan, I'm assuming you were referring to the Antec 900. You need to realize that neither the 900 or the 690 were made to be quiet cases; cooling was the focus. However, that's not to say that they CAN'T be quiet. Some consider cooling > silence, so the sacrifice is justified when purchasing cases like the 900 or 690. It's not about "so-called gamers" not being concerned with noise; it just depends on your own personal preferences.

If noise is your main concern, I'd suggest considering something like the Antec P182 and not the 900 or 690. For what it's worth though, some of the features included in the 690 is not even seen in some of the higher end cases. Yeah, the case has its faults like any other case since no case is perfect, but for $20, it's a STEAL no doubt. Hope that helps.

 

[konakona]

I am already using a solo and a P180 after doing enough research.
My post was just to raise a question of wheather all this excessive cooling really yields a tangible realworld benefit, let alone deemed necessary.
you are right in that for measly $20, they are forgiven of all shortcomings they might have if any. but trying to draw a clear line and championing one above another is a bold statement. Notice that I only questioned the logic of "more fans the better - even necessary", not that I ever mentioned the particular case is a bad one.

Just that if you could have it quieter while performing equally well or better, why wouldnt you? I have modified my in-win q500 cases back in the days to include a whole bunch of 120mms, an ac 250mm. The thing let me run the C300A dance at 504 that wouldnt do 450 stable otherwise. I ended up selling the thing to a friend of mine after I got tired of all the noise it was making.

At least that was a seizable jump in speed that was in dire need back then. How does it work nowadays? Does having a few more 120mm fans greatly improve your chances of clocking your c2ds higher, and does that translate into higher fps in your games? The latter, I doubt. Wasnt sure about the former, so I left it as a question (not a sarcasm).

I doubt the CM case bests 900 in cooling by a meaningful margin, but I get a hunch the antec would be better noise wise. One anandtecher claimed his 900 is very quiet for him.

 

[lilbabimac]

You know, it really depends on whether you need that much cooling or not. I'm not sure what your reason is for wanting to have a case that comes stocked with above average to extreme in the cooling department, but like I said, I guess it depends what you need all that cooling for.

If you want to see how the 900 is with noise, follow this link and watch the video review. The nice thing about the 900 is that there's 3 fan settings and on low/med, the noise level is pretty good. On loud however, it's noisy. Again, it all comes back to how much cooling you really need - low/med fan settings might be fine for you.