Full Tower vs Mid Tower?

[eryx24]

Hey, just wondering if there's a big difference in temperature between full tower and mid tower. I'm asking because I can either go full tower ( This Case or This One ) and get 4GB of ram, or get an Antec 900 and get 8GB of ram.

Specs that I'm planning on getting so far:
WD 500GB 7200RPM
Evga GTX 260 216 Core
CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W
CORSAIR or G-skill 4GB of ram (800mhz or 1000)
GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3R
Intel 8400 3.0ghz duo
SAMSUNG 22X DVD Burner SATA

Any advice would be nice, thanks.

 

[TidusZ]

I have the HAF 932 in my main rig and a centurion 5 as my secondary. In a few words, get the HAF at all costs. More detail, my video card drops 10c with the side panel on (85c -> 75c furmark stress temps). Can't compare processor since I've never had it in anything but the HAF (and haven't monitored its temp w/o side panel), but my temps are amazing and the HAF is certainly part of that. The size is really nice as well, and it comes with wheels. Just get the HAF.

Dude seriously if you dont buy the f7king haf I'll fly to where you live and bring mine so I can set it next to yours and just stare. I wont have to say a thing. DO NOT BUY THE ANTEC 900. And buy the 1200 over the haf when its more money? Well i'm not gonna imply that your the kinda person who would do that.

You will be much happier with this case than you would 4 gb of ram.

 

[garritynet]

You can always easily buy more ram later for just the cost of the additional ram. Switching out a case is much more expensive and a big pain in the butt.

 

[EvilBob]

the specs you give for your planned rig list only one hard drive, one video card, and a dual core processor - there's not a huge heat load there. a mid case with decent airflow would be fine. (i'm not in favor of the antec, particularly, i just don't see the point of a full case given your components - unless, of course, you just like the look of it)

 

[eryx24]

Lol Tidus, the Antec 1200 had a sale on it where it dropped down to like 160 bux, if they have another one of those sales wouldnt it be better than the haf considering it comes with more fans?

Evilbob - what do you mean? I listed pretty much everything I'm getting which is a full computer

 

[smackababy]

The Antec 1200 was on sale this weekend for 154.99 shipped. I would have bought that over the HAF, but if it isn't less than the HAF, I wouldn't even consider it.

 

[eryx24]

Why not?

 

[videogames101]

Originally posted by: smackababy
The Antec 1200 was on sale this weekend for 154.99 shipped. I would have bought that over the HAF, but if it isn't less than the HAF, I wouldn't even consider it.

I would never consider anything that isn't a full tower, once you build in a full tower, you simply can never go back to the tiny size of mids


(Get the 1200!)

 

[EvilBob]

Originally posted by: eryx24
Evilbob - what do you mean? I listed pretty much everything I'm getting which is a full computer

what you list would make a great computer that i think would do fine in a mid case.

you were asking about heat load in a mid versus full atx case. what i was after is: you list a single dual-core processor (not a quad, not a dual-processor board), you have one hard drive, and you have one single-gpu video card. all in all, even overclocked, that shouldn't be a huge heat load. i would expect that any mid case with a decent heatsink (say, a tt120) and airflow (say, a lian-li k7b) should handle that without any adverse problems.

now, if you had a quad-core processor overclocked to the max, a 6 drive storage array, a double or triple card graphics setup, and a 1000w+ p/s, i could understand wanting a full case - both to fit all of that in there, and to allow for good airflow.

again, i'm not saying buy the antec (becase i've never had one, so i have no opinion on 'em), but i am saying that a mid case should be fine for your system - you don't have to get a full case just to keep your computer cool.

 

[Zepper]

The Twelve Hundred is a good sized case, but it's not a "full tower". I don't consider a case to be a "full tower" unless it can take an EATX mobo, and the TH can't. IAC, a larger case (all else being equal) will be cooler than a smaller case simply because of the larger volume of air that can be contained in the case, so the average temp of any given sub-volume should be also be lower.

I've often mentioned the "mixing fan" idea in this section several times. Neither an intake nor an exhaust, it would mix the air inside the case so the average temp becomes the norm throughout the case. A small oscillating fan would be ideal - but I haven't seen such for PCs yet.

.bh.

 

[yh125d]

personal preference would be getting the HAF and the 8gb. The HAF is just so good...

 

[eryx24]

ah I see now Evil, yeah I'm not gonna overclock, and I don't think I'm gonna buy any extra heatsinks or anything, I mean will I need it if I dont overclock? I've been told those are usually needed when you overclock your CPU.

From what I'm getting it seems like full tower does make a big difference than mid.

 

[TidusZ]

the 1200 would have to be a lot cheaper for me to go for it over the haf, and I would have to be more poor than I am now. Honestly if you care about computers enough to post on an enthusiast site then a few bucks shouldn't matter - the HAF is better than the 1200. The 1200 has more fans alright, more 120mm fans.

 

[videogames101]

Originally posted by: TidusZ
the 1200 would have to be a lot cheaper for me to go for it over the haf, and I would have to be more poor than I am now. Honestly if you care about computers enough to post on an enthusiast site then a few bucks shouldn't matter - the HAF is better than the 1200. The 1200 has more fans alright, more 120mm fans.

1200 is a beast for airflow, 8 case fans simply can't be beat.

 

[yh125d]

Originally posted by: videogames101

Originally posted by: TidusZ
the 1200 would have to be a lot cheaper for me to go for it over the haf, and I would have to be more poor than I am now. Honestly if you care about computers enough to post on an enthusiast site then a few bucks shouldn't matter - the HAF is better than the 1200. The 1200 has more fans alright, more 120mm fans.

1200 is a beast for airflow, 8 case fans simply can't be beat.

The HAF has a 230mm in front, either a 230mm or 4 x 120mm on the side, a 230mm or 2 x 120mm on top, and a 140mm on the back. Compared to the 7 x 120mm and 1 200mm, I'd say it's even better than the 1200 . The HAF's fan placement is definitely better

 

[smackababy]

From what I have heard/read about the HAF, it is an excellent case. Now, I have only used the 1200 (which is case I currently have) but if I needed to buy a new one, I would go with the HAF unless the 1200 dropped below in price like it does every couple of weeks. If there was ever a sale on the HAF, I might just pick one up for future sake. I know working with the 1200 is a dream though.

 

[xfile]

+1 on the HAF