HTPC Cases

[clthoma2]

Antec Fusion Remote Black - Highly Recommended

I recently built a HTPC using the Antec Fusion Remote Black. I LOVE this case. The brushed metal front really looks great and it matches my other components very well. Here is a link to the documentation on the case. Perfect size, great looks, reasonable price, decent remote comes with it. My only minor gripe about the case is the LCD on the front. I haven't tweaked the software settings for it yet, but it doesn't look that great.


http://www.antec.com/pdf/manuals/Fusion Remote & Fusion Remote Black_EN manual.pdf

My 2 Cents.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I recently built a HTPC using the Antec Fusion Remote Black. I LOVE this case. The brushed metal front really looks great and it matches my other components very well. Here is a link to the documentation on the case. Perfect size, great looks, reasonable price, decent remote comes with it. My only minor gripe about the case is the LCD on the front. I haven't tweaked the software settings for it yet, but it doesn't look that great.


http://www.antec.com/pdf/manuals/Fusion Remote & Fusion Remote Black_EN manual.pdf

My 2 Cents.

I'm glad you love it.

It looks nice.

Antec knows how to make some cases.

 

[GlocksRock]

I recently built a HTPC using the Antec Fusion Remote Black. I LOVE this case. The brushed metal front really looks great and it matches my other components very well. Here is a link to the documentation on the case. Perfect size, great looks, reasonable price, decent remote comes with it. My only minor gripe about the case is the LCD on the front. I haven't tweaked the software settings for it yet, but it doesn't look that great.


http://www.antec.com/pdf/manuals/Fusion Remote & Fusion Remote Black_EN manual.pdf

My 2 Cents.

It's good to see someone else on here from the QC.

 

[renegade87]

Ok then, these aren't cheap but..

Luxa2 by Thermaltake

I love the look of this case(Luxa2). Has anybody here had any experience with it?

I've been a fan of Silverstone cases for many years. I have a modified TJ03 and the aforementioned CW02 and CW03 are on my short list should I break down and finally build the HTPC of my dreams. Nice choice on the CW02 AcuDefTechGuy. Did you go with black or silver?

 

[digicidal]

Have a couple

For my audio jukebox I'm using the Silverstone GD05 - I have the 3 120mm fans connected to a temp controller so they don't spin unless the inside of the case get hotter than 100F... which it never does with just one drive and a passively cooled Atom510 board.

For my video HTPC I needed more drive space but didn't have enough room on the shelf for the big Silverstone CW02/3 cases. I picked up the Fractal Design Array2 NAS case. It gets really tricky with MB selection since power + ITX/DTX form factor don't often go together, but I'm using an H55 based Gigabyte board with a Core i3 in it with great success... added a PCIe SATA III controller to connect my SSD for the OS and connected 4 2TB WD Green drives to the onboard SATA II ports - for 8TB of media serving greatness. Yes, I will cry when I lose a drive and have to restore to the new one from my small mountain of external USB drives... but having 100 BDs+400DVDs+800Hrs of TV shows on demand without having cable is worth it.

Now if I could only stop working 80hr weeks so I could actually sit down and watch something it would really be great.

 

[poutanen]

I used an NMedia 6000 case to build my HTPC. Cost around $80 plus shipping.

http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=35509&vpn=HTPC-6000B&manufacture=NMedia System

Pros:
- rooms for 6 HDDs on a neat swing out rack
- fit my Nvidia GTX 465 vid card with room to spare
- Lots of room under HDD rack for wire routing
- nearly silent fans, I sit 8 feet from my computer and it's quiet
- built in card reader, USB, eSata, firewire on the front panel
- looks great in system, about the same size as my Yamaha RX-V1500 AVR.

Cons:
- terrible quality for card slot cutouts, have to angle grind/dremel to get them out... I was horrified to see this quality
- the DVD door isn't the highest quality, my drive had to be shimmed a bit or it would have caught on door

Overall:
For the price, it's a full featured, full sized case. I wanted something with a card reader in the front, and room for a full sized ATX board and lots of HDDs. I've currently got a 1.0 and 1.5 TB HDD installed. Eventually will get an SSD for the O/S and possibly some more HDDs to expand the recordable space. I record movies, science shows, all kinds of stuff on this thing. It has changed the way I watch TV and the case is partly to thank for that. The nearly silent fans are a big plus. If the card slot cutouts were better and it was a tool-less design, this would be the perfect case for the money.

 

[krzywica]

This comes in this week.....looks to be a killer deal at $81 shipped.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0036WTDGQ/ref=oss_product

 

[Warpdrv]

This comes in this week.....looks to be a killer deal at $81 shipped.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0036WTDGQ/ref=oss_product

Bigger then I thought.... but nice and quiet with 3 120mm fans built in already...
Technical Details

* Three silent 120mm fans included
* Positive air pressure design for excellent cooling/quietness and dust-prevention
* 325mm depth to fit inside home theater cabinet
* Support expansion cards up to 11 inches
* Support 2.5" hard drive or SSD
* Product Dimensions: 22 x 17 x 10 inches ; 14 pounds

 

[krzywica]

Bigger then I thought.... but nice and quiet with 3 120mm fans built in already...
Technical Details

* Three silent 120mm fans included
* Positive air pressure design for excellent cooling/quietness and dust-prevention
* 325mm depth to fit inside home theater cabinet
* Support expansion cards up to 11 inches
* Support 2.5" hard drive or SSD
* Product Dimensions: 22 x 17 x 10 inches ; 14 pounds

It comes in today I think so hopefully I will have time to put this together this weekend....I will throw up some pics of the finished product. Its been a long time since I put a box together and am looking forward to it.

 

[jalyst]

I love the look of this case(Luxa2). Has anybody here had any experience with it?

I've been a fan of Silverstone cases for many years. I have a modified TJ03 and the aforementioned CW02 and CW03 are on my short list should I break down and finally build the HTPC of my dreams. Nice choice on the CW02 AcuDefTechGuy. Did you go with black or silver?

You can't go wrong w/a CW02, there's nothing better if you want a ATX mb, at least 4x 3.5" hdd, & have the budget.
I researched extensively for over a year before I came to that conclusion...
I've got dozens of threads all over the place doing comparative analysis etc, I srsly started to question my sanity.
Finally placed an order 24hrs ago....

It does have it's flaws, but on-balance there's nothing better in it's class/category (so long as $ isn't an issue).
Except for maybe the S21T, which is grossly overpriced & has a hideous 12" touch-screen that's entirely redundant IMO.

Want a touchscreen in your rack, get a mimo monitor...
You can have a bigger and even more versatile touchscreen!
Of course there's other interfaces which are just as useful or more than a ts.
But if you must have the ts, the option's there....

I'm gunna re-size the two 92mm vents on the bottom to 120mm vents...
And cut an extra one on the case lid, in line with where fx121 extractor vents are.
Then I'm gunna fashion me a mount of sorts, that'll be bolted to the back right corner of the lid.
This mount will hold my h20-220 edge rad/res/pump AIO in place.
The rad. will have 2->4x GT AP-15 in P+P w/shrouds etc...

Silverstone have apparently started designing the CW02's successor, but they're being coy on when they'll release.
All that Taiwan HQ Sales will tell me, is that it could be within the next year... sigh...

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Nice choice on the CW02 AcuDefTechGuy. Did you go with black or silver?

Thanks.

Sorry I never got back to your question. I got the Silver one.

View attachment 9275

You can't go wrong w/a CW02...Silverstone have apparently started designing the CW02's successor

I've also compared many cases. There may be better looking cases, but they cost over $2,000 just for the cases.

 

[jalyst]

Yikes two grand, what cases were you looking at?!?
The only brand (off the top of my head) that had similarly crazy prices (but still not as exorbitant) was atech fab.

That's a joke... were they diamond encrusted or something!?
They may "look" better (which is always quite subjective)...
But what's the bet they're no more functional, or perhaps even less so!

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Yikes two grand, what cases were you looking at?!?
The only brand (off the top of my head) that had similarly crazy prices (but still not as exorbitant) was atech fab.

That's a joke... were they diamond encrusted or something!?
They may "look" better (which is always quite subjective)...
But what's the bet they're no more functional, or perhaps even less so!

I can't remember, but they were bigger than the CW02s and had huge LCD screens in front.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Yikes two grand, what cases were you looking at?!?
The only brand (off the top of my head) that had similarly crazy prices (but still not as exorbitant) was atech fab.

That's a joke... were they diamond encrusted or something!?
They may "look" better (which is always quite subjective)...
But what's the bet they're no more functional, or perhaps even less so!

Sorry, I meant $1,200, not $2,000.

Looks like you already mentioned it: the Origen AE S21T.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

It does have it's flaws, but on-balance there's nothing better in it's class/category (so long as $ isn't an issue).
Except for maybe the S21T, which is grossly overpriced & has a hideous 12" touch-screen that's entirely redundant IMO.

Anyone know where I can get a good deal on 2 of the S21T?

 

[jalyst]

Sorry, I meant $1,200, not $2,000.

Looks like you already mentioned it: the Origen AE S21T.

Ah I see,
That was in my final, final, short-list, along with several other makes/models.
But it's premium was not justifiable, plus it had some redundant aspects to it.

Anyone know where I can get a good deal on 2 of the S21T?

They're not good value even with an excellent deal IMO...
Off the top of my head there was only one or two areas in which it notably bested the CW02.

1) Display.

This is not an huge POD & in fact detracts from the overall utility/value of the case IMO.

2) 10x internal 3.5" bays

The CW02 can be rigged to house more than it's default of 6x...
But I personally wouldn't want more than that, as LT my CW02 build won't be my primary NAS/FS.

That's it, there isn't many other areas in which one could say the S21T is markedly better.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Ah I see,
That was in my final, final, short-list, along with several other makes/models.
But it's premium was not justifiable, plus it had some redundant aspects to it.



They're not good value even with an excellent deal IMO...
Off the top of my head there was only one or two areas in which it notably bested the CW02.

1) Display.

This is not an huge POD & in fact detracts from the overall utility/value of the case IMO.

2) 10x internal 3.5" bays

The CW02 can be rigged to house more than it's default of 6x...
But I personally wouldn't want more than that, as LT my CW02 build won't be my primary NAS/FS.

That's it, there isn't many other areas in which one could say the S21T is markedly better.

I agree with your assessment.

I just like the minimalist look of the Oregin S21T.

I would buy it for $600 each, but not $1,200 each.

 

[digicidal]

I agree with your assessment.

I just like the minimalist look of the Oregin S21T.

I would buy it for $600 each, but not $1,200 each.

Yep, I'd be right there with ya if that were the case. I wish I knew someone in their production facility... because I'm sure it would still be profitable for them to offer a version at $600 that had a simple brushed alu cover in place of the touchscreen. I'd actually prefer that option - it would provide a cleaner look, some scratch/dust protection and should cut the largest part of the cost out of the equation without requiring any additional tooling on their part (or virtually none at least).

Sadly, I have no such connection... or I would already own one in that configuration.

 

[jalyst]

I agree with your assessment.
I just like the minimalist look of the Oregin S21T.
I would buy it for $600 each, but not $1,200 each.

Def. be a lot harder to ignore Vs CW02 at that price.
But it'd still be very close IMO, at least from a function POV.

Yep, I'd be right there with ya if that were the case. I wish I knew someone in their production facility... because I'm sure it would still be profitable for them to offer a version at $600 that had a simple brushed alu cover in place of the touchscreen. I'd actually prefer that option - it would provide a cleaner look, some scratch/dust protection and should cut the largest part of the cost out of the equation without requiring any additional tooling on their part (or virtually none at least).

100% agreed...
Ditch the screen, reconfig. the front appearance/function slightly, drop the price dramatically, & you've got a winner!

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I know I have two 120mm fans on the bottom of my SS CW02s, instead of the 92mm fans. There are also two 120mm fans for the CPU and one 120mm fan for the rear.

You think they'll fit inside this Origen S21t case, especially with 10 HDDs?