Building my own

[Fenrus]

Okay, dunno if this should go here or Tech Help, mods, feel free to move it at any time.

I'm currently in the process of building a new computer... and the case I was using is very... umm... let's just say trashed? It's dented, the screws don't go in right, just bad stuff...

I was lookin at cases off of xoxide.com, and I was wondering if you guys could recommend any other sites for cool cases.

Thanks in advance!

[Shangri-laschild]

http://www.atxcases.com/item.asp?category=1
http://www.geeks.com/products.asp?cat=CAS
http://www.newegg.com/Store/SubCateg...Computer-Cases

[lordlundar]

Have to agree with those. All I can add to it is to make sure:

1. Your choice can fit everything you have.
2. You avoid a slim case unless you REALLY want one. trust me.

[LostMyMind]

Make sure the case you get has good cooling for the 3.5 slot bays. Some cases don't have good air flow through there and that makes the hard drive run hotter than they need to.

[Mr. Rude]

This is my new baby...

http://www.coolermaster.com/products...detail&id=2908

Screwless, USB, firewire, esata & sound on top.

No power supply though. Comes with 3 x 120 mm fans with room for 3 more 120's & an 80 on the "other" side.

[sld72382]

Through two PC builds of my own, 5 helpful tips....

1. Make sure the case you buy has good airflow. The ones from Antec, CoolerMaster and Lian-Li are the best IMO. Don't "cheap out" on a case.

2. Get a mainboard that is stable. I recommend either Asus or Giga-Byte. The best mainboards in terms of "value for money" are the ones that are based on the Nvidia 750i or 780i chipset. Again, don't cheap out on this section.

3. Power supplies: Many cheap power supplies seem like a good deal - until they burn out on you. Thermaltake or Corsair are two brands I would recommend. Get at least a 500w unit, at least 750w if you're going to be gaming.

4. Ditch the CPU fan that comes in the box of the processor you got and replace it with an aftermarket. Arctic Cooling or Zalman coolers are recommend. After all, if you're spending good money on a new PC, what's an extra $50-80?

5. Finally, one last tip: For hard drives, get a Western Digital. A year ago I would have recommended Seagate, but since then they moved a lot of their factories to China and quality has suffered. Avoid Maxtor.

[Naaman]

I've built a PC for a friend recently using the Xclio 6030 PLUS, It's a good price, sturdy, plenty of room, good airflow (if you've got more than two hard drives I'd whack a 120mm in the front), whisper quiet and looks the dogs

Had a peek on Newegg but couldn't find it but seen some US reviews out there so it's around

[Broomjockey]

Just...whatever you do, don't get the case I have (Thermaltake Armor Series SuperTower). It's massive, came with two 120mm fans and two 80mm fans, but the wiring's a complete and utter pain in the butt (q-connectors ftw however), and the clips securing the PCI-e cards and such were such a pain I removed them and just used screws.

[Lord Ludicrous]

Generally Id say stick with Aspire cases. Ive got experience with two of them, one for my machine, and a different model for a machine I built for a friend (I have the X-Discovery black). Both are excellently made stylish (and quiet) cases. A bit pricey but well worth it. Also, stick to the new Core 2 Duos and Asus motherboards. Core 2 Duos overclock like a dream (Im running a Core 2 Duo E4400 at 2.6ghz when it was originally 2ghz, and still using the stock fan). Asus motherboards (mine is the P5N-E SLI) are very user friendly and versatile.

[Gurndigarn]

I wish I had pictures of this, but I didn't remember to take the camera to MarCon (and probably couldn't take it into the art gallery anyway)... there was a guy (or more than one) selling art-style computer cases. For a mere $3000 you could have one made out of rock carved egyptian style. Very very nice looking. The one made out of layers of carved lexan that looked like the entire thing was made out of ice (with an interesting LED effects under it) was a mere $2500.

Oh, and I think you got the hardware inside them too... but the cases were seriously hot looking.

[Apallo]

...Thermaltake Armor Series SuperTower.

I have one of these and I LOVE it. Plenty of airflow, and lots of room for hard drives. The only thing I don't like about it is the flappy things on the front. I took them off due to rattling. For value though, it really isn't a good choice as they are expensive.