case recommendations for full atx

rescuetoaster · Mar 5, 2015

Hey all,
I'm trying to work out a way to nicely convert what remains of my gaming rig into an HTPC, but the current midtower I have will not suffice. I'd like to get something that can fit a full atx motherboard into a form factor like the cooler master elite 110/130 form factor, but I can't find anything like that.

Can anyone recommend a decent box style replacement?

Blaylock · Mar 5, 2015

Have you looked at the HAF-XB? Looks very similar to the Elite 130. You'll have a hard time finding a small case for an ATX board.

rescuetoaster · Mar 6, 2015

I did - that is a cool case, but is a bit large for my needs.

I actually went to microcenter and got the parts I had originally intended on using for this project - an a6 7400k and a microATX gigabyte board for a total of 90 dollars. Problem now is that I can't find a suitable case for it. I have about 9.5 inches of vertical clearance in the entertainment stand under my TV, and can't find anything like the elite series cases, and I sort of hate the HTPC cases they sell on newegg.

Blaylock · Mar 6, 2015

I thought you said you needed to fit a Full ATX? There's plenty of mATX cases.

Blaylock · Mar 6, 2015

Some suggestions.

1. Fractal Designs Node 604

Specifications

ATX, microATX, Mini ITX, DTX motherboard compatibility
7 expansion slots
4 - supports either 2.5" or 3.5" HDD / SSD
1 slim-line ODD (only supported with mATX or smaller motherboards)
PSU compatibility: 180 mm (including any modular connectors) with both hard drive cages mounted or 190 mm (excluding cables and any modular connectors) with one hard drive cage mounted
CPU cooler compatibility: Approx 125mm with side-mounted fans - For coolers with top-mounted fans, Fractal Design recommends that you add at least 30 mm clearance for decent airflow
Case dimensions (W x H x D): 445 x 164 x 349 mm (excluding front panel - 440 x 162 x 341 mm)
Net weight: 6.0 kg

2. ThermalTake A30

Model VM700A3W2N
Case Type Mini Case
Dimension (H x W x D) 266 x 291 x 456 mm
(10.5 x 11.5 x 18.0 inch)
Net Weight 5.7kg / 12.6 lb
Side Panel Window
Color Exterior & Interior : Black & Red
Material SECC & AL
Cooling System Front (intake) :
90 x 90 x 25 mm blue LED fan (1200rpm, 16dBA )
Rear (exhaust) :
60 x 60 x 25 mm fan x 2 (1500rpm,18dBA)
Top (exhaust) :
200 x 200 x 20 mm blue LED fan (800rpm, 15dBA)
Drive Bays - Accessible : 2 x 5.25’’, 1 x 3.5’’
– Hidden : 2 x 3.5’’ , 2 x 2.5”
Expansion Slots 4
Motherboards 9.6” x 9.6” (Micro ATX), Mini-ITX
I/O Ports USB 3.0 x 2, HD Audio x 1
PSU Standard PS2 PSU
Other CPU cooler height limitation: 90mm
VGA length limitation: 350mm

3. Silverstone LC19

Motherboard MoDT, Micro-ATX, Mini-ITX, DTX
Multimedia –
Drive Bay External Slim optical x 1
None
Internal 3.5″ x 1 or 2.5″ x 1 (vibration dampening)(LC19R only)
Cooling System Front –
Rear 1 x 50mm exhaust fan, 2200rpm, 19dBA (LC19R only)
Side 3 x 50mm fan slots (LC19R only)
Top Oversized CPU/NB vents
Bottom –
Internal –
Expansion Slot 1 (includes 1 x PCI riser card and 1 x PCI-Ex16 riser card) for LC19R
Front I/O Port USB 2.0 x 2
IEEE1394 x 1
audio x 1
MIC x 1
52-in-1 card reader (LC19R only)
Power Supply Fanless 120W DC/DC board & AC adapter
Operating system support –
Expansion Card width restriction-6.8″
Limitation of CPU cooler 37mm
Limitation of PSU DC board with external adapter
Net Weight 3.9 kg
Dimension 390 mm (W) x 68 mm (H) x 348 mm (D), 9.2 liters
Extra Slim optical drive IDE adapter

rescuetoaster · Mar 6, 2015

Yep, I did request a full size ATX - I scrapped that idea after doing some digging.

I like that A30i, it would be perfect if it were just an inch shorter. Thanks for the suggestions!

rescuetoaster · Mar 12, 2015

I ended up getting a Fractal Design Core 1000 on an open box sale at microcenter - it's fairly thin and just barely fits behind the TV, and is more or less completely hidden away.
So far things are working quite well, however, I noticed that when I close the netflix app (such as during a restart), the audio defaults back to stereo. I have to manually tell it to switch to dolby digital plus. It will retain this setting and play any title in dolby as long as I don't close the app.

Is there any way to set dolby as the default option? It always defaulted to dolby on the logitech revue.

case recommendations for full atx

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