[Darur]

Hey everyone!

Looking into cases for my new build and I finnally decided I might as well splurge and go for this

case

I plan on overclocking and eventually adding water cooling and some other stuff so I want pleanty of room. Before I drop the money on it I was wondering if anyone had any experience with it or any suggestions for it or alternative cases? In addition I was also wondering if there was somewhere I could buy 120mm fan mounts (I guess that would be the term)? Something that I could attach to the mesh bottom and add more intake fans there, if I go with this case.

I also was breifly considering this case, and adding more fans but I'm a bit of a chicken when it comes to case modding.

Any thoughts or opinions? Mahalo!

[z0n3]

Get a three fan radiator to put at the bottom and that'll take care of your fans. Just attach them straight to the radiator(unless you plan to use a shroud between the fans and the rad). I hope you like that case. The TJ-07 is the best looking case, period.

[Darur]

Originally Posted by z0n3

Get a three fan radiator to put at the bottom and that'll take care of your fans. Just attach them straight to the radiator(unless you plan to use a shroud between the fans and the rad). I hope you like that case. The TJ-07 is the best looking case, period.

I'm going to sound like a total moron here but by 3-fan radiator your reffering to water cooling right? Sorry, mind isnt working here today.

I really am loving the look of that case. But now I'm becomming a little torn. I was browsing around and found TT's Mozart case (VE1000SWA) which offers an outragous amount of fan holes and built in water cooling (I think, unless I am missreading again ) , its all allumnum, plus for a tad more I can add a nifty little 7in screen for who knows what XD. My only beef with it is its labeled "home entertainment center" which is really trivial and nothing to worry about.

Bleh, so many options.

[z0n3]

Originally Posted by Darur

I'm going to sound like a total moron here but by 3-fan radiator your reffering to water cooling right? Sorry, mind isnt working here today.

Yes

Motzart:
The screen is part of the upgrade kit. You can find better screens cheaper but it won't mesh as well with the case unless you do some modding. You may want to pay the piper on this one if you really like the screen.
The watercooling needs water blocks still and the radiators have very restictive fittings on them.
The case is huge. But that's all it is. I feel it misses the elegance of the TJ-07.

Originally Posted by Darur

Bleh, so many options.

Indeed.

[clocker2]

I have a TJ07.

Pros:
-Completely screwed together (only four rivets in the entire case) so disassembly for modding/waterloop install is extremely easy.

-Heavy guage aluminum interior panels...twice as thick as Lian-li V-series.

-Fully removable motherboard/backplane assy. All cards and heatsinks can be installed out of the case.

-Beautiful satin black anodized finish...much better looking in person than photos can show.

Cons:
- Although special attention was lavished on HDD cooling (crossflow in the lower chamber), airflow for straight aircooling in the upper chamber may need some work. I'm not sure about this as mine was watercooled from the beginning.

- Because of the PSU placement in the bottom of the case you may need extensions for some of your mobo connectors depending on motherboard model and PSU.

A minor niggle...
-If you must fit a floppy drive (I didn't), the USB/Firewire/sound ports in the front have to go...it's an either/or deal unless you use a different adaptor and mount the floppy higher in the optical bay area.

And the biggest gripe...
-Sidepanel fit.
Once installed, the sidepanels look fine...getting them to slide into place is absurdly difficult. I haven't seen anyone else complaining about this though, so maybe I just have a weird one.

I don't know what to say about this case.
I knew before I ordered it that I was going to mod it extensively and am extremely pleased with the outcome.
No other case really approaches the basic concept of the TJ07 (including the vaunted Lian-li V-series...I bought a V-2000 and hated it), but I'm not sure how I'd feel if I had just planned on opening the box (which is gigantic, BTW) and installing a simple air-cooled system.

I love the look and was willing to work with it to get where I wanted to be.
If you want an easier case to deal with, the CM Stacker STC-T01 is my idea of the perfect air OR watercooled case and extremely good value for the money.
The Silverstone is far prettier but needs some work to be perfect...which I knew ahead of time so I was not disappointed.

[Darur]

Hmmm, I'm tempted to go with the T-J07 but the modding is making me hesitent. I've never modded a case before and the idea of destroying a $300 case scares the poo out of me. I suppose if I knew what I was doing I'd go for it. Is there some site where I could find parts and tools and such? I've checked a few modding sites but I cant find much. What I was thinking about doing was adding a few 80mm or 120mm intakes at the bottom of the side pannel, the 3 fan radiator at the bottom in place of the second PSU slot as suggested by z0n3 when I do put in watercooling.

On the other hand with the mozart I could live with its watercooling set-up till I got a chance to upgrade it. Buy some good quality waterblocks to make that work. If I mod the case I could turn the bottom fans to all intake and cut a hole for a 150mm fan on the top to pull air out. My only concern with it is if the motherboard tray is removable, I'm guessing it isnt.

[z0n3]

You won't need to mod the case to put in the tri fan radiator in the TJ07. Just leave the mesh in. That's how most owners have done it.

[Darur]

*crap, forum ate my last post =\*

Sorry, didnt mean to imply that I'd have to mod the case for the rad, I was just listing everything I'd need to do with the case.

Forgive me, I should probably change the title of this thread because it seems I found a third possibility for my case, thermaltake's kandalf.

Just to clairify where I stand on all these cases and hopefully help to figure out which one to go with.

Silverstone TJ07 - I love the looks and the solid alluminum as well as the removable mobo tray. I also like that it has many fans. I dont like that the two 120mm fans on the hard drive cage dont give air to the rest of the case and I also dont like that reports have said these cases are so percise when they are built that shipping can misalign them and make things not work properly when they arrive.

Mozart TX - I love the tons of fans, I also love the spacious design and like the tooless design. It has tons of potential and I'm leaning ever so slightly towards it. I do not like the fixed mobo tray and I am also not a fan of having to get a silver case in order to have a solid alluminum case, but looks are secondary to me. I also wish there were more 5 1/4in slots but thats not too important. And I also feel a little awkward about putting my new rig in a home theatre case but I can live with that.

Kandalf - I love how it sort of takes from both cases. It has tons of fans (planning on adding the side pannel w/ 250mm fan) but is also simple. I also like the relocatable bay devices feature and the solid alluminum. Again, not a fan of the silver color but I can live with it, also not to fond of the design but nothing terribley important.

I am also probably willing to mod the cases to make them fit what I want but being a newb to case modding I'd need to at least know what I should do to whichever case I select because I dont really have any idea what to do there.

I appologize, I must seem like the ADHD forumer from hell right now , thanks again very much for all the input and keep it comming please!

[z0n3]

I wouldn't reccomend having a case shipped to you. Shipping can be hell on cases. Scratches, dents, marks on the paint, etc. If at all possible try and buy the case from a brick and morter store. Cases are a lot like monitors when you're buying them. Its always a good idea to see it for yourself.

I think you should buy what ever you think looks best or best fits your buget. I have a huge bias here toward the TJ07 because I have worked with it. Also because when ,on the (now rare) occasion, that I do put a build in a case I try to find something that looks nice. I got sick of all the tacky biege and teal cases. All I can offer is my opinion on the TT cases and my opinion says "Get the Silverstone or just use a file cabinet."

[Darur]

Sadly living on an island we dont have much in choice of PC cases. In fact I think the only cases we can buy locally are full of dell and hp stuff or its the crappy plastic "z0mg LEDZORZ!!!1" cases. There arent any stores that specialize in computer components on Maui (unless you count office max or walmart =\).

[z0n3]

You live in Hawaii! How dare you complain about lack of selection. Please note that this is coming from a person who has lived his whole life in an area where the nearest most people come to the ocean is a series of very large lakes.

Guess you'll have to order online then. Shipping must be expensive. No wonder you wanted an aluminum case.

[Darur]

Hehe, there are some days I'd glady trade the beach for an excellent local PC shop. Shipping is hell, another reason I was a little turned off by the T-J07, it would cost $140 to just ship it, the other cases are about $70. =\

[z0n3]

Well then I would say get one of the other cases. That much extra just to get the case is rediculous.

[clocker2]

Originally Posted by Darur

Hehe, there are some days I'd glady trade the beach for an excellent local PC shop. Shipping is hell, another reason I was a little turned off by the T-J07, it would cost $140 to just ship it, the other cases are about $70. =\

If you amortize the extra shipping cost over the life of the case it's not that much.
Assuming you really like the TJ, a few bucks more every month seems like a small price to pay.

[toddd240]

If you do not purchase the TJ07 case don't ever look at one up close you will be ****ed off for not buying it. I got a TJ07 to go with my new X6800 Core 2 Duo. If Silverstone keeps making cases like this I will never buy a case from a different company. The fans do seem to be in weird positions, but my mb temps hover around 31c and when I was aircooling my x6800 for a day or 2 the cpu was about 44c on load with a zalman9500.

The people at Silverstone seem to know what they are doing. The HD enclosures at the bottom of the case can be removed for a perfect watercooling area. You will not need to mod this case.

[toddd240]

One more thing...the fans on this case are very quiet with good airflow. The loudest thing on my case is the nautilus 500.

[JayoxD]

DO IT look at my created threads I have some pics of my tj07 in it!

[Darur]

This is really difficult but sorry guys, I have to go with the mozart, right now I really cant afford the T-J07. I'm hoping next year I can pick one up though and move my system to it, it looks fantastic. I'd love to mod it and I'm hoping by then I've had some expereince. I would absolutely hate for it to be my first attempt at modding a case and then destroy it.

Thanks again very much for all the input, even though in the end I had to ignore a lot of it and go with another case =\

[toddd240]

by then you can buy the TJ09

[Alien1099]

Have you looked at the Coolermaster Stacker? I love mine. Half the price or even less of the TJ07. Clocker has bought like 3 of them (though he has the TJ07 now). It is a great case. My only complaint is lack of an acrylic window stock (you can buy an after market one) and only an 80mm blowhole at the top as opposed to 120mm.