The find a case for DrPop thread

[DrPop]

Alright, we've got a team mission that will increase our RAC by 200K / day.
Bryan donated a 4850 GPU to Kat, and if I set this all up right, Kat will be running dual GPUs on MW 24/7 - 4870 + 4850 O/Ced. How cool is that for a 7 year old? She claims HER pink computer is going to "find the biggest next star" OK, sure...but she likes it!

Part 1. How should I setup the fans on Kat's case? Link: http://www.coolermaster-usa.com/prod...roduct_id=2920
If you scroll down and look at the bottom left gallery picture, that is her pink & white case. I have a 120mm fan blowing in at the front, a 120mm fan blowing out at the back, and her case has the option for 2 side fans. The bottom one can be as large as 120mm, but the top side fan has to be 80mm. I already own the 80mm fan and will buy the 120mm. Should I make those side fans blow in or out? Or both - like the bottom 120mm fan blow in on the GPUs and the top 80mm fan blow out hot air by the CPU?

Part 2. DrPop needs a new (i.e. BIGGER) case for the Beerinator! Had to separate the cards because they are getting too hot in the mid tower. A 5870 and 5850 both O/Ced. I've been talking with Bryan and obviously he recommends the HAF 932 for good reason. Is the HAF way better than anything else? It's just a little pricey, so I've got to figure out what I really need here...but then, it looks like Newegg gives a huge shipping discount on it, so not too big a price difference once they're shipped.

This is an interesting design with the crazy 250mm fans! -$105 shipped: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811103010

This AZZA Hurricane looks insanely beefy - what Mike got - $95 shipped w/ rebate: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811517010

And of course, the venerable HAF 932 - $135 shipped: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119160

EDIT: Or are there any mid-towers that are good enough for 2 GPUs - like the CM 690II - $75 shipped: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-215-_-Product

Thanks for your thoughts!

[joker]

My 2 cents is, if you plan on keeping everything OCed, dont skimp on the case. It is a long term investment IMHO. Get the HAF.

Unless you plan on doing this all again 6 months from now. ;-)

[Maxwell]

Your daughter is clearly too young to handle those cards. I will be happy to babysit them for you until she's older...

Issue #1: I'm going to assume that the fan blowing out the back is mounted above the cards. Now, the positioning of the side fans relative to the card position is the key issue. If the top side fan sits right next to the cards, I'd have it blow in on the cards. If the bottom side fan sits below the cards, I'd have it blow out. If the situation is reversed, I'd have them both blow in. Unless someone wants to correct me, that should get you optimal cooling...

Issue #2: I bought a HAF 932 at Bryan's prompting, and haven't regretted it. Not only does it cool like a beast, but has great cable management, easy HDD and 5.25" bay access, and a whole in the back wall in case you need to get to the back side of your MOBO to change CPU coolers...

If you need to save money for that dishwasher, check out the 932's little brother, the HAF 922. It will fit your cards (I'm assuming you have an ATX MOBO), and still provide good cooling. It does NOT come with a side fan, but has a vent and mounting screw holes on the side where you can mount one.

My two cents...

[Bryan]

The fan down by the GPUs needs to be blowing inward. It does 2 things; 1st it creates a high pressure area for the intake fan on the GPU and 2nd it removes heat from the heatsink on the back of the cards. If you have the lower fan exhausting then you wind up with the GPU intake fan basically fighting that exhaust fan for air and neither fan will work optimally.

The upper fan, if well above the GPUs, can be used to exhaust heat from inside the case giving better air flow internal too the case.

The 932 in addition to the 140mm fan behind the CPU has 3 10 inch fans. 1 blows from the side directly on top of the GPUs, 1 blows from the lower front onto the ends of the GPUs (and HDD), and the 3rd exhausts air out the top of the case. If the PSU is mounted on the bottom then the PSU has its own air intake from outside the case so it doesn't have to cool itself with heated air.

[Mike029]

I went with the AZZA Hurrican 2000 over the Haf 932 because of price. I love the case and am not sorry I bought it. Keeps everything much cooler and runs quieter than my old Rocketfish case. The video card fans running a 70 to 75% make much more noise than the case fans.

Cons: It is wider than most cases. This is due to making sure the side fans clear or do not interfere with the larger Vid cards. A lot of plastic. Not used to it as I normally buy Aluminum cases but money was in a pinch.

I have to say if money is not an issue than go with the Haf 932. Running 2 Vid. cards you will want the best cooling solution you can afford. Full tower vs mid.? Go full if you have the room.

Almost forgot, A Super SHOUT-OUT to Bryan on the Vid card to Lil, pop'ette.
If you ever look to make another bug push at something again Bryan, let us know. I'll help you out whenever you need it. *Cheers*

[DrPop]

Alright...so I went to Frys just to take a look-see and figure out if I needed to ship one in or if I could buy local.
Lo and behold...they have the HAF 932 AMD Edition on sale for $125. Thing looks killer - here is a link on Newegg: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119212

And then I noticed something. Due to that awesome looking dragon on the window, they left off the side fan! What the heck? So I didn't buy it, because I'm looking for some feedback on this - I'm assuming the regular HAF 932 with the side fan is probably a lot better then, right?

[Maxwell]

Side fan = good. In fact, newegg agrees with that so much that they deactivated that case you linked to...

Not sure if you'll find this useful, but it lists prices for various outlets of the HAF932 - some folks are selling them refurbished...

[c303a]

http://www.compusa.com/applications/...085&CatId=1510

Here is a HAF 932 with free shipping.

[Beerdrinker]

My money would also be on the HAF case....But with the Coolermaster CM690 II as a close runner up...

I once had the first edition of the 690....Best case I ever had!!

[DrPop]

Thanks guys - I was just wanting to make sure I wasn't missing out on a "deal" if the AMD version was any good.

It looks like all the prices are so close...I'll probably just go with Newegg when I can afford it here.

@Beer: That's interesting you say that. I had the first edition of that case also - the Coolermaster CM690! Best case I ever had to date as well. I had a Athlon 64 X2 6000+ and a 3870 in that thing. Was awesome for its time. I ended up giving that rig to a friend who was in dire straights and really needed it for Revit and AutoCAD work. Was a sweet case. I wonder how the second version compares with a HAF? Probably not as tall, but I do remember that was a pretty big case.