wow that is such a neat little case. best of luck in your computer parts search. its hard to pick something that you wont find something better to replace it hehe. i think mine will last me the next year or maybe even two, but i know a better case will come along then.

The BTX standard is going to cause a lot of this to change, but I've found that once you're looking through compatable cases,, the most important thing to look is an intelligent designed structure.

Having adequate space in the case is crucial, because it affects your ability to assemble the computer without putting too much stress on the componants by getting them into the case (and the case itself).

Space and design are also the factors that determine how well heat will move in your case, if it will be trapped by the closeness of your componants. In fan-cooling systems, this is important because the only way to get heat out of the system is good airflow. In water-cooled systems, it's less important, but ambient heat coming from the system (the parts not being watercooled) still needs to be dissipated.

A great feature you'll find on newer cases is that the cases themselves are much more modular. I happen to think that a modular design is the best feature to look for in a case. Some cases come now with removable motherboard trays, side-loading hard drive bays (IMHO, the greatest invention ever), and just about everything else for easy assembling/disassembling of the computer.

I love those side-loading hard drive bays. I can remember when I destroyed a video card by removing a hard drive facing front-to-back, when I had difficulty removing the HD because of the cables and it collided with the video card... well you get the idea. This isn't a problem anymore.

I found my perfect case, and It's the Koolance PC3-720. It's a bit underpowered in the watercooling department (alleviated by adding another pump), but the shape and design are so fantastic that it really made aseembling my computer very simple and fun.I'm not advocating Koolance, I'm just saying that the PC3-720 is a great example of intelligent case design.

Hope this was helpful.

Time and time again we've (computer technicians) experienced problems not only because of bad casing but also by horific PSUs.

There is no cheap alternative if you're aiming for perfection, on looks, expandability, cooling and power....

One of the best All-In-On solution comes from Thermaltake, The "Armour" SuperTower.
ATX format can be easely converted to BTX format with a small upgrade.
in therms of cooling, its the best i ever saw, even the HDD Casing on 5.25" (takes up 3 drive bays) has active cooling.
it can be fitted in a water cooling system also by thermaltake called big water (try the special edition, it looks better to me)
The only con i see is its size... but in looks, expandability and cooling it exceeds by far anithing else.
as for power, it can come without a PSU and you can select one yourself, or you can select one of the many thermaltake very reliable PSUs from 350w to 680w, including some fanless systems.

Termaltake is a All-In-One Solution brand. Check it out at http://www.thermaltake.com/

Sk

ive thought about getting a new case for my computer.. i got a dell dimension 8300 but ive added and changed so much stuff inside it that i have no idea what case to get for it haha...

your tips should helpe me a ton when i decide to get a new one, thanks

Oh ... man. I had an HP Pavilion 8086 (I inherited it from a friend). When this summer started, the power supply died on me. I would like to let everyone know this:

<I>just because you do your research and know good and well that the replacement power supply is compatible with your motherboard and system in general does not guarantee that it will actually fit into your case.</I>

It seems that there is only ONE replacement model for this power supply. It cost me almost forty bucks, but it was worth it because it kept my PC going until I could afford to get a new one.

So I ordered the right part on eBay, and it showed up. I looked at it carefully to be sure that it was the right thing. It had all the right connectors ... right power rating and all that fun stuff. Should have worked ... except that the screw holes didn't line up at all, so I couldn't anchor the sucker in the case.

"Okay," I thought. (I also said a few not-G-rated words, but that's another story). "I'll just slide the stupid thing into my case and not worry about the screws or whatever."

So I couldn't put the case covers back on. For the rest of the summer the computer sat there, half-naked, while I did my work.

It wasn't so bad, really. If I'd been motivated and willing to invest a little money, I could have bought a kit/guide/rail/etc. to help adapt screw holes and such. But I didn't want to invest more money in this old computer when I was about to get a new one.

Besides which, one of my younger brothers inherited the thing and he's not complaining about the cover being off, so everybody wins.

The morale of the story: expect stuff to go wrong, especially when the only replacement part you can get is from a third-party manufacturer.

I spend $40 on my case and it looks awesome, coolings perfect and it fits perfectly with my motherboard and matches my Monitor's colour. You usually don't have to worry about compatibility as the vendor would only show you compatible casings as you tell them the Motherboard Model. The only problem with my Compute ris that it consumes a whopping 500 Watts.

Well I guess it is quite daunting for people who are trying to make a computer and don't know much about cases.
The ATX motherboard fits matter A LOT and the cooling is important. Problem is people won't really know how good 400W cooling is and this is where problems come in.
Good topic for putting all the things to look out for!

Compuccino

Great Info dudes. Big Thanks! Really needes this stuff!

My own case is quite nice looking. Personally I give it at least an 8 on the cool factor.

However, right at the bottom there's a little door that pops open to reveal a couple of USB connections and jacks for headphones. BOTH USB connections are now dead as someone stepped on the USB cables (PC sits on the floor) and wrecked the jacks.

I have tried to replace them, but it looks like I will need the original jacks and not generic ones.

Overall it isn't a big problem as there are plenty of other USB sockets elsewhere in my system, including an audio break-out box.

Looks is definitely not the main thing to focus on. I usually like a mid tower since it provides a fair amount of room inside and have multiple 3.5" and 5.25" drive bays. The first computer I built was actually more for looks and the special lighting effects than anything. It was a blue case with the X insignia. I found it roomy and all but definitely could have gotten a cheaper case without all the lighting Cooling in the system is not that bad, but can use an extra fan to blow out the extra hot air (as with most other cases if the back fan is not included).