Modern case airflow vs giants of yesteryear, results... wow!

[theonek]

well ,still using this one here. It is an old case, a whole aluminium only build, except the side and top meshes, has housed many configurations over years, but i prefer it in front of most modern glassy cases with zero airflow or obstructed one....

 

[lexluthermiester]

Coolermaster HAF X,

I prefer the HAF XB EVO. Very spacious.

 

[Athlonite]

Especially during the 2010- 2014 era

My Silverstone RV02B-W is from 2009 it has way better airflow than that junk box from Chieftec and is a large enough case to fit a lot of hardware into it

 

[phill]

I have an old Stacker STC-01 that you guys are making me want to put back in service

It’s even got castor wheels

I'll have to dig out a picture of the two I still have here 810 v1 and 810 v2 Love those cases!!

 

[Valantar]

well ,still using this one here. It is an old case, a whole aluminium only build, except the side and top meshes, has housed many configurations over years, but i prefer it in front of most modern glassy cases with zero airflow or obstructed one....
View attachment 164752

I had that exact case once. Grew to absolutely hate it. The airflow path is terrible (single front intake fan on the HDD cage, four side intake fans, top ... exhaust? and rear exhaust?), the side fan bracket/door impede AIC height and unless you cable manage your butt off with easily accessible extenders to discaonnect the fans is a massive hassle when working in the case, the case is generally cramped and difficult to access despite being huge, and the HDD bay is poorly thought out at best. Build quality was okay, but the doors were rattly and thin aluminium. Quite noisy for its cooling performance. And so. Much. Wasted. Space. Couldn't be happier that I got rid of it - I couldn't imagine building a somewhat modern system in that monstrosity.

 

[Chrispy_]

Not sure what you were expecting. 120mm fans have been mainstream for well over a decade. Since then the only thing case manufacturers have really done in terms of airflow improvement is block them up and add unicorn lights.

Props for doing the measurements and posting the results though.

 

[theonek]

I had that exact case once. Grew to absolutely hate it. The airflow path is terrible (single front intake fan on the HDD cage, four side intake fans, top ... exhaust? and rear exhaust?), the side fan bracket/door impede AIC height and unless you cable manage your butt off with easily accessible extenders to discaonnect the fans is a massive hassle when working in the case, the case is generally cramped and difficult to access despite being huge, and the HDD bay is poorly thought out at best. Build quality was okay, but the doors were rattly and thin aluminium. Quite noisy for its cooling performance. And so. Much. Wasted. Space. Couldn't be happier that I got rid of it - I couldn't imagine building a somewhat modern system in that monstrosity.

yes i can agree with one thing - cable management is terrible but doable, airflow you can manage it even with 3 intake fans on the front, and this old case is far better than nowadays tin cans with breakable glasses. Also i didin't see any manifacturer to have aluminium cases to be made....

 

[kiriakost]

My Silverstone RV02B-W is from 2009 it has way better airflow than that junk box from Chieftec and is a large enough case to fit a lot of hardware into it

If I ever need a toy vacuum cleaner I will get your box.

 

[Valantar]

yes i can agree with one thing - cable management is terrible but doable, airflow you can manage it even with 3 intake fans on the front, and this old case is far better than nowadays tin cans with breakable glasses. Also i didin't see any manifacturer to have aluminium cases to be made....

There aren't many aluminium cases out there today (at least outside of the small volume SFF world - there are heaps of aluminium cases to be found there), mainly due to steel being cheaper, stronger, and a bit easier to work with in industrial manufacturing (less susceptible to damage etc.). But IMO that is perfectly fine; I don't see a case made out of aluminium to be any kind of benefit after experiencing the "quality" of that Stacker. I'd have no problem with it in smaller cases (where the lack of rigidity is less of an issue), but for a large side panel? No thanks. As for your airflow layout: sure, it can be done, but the front mesh is very restrictive (double layered mesh with large portions blocked by plastic framing), and there are no fan mounts, necessitating either some janky DIY solution or getting more HDD cages, which... no.). I see your point about breaksbility, and I'm not a fan of TG myself, but it would take much more force to break a TG panel than to permanently dent the thin aluminium of the Stacker. There are plenty of absolutely terrible modern cases, but there were plenty of bad cases back in the day too - and this Stacker is one of them IMO.

If I ever need a toy vacuum cleaner I will get your box.

... Are you suggesting a case mod combining a PC with a roomba? That would be amazing. And yes, the Silverstone Raven series should be an excellent basis for such a mod

 

[kiriakost]

... Are you suggesting a case mod combining a PC with a roomba? That would be amazing. And yes, the Silverstone Raven series should be an excellent basis for such a mod

Once upon a time, computer forums were actually an Olympic stadium for people so them to demonstrate their mods over standard PC cases.
It was remarkable how many people were motivated to use all skills they had so to participate, naturally the very skilled and talented ones they was deliver a perfect mod.
Unfortunately all those PC case galleries they are lost, old websites fall and all that treasure, the demonstration of international human talent this is now lost.

 

[TheoneandonlyMrK]

133Cfm fans in the old boy make it an unfair Fight.

My old case is a backup server now.

 

[John Naylor]

There is no question that the greats of old, as a whole, do not measure up to the best of today's product lines ... Babe Ruth wouldn't be in the major leagues today. Sports and technology are such that newer is better. That doesn't make crappy new better than great old tho. Yes, the best IPS monitpr is better than the best TN monitor. but that doesn't make a $250 IPS screen better than a $250 TN screen. many of the cases mentioned in this thread were on our recommended list in years gone by. That list changed significantly year to year back then. Now it's Phanteks who brings a case of the year award home from Computex (since 2013) almost every year and others that seem to come out with a great design every now and then.

What has also changed is what people want ... Quiet cases are more desired today than they were in the 90s and other past decades. We still see posts talking about 3000 rpm and high SP when frankly, they are not well suited to todays cases and radiators. In the 90s ... a 3000 rpm fan was oft expected on a radiator because that rad was 30 fpi. We have not had a build in 10 years that used a a fan that spun > 1250 rpm. Those fans are usually off when system is idle, browsing or using office apps, 550-650 when gaming and 825 rpm when stress testing . The only time we have found it necessary to use a 1500 rpm fan was back during 9xx series GFX cards were often paired up in SLI. Mounting a 1500 rm fan on the back of the HD cage was a easy way to lode the 10C temperature difference between the top and bottom cards. With 1200 rpm fans, you are turning the entire case volumes between 1.5 and 2.0 times per second. Changing it 3-4 times a second doesn't bring anything to the table except excess and annoying noise. To my ears, if i can tell my PC is on using my ears, its unacceptable.

The other issue that hurt case air flow was the arrival of AIOs. Use of cheap aluminum rads required high speed fans and folks generally ignored manufacturers instructions and installed the fans blowing out of the case. Their extreme speed, numbers of intakes being > exhausts and reduction of air flow by dusty intake filters usually exceeded the air flow provided by the intake fans. resulting in "heat recycling". The air going out must always = air going in and what doesn't come in / go out via the fans will come thru the vented fslot covers and grilles at the rear of the case. When case is under a desk or rear is facing and close to a wall, heat exhausted by the 250 watt GFX card(s), 750 watt PSU are all exhausting hot air to the same space that the make up intake air is being drawn from.

 

[maxfly]

well ,still using this one here. It is an old case, a whole aluminium only build, except the side and top meshes, has housed many configurations over years, but i prefer it in front of most modern glassy cases with zero airflow or obstructed one....
View attachment 164752

just happened acrossed your cases cousin in neweggs latest email...

Rosewill THOR V2-White Edition, Gaming Computer Case - Newegg.com

Buy Rosewill - THOR V2-W Gaming ATX Full Tower Computer Case White Edition, Supports Up to E-ATX / XL-ATX, Comes with Four Fans with fast shipping and top-rated customer service. Once you know, you Newegg!

www.newegg.com

 

[Toothless]

Gotta say, this thread helped me a whole lot.

I went from a Nanoxia DS6 to a Cosmos 1000 since I had no other free case to put my SR-2 in. I noticed right off the bat that everything was warmer but I'm contributing that to the much, much less airflow than the DS6.

@Vario to the rescue with that 120mm fan in the drive bays! Going to order one (or two, maybe) and toss it in and see where that takes me.

 

[moproblems99]

I'll have to dig out a picture of the two I still have here 810 v1 and 810 v2 Love those cases!!

I have an Antec 900 behind me looking for a free home. Just too lazy to do anything with it.

 

[Toothless]

I have an Antec 900 behind me looking for a free home. Just too lazy to do anything with it.

I could give it a home and everything, though I'm sure we live too far apart for shipping costs to be worth.

 

[Vario]

Gotta say, this thread helped me a whole lot.

I went from a Nanoxia DS6 to a Cosmos 1000 since I had no other free case to put my SR-2 in. I noticed right off the bat that everything was warmer but I'm contributing that to the much, much less airflow than the DS6.

@Vario to the rescue with that 120mm fan in the drive bays! Going to order one (or two, maybe) and toss it in and see where that takes me.

It will help a lot, though my Lian Li A05 is actually a much cooler machine than the 1000, and much smaller, about half the size. I ran six 120x38 San Ace on the Cosmos 1000 (2 on top, one on back, one on floor, one on front, one on the case side panel). After dealing with that giant case for a few years I wanted the smallest ATX case I could find. On the topic of MM, I really like Mountain Mod's Monticle design but the price tag is 3x as high as it should be.

My tower this is no more in production, I can not advertise it

But if I was out today ... for a case with potentials, I would get this one.

4710713233898 Chieftec Bravo Bigtower, Black (without PSU) computer case BA-01B-B-B-OP-FOB

Kaypu Goods by barcode UPC or EAN or ISBN 4710713233898

goods.kaypu.com

Looks like a Chenming case.

 

[maxfly]

Looks like a Chenming case.

Good eye. It actually is built by Chenming. All of the dragon style cases from cheiftec, koolance,antec etc etc etc from the late 90s early 20s were built by Chenming.

 

[ThrashZone]

I prefer the HAF XB EVO. Very spacious.
View attachment 164753

Hi,
I've got to do this perfect for box shaped cases

Borg Cube - Micro Center Build

My case mod takes us to the world of ST:TNG and the Enterprise's most fearsome enemy introduced in the second season of the series. The case I modded is the Cooler Master Elite 110. The inside components comprise a basic gaming rig, with a nod to the era

www.microcenter.com

 

[kiriakost]

That list changed significantly year to year back then. Now it's Phanteks who brings a case of the year award home from Computex (since 2013) almost every year and others that seem to come out with a great design every now and then.

That list not changed but accepted rather poorly influence by a new Asian clan of makers, which them promote eye-candy PC for display at the living room of the rich ones.
The idea of PC computing this is you to get able to use the CPU cycles in a productive way this helping you back at financial, or education, or social or in all sectors together.
The verification of well AIR cooled PC this can last few weeks up to few months, but at some people this become a permanent illness.

PC this is sum of electronics components them working happily at 90 Celsius , capacitors they working happily at 105 Celsius, CPU this has thermal throttling at 70 Celsius.
Water-cooling this is an invention of stealing people money, as is the eight fans PC towers.

Nothing of all that fake PC case fanciness, will either help in gaming and at high scores, gaming performance this relying at the player skills and brain cells and quality of perception, at dealing with unexpected situations.
And this human performance has a peak the age of 45 years old and then degrades.

And at first person shooters, you own life experiences they do make the difference.
Its not a miracle that all those playing flying combat simulators they are all true combat pilots, from all over the world.
And no kid has a chance to compete with them, no matter of how many RGB fans and of latest VGA monster card he has purchage.

Best and wise path this is not following blindly any fashion but rather to leave outside of your head any influences coming from the industry of eye-candy PC, and to focus at making your own life better. Get better cloths, make a gift to a worthy friend, enjoy food with good friends instead.

 

[Toothless]

That list not changed but accepted rather poorly influence by a new Asian clan of makers, which them promote eye-candy PC for display at the living room of the rich ones.
The idea of PC computing this is you to get able to use the CPU cycles in a productive way this helping you back at financial, or education, or social or in all sectors together.
The verification of well AIR cooled PC this can last few weeks up to few months, but at some people this become a permanent illness.

PC this is sum of electronics components them working happily at 90 Celsius , capacitors they working happily at 105 Celsius, CPU this has thermal throttling at 70 Celsius.
Water-cooling this is an invention of stealing people money, as is the eight fans PC towers.

Nothing of all that fake PC case fanciness, will either help in gaming and at high scores, gaming performance this relying at the player skills and brain cells and quality of perception, at dealing with unexpected situations.
And this human performance has a peak the age of 45 years old and then degrades.

And at first person shooters, you own life experiences they do make the difference.
Its not a miracle that all those playing flying combat simulators they are all true combat pilots, from all over the world.
And no kid has a chance to compete with them, no matter of how many RGB fans and of latest VGA monster card he has purchage.

Best and wise path this is not following blindly any fashion but rather to leave outside of your head any influences coming from the industry of eye-candy PC, and to focus at making your own life better. Get better cloths, make a gift to a worthy friend, enjoy food with good friends instead.

Dude, what? The post you quoted is about a list and a brand winning awards yearly with others having some good eggs. You came out with a wall of text that I'm still having issues understanding.

Can you do a short version of what you just typed out?

 

[Vayra86]

While a substantial drop, ambient temp is the big elephant in the room here. Did you make sure those were the same? I can imagine in a regular session the temp is quite a lot higher in the room than when you're just firing up a bench at some random moment.

But still yeah, I'll believe right away there is a noticeable drop with a decent case versus what's hot at the moment . Not a fan of that either, and I don't think I'll take a TG window again either, even if Fractal's Define C TG isn't all that bad on airflow.

 

[kiriakost]

Dude, what? The post you quoted is about a list and a brand winning awards yearly with others having some good eggs. You came out with a wall of text that I'm still having issues understanding.

Can you do a short version of what you just typed out?

I am no dude, but as gentlemen I will elaborate at specific questions.

 

[maxfly]

I am no dude, but as gentlemen I will elaborate at specific questions.

Either or, your last is impossible to decipher. What exactly are/were you trying to convey? Im honestly intrigued.

 

[ThrashZone]

Hi,
Really what was all that about lol