Unofficial mini-ITX case thread - Page 6

Originally Posted by assassin

This case has been discontinued which is a HUGE problem and leaves a huge void in the ITX HTPC case options.

I agree that this case is by far the best budget ITX out there.

I see the Athena options but those are already deactivated at Newegg as well.

So what's going to be the new go-to ITX case once these models are completely gone???

Originally Posted by MikeCandler

Crap really? When I saw it no longer on Newegg I figured something was up.

Going to have to make the Apex work...

Originally Posted by assassin

There are very few ITX cases that meet my criteria...

1. At least one 3.5" drive
2. At least one optical drive
3. Areas to mount an additional SSD or 2.5" drive
4. Power supply that isn't directly over the CPU fan.

Man, I loved that Rosewill. I am really sad to see it go.

Originally Posted by MikeCandler

That is exactly my concern, also the size the Rosewill was perfect as I only have a small amount of space and cannot go bigger.

Can you get a smaller PS for the Apex unit by chance? The 250W in it is over kill for most people and if you could get something even an inch or so shorter it would certainly make me feel a lot more comfortable.

Originally Posted by assassin

You can use a PicoPSU.

Originally Posted by dj4monie

At Fry's they have a $40 mITX case with 300w and I think it looks fine, certainly better than the "cube" type cases you see.

http://www.frys.com/product/6145869






As much as I like the Habey cases, none of they space for expansion. It all has to be based on what you would put in laptops (mini cards) or USB which adds to the clutter.

For $40, I'd say this is pretty good. It has no "feet" so it can't be turned horizontal without covering up a cooling vent. That's easily solved...

That and the InWin Wavy are the only sub-$100 mITX cases I like that have a slot opening. The InWin has Four, not that you would use them all with a mITX board, but at else one additional can be used for extra USB ports, Firewire or eSATA.

Options, Options, Options

Used as a File Server - http://www.silentpcreview.com/forums...ic.php?t=57965

Used as a HTPC - http://www.overclock.net/htpc/835125...tup-wi-fi.html

Sure you can send more and get maybe a better looking case. But I'm driving to build a sub-$300 in parts HTPC and getting the cheapest case possible is important while still remaining stylish and giving me an important expansion slot.

Its either that or a bunch of USB devices...

Originally Posted by Augus

I am looking at this one regular price $56





APEX MI-008

250W PS
standard size drive bays: External 5.25", External 3.5", Internal 3.5"
front ports behind i/o cover panel
11.80" x 8.70" x 5.1"

Originally Posted by GatoEnFuego

I have this case on my Zacate build and it's a tight fit but what do you expect from a mini-ITX case?? Works perfectly, good quality, looks nice in the media center, best sub-$100 case out there IMO.

*edit* Don't let the picture fool you, it DOESN'T have a cheap looking purple power button... It's black and glows a faint blue around the edge when it's on. It's very subtle and looks mellow.

Originally Posted by assassin

I've used that case with the i3. Terrible to use with the i3, imo.

Originally Posted by GatoEnFuego

Uh oh, I already requested an RMA on my zacate and ordered the i3 sandy bridge... So does it fit and it's just tight or simply not usable?

Originally Posted by assassin

Extremely tight. You actually have to use a little force to get the cpu and psu to fit.

That was with clarkdale and I bet the Sandy Bridge is the same.

Originally Posted by GatoEnFuego

Almost looks like I could dremel off the fan "cage" and just make sure the cables are secured well away from the cpu... I doubt anyone would advise this but can't see much of a purpose of it other than to keep the sloppy errant SATA cable from stopping the fan.

Originally Posted by chestnu1

I belive I read somewhere that the sandy bridge heatsink fans are smaller then the clarkdale fans so you might not have to do anything.

Originally Posted by GatoEnFuego

Almost looks like I could dremel off the fan "cage" and just make sure the cables are secured well away from the cpu... I doubt anyone would advise this but can't see much of a purpose of it other than to keep the sloppy errant SATA cable from stopping the fan.

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

You know, you could just get a 3rd party cooler such as the Silverstone NT07-1156.

@chestnu1
35w TDP Sandy come with shorter coolers. Regular models come with the same cooler as Clarkdale.

Originally Posted by StardogChampion

It wasn't necessary for the PC-Q09.

Originally Posted by GatoEnFuego

Almost looks like I could dremel off the fan "cage" and just make sure the cables are secured well away from the cpu... I doubt anyone would advise this but can't see much of a purpose of it other than to keep the sloppy errant SATA cable from stopping the fan.

Originally Posted by GatoEnFuego

I'm an idiot... not sure why thought the fan motor was attached the fins and not the plastic around it. Duh. Well i put it all together last night and the power supply definitely touches the fan but i wouldn't say any "force" was required to get it all to fit.

Originally Posted by ru4real

Hopefully, the fan will still be able to provide enough cooling ability to prevent the CPU from catching on fire, unlike your cat.

Originally Posted by mrdinosaur

My favorite HTPC case is the Lian Li pc-q08.

Originally Posted by assassin

The one I built sounded like a jet engine when it was playing 1080p.

There is a thread on here somewhere with a picture from me which showed how to install another fan in the side of the case. I did that and it REALLY helped with cooling.

I'm just not a fan of a case where 3/4 of the CPU fan is covered and touching the PSU.

Edit: Here it is. 120mm fan.

Another option is to not use an optical drive and put your 3.5" hard drive in the 5.25" optical drive space with an adapter:

Originally Posted by assassin

That thing is $120 and without a PSU.