Looking for a custom loop case.

[Krodmandoon]

I have been pulling my hair out trying to decide on a case that looks good (Tempered Glass, clean look) that also has room for and good thermals for a eventual custom loop.  This would be my first custom loop and I am going to use an AIO in the mean time, and then buy parts for custom loop as I save for them.  Upfront cash will be going to a graphics card instead of custom loop.  I had my mind set on the Lian Li 011 Dynamic, but my neighbor heard me say it and bought it for his rig, and now I feel like I have to get something different.  250 - 300 Price range if it's worth it. Custom Loop is mostly for the looks, so cramming something in isn't really what I want to do.  

 

Cases I have checked out:

Thermaltake P90 - I like the look, but not sure about the open design and ease of loop building

Thermaltake P5 - Same as above, also not sure about air flow to other parts as it's open case.

Thermaltake P8 - Might be a bit too big, but might also be my best bet for ease of building.

Thermaltake View 71 - also an option I didn't mind.

Thermaltake A500 - I really like the look, but I am worried about some of the design elements.

--- I know I listed a lot of Thermaltake, but I actually would like to avoid them 

NZXT H700i - I don't know how much room there is for custom loop, but looks like enough

Phanteks Evolv X - I don't like the front of the case, but it seems to be well built

Phanteks P500A - looks better and looks like good airflow.

BeQuiet! Dark Base Pro 900 - looks like a good option for noise

BeQuiet! Silent Base 802 - another quiet built that looks ok

 

Feel free to call me a moron and tell me I am missing the best case out there.  I am looking for any tips I can get.  

USB Type C is something I would really like, but not a deal breaker.

I need room for at least 2 3.5" HDDs and 2 SSDs

Full ATX MB

Size is an issue at extremes, for example the Thermaltake P7 is too wide with all the panels, but I can deal with a full size case.  Mid would be better if it is roomy enough for a custom loop.

 

Thanks for any help, and let me know if you need any more info.

 

Krodman

 

[Analog]

22 minutes ago, Krodmandoon said:

Feel free to call me a moron and tell me I am missing the best case out there.  I am looking for any tips I can get.  

USB Type C is something I would really like, but not a deal breaker.

I need room for at least 2 3.5" HDDs and 2 SSDs

Full ATX MB

Size is an issue at extremes, for example the Thermaltake P7 is too wide with all the panels, but I can deal with a full size case.  Mid would be better if it is roomy enough for a custom loop.

 

Thanks for any help, and let me know if you need any more info.

 

Krodman

 

 

I recently moved to custom water cooling for the first time and got a nice big full tower to go along with my project. Have you considered the Cooler Master Cosmos C700P or the C700M? It pretty much ticks all the boxes, which you have specified. You can check my build log in my signature in order to visually see how it would look like with a custom loop. 

[LIGISTX]

22 minutes ago, Krodmandoon said:

I have been pulling my hair out trying to decide on a case that looks good (Tempered Glass, clean look) that also has room for and good thermals for a eventual custom loop.  This would be my first custom loop and I am going to use an AIO in the mean time, and then buy parts for custom loop as I save for them.  Upfront cash will be going to a graphics card instead of custom loop.  I had my mind set on the Lian Li 011 Dynamic, but my neighbor heard me say it and bought it for his rig, and now I feel like I have to get something different.  250 - 300 Price range if it's worth it. Custom Loop is mostly for the looks, so cramming something in isn't really what I want to do.  

 

Cases I have checked out:

Thermaltake P90 - I like the look, but not sure about the open design and ease of loop building

Thermaltake P5 - Same as above, also not sure about air flow to other parts as it's open case.

Thermaltake P8 - Might be a bit too big, but might also be my best bet for ease of building.

Thermaltake View 71 - also an option I didn't mind.

Thermaltake A500 - I really like the look, but I am worried about some of the design elements.

--- I know I listed a lot of Thermaltake, but I actually would like to avoid them 

NZXT H700i - I don't know how much room there is for custom loop, but looks like enough

Phanteks Evolv X - I don't like the front of the case, but it seems to be well built

Phanteks P500A - looks better and looks like good airflow.

BeQuiet! Dark Base Pro 900 - looks like a good option for noise

BeQuiet! Silent Base 802 - another quiet built that looks ok

 

Feel free to call me a moron and tell me I am missing the best case out there.  I am looking for any tips I can get.  

USB Type C is something I would really like, but not a deal breaker.

I need room for at least 2 3.5" HDDs and 2 SSDs

Full ATX MB

Size is an issue at extremes, for example the Thermaltake P7 is too wide with all the panels, but I can deal with a full size case.  Mid would be better if it is roomy enough for a custom loop.

 

Thanks for any help, and let me know if you need any more info.

 

Krodman

 

I really like my Fractal S2.... Fits a good bit of rad space and its clean looking.

 

A top 45mm thick 420 and a front 60mm 280 provides A LOT of cooling capacity. Need to get a bit fancy with mobo with a 45mm thick 420 top though, but it works if you take the shrouds off the heatsinks.

[Krodmandoon]

Thanks, I will check those out. A lot of these seem to be out of stock, but they do seem to fit with what I am looking for. 

[TVwazhere]

6 hours ago, Krodmandoon said:

Thanks, I will check those out. A lot of these seem to be out of stock, but they do seem to fit with what I am looking for. 

The Define R6/S2 has been updated to the Define 7 and Meshify 2. The C700P were made in 2017 and IIRc are not made anymore, but Coolermaster stil makes their H500P Mesh and H500M; though those cases's 200mm fans would simply obstruct any future Water-cooling plans. 

[Krodmandoon]

5 hours ago, TVwazhere said:

The Define R6/S2 has been updated to the Define 7 and Meshify 2. The C700P were made in 2017 and IIRc are not made anymore, but Coolermaster stil makes their H500P Mesh and H500M; though those cases's 200mm fans would simply obstruct any future Water-cooling plans. 

Thank you for that info, I kinda agree about the 200mm fans, do you have any suggestions on a case?  

[Jason 57]

23 hours ago, Krodmandoon said:

Thank you for that info, I kinda agree about the 200mm fans, do you have any suggestions on a case?  

I would recommend the Lian Li Lancool II Mesh. 

I have the Performance, they also sell a RGB version. 

It will hold 3 3.5"HDD (which can also hold 2.5" drives) and there are places for 4 SSDs on the back side of the case. 

Not sure if it helps, here are photos. 

 

[NorKris]

On 4/15/2021 at 8:23 PM, Krodmandoon said:

Thank you for that info, I kinda agree about the 200mm fans, do you have any suggestions on a case?  

 

On 4/15/2021 at 3:07 PM, TVwazhere said:

The Define R6/S2 has been updated to the Define 7 and Meshify 2. The C700P were made in 2017 and IIRc are not made anymore, but Coolermaster stil makes their H500P Mesh and H500M; though those cases's 200mm fans would simply obstruct any future Water-cooling plans. 

with a rad in front of h500p/m  you would do a   push(200), rad ,pull(120or140)

[Krodmandoon]

6 hours ago, NorKris said:

 

with a rad in front of h500p/m  you would do a   push(200), rad ,pull(120or140)

My assumption was that the low speed and low pressure 200mm fans would be counter productive to the high speed high pressure rad fans.  I could be wrong tho.

[Krodmandoon]

For an update, I have narrowed down my search a bit, from best to worst:

 

• Lian Li 011 XL - the 011 Dynamic was my first choice but felt I needed to change due to a neighbor buying it.  The XL version in a different color might give me enough reason to buy it.
• The Corsair 5000X RGB - Not perfect as far as looks for me, but it seems to fit the bill enough.
• Thermaltake Core P8 - again, I haven't seen many reviews on this, if anyone knows about this case, I might be more comfortable getting it over the 5000x... Strangely enough as far as looks go, This is too much, the 5000x is too little.  Also the P8 is huge, not out of the question, but I would like something smaller.
• Phanteks P500A - seems to be a somewhat decent compromise between the 5000x and the P8 I guess.  The Lian Li Lancool 2 Mesh is also on par here.  

 

The goal I guess is part and fan visibility, but in a clean way that leaves room for custom loop parts. The P8 is super visible and plenty of room but is huge and not clean looking.  The 5000x is Clean and a good size but visibility is slightly lacking, and the p500a and the lancool 2 mesh are on par being slightly less visible and clean than the 5000x.

Any opinions or other options are welcome, I may look at other corsair cases.

[NorKris]

8 hours ago, Krodmandoon said:

My assumption was that the low speed and low pressure 200mm fans would be counter productive to the high speed high pressure rad fans.  I could be wrong tho.

ye i rly rly doubt that you lose performance by putting 2x 200 fans infront of a rad  with 2fans pulling . If you gain performance i dont know.. 

[Krodmandoon]

12 hours ago, NorKris said:

ye i rly rly doubt that you lose performance by putting 2x 200 fans infront of a rad  with 2fans pulling . If you gain performance i dont know.. 

You could be right, but I think I'm leaning for the O11 Dynamic XL anyway.  I just have to convince myself

[NorKris]

6 hours ago, Krodmandoon said:

You could be right, but I think I'm leaning for the O11 Dynamic XL anyway.  I just have to convince myself

o11dynamic is an excellent case  thats why every1 and their dogs have one