What is a good rack mount case on the cheap

[ProLogic]

Im looking for a good rack mount case on the cheap, i need: Decent front IO, nothing special like VGA but USB and The power switch are the minimum, ATX mobo support, ATX power supply support and a door that covers the front IO would also be nice, as well as hotswap drive bays (Not a must but would be a nice touch)

 

 

[johnny5c]

I'm using this case for a Plex server, pretty basic but the price was right.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811148065

[ARikozuM]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?item=N82E16811147154

[tt2468]

If you REALLY want to go on the cheap side, use an old switch. They're great for mini-its servers.

[Mikensan]

Cheap? Hot-swap ready cases are going to start at about $200. Honestly if you want cheap, but whatever ATX case suites your fancy and then just add icy-dock in the 5.25" bays for hotswap. Buy a sliding-rail shelf and call it a day.

[ProLogic]

2 hours ago, Mikensan said:

Cheap? Hot-swap ready cases are going to start at about $200. Honestly if you want cheap, but whatever ATX case suites your fancy and then just add icy-dock in the 5.25" bays for hotswap. Buy a sliding-rail shelf and call it a day.

 

 

 

Needs to be rack mountable, reason - Already have a 24U server rack (Only 6u of space left in it) where i need to put it, And it needs the partner approval.

[Mikensan]

10 minutes ago, ProLogic said:

Needs to be rack mountable, reason - Already have a 24U server rack (Only 6u of space left in it) where i need to put it, And it needs the partner approval.

 

That is what the shelf would do.. you'd put the box on the shelf inside the rack. Granted this picture shows a small one but they come in all sizes. Just an idea if you want cheap and hotswap together. I actually was forced to do this, because the Rosewell rack case I bought did not support slider rails (only fixed) so I had to buy a shelf. 

Better question is, what is your budget? "Cheap" can mean different things to different people.

 

[Adyn]

4 hours ago, Mikensan said:

 

That is what the shelf would do.. you'd put the box on the shelf inside the rack. Granted this picture shows a small one but they come in all sizes. Just an idea if you want cheap and hotswap together. I actually was forced to do this, because the Rosewell rack case I bought did not support slider rails (only fixed) so I had to buy a shelf. 

Better question is, what is your budget? "Cheap" can mean different things to different people.

 

I would agree with this to be honest as this is about as cheap as you can get although you may save more with a static shelf. But if it is more down to cost you could argue that you already have the rack the cheapest option is to place whatever it is on the device below just playing devils advocate.

 

[samiscool51]

look on ebay, sometimes you can find a used one for ~$25-$50 USD, really cheep

[ProLogic]

On 24/10/2016 at 11:19 PM, Adyn said:

Ithe cheapest option is to place whatever it is on the device below just playing devils advocate.

 

2

2

So placing the case on top of a patch panel? Great way to break things

On 24/10/2016 at 7:04 PM, Mikensan said:

 

That is what the shelf would do.. you'd put the box on the shelf inside the rack. Granted this picture shows a small one but they come in all sizes. Just an idea if you want cheap and hotswap together. I actually was forced to do this, because the Rosewell rack case I bought did not support slider rails (only fixed) so I had to buy a shelf. 

Better question is, what is your budget? "Cheap" can mean different things to different people.

 

 

 

The system I am moving over to the new case needs to have a larger case for space and cooling reasons, so it really isn't an option

 

As for budget, not over the cost of my old FD case (Don't own it anymore) which was £69.98  (GBP)

 

On 25/10/2016 at 2:28 AM, samiscool51 said:

look on ebay, sometimes you can find a used one for ~$25-$50 USD, really cheep

I shall have a look now.

[gamerking]

On 10/22/2016 at 6:42 PM, ProLogic said:

Im looking for a good rack mount case on the cheap, i need: Decent front IO, nothing special like VGA but USB and The power switch are the minimum, ATX mobo support, ATX power supply support and a door that covers the front IO would also be nice, as well as hotswap drive bays (Not a must but would be a nice touch)

 

 

http://www.microcenter.com/product/440314/Industrial_4U_Server_Chassis_CS6501H_-_Black-Silver

 

newegg caries it  also a few different types . you can order it online where i linked i think they will ship to you

[Mikensan]

9 hours ago, ProLogic said:

So placing the case on top of a patch panel? Great way to break things

The system I am moving over to the new case needs to have a larger case for space and cooling reasons, so it really isn't an option

 

As for budget, not over the cost of my old FD case (Don't own it anymore) which was £69.98  (GBP)

 

I shall have a look now.

 

I have a 4U case sitting on it that's about 25" deep, so I don't know what makes you think it wouldn't fit. Anywho, I hope you find what you're looking for.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147233

[ProLogic]

6 minutes ago, Mikensan said:

 

I have a 4U case sitting on it that's about 25" deep, so I don't know what makes you think it wouldn't fit. Anywho, I hope you find what you're looking for.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147233

<snip>

 

 

Depth isn't a problem, I have a 40-inch deep rack, I was talking about the server's current case, first of all, it is crap, no ATX PSU support, the board is M-ATX, and the case is SFF so it makes adding big coolers, GPUs etc a problem with its 1/2 height PC brackets. So i need a new case for that exact reason, and server cases seems to cost about the same as consumer cases.