Full VS Mid Tower

Negawing · 10-31-2009, 08:09 PM

So as I am looking into all of the different parts for my soon to be computer, I can't decide whether I should go with a Mid or Full size tower. How the tower actually looks is important to me (I get tired of seeing the boring black rectangles a lot of my friends use), as it the price. Since I am building this over a long period of time, the case will be the first thing I buy, and work my way up front here.

A full size tower would allow better airflow and space, but a mid size would be cheaper and often has more styles. I am trying to keep the cost of the case to under $100 bucks, but there are always so many on Newegg that I never know which ones are really the best. As far as Mid Size cases go, I like the Smilodon line by Raidmax. The MoBo tray flips out, and it looks pretty class.

What do you guys suggest?

Muffin Man · 10-31-2009, 08:38 PM

couple of suggestions you could look at, all under $100. btw, i dont wanna sound mean or anything, but it seems like youre either real picky or you just didnt look enough

Negawing · 11-01-2009, 01:20 PM

Thanks Muffinman! You are always very helpful.

So in your opinion, would a full size beat out a mid tower in terms of benefits?

Muffin Man · 11-01-2009, 02:08 PM

well, id say yes. but that doesnt mean that mid towers arent good. full towers tend to give you more room to work in, and should provide better airflow since everything isnt as cramped together. but then again, you might not want a case that big, or you might not have that high end of a rig that it needs the best possible cooling, where even an intake and exhaust fan setup will be perfectly adequate.

its also a matter of personal preference though. some people like the flashiness of cold cathodes and led fans, and some people like more sleeker looks.

patonb · 11-01-2009, 03:18 PM

I think it also depends on what you want to put in it..

The Atenc 900 was huge with a stock cooler, 8800gt and 1 hd. Add in a tuniq 120 heatsink, 2x gtx 260's and a 2nd hd, its very cramped.

Negawing · 11-01-2009, 03:43 PM

Quote:

I think it also depends on what you want to put in it..

The Atenc 900 was huge with a stock cooler, 8800gt and 1 hd. Add in a tuniq 120 heatsink, 2x gtx 260's and a 2nd hd, its very cramped.

Yeah, having room for larger parts will come in handy. A few friends of mine couldn't fit in some of the newer graphics cards just because of the size of their mid towers. Plus, I think it would be easier to water cool a full tower (not that I am going to attempt that anytime soon) rather than a mid.

Negawing · 11-01-2009, 03:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Muffin Man

couple of suggestions you could look at, all under $100. btw, i dont wanna sound mean or anything, but it seems like youre either real picky or you just didnt look enough

. took me like 5 mins to find all these >.<

Heh, I am just being extra picky these days. I am thinking a full tower today after seeing the actual size of some of the heat sinks. Some of them are huge!

Brinson · 11-02-2009, 04:30 PM

You might should reconsider building a PC over time unless that time is like...under 2 weeks.

By the time you've bought your third part your first one is prolly gonna drop half in price. That's how the computer industry is. Its generally a bad idea to buy parts you aren't going to use soon.

apsoul · 11-02-2009, 11:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brinson

You might should reconsider building a PC over time unless that time is like...under 2 weeks.

By the time you've bought your third part your first one is prolly gonna drop half in price. That's how the computer industry is. Its generally a bad idea to buy parts you aren't going to use soon.

While I understand this, I would have to disagree to some extent. The case would be fine to buy ahead of time as the price probably won't decrease that much, and it won't become obsolete in a couple years. The same goes for a good PSU and HDD's are relatively inexpensive these days and you can always add more later. The only difficult part would be mobo/cpu/ram. Get them last.

Ideally saving up and getting it all at once is better, but some people (myself included) sometimes have a tough time budgeting their money... it just burns a whole in my pocket.

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