I think it's time to replace my case.
I have a Corsair Air 540, which I've thought was great. Its main chamber is roomy and cable management (or, more accurately, cable
hiding) is a breeze. The issues, however, are thus:
- I have 2 980Tis in there that I (stupidly) didn't get with blower coolers. The short height of the case means they're both pumping out hot air right by the hard drives, which I don't like.
- The airy design means that when it's being pushed, it's really loud. It's all fans and no sound isolation.
- It only has two 3.5" HDD bays.
I've also been looking for a sit/stand desk recently because I spend too much time on my ass and my existing desk is way too big. To avoid cable snagging and for general neatness, I'd ideally be looking to mount the case to the desk, which the quirky 540's cube design doesn't suit.
So, I stumbled across this thing:
Which would be the case and the desk all in one and super neat with loads of bays and space. But it's £1,299, so it's a not-insignificant purchase decision. I can probably be convinced to drop that on it, but I'd rather explore some less costly alternatives first.
The cases in the OP seem to be skewed towards value for money, but I'm more in a position where... Well, I wouldn't say "money is no object", but I am willing to pay a premium to solve my noise, layout and mount-compatibility issues while still remaining huge and roomy and cool.
Anyone have any suggestions?