Antec P180B Performance One ATX Case

[Miles]

Reviewer: Olin "Das Capitolin" Coles

Date Published: January 24, 2007

Excerpt: "For system builders who cater to the demanding consumer, or the do-it-yourself gamer and enthusiast, the computer case has become a means to extend your personal tastes into a unique appearance. Since modifying a computer case is an extreme endeavor for only the most patient craftsman, the next best solution is to purchase from myriad of styles, sizes, and purpose-driven cases available on the market."


http://www.bjorn3D.com/Material/revimages/rev_forum/P180-Fronts.jpg

Feel free to post your comments and questions here!

Link To Review (http://www.bjorn3d.com/read.php?cID=1044)

[werty316]

Sweet case indeed but it would have been even better if the interior was a bit longer just incase you want an 8800GTX.

[XJnine]

Nice review. Interesting to see some of the comments you made.

I use the same case at home and one of the main reasons I chose it is because of the design. I prefer the minimalist clean lines of this case over some of the gaudy and obtrusive designs that have become popular.

Another thing I like about it is the noise reduction features it has. You mentioned the silicone grommets that are all over the place but one feature it has that os also something that contributes to the weights factor you mentioned is the fact that the side panels are 3 layers think. They are a plastic door with an aluminum layer on the outside and one on the inside. The sandwiching design greatly reduces the noise coming out of the case.

One thing I found that helps is putting a fan in the top of the case that has a temperature sensor. Normally that fan will spin very slowly in my case but when things heat up during gaming it will speed up to help exhaust the heat better. Once things cool down it will slow down and the case will go back to being very quiet. I only recommend those for upper exhaust fans where the rising heat will get them moving. If you put one of those fans on the intake of the case and you have cool ambient temps outside it will always have cool air blowing over it and will therefore not spin up faster even when your PC is heating up and needs the extra airflow.

My main gripe with the case is the fact that the power and reset button are behind the door. I understand they're behind the locked door for security reasons but how many of us actually use the keylock on our case? Probably none. I don't access the power buttons very often but it's definitely more oftem than the dvd drive. I just think it would be nice to get to them without opening the door.

I also noticed that the thumbscrew that holds the lower drive cage in can sometimes catch on the side panel and make it very difficult to remove. Have you ever had this problem? I ended up replacing it with a standard screw to prevent this.

The speed selector cable for the rear fan will tuck nicely along the side of the fan in the space between the fan and the side panel. I can post a pic if you need it. The other fans are a little tougher to find a nice place. I agree that it would have been nice to have clips for them.

[XJnine]

Sweet case indeed but it would have been even better if the interior was a bit longer just incase you want an 8800GTX.


I agree. I have an 8800GTX in mine and I had to remove the upper drive cage for it to fit properly. I could probabkly leave the drive cage in but I wouldn't be able to put any drives in it and it would be very cramped.

[Bio-Hazard]

I replaced all the Antec fans with 3 pin fans that are controled by the MoBo's bios software (except for the radiator fan that is, that's controled by a small rheostat), much easire that way, the stock fans and their speed control are pretty useless IMHO and the airflow in general sucks in it's stock configuration. Hopefully the new P190 will be a bit better when it is released. Maybe Antec should install a small fan speed controler on the from bezel like some of the other highend cases do, that way you can adjust the fan speeds as you see fit without opening the case.

[Das Capitolin]

My main gripe with the case is the fact that the power and reset button are behind the door. I understand they're behind the locked door for security reasons but how many of us actually use the keylock on our case? Probably none. I don't access the power buttons very often but it's definitely more oftem than the dvd drive. I just think it would be nice to get to them without opening the door.

I agree! I think that most people find that it is a waste for the power and reset buttons to be placed behind the door so it can be locked. Nobody I know ever locks the computer up, so it just becomes a hassle.

The intake noise is a bit loud when all three fans are on high, but Sbrehm had the right idea to replace them with controlled fans which plug directly into the motherboard.

[XJnine]

And if you've got access to the computer turning it off via the button isn't the only way to shut it down or mess things up. They left access to the USB and firewire ports and most people could power off the system just by shutting it down through windows. Not the most wise of all security decisions.

[Das Capitolin]

I think it is powering on that they are most concerned with. Pulling the power cord or switching off the PSU is always available.

[darkorb]

i like this case, i dont mind really the buttons being behind the door, well i havent been in that predicament so i really couldn't tell you lol

this case or the coolermaster stacker are going to be my next case

[XJnine]

Hmm, with most of my PC's that still wouldn't help. I usually have them set to turn on after power failure in the bios. I probably shouldn't but I do...

[Kougar]

There was a thread on Anandtech's forums about people unhappy that Antec was NOT putting the power/reset buttons behind the door, or if so being unable to lock it. More than a few said they specifically would have preferred this type of design because of their toddlers/kids tended to play with them. Just wanted to share that, FWIW.

My step-brother isn't even 3 and he knows exactly what the power button on a case does, he can also turn the TV on/off and takes immense pleasure in seeking out anything that is a button just to see what happens. It doesn't matter what it is, he's gotten quite skilled at finding the buttons to everything, even if he's never seen it before. His father already had to disable all his front case buttons in Windows. :tongue:

[T07N]

How do I remove the 3.5" external drive bay? I can't seem to open it or anything?

[XJnine]

Mine was very difficult. I just had to use a long screwdriver to poke the cover out from the inside. I totally forgot what a pain in the butt that was.

[Das Capitolin]

How do I remove the 3.5" external drive bay? I can't seem to open it or anything?

If you are referring to the single 3.5" drive bay cover, then it is a matter of using a long tool (screwdriver, butterknife, etc) to push the cover out towards the front. You could also pry it out from the left side tab, but this may cause a blemish on the case.

There is only one cover, and it rests inbetweeen the front fan intakes.

[Kougar]

Yeah, what they said. I used a long screwdriver to pop mine out from the inside after it wouldn't budge. I stuck a Vantec fan controller there, and tucked a bunch of cabling in behind it. The single 3.5" bay is not removeable, it's sort of an odd design how they did it.

[ivhs72]

Has anyone installed 5 fans in their case? I just built a system, and wanted to put cooling fans in front of both 3.5 inch drive bays. No problem with the upper one, but the lower one seems to be impossible to install. I've contacted Antec about this but no answer. Short of cutting the case, I don't see anyway in doing it. I'm going to have 4 7200rpm drives there and would like a little more air flow across them.

Thanks

:biggrin:

[XJnine]

I've got four HD's in the lower cage and I haven't noticed a heat problem using just the one fan that's in that chamber. Looks like you'd have to be awfulle creative to fit a fan in front of the HD's.

[Bio-Hazard]

Putting a fan in front of the lower hard drive rack might just fit, the bracket that has the thumb screw hole in it is 7/8 inch thick and is only held in by 4 aluminum rivits. And the grid opening is more than large enough for a 120mm fan.

[Kougar]

Has anyone installed 5 fans in their case? I just built a system, and wanted to put cooling fans in front of both 3.5 inch drive bays. No problem with the upper one, but the lower one seems to be impossible to install. I've contacted Antec about this but no answer. Short of cutting the case, I don't see anyway in doing it. I'm going to have 4 7200rpm drives there and would like a little more air flow across them.

Thanks

:biggrin:

To clear up any possible misconceptions, the case isn't designed to hold a fan infront of the lower drive cage, only in the middle. I've populated my lower drive cage with four Seagate drives, but so far temps are almost exactly the "norm" for these drives. I completely understand with your wish to run them cooler though, but like XJNine or Bio-Harzard said, you'd need to mod your case to do so.

Also on a different issue, I've confirmed the fan bracket in the lower bay has developed that annoyingly loud rattling problem I've seen rarely mentioned with the P180. I hope it's not a problem that only arises after 6+ months of use, otherwise more and more people are going to have to do a little jury-rigging to quiet the thing. :???:

[Bio-Hazard]

The lower fan bracket can be removed and the fan can be secured directly to the bracket support if you wish. You can also install the fan on the front side of the bracket (1 inch thick fan) as well to bring it in closer to the HD rack, but then you'll have to use cables with 90 degree connectors to keep them out of the fan.

[Kougar]

You can do that?? I didn't even think to check... are the screw holes already there or did you add them? ;)

Originally the P180 included a 120x120x35 mm fan in this spot, I guess it was for size reasons they changed to a thinner, more standard 120x120x25 fan...

[Bio-Hazard]

The screw holes were already on my case, but this is one of the latest versions............;) Mine also came with the 25mm thick fan.