Will choosing the wrong cabinet for your system ruin your gaming experience completely? Probably not. But choosing the right one will enhance it many times. So, lets discuss the points you should keep in mind before buying a cabinet for your rig.
Everyone has a different taste when it comes to looks. The average user chooses a cabinet by its outside looks. Determine whether you'll want a discrete, sleek exterior design or if you'd prefer something more flashy and edgy. Bling can look great when done right, but sleepers have just as much potential to awe their onlookers. But along with the looks the built quality should also be considered. The first characteristic of a good cabinet is its sturdiness. The last thing you want is a cabinet that isn’t stable. Look for cabinets that have use high gauge metal. The sheets of metal used on the cabinet should be thick.Poor quality cabinets tend to vibrate when fans, drives and other moving components start running. The end result is a very noisy cabinet. When you’re spending a large sum of money on a new computer, it’s only right to spend a little more than the leftovers on a cabinet.
Once we buy a cabinet we don't wanna change it everytime we decide for an upgrade.Earlier all cabinets could accommodate almost all cards. But with the lauch of Radeon 6950 and 6970, longer cabinets are needed. so look for bigger cabinets. also extra room always helps in ease of installation and cleaning. Good cabinets come with thumb screws and tool free locking features so you don't need to use tools everytime you wanna install something.
Back-plate spacing: Make sure you try to judge the depth between the back of the motherboard and the right side panel. Anywhere in the range of 25mm should be enough room for the fatter cables. This space is normally listed on the specs page for the case.
Rear-facing drive bays: These allow you to route cables through the back of the case, ensuring they don't obstruct precious airflow and keeping them out-of-sight
So, this is all I had to say about buying the right gaming case. Hope it was helpful. And for those who are looking for a straight budget solution, see our list of Top five gaming cabinets under 5000.
The Right Size
When it comes to cabinets, one always want something that requires less space for accommodation. You can go for mini-ATX or micro-ATX, if youre bulding a system based on Intel's 3rd gen. But for enthusiasts a mid tower is a better option as it provides more room for different components and better airflow. Full ATX cabinets are larger and good for workstations or serious gamers who are bound to plug multiple drives and add-on cards to the system. So before buying the cabinet, be sure about the type of system you are building.Build quality & Aesthetic appeal
USB 3.0 Support
USB 3.0 is a new feature being offered by most motherboards these days. This feature lets three times faster data transfer than normal ports. So, make sure your cabinet offers USB 3.0 support on the front panel or you'll have to plug your drives everytime at the back.Ease of Installation & Room for Big cards
Once we buy a cabinet we don't wanna change it everytime we decide for an upgrade.Earlier all cabinets could accommodate almost all cards. But with the lauch of Radeon 6950 and 6970, longer cabinets are needed. so look for bigger cabinets. also extra room always helps in ease of installation and cleaning. Good cabinets come with thumb screws and tool free locking features so you don't need to use tools everytime you wanna install something.Fans, Vents & Dust Control
Most cases come with one fan and spot for other fans in different locations. Look for cabinets with fan speed controllers. Case fan speed controllers can help keep things quiet when it's time to get work done, but can easily be mashed into gear for serious gaming. Now more fans means more dust. Many cabinets these days have large vents or perforated panels that allow air to flow through the cabinet, but this also lets dust settle inside the cabinet. One of the neat things that manufacturers are adding to all their panels are fine nets that block some of the dust but at the same time don’t block all of the airflowCable Management features
Rubber grommets: Cable management accessibility is huge and will make your life easy.Back-plate spacing: Make sure you try to judge the depth between the back of the motherboard and the right side panel. Anywhere in the range of 25mm should be enough room for the fatter cables. This space is normally listed on the specs page for the case.
Rear-facing drive bays: These allow you to route cables through the back of the case, ensuring they don't obstruct precious airflow and keeping them out-of-sight
Water Cooling Support
Okay you dont need water coolers now but who knows you might require that in future. Hence look for cases that come with gaps cut into them at the back which allow water pipes to run into the cabinet.Power Supply
Years ago, almost all cases came with power supplies in them (Antec comes to mind). This is now the exception, not the rule. Nowdays, most good quality and expensive cabinets don't come with PSUs. Ideally, spend separately on a power supply. Quite often, with cheaper cabinets especially, power supplies bundled with cabinets are poor performers and don’t provide the claimed power output.So, this is all I had to say about buying the right gaming case. Hope it was helpful. And for those who are looking for a straight budget solution, see our list of Top five gaming cabinets under 5000.
Shivani Mishra
About the Guest Author:
An Engineer by profession and a writer by passion. Trying to solve others problems and learning in the due course.
An Engineer by profession and a writer by passion. Trying to solve others problems and learning in the due course.
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