P182/Nine Hundred Comparision

[[Dr. V]]

those minor alterations on the P182 u made, now THAT intrugues me! it already has amazing cooling, meaning the 900 would have INSANE cooling, but if you actually made the P182 BETTER, then it could very well be the ULTIMATE case (if you dont go to LAN parties and u dont care for the look of the 900).

honestly the P182 is gonna be sitting on my desk. forget the floor. 1) too much dust drawn in, 2) its too sexy for the floor, 3) not bending down to reach the ports (yep, lazy )

cant wait for that mod page!

keep up the useful info man!!!

im looking REALLY forward to the ThermalTake V1, which is why i havent rushed out for the Big Typhoon. my 9700 was going really well until i snapped a fin off the fan when i was reapplying thermal paste the other day. havent replaced it (just used a lower version - 7700) becuz im waiting for the V1!!!

[Computer-Ed]

Okay step one, I took all the fans in the P182 and turned them to full. The noise test showed an increase to 58. This means that one high the stock P180 is quieter than the stock Nine Hundred on medium, however that was expected.

Temperatures did take a tumble:

• CPU: 30c
• HD: 30c
• Core: 42c
• GPU: 64c

With the fans on high this means the P182 can pull temps very close to the Nine Hundred on medium. The temperatures however reveal something of the case design I wish to check.

First we have the HD, since it is in esentially the same position as it was with the Nine Hundred the cooling should be really close. However there are some important differences.

1. The P182 fan is pulling air from half the case away from the opening. This could mean the air movement is reduced from the start.
2. The Nine Hundred has a very open front for the fan to pull air. The P182 is pulling air through two narrow side vents around the door, then through a vent cover and then a filter before it gets into the chamber.

My test tomorrow will be to open the front door and the vent cover as well as remove the filter and see what happens to the HD temp. (This would obviously not be a perment mod, but it will show us how the case design might be effecting max cooling potential.

The GPU temp also bothers me. Again in the Nine Hundred the GPU is rihgt in the path of two 120mm fans blasting outside air into the case. This would mean that GPU has a solid cool air supply.

The P182 in stock does not have an intake fan in the upper chamber. I am going to put a 120mm fan in the upper chamber bay to provide intake and see if it will help the GPU.

Now in fairness to the Nine Hundred we are only striving to hit it's stock cooling at medium speeds. In my early Nine Hundred testing I saw a temperature drop of almost 4c across the baord by taking the fans to high and that is still with the stock setup. Adding the additional fans could easily give another 2 to 3 c in drop.

Even with our tweaking the P182 will NOT approach the max cooling potential of the Nine Hundred but we can get solidly in the middle of it's work range I think.

I am not sure I would ever judge the P182 as the ultimate case. It is a great case of that there is no doubt but it does not fit in the extremes of either of it's major catagories. There are cases that are quieter but none that cool as well as it does. There are cases that cool better but none as quiet. It is the best BALANCED case I think on the market right now though it's balance is shifted a lot toward the quiet operation end.

Side note: This case when mixed with a great CPU cooler does really well, as I write this from my notes the ambient room temp has dropped to 23c. My CPU temp is now down to 28c, GPU is still at 64 and the HD is down to 28c. These numbers are lower when the Nine Hundred was in place at it's lowest points with low room temp. However this does show that the P182 will work solidly with a moderately overlocked system.

Also I wish to take a moment and commend Thermaltake on their amzing Big Typhoon VX cooler. It has been a rock of stability. The P182 has no form of side vent and the clearance between the side of the case and the fan is very small, I thought this would hinder air flow for the VX. It has however continued to perform flawlessly. The size can make it hard to work with but it is worth the trouble for the great job it does!

[Quakindude]

Originally Posted by Computer-Ed

All this being said I would readily reccomend the Nine Hundred case, it has the most amazing air flow I have ever seen.

I've got the 900 as well. With an ambient temp of 70*F, my E6600 with a CNPS9500 and O/C'ed to 3.2Ghz idles at 36*C and loaded, running 2x F@H, is at 44*C. A significant difference from the old case with a 250mm side fan.

BTW, where'd you get the TT VX from?

[[Dr. V]]

Ultimate case for ME, only BECAUSE its the most perfectly balanced one out there. thats what i should have said.

but either way, thats cool that the HIGH on the P182 is quieter than the MEDIUM on the 900.

if its not horrid, id just leave them all on HIGH to get max cooling possible. and i already was planning on adding a 120mm intake in the chamber above the "tunnel" lower chamber.

[Computer-Ed]

Originally Posted by Quakindude

I've got the 900 as well. With an ambient temp of 70*F, my E6600 with a CNPS9500 and O/C'ed to 3.2Ghz idles at 36*C and loaded, running 2x F@H, is at 44*C. A significant difference from the old case with a 250mm side fan.

BTW, where'd you get the TT VX from?

The VX was sent to me by Thermaltake for comparing it in our Build a PC series for my radio show.

Here is the link to it on Newegg:

Newegg.com - Thermaltake CL-P0310 120mm CPU Cooling Fan - Retail

[Computer-Ed]

Okay test one was done this morning, I opened the cases door and opened the two filter doors.

The HD temp drop 1c and that was ALL. I really expected at least a 2c drop due to increased air flow. The CPU and GPU also benefited to the tune of a 1c drop.

So theory one was that the higher GPU and HD temps where a direct contribution of the air flow path are only partially confirmed. the air flow path not being straight does have an effect but the effect is much less than expected.

Later I will put a 120 fan in the upper bay and see what that does for the GPU.

[Capper]

Originally Posted by Lead Head

$229 @ newegg.com for the chrome one, I'll think I'll pass on that one! Just to bad Antec didn't think of the cable management for the P180

Actually its not chrome...its super high quality japanese stainless steel...

BTW, I've merged the four ANTEC threads into one, as they cover the same topic.

[stinger608]

Originally Posted by Capper

BTW, I've merged the four ANTEC threads into one, as they cover the same topic.

God theres a thought

[Computer-Ed]

P182 Followup:

I opemned the case this morning to make some changes and noticed that 3 of the tabs on the backside of the case where broken. Based on the angle and location of the breaks this would appear to be due to the pressure put on the back by the cabling that is routed back there.

In the original review I comment that the back area needed to about 1/4" deeper to allow for easier case construction and I still stand by that reccomendation.

What this means is that if you are using a P182 be careful with the cabling and I would likely not use the case for a system that I would spend a lot of time doing serious hardware testing or replacement.

[Quakindude]

Originally Posted by Computer-Ed

I would likely not use the case for a system that I would spend a lot of time doing serious hardware testing or replacement.

The large majority of folks who do a lot of bench testing of components would likely use something like this rather than a case.

Not everyone mind you, but bench testing in a case really sucks.