| Antec P280 ATX Mid Tower Computer Case |  |
| Reviews - Featured Reviews: Cases | |||||||
| Written by Austin Downing | |||||||
| Saturday, 24 March 2012 | |||||||
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Closer Look: ExteriorAn enthusiast case is in some ways an extension of the person who owns it. Each user has certain styles that they appreciate in their life and many times a case can be found that matches their style. Some people want a flashy case that screams "LOOK AT ME!", other enthusiast want a sleek, modern looking system. Antec designed the P280 with the latter enthusiast in mind using a simply and yet elegant design utilizing blacks and greys as its primary colors.
The Antec P280 keeps its design simple all the way around, using a simple aluminum cover for front door with the Antec logo stamped on it. But, this door is not as simple as it first appears as Antec P280 utilizes a triple-layer aluminum, plastic, foam core to help block out as much noise as possible. This design helps block out some of the noise that would be created by the fans inside of the system making for a quieter system overall.
From the rear, you can see Antec P280 is great for everyone but the neediest of customers. It provides nine expansions slots, the openings needs for a water-cooling setup, and high/low switch for the included Antec TwoCool fans.
Continuing with their attention to detail the bottom of the Antec P280 includes rubber feet to help prevent vibrations inside of the P280 from being transferred to the floor which could create noise.
Much like the rest of the P280 the top of the case was kept simple and elegant, with two exhaust 120mm Antec TwoCool fans, a power switch, and a reset switch.
Behind the tri-layer door Antec continues with the simplicity of its design in the P280 with its three 5.25" drive bays, openings for two more 120mm intake fans, and a removable filter for the system.
Unlike many cases that utilize a front door the Antec P280 places its USB, and audio ports outside of the door allowing the users to plug in peripherals with the added benefit of the silence that the tri-core door can provide when closed.
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Comments
good review.
The Antec P193 is quieter and cools much better than the P280. If Antec had put 140mm fans in the top and the 200mm fan on the side, this would have been a great case. And if they had also put two 140mm fans in the front, it would have been the best case in the world.
I really wish that BMR readers would stop suggesting this - it is the least effective method I know of for cooling a case.
Single fan: I did not say a single front fan, although over the years I have installed hundreds of high powered CAD & CAM or video workstations with only one front and one rear fan, and I am currently experimenting with another video editing / rendering system in a Lian Li PC6 case ? one front and one rear fan. Tricky site, they have no computer real estate at their site ? all taken up with monitors, cameras, capture gear etc. etc., while they want it quiet enough to record sound in the room! Often two lower fronts & two rear tops are needed if the machine is being hammered. My extreme machines have three in each position (plus 2 CPU fans plus a PSU fan).
Video cards: A lot also depends on the design & orientation of the components - a lot of video cards have fans which push their own hot air either downwards, which is crazy (heat rises) or through the back of the case. Some video cards actually have frontal shrouds which block the case fans from doing their job. I use oversize heatsink video cards without fans for two reasons ? they are quiet, and they are designed to allow case fans to do their job. Current system(s), 2 * gigabyte GV-R677SL-1GD silent cell graphic cards (dual slot full length & height cards - the fastest cards I could get at the time without fans) which are driving 5 * 1080P monitors ? I am not a shoot'em up gamer, this is for video editing and rendering, ERPS reporting, research and writing. During initial (brutal) system testing, they stayed well below 50C (Celsius) in controlled 30C ambient. During my actual use their rear heatsinks are always warm when running hard, however they haven't ever reached close to that temp again (25C ambient helps). Another under-appreciated issue is the necessity for vented backplanes above and below the video cards, and preferably vents in the rear of the case to the left of the video cards as well.
In short ? futz the orientation of your components or vents up, and your system may well need an ever increasing number of fans running in all directions at ever increasing speeds to keep it cooler (and always relatively noisier).