Case Experience - TJ-07/TJ-06/PC-V1100B

H

havalon

Weaksauce
Joined
Dec 19, 2005
Messages
109
It is getting closer to my rebuild cycle for my system and I am looking forward to ditching my SFF system. Now, having said that I love to hear some personal thoughts on some of the cases I am looking into at the moment. It is one thing to look at pictures and even read reviews, but even then I don't find them to be as insightful as the mid/long term personal experience with a case. Maybe it is me, but I think it takes more than a week to get the feel for a product.

I have had a SFF for at least two years now and prior to that I was working off a laptop. Needless to say I am a bit out of the case loop. I looked into Silverstone and they seem to be pretty popular. The TJ-07 seems to be the case du jour, but sporting a tag of $300+ I find that a hard pill to swallow. Especially since I won't have any hands-on time with it before I make my decision. The TJ-06 seems to be a nice selection but I am worried about noise levels too, at $129 locally it seems to be a very pleasing alternative. Finally I have the Lian-Li PC-V1100B that looks so pleasing, but nobody in the area seems to carry Lian-Li products so getting some hands on time with that makes me uneasy also.

I have noise concerns, at least a little bit. I don't want this new rig to sound like a plane in take-off, considering I spend around 10 hours a day in a room with it for work. I'll be running a Ultra X-Connect 500Watt PSU and an SLI video card system. (A guy has to play too.) Beyond that I am not sure about the rest of the system yet, it is still a few months away before purchase time. I am positive I won't be have a water cooling system. (It will always make me uneasy. Water + Computer +Oops = Lost Cash. I Oops a lot too.)

Picking a case seems to be more difficult than picking out the guts. Any insight into these cases would be great. Thanks.
 
I have had the V1100 and I now own a TJ07 and V1000. I liked the V1100 a lot but the temps on my components were pretty high in that case. That's the price you pay for silence. The V1000 definitely cools better though. Even without water the TJ07 will cool your components better than either the V1100 or a V1000. Oh and it is almost a silent as a V1100 and definitely more so than the V1000. I am running all fans full blast right now, including two Panaflo 86dba fans and it's not obnoxiously loud as it could be.
 
I have been reading that the V1100 runs a bit hot, but I have not seen people post a difference in temps. I'd like to run quiet not much louder, if any, than my current SFF. So unless it is deadly hot temp doesn't take as high a priority. (Unless of corse the temps in the case are damaging.)

Will heat make that big a difference on your rig? I don't intend to OC at all. I am just going to run all stock.
 
If you care about noise , P180 is also suit your needs.(steel and hevier chassis decrease vibration noise form fans , HD , etc). And you can choise low rpm silent fan , VGA cooler
change , fanless northbridge , chaging CPU cooler etc.
 
Something about the plastic door on the P180 bugs me and I want a black case. I like things to match. The P180 is cheaper than the V1100 and TJ-07 that is for sure. I don't mean to sound cheap, but even the $250+shipping for the V1100 is a bit steep for a case. How ease is it to wire the any of these cases. I'd love to wire the case nice, the situation in my SFF is awful.
 
i have a P180, i just got my replacement door and its solid aluminmum now. its pretty heavy like a big slab. Also the P180 comes in all black, its called the spcf version or something like that. However, i dont know if they come with the new all aluminmum doors tho.
 
Mixman said:
Here it is a little cheaper.
Click to expand...
and the p180 (even the black special edition one) is still half the price....

question, do these V1000 and the rest come with noise damping mounts for the drives?
 
strikeout said:
i have a P180, i just got my replacement door and its solid aluminmum now. its pretty heavy like a big slab. Also the P180 comes in all black, its called the spcf version or something like that. However, i dont know if they come with the new all aluminmum doors tho.
Click to expand...

The P180 comes in all black and has a solid aluminum door? Do you have to order the door seperate for it to be solid aluminum? That may sound like a stupid question, but after seeing the P180 at Fry's I just brushed it off since I had no interest in plastic. Does anyone know if the black version comes with an aluminum door? Or does it has to be order special as a replacement part?
 
I have the P180 and P160 too. I am selling them though. Been through a lot of cases lately. :D

The P180 is probably the best bargain in cases, but it's quality as many P180 owners know isn't that high. It is quiet, and cool, for not much money. I just wanted more quality and space to work inside which the P180 is sorely lacking. The V1100 is definitely a better built case, although not quite as cool. You could add a blowhole and that would help the temps.
 
Mixman said:
I have the P180 and P160 too. I am selling them though. Been through a lot of cases lately. :D

The P180 is probably the best bargain in cases, but it's quality as many P180 owners know isn't that high. It is quiet, and cool, for not much money. I just wanted more quality and space to work inside which the P180 is sorely lacking. The V1100 is definitely a better built case, although not quite as cool. You could add a blowhole and that would help the temps.
Click to expand...

Good to know. Quality is very important. I want to buy a case that will last me at least one upgrade cycle, if not two.
 
If you want a Silverstone for the build quality save yourself some money and go with a TJ03 imo, it'll be a bit cheaper and I'm still not terribly convinced of the TJ07's design for air-cooling. It seems like it leaves the vid cards in a total dead spot and even the airflow at the top isn't fluent despite having 4 fans in one small location (apparently it's supposed to go like an L, in from the back and out the top).

The TJ06's nice, but not in the same lleague of some of the other Silverstone cases, as far as sleekness anyway. Between that and a V1000 I'd possibly go for the LiLi, but the price difference is like $70. The TJ06's internal design is pretty nice though. As far as noise, you can make any of these cases nearly silent with the right fans, and it's more about those than the case itself. Not really a fan of big doors myself (V1100), if you spend that much time by the PC it'll probably be a hassle.

They all have a smart enough internal design to allow for proper airflow and a quiet setup without too many fans ('cept possibly the TJ07 like I said). Loud fans will be loud on any case, and quiet fans will be masked nearly equally by most of these cases (the Li Li's open grill front might let out more noise if it's a particulary obnoxious fan, but otherwise not really).

The TJ06 is nice if you're not looking to spend a whole lot tho, it's heaever since internally it's steel, but it still looks nice and has more stock mounts for fans than the Lian Li (specifically a big intake that isn't blocked by drives). Even a good old CM Praetorian (haven't seen the new one) would be worth considering. I haven't checked out the P180 in person either.


P.S. If you're worried about drive noise suspend them or just place it on a thick slab of foam, all of these cases have more than enough space for either. It won't really mask seek noise but it'll completely negate all vibrational noise, which will be there even on the most solidly built of cases.
 
well the problem with my original door was the cheap plastic/thin aluminum was warping like many others. Basically i emailed antec for an RMA and they sent me the all aluminmum door free to my house. It took kinda long around a two months but i think it was cus before they were just givin out fresh plastic/alum ones while they made the new solid alum ones.

http://www.endpcnoise.com/cgi-bin/e/p180.html
its a little more expensive cus the procedes got to the forum that it was specially made for.
 
First, I would like to take this chance to give a big thanks to everyone giving me feedback. This is awesome. I am mostly just a lurker in forums so this is something fairly new for me.

I remember some time back looking at cases and such and I saw a hard drive suspention setup with what I think was rubber bars. It was the size of your standard hard drive bay. I think it was holding three or four total. Is there a case that has this or is it something that has to be done yourself? (Sorry if this is a bit off topic. Tell me if I should repost this part of the question to another thread.)

I figured I would be able to use quiet fans with my setup because I intend to be completely stock settings. Which from my understanding means I don't need any sort of additional cooling, so no giant cfm fans.

At this moment I am leaning strongly toward the PC-V1100. Are there any other cases in that are in the same catagory? Also I can assume these cases will work with newer mother boards or should I be concerned with the BTX form factor I have heard about? I am just getting back into this scene and I believe I have a lot to catch up on.
 
It's your thread so it won't really be off-topic unless you start ranting about video cards or something, otherwise you take it in the direction you want to. :p I'm not familiar with the setup you're describing, or maybe I'm not imagining what you're describing correctly.

I've seen a number of suspension rigs made with bungee cord or other elastic/rubber, a few accomodated multiple drives. Most seemed like more trouble than they were really worth though, the area where drives get the hottest is actually around the sides and not the bottom, so setting it on a piece of foam (as long as it's fairly firm so it doesn't sink into it) acomplishes the same effect.

You wouldn't really want to move the case a long distance with the drive in a suspended setup either anyway. Some less complicated solutions (possibly less effective) are simple rubber grommets, I think the Antec P180 offers the option of using grommets on the drive sleds or a quasi suspension method where the drives are sandwhiched between rubber strips? Maybe that's what you had in mind...

SPCR (silentpcreview.com) forums have a ton of old threads on these discussions and plenty of fan recommendations (Nexus ones seem to be the clear favorite in the 120mm category right now though personally I find common options like Antec TriCools set to Low to be pretty silent for my needs).

As far as the case, it seems you're leaning towards a larger size, so another model you might wanna take a look at is the CoolerMaster Stacker. The new one is pretty swanky, also in the same price range as the Lian Li IIRC. Take a look:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811119103

As for the BTX form factor, I wouldn't sweat it too much... Intel was attempting to push it kind of agressively but AMD never really comitted to it (no need, their parts ran much cooler), outside of the OEM sector it doesn't seem to have taken off just yet and it might not get a chance to either. Most if not all retail motherboards right now are still ATX.

I do believe the CM Stacker can be converted to a BTX case though, unless they dropped that, it was a feature in the original Stacker (which has gone way down in price, think I saw it for less than $160 at NewEgg, might be worth a look as well).
 
Impulse said:
I do believe the CM Stacker can be converted to a BTX case though, unless they dropped that, it was a feature in the original Stacker (which has gone way down in price, think I saw it for less than $160 at NewEgg, might be worth a look as well).
Click to expand...
You are correct, the Stacker can be converted to full BTX.
Even better, with a minor amount of trimming (early models need none, later ones have a flange that must be removed), it can be swapped to "pseudo-BTX" which just inverts/reverses a standard ATX board.
This is beneficial especially for an air-cooled rig as it flips the vid card so the hot side is up.
The TJ-06 (an excellent case with great aesthetics) comes this way, BTW.
I've used both the TJ-06 and the Stacker...hands down the Stacker is the most easily configurable/adaptable case I've ever owned.
I have a Lian-li v2000 sitting in the closet...had to try the fabled LL build quality for myself.
Have never been so disappointed with a major purchase.
Compared to the Stacker it is flimsy and the multi-compartment design is extremely limiting (I watercool so I'm cramming lots of extra hardware into a case).

For a standard, air-cooled build I'd recommend the TJ-06, for anything else, the Stacker (the original 01 model, NOT the later 810/830 versions).
 
havalon said:
First, I would like to take this chance to give a big thanks to everyone giving me feedback. This is awesome. I am mostly just a lurker in forums so this is something fairly new for me.

I remember some time back looking at cases and such and I saw a hard drive suspention setup with what I think was rubber bars. It was the size of your standard hard drive bay. I think it was holding three or four total. Is there a case that has this or is it something that has to be done yourself? (Sorry if this is a bit off topic. Tell me if I should repost this part of the question to another thread.)

I figured I would be able to use quiet fans with my setup because I intend to be completely stock settings. Which from my understanding means I don't need any sort of additional cooling, so no giant cfm fans.

At this moment I am leaning strongly toward the PC-V1100. Are there any other cases in that are in the same catagory? Also I can assume these cases will work with newer mother boards or should I be concerned with the BTX form factor I have heard about? I am just getting back into this scene and I believe I have a lot to catch up on.
Click to expand...

If you are not OC'ing that V1100 will do you just fine.

My list of the best in aircooling cases is :

1) CM830 - this case was built for aircooling, more so than water
2) TJ07 - the setup is done a little better than the Lian Li's for keeping cool
3) V1000, V2000 - good cooling, with all those holes it should be
4) P180 - great silence and good cooling


Best Water Cases, without modding :

1) TJ07 - departmentalizing done right, plenty of room from double or triple rad......without a single mod !
2) Original Stacker - never owned it but I have seen it and it is a water cooling dream for space. I just don't like the quality.
3) V2000, can take out hd racks and lay a double rad at the bottom

Those are just my opinions and choices. :D
 
I think I am going to pick up the PC-V1100 for my case. Now it is time to see if some place in socal has it so I don't have to order it online. Else, off to the search.
 
havalon said:
I think I am going to pick up the PC-V1100 for my case. Now it is time to see if some place in socal has it so I don't have to order it online. Else, off to the search.
Click to expand...

I'm gonna accuse you of being a Lian Li shill! Maybe you work for that AEG company that employs such tactics:

Message board monitoring and response
Strategic seeding viral assets to ensure they are spread far and wide
Strategic counsel and implementation: Fires, Misinformation, Rumors, Leaks

What kind of SFF do you have havalon?

Anywho, I've seen the Antec P180 and it is dead silent. I was turned off by the plastics though. I bought a TJ05 and a TJ07 recently. I also have a LC-10 and a Super Lanboy.
The one thing I noticed between all the machines is that the ones that employ 120mm fans are usually the most efficient / silent cases. I originally wanted a Lian Li, but saw that the Silverstone TJ07 was about to come out and decided to wait for that instead.
Here's some feedback for you Lian Li:
I liked the round updated design of the TJ07.
I like the removable HDD cages with 120mm fans.
I like Silverstone fans b/c they are efficient and quiet. Although I have ZERO experience with a Lian Li fans except I have seen them at LAN party's. Next time I'll listen carefully.
I hate. HATE HATE HATE, the perforated grilled look on the front of any case.

I also like companies that are also updating there stuff and putting out new products, not just cases or desks in this case. pun intended.

Pics of my TJ07 not finished:
http://www.classifiedfotos.com/files/TJ07/
 
wow... geez.this is my first post on this forum regarding any sort of electronics.

i gotta say i'm impressed with the pictures just shown in this thread. i'm thinking about getting a new case to replace my thermaltake kandalf case which is horribly loud and annoying when it comes to the cover of the drive bays. i'm sick of these stupid cases with windows too. i'm going to consider the tj07
 
On paper, it doesn't look very great at all... I'm not sure why anyone would think otherwise. You've got two 92mm fans as intakes (in the rear, which itself is odd) and then the only exhaust for the whole processor/RAM area is at the top (two 120mm fans)... Not such a terrible thing by itself but both pairs of fans are packed in a pretty tight corner so airflow is supposed to go along a short L path I suppose.

Then you've got the video cards in what amounts to a complete and total dead spot, no airflow over them whatsoever, and the GPUs are facing down so not even the orientation is in their favor. I hope that anyone that's using a TJ07 with a SLI setup is gonna go for WC'ing or some Silencers at 'least so the hot air is exhausted more effectively and doesn't just linger there... Or you could mod it into a BTX like case.
 
Ive got a TJ06, and aside from it being a beast to lug around, I really like it. The design for air flow lets you use a fanless cpu cooler really easily. If you get one thats too big for the air tunnel, then just reverse the two fans so the rear fan is the intake, its a lot closer to the cpu so it doesnt really need the tube to get the air over the cooler.
 
Impulse said:
On paper, it doesn't look very great at all... I'm not sure why anyone would think otherwise. You've got two 92mm fans as intakes (in the rear, which itself is odd) and then the only exhaust for the whole processor/RAM area is at the top (two 120mm fans)... Not such a terrible thing by itself but both pairs of fans are packed in a pretty tight corner so airflow is supposed to go along a short L path I suppose.

Then you've got the video cards in what amounts to a complete and total dead spot, no airflow over them whatsoever, and the GPUs are facing down so not even the orientation is in their favor. I hope that anyone that's using a TJ07 with a SLI setup is gonna go for WC'ing or some Silencers at 'least so the hot air is exhausted more effectively and doesn't just linger there... Or you could mod it into a BTX like case.
Click to expand...

Believe it or not the cooling does work not to mention the open mesh at the top which allows the air to escape. I have had a ton of cases in the last year and this cooles the best for me and that's with the low cfm fans that are in there now all of this and it's relatively quiet.
 
Is the rig in your sig what you're running inside it? 'Cuz... No offense meant, but a beefier gaming card is gonna get many times hotter than that type of model, and if you have two of them in there it's even worst obviously.

Even my 6800 runs hotter than my A64 despite having improved it's cooling (with the stock HSF it was a regular oven). On most case designs at 'least there's fresh air coming in from somewhere around the bottom, I supose with the grill sides there's enough air just flowing naturally to allow the top exhausts to work for the GPUs but it still looks like a dead spot.
 
Impulse said:
Is the rig in your sig what you're running inside it? 'Cuz... No offense meant, but a beefier gaming card is gonna get many times hotter than that type of model, and if you have two of them in there it's even worst obviously.

Even my 6800 runs hotter than my A64 despite having improved it's cooling (with the stock HSF it was a regular oven). On most case designs at 'least there's fresh air coming in from somewhere around the bottom, I supose with the grill sides there's enough air just flowing naturally to allow the top exhausts to work for the GPUs but it still looks like a dead spot.
Click to expand...

I am not a gamer, but I will get a better card soon, just to have one, but my Pentium D rig is what's in the TJ07 and iat my clock and voltage it make a lot of heat, and my mobo temp gets no hoigher than 32c, even when Priming. If you need too you can just replace the fans put in more stronger, like I am going to do, put them on a controller and believe me......there will be no problems with keeping your cards relatively cool. Also, if you are so worried.....go water, no more cooling problems !
 
Mixman said:
I am not a gamer, but I will get a better card soon, just to have one, but my Pentium D rig is what's in the TJ07 and iat my clock and voltage it make a lot of heat, and my mobo temp gets no hoigher than 32c, even when Priming. If you need too you can just replace the fans put in more stronger, like I am going to do, put them on a controller and believe me......there will be no problems with keeping your cards relatively cool. Also, if you are so worried.....go water, no more cooling problems !
Click to expand...
to me i think it's a quality case. looks hell of a lot better then the lianli setup. v1200. the lianli looks a bit lame now when i see the tj07. for some reason i think that the lianli looks ugly with the mess grill type look that allow dust to get into it. also the tj07 and it's removable tray is sick. i'm sure if you put one of thos huge ZALMAN suckers on ur cpu it would cool it nicely
 
Impulse said:
On paper, it doesn't look very great at all... I'm not sure why anyone would think otherwise. You've got two 92mm fans as intakes (in the rear, which itself is odd) and then the only exhaust for the whole processor/RAM area is at the top (two 120mm fans)... Not such a terrible thing by itself but both pairs of fans are packed in a pretty tight corner so airflow is supposed to go along a short L path I suppose.

Then you've got the video cards in what amounts to a complete and total dead spot, no airflow over them whatsoever, and the GPUs are facing down so not even the orientation is in their favor. I hope that anyone that's using a TJ07 with a SLI setup is gonna go for WC'ing or some Silencers at 'least so the hot air is exhausted more effectively and doesn't just linger there... Or you could mod it into a BTX like case.
Click to expand...

Yes that is what I wated to say :p .
This case has no front intake mesh , so the the too much exhousted fan ins't work on purpose.(90x2:intake =/= 120x2:exhaust). Or the air will come from bottom champer and it makes tornade air flow on the M/B area :eek:
 
I'm gonna accuse you of being a Lian Li shill! Maybe you work for that AEG company that employs such tactics:
Click to expand...

Thanks for poping in and calling me a shill. I'd like to ask what tatics I am using to have that work? Did I post misinformation? Did I leak something? I don't think so. It is odd how posting a well thought out question gets and holding a dialogue gets that response. So I'll disregard that comment.

I run a SB75G2 and I hate it. It was the worst purchase I have made. Then again I don't go to many LAN parties anymore or move the system around at all. The system runs hot with a Prescott in it and I have been having audio issues for months with this rig.

Anyway, the V1100 seems to do everything I need. I want quality quiet product. This seems to be the best choice out there. I don't see any other ones, if there are I am not closed off to suggestions as I won't be making my purchase for a few weeks.

I do intend to run SLI. Anyone running SLI one of these PC-V1100? I'd like to know if you are cooking.
 
Get it from here and add the blowhole as an option. Do keep in mind that will raise the noise level a bit, depending on which fan you choose.
 
dioes the llianli v1000 or v1200 have a removable mobo tray? and compared to the tj07 what is better for wire management in the back of the mobo?
 
chinked|out said:
dioes the llianli v1000 or v1200 have a removable mobo tray? and compared to the tj07 what is better for wire management in the back of the mobo?
Click to expand...

No removable mobo tray for the LL's
 
Mixman said:
No removable mobo tray for the LL's
Click to expand...
thanks for the quick answer. i guess i wouldn't mind getting a silverstone but dishing out 400 (included with shippping and tax or all that other crap) is just way to much for a comp cse isn't it? but i gotta say it looks hell of a lot better then the lianli cases. maybe i should keep my thermaltake kandalf or get a cmstacker830. but then again i don't like the mesh thing tht attracts dust and lint
 
Regarding the heat issue with the PC-V1100. I parted out my system I am thinking of and was wondering if it would stay cool enough in a stock PC-V1100.

AMD 64 X2 3800+
DFI LanParty NF4 SLI-DR
2 GB DDR400 Dual Channel Ram
SE16 Western Digital HD 250GB
XFX 7800GT PCI-E (Only one to start, but will go to two eventually)
 
havalon said:
Thanks for poping in and calling me a shill. I'd like to ask what tatics I am using to have that work? Did I post misinformation? Did I leak something? I don't think so. It is odd how posting a well thought out question gets and holding a dialogue gets that response. So I'll disregard that comment.
Click to expand...

Easy! Settle down now. You could be just raising a post and in the end favor for a Lian Li case and hence draw favor for the Lian Li camp. But then I digress.....

Just messing with you man.

havalon said:
I run a SB75G2 and I hate it. It was the worst purchase I have made. Then again I don't go to many LAN parties anymore or move the system around at all. The system runs hot with a Prescott in it and I have been having audio issues for months with this rig.
Click to expand...

I have a SB75S and i had some audio issues as well but after a fresh install and an update to the bios it seems to have fixed 95% of the stuff. I think my only problem is the front mic jack. It doesn't work 100% of the time.
Also I ran a P4 3.06 Northwood in there. The temps were around 34 C idle. I put a blow hole in it and dual fans on the ICE for push pull effect. I also installed Silverstone 80mm fans and used speedfan to keep the RPM's down. Which = less noise. I only had a raptor in there though so it's not really a good comparison to most cases with a 2nd HDD or DVD drive.


havalon said:
Anyway, the V1100 seems to do everything I need. I want quality quiet product. This seems to be the best choice out there. I don't see any other ones, if there are I am not closed off to suggestions as I won't be making my purchase for a few weeks.
Click to expand...

Get the TJ07. The unibody construction, the design / looks are waaaaay better than the Lian Li's. I guess I say this b/c I am Anti holes in the front of my chassis.
Plus I saw a really cheesy knockoff at Microcenter of the Lian Li's with perforated holes in the front.
Yuck.
The nice removable HDD cages and the removable Mobo tray is what won me over.
 
Just feels odd being called a shill for deciding one case over the other three.

In all honestly I would take the TJ-07 if it was cheaper or if I could at least see one in a store around here. It will be about $400 to my door for that case which just seems over board for a case.I Have swallow sub $300 because I expect to keep it for a few upgrade cycles.

The V1100 has a door on the front. I actually like this, most my burning will be done on another rig anyway so I don't tie up this one while working and such. Needless to say I think that it is aesthetically pleaseing to have a door.

I just don't want to buy a case and see my parts running at 72C. (I just picked that number from my SFF reference when I first set it up stock, so I don't even know if it would reach that high in a non SFF case.)
 
Mixman said:
I am not a gamer, but I will get a better card soon, just to have one, but my Pentium D rig is what's in the TJ07 and iat my clock and voltage it make a lot of heat, and my mobo temp gets no hoigher than 32c, even when Priming. If you need too you can just replace the fans put in more stronger, like I am going to do, put them on a controller and believe me......there will be no problems with keeping your cards relatively cool. Also, if you are so worried.....go water, no more cooling problems !
Click to expand...
How is any of that going to address the problem I mentioned? What does your motherboard's temperature (which isn't the mobo temp, just the case temp around the sensor on the mobo) relevant if I'm talking about the video cards? Better fans won't do squat for the cards, now air flows directly over the cards... :rolleyes: And they get many times hotter than any other component.

Btw, the Stacker has filters behind it's front grills (not sure if it has any on the side, probably not, would have to rig something separate there), I imagine they're not the most convenient to clean but they are removable and they're on every one of the drive bay plates. I'm not a fan of the mesh panels in general, but theirs look a bit more convenient if you're in a dusty enviroment.
 
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