Antec 3000B: keep it or replace it?

teejay · Post by **teejay** » Wed Sep 03, 2008 12:57 pm

I'm planning to replace my current server rig, which is very "old skool SPCR" but getting a bit long in the tooth (Athlon XP2800+, Zalman 7000B [with Nexus mod], etc). This machine resides in an Antec 3000B enclosure that has been modded quite a bit:

Snipped the fan grills
Made an intake opening for the PSU (see this thread on SPCR)
Mounted the PSU ~10cm inwards and put the PSU fan (Nexus 80mm) outside the PSU casing
Replaced the drivecage with a suspension setup that holds 3 drives
Added wheels and green CCFL underneath for that fabled "fast & furious" look (OK, that wasn't a quiet mod)
Padded and damped it with foam & vinyl, sealed openings, soft-mounted the fans

Anyway, you get the idea. This setup is pretty much inaudible except for some light fan turbulence noise coming from the fan in front of the HDD cage. I'm going to replace most of the components, but for this question the important bits are the motherboard (I'm most likely going to use a microATX board) and the PSU.

The big question for me: should I keep the case or replace it with something more... up to date? Some points to consider: there is no "ecological" consideration, since the 3000B case will be re-used in another system if I decide to get a new one. Also, looks don't really matter to me (besides, what case can beat bottom-mounted CCFLs! But I disgress). I won't be needing more space than the currently available 3 drive bays. Also, budget is not really a consideration but since I'm also replacing my main rig, I'd like to have a good reason for spending extra.

So, in a pro/con analysis:
3000B
+ quiet mods already in place
+ micro ATX board leaves room for a more elaborate harddisk cooling solution (like Bluefront's bird-house)
- pretty much stuck with an 80mm PSU, which limits my choices severely. Antec Earthwatts seems OK, I could always do the fan-outside-trick again.

New (to-be-identified) case
+ can house any PSU
- will need (at least) mods for drive suspension

Can you guys think of anything I've missed in either scenario? Sorry for the ramble, seems to be my trademark for starting threads...

Post by **MikeC** » Wed Sep 03, 2008 2:06 pm

Sounds like you have a great case. Why fix it if it ain't broke?

Besides, putting a 120mm fan PSU in there is no problem. It won't draw quite as directly from the extra intake you made, but it will still do it, and as long as the PSU fan is not drawing all the heta from the CPU, it won't ramp up. I have an Enermax modu82+ in a Solo w/ an Intel E8500 and tower HS. No intake duct, no intake fan, just the back panel 120mm fan at very low speed. Oh.... and for the heck of it, an ATI 3850 w/ stock fan. The PSU fan NEVER ramps up. In fact, neither does the vidcard fan.

thejamppa · Post by **thejamppa** » Fri Sep 05, 2008 8:24 am

Agreed. 3000B is wonderful silencer case... especially when modded ^^

That was the case serving me longest ( for over 5 years and was wittness of my transition from computing into silent computing. And is now serving my big brothers game rig when I got my P182 )

jhhoffma · Post by **jhhoffma** » Fri Sep 05, 2008 9:38 am

I'm still using mine, though I'm getting a little too old to move it in and out of it's cubby with all the mass-loading on it!

Greatest purchase I've ever made, that case...originally it was just meant to be for an HTPC (5 years ago) but it was so good, that I had to use it for my gaming machine. (Plus I got an OrigenAE X11 for my HTPC, but that's clearly beside the point

)

teejay · Post by **teejay** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 11:57 am

Thanks for the comments, guys. I guess the 3000 is going to get a third life, with a 120mm fanned PSU as per MikeC's suggestion. All I have to do now is to figure out how I'm going to suspend & cool the hard drives without turbulence noise from the front-mounted fan, but that's stuff for another thread (and time).

kaange · Post by **kaange** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 5:41 pm

Yeah, I can't see why you would replace it. In fact I don't see why Antec dropped it as the Sonata (non-Solo type) cases aren't as good due to the stupid sideways HDD cage.

The 3000B is probably the easiest case to mod for suspending up to 5 HDDs since you can just unbolt the cage and lay it on it's side on a bed of foam... and that's it!

cpemma · Post by **cpemma** » Fri Sep 12, 2008 12:23 pm

I'm afraid I was always disappointed by my 3000B. Construction seemed flimsy (maybe the comparison with my previous Antec 1030B, extremely well made but, alas, not suited to 120mm fans) and far from being silent, with a pair of hard drives I got a peculiar 'beating' resonance that caused the door to vibrate in a cyclic hum. Leaving the door slightly ajar was the simple fix, permanent solution was a P182.

nici · Post by **nici** » Fri Sep 12, 2008 3:22 pm

Well it was flimsy. But at the time 120mm fans were not yet the standard, and it was a very nice case after some damping and suspension. My quietest ever system was in a 3000B. And my first own system was in a 660AMG.

teejay · Post by **teejay** » Wed Sep 17, 2008 6:43 am

I remember that I was very disappointed with this case when I got it, too: pretty flimsy, resonating front door, stuff like that. Almost made me wish I hadn't bought it to replace my severly hacked up generic beige tower (that also housed 120mm fans... after a fashion).

However, after applying a lot of mods (see starting post) the case itself is pretty solid. I put in some custom suspension (sounds more like a car

), so my only real gripe with it now is turbulence noise from the front fan. When I install new innards I'll try to cook up a gallery post with before/after pics. Gotta work out some modding ideas first, though.

kaange · Post by **kaange** » Mon Sep 22, 2008 4:08 pm

cpemma wrote:far from being silent, with a pair of hard drives I got a peculiar 'beating' resonance that caused the door to vibrate in a cyclic hum. Leaving the door slightly ajar was the simple fix, permanent solution was a P182.

I had the same beat resonance but the simple suspension mod I described earlier fixed this. And it would work for as many drives as will fit in the cage and a nice slow 120mm fan will cool these very well without making very much noise.

I've heard a P182 and it is no more silent than my 3000B with the same components (slower fans, big HSF etc). For the money, I don't think anything came near the 3000B for quiet computing.