Thursday, October 16, 2008

Three Antec HTPC Cases Compared

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Building an HTPC (Home Theater PC)? You'll need a nice case for your project. AnandTech compares three HTPC cases from Antec:

  • Micro Fusion 350 (includes 350W power supply) (US$180)
  • Fusion Remote Black ($150)
  • Fusion Remote Max ($200)

The components fitted in the cases during the test were the following:

  • Intel Core 2 Duo E4500 (2.2GHz) processor
  • Asus P5E-VM SE motherboard (Intel G35 chipset)
  • 4GB OCZ DDR2 PC2-8500 Platinum Series memory
  • Western Digital 400GB HDD
  • Zalman CNPS7700 CPU cooler
  • Antec Signature SG-650W PSU

"Any one of these should fit in quite nicely with a home theater environment. The only real question is what size HTPC you want to use. We like the small Micro Fusion as a basic HTPC, since it requires the least space. However, it is also the most limited in terms of features and expansion options. All of the cases are well built and meet the high standards that we have come to expect from Antec. There are no sharp edges or any serious issues, other than the fact that on the smaller cases you will need to be a bit more patient when installing your components." [AnandTech | Antec Fusion HTPC Shootout]

Of course, one could choose a regular tower microATX as the chassis for an HTPC, although this will surely not blend well with your home theater. As AnandTech suggests, an HTPC case should have a nice and sleek design that will fit in with the entertainment center in your living room, and should be small and designed to fit together with a stereo amplifier, game console, and/or DVD player.

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