Mid-Tower Mega Roundup

Antec P-180

The other case that we'll be looking at from Antec is the P-180. The case was available for as little as $110 - with most shops selling it for much closer to $130 - which is really amazing considering how much case you get for your money. This chassis has really been stirring things up within the community, and not without reason. Let's take a closer look to see what makes this unit so special.

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From the outside, this is quite possibly the sleekest looking case that we've ever reviewed. The entire top is black and so is the trim around the edges, but the side and front panel are all aluminum with a silver colored matte finish.

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The magnetically latched front door opens (and can continue swinging all the way to touch the side of the case, thanks to the double-hinge design) and reveals the four 5¼” drive bays, the single 3½” bay, and the two 120mm-sized air intakes. In order to pull in air with the solid door closed, the sides extending the door part forwards are lined with rectangular holes, which shouldn't hamper the case's ability to take in plenty of cool air. The filters behind the actual case intakes can be accessed easily by pushing on the hinged plastic grill on the right side.

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Also viewable in this shot is the P-180's front panel connectors, which include the standard affair of Firewire, USB, and audio connections. Sitting on top at the back of the unit is a removable grill that is designed to help direct some of the warm exhaust air back. In this picture of the back of the case, this grill, the main rear 120mm fan, and the different placement of the power supply are all present.

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Right away, we worried about power supply/motherboard compatibility with this case, as a bottom mounted power supply will need a long cable to reach the motherboard power connection comfortably. We'll find out if our test bed installed OK in a bit.

The side panels of the P-180 have a three-piece construction comprised of metal, plastic, and then metal again. The aim in this assembly is to help keep the case as quiet as possible, and since these panels resonate much less than a typical metal sheet, it will indeed do just that.

Once removed, we took most of the removable pieces out and were left with a very interesting, two-chamber design. Take a look:

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The top portion houses the motherboard, all external drives, up to two hard drives, and two 120mm exhaust fans. The bottom chamber holds four more hard drives and the power supply, and can house one 120mm fan to keep this portion cool.