Case Suggestions for NZXT Phantom 820 Replacement

Hardware Hub Cases / Chassis
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As the title suggests, I’m looking for a case replacement for an aging NZXT Phantom 820.

Specific needs: at least 2 5.25" external drive bays (yes i still need these 1x hot swap hdd bay and 1xoptical(bluray/writer drive) not considering replacing these with external USB drives.

5.25" bays need to remain usable with a 360 radiator in use either AIO or Custom loop(currently custom loop with a thick 360 in the phantom 820)

As many 3.5" drive bays as possible.

Going to be housing the following:

Full atx motherboard: Gigabyte X570 Aorus Master
Gigabyte Aorus 6900XT gaming OC
1600w Superflower leadex platinum(long) PSU
The afformentioned optical and hotswap bays
multiple 3.5" hdds
a few 2.5" SSDs

Compromises I can make is getting rid of the custom loop and going with an AIO, less keen on a tower air cooler and I am happy enough for the 200mm fans to be gone

So far the only case i can see that fits the bill enough is a BeQuiet Dark base pro 900 however I’m not sure about the 360 Rad/AIO fitment and keeping the 5.25" drive bay functionality, if anyone can think of anything else that might fit the bill it’d be appreciated.

I can find example builds but all seem to drop the 5.25" bays.

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Define 7 XL [for 2x 5.25 bays; the standard build is 1x 5.25]
Phanteks Enthoo Pro / Primo [3x / 5x 5.25]
SilverStone SST-CS380 [2x 5.25, HEAPS of swappable 3.5in]

1 Like
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Phanteks Enthoo pro would be my recommendation.
But what is wrong with your current case,
besides it being a bit older already?

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fractal’s pop series might also be viable. I’m assuming you might be after more modern case io if you want a new case, if you want usbc on the fractal case you have to buy an extra usbc accessory cable that bolts into the case.

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Are you sure you don’t need a hip replacement too old timer :rofl:

As mentioned the Define XL or phanteks case

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This morning I feel like you may be right :laughing:

Mostly the older part, some of the plastics are giving up now already had to get creative with some super glue and baking soda to reattach a few clips and bits, some of the rubbery coating around the power buttons and USB ports starting to get a little nasty / sticky , screw and standoff retention ain’t what she used to be and the well used USB ports are well, well used, So i think it’s time.

Silverstone one looks well it it’s not a looker but would be good for a NAS or server gonna keep a note of that one.

Funny thing is I’d seen videos (even from Wendell) on the Define 7 XL but completely forgotten it existed, Think that’s the most promising, Will also keep in mind the Enthoo but stock levels on those don’t seem too great locally.

Yeah I did consider the pop seriers with bottom drive bays, just didn’t rub me right, But yeah some more modern case I/O would be nice too Thinking now the Define 7 XL is the way to go.

Replies are much appreciated Thanks :smiley:

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Well yeah then it’s probably about time. :slight_smile:

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Kinda sad to see it go, not sure what I’ll do with it, but got the Define 7 XL ordered should be here in a few days, got some ideas for a few modifications to it which may or may not happen including some dremeling and maybe a set of wheels. the existing Phantom 820 is a real pain to move where it’s located and with it’s weight and grippy rubber feets So wheels on the 7 XL are probably a good idea.

Edit:

Sooooo, Got the Define 7 XL in and an Arctic Liquid Freezer II 360, decided to mothball the custom loop for now although I could have made it fit. So far I’m impressed with the case was able to fit Push/Pull on the AIO front mounted, couldn’t top mount and use the 5.25" bays at the same time, although it’s only just short of fitting if only they case were a little longer it’d be the perfect size.

Used the ventilated top panel, Have 1 rear 140, 2 x 120s and a 3.5" hdd mounted at the top (yay for spinning rust!) along with my bluray drive and hotswap bay in the 5.25" bays, 2 more 3.5" HDDs in the bottom of the case had to slide the cage over and remove the second cage as my PSU is fairly long to allow cable room / access(superflower 1600w long boi). and one SATA SSD 2.5" behind the motherboard tray.

Case has lots of room and tie down points for cables so putting the rear panel back on was nice n easy ( phantom 820… err yeah no comment).
Now I have use of more modern front IO although have lost the built in card reader which is no big issue really, got some USB 3.0 and 2.0 Rear brackets on the way because why not, may as well use the spare motherboard internal headers.

I’m still unsure if i should take an angle grinder and open up a hole in the door and maybe add some corse mesh or something, might also change the power LED from white to green, and some wheels.

So if anyone is thinking of getting one, they’re great and have a lot of configuration options, there’s a few quirks with that so if you do a build in one, make sure you plan it out and configure the case as needed before you start throwing things into it and doing your cable management given it’s a larger case you may also need some extension cables for fans(font and or bottom mostly) and potentially for SATA power or longer SATA data cables depending on where you locate your drives.

It’s a really nice case to build in though no sharp edges so didn’t require a blood sacrifice, the removable top mounting rail/panel is also nice.

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