Case Review - Antec PlusView 1000AMG

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maxxis
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Case Review - Antec PlusView 1000AMG

Post by maxxis »

When my custom built case decided that it was going to cause overheating problems I decided that I will rather buy a new case and save myself the hassle of sorting out the cooling problems and maybe even wasting money in the process.

After some quick and thorough research (plus the case was just begging me to take it home) I decided to buy the Antec PlusView 1000AMG SOHO Server Case.

My first impression of the case was how big it was. I have always loved big cases (size matters ok) and this one with its metallic grey paintjob and clear side panel just did it for me.

The case came packaged in a well designed box with ample protection for the contents (Styrofoam and plastic bag deal). The first thing you notice when taking out of the box is the weight of the case. This thing is heavy, but heavy means solid and the construction of the case it top quality.

Included in the box you will find:

- 1 Case with 2 Antec fans installed
- Instruction manual
- Bag of screws and motherboard standoffs (There are more screws in here than you could shake a screwdriver at)
- 4 Sets of drive rails
- 2 Sets of keys
- 1 Antec badge

The outside:

The front of the case makes use of a door to hide the drives which is a big plus if you still have ugly beige CD drives or fan controllers that don't match the rest of the case. The door can lock which is a nice feature.
Below the door hides a panel which when opened reveals 2 USB ports as well a Firewire port. The USB ports are a little on the tight side but still works very well.

The side panel is very clear and protected by plastic. This should be removed as soon as possible as it is only there to protect the panel while the case is in the box. The first thing you notice about the panel is that it has a sort of gill like grill molded onto it very much like the fender gills on a BMW M3. It not only looks good but it very functional as it has a 80cm fan hole behind it. The fan clips into place thanks to some well designed fan mounts on the inside of the panel. The side panel has a nice latch with lock for you to open it with and the panel is further locked down by using two thumbscrews.

The case is very well finished in a metallic grey. A very small problems is that the finish on the door does not 100 % match the rest of front bezel. It is slightly different and you are not likely to notice it straight away. The door seems solid enough but it is still only plastic and therefore should not be handled too rough.

The inside:

The first thing you notice the endless amount of space on the inside. You have 2 drive cages that have a quick release mechanism so that they can be removed easily. The bottom cage has a fan mount installed so as to cool the hard disk installed in the cage. The cabling for the fan can be a bit tricky but you can sort it out easy enough.

The drive rails is a nice addition and work very easy. Lots of people told me that it is tricky to work with first time round but it was easy enough.

The motherboard tray (actually lack thereof) came with a few standoffs already fitted which took allot out of the guesswork associated with installing a motherboard. I only added three standoffs and my Soltek board went in with ease.

A total of five fans can be fitted to the case. Two at the back - supplied with case -, two at the front and one in the side panel. I would recommend (for show lighting) that you use LED or CCFL fans in all the spots especially the back as it can be seen through the window. When I installed my system in the case I used all the fan positions. With five fans plus the CPU cooler at 4000 rpm the case is not a loud as I thought it would be. Very impressed with this. With this setup my internal case temp is around 28 which is about the same temp as my study where the PC stands. The fan on the side panel sits above the video card which helps a lot to cool it down.

The purple coloured fan clips might not suit everybody's taste but it works fine for me as the Soltek board has the same purple coloured serial ports on it.

A bonus is the front fan filter that comes standard with the case. It is easily removed from the bottom of the case by hand. Cleaning is recommended once a month with normal use.

One thing people will notice it the extended PCI card holder at the front of the case. With modern day PCI cards this has no use but I found one for it. You can easily hide the CCFL inverter inside it and route the cables through the front. I also fitted the CCFL switch into it and hid all the extra Molex connectors behind it.

Installing the components

The fact that the case does not have a removable motherboard tray did not bother me as there is so much space to work with. Even with the power supply fitted you have no problems trying to fit the motherboard.
The quick release hard drive cages are a big bonus as you don't have to remove the right hand side panel to gain access to the screws.

Expansion cards use normal screws and all of the case's slots can be used. All the slots have removable plates instead of the cheap breakout kind. Thumbscrews would have been nice but they are a cheap addition.

The drive rail system works effortlessly and only took about five minutes to install both DVD drives.
As I said all the fans just clip into place so no hassles there. The power supply is very well supported and there is lots of space to hide your unused cables above it.

All the connectors for the switches and LEDS are well marked and the USB and Firewire connectors are single piece units making the connection of USB ports and Firewire ports a breeze.

Full Specifications

Dimensions - 52cm Hight X 21cm Width X 47cm Depth
Weight - 13 kg without components (22kg with everything depending on setup)
10 Drive bays
4 External 5.25" Drive bays
2 External 3.5" Drive bays (plus 4 internal)
2 Front USB
1 Front Firewire (IEEE1394)
2 80mm Case Fans (Supports 5)
1 Washable air filter
High clarity side panel
Lockable front and side panels

Conclusion

To be honest I can't find a single flaw in this product. The lack of a motherboard tray and the very slight difference in paint does not bother me in the least as this is made up for in stability and ease of use.
The only thing I would have liked to see is one of Antic's brilliant power supplies bundled with the case, but at this price I can't complain. Also some 120mm fans would be nice but the 80mm ones do a great job to keep it all nice and cool.

To round it off. For the price that you pay you get an exceptionally good and solid case. It is brilliant mixture between a server tower and LAN case thanks to the window which gives you a lot of modding potential.

Pros:

- Very big and stable
- Lots of space
- 5 x 80mm fans supported (2 included)
- Drive rails work great
- Quick release drive cages
- Nice big window
- Big fan filter

Cons:

- Lack of power supply
- Too heavy for LAN use
- Slight paint mismatch

I can provide pics if this makes it to the mag...

Cheers
maxxis
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Post by maxxis »

Just some feedback on the case.

I have been using it for about 2 weeks now and all I can say is wow.

I am now running 5 LED fans in the case and the cooling is great. My temps have dropped by about 5 degs from my old case.

I cleaned the fan filter over the weekend. Very easy to do and it really works well. I have no dust inside the case yet.

Cleaned up the cabling. Lots of little places to hide the ununsed cables.

Cheers
Saddam
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Post by Saddam »

hey maxxis,

nice case indeed, built a few systems in them.

what about your side door fan, is it blowing in????? just give the dust factor a little while, the 1 fan filter on the front of the case is just covers to of the intakes, you'll soon notice im sure that the inside of your case acts like a hoover. (thats of course if your fan on the door is blowing in to keep your 3d card cool)

otherwise solid case, just be carefull of the side door, it breaks off easily. ( just a piece of advice from my personal experience)

the above are my personal experiences, i did own a plusview 1000amg for a while
maxxis
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Post by maxxis »

Thanks.

I have the side panel fan blowing into the case. It works well to cool the GPU.

How did you manage to break the door off. I am very carefull with though.

Cheers
Saddam
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Joined: 24 Nov 2003, 02:00
Location: CT

Post by Saddam »

the door breakage was kindof easy, complete mistake,

i left it open for a bit while i was writing some cd's, and i yawned, and swung my arm down onto a open door, and SNAP!!!!

i've done similar things with my thermaltake and it hasnt broken yet, i think the metal door has something to do with it.

otherwise, tip for the fan on the door, get some really thin foam, like 3 mm, stretch it over the fan and clip in into the door, that should act as a decent filter and not limit the airflow, something i picked up when i had the case,

otherwise, enjoy it! just look after it! nice case and im sure you dont want it to end up like mine did.
maxxis
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Post by maxxis »

[Maxxis quickly closes the door.]

Thanks. I'll be carefull

Cheers
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