Hi Joshua. Just read this review. To be honest this is a fairly average review. What sets the P182 series apart from other cases is specifically the ability to route cables behind the backplate the motherboard is fixed to and between the rear case cover. There are cable ties, fixing points, and access holes for just this purpose.
By removing the cable mess from the area over the motherboard you give the case a much better airflow and therefore lower overall ambient temperatures. You say the review was rushed but there would have been little if extra time involved in quickly routing the cables behind the keyboard.
So really you have defeated the whole purpose for using this case in the first place. Sorry but a little more attention to detail next time would be good.
Why must they continue to put the bottom 120 in the middle of the case? My HDD's will roast 10C hotter in that config as opposed to blowing cool air OVER the HDD's. :(
You can move the middle mounted 120mm fan to the front of the case if you wish, or even add an extra so you have two 120mm's in the bottom part. Having two gives you a push/pull airflow setup for hd's mounted in the bottom ;)
Correct me if i'm wrong but i haven't seen anywhere in the review if you can fit a pair of 8800gtx with both cages installed, as these gfx cards are extra long...??
Don't get me wrong, this case, and others have a lot of features not found in a Dell, but take a peek inside a Dell XPS 410 or Precision 390.
Dell's assembly for the optical drives is one major thing that no other cases I have seen have tried to duplicate. The Precision 390 case design even allows for the changing of the optical drives to be rotated so that the system can be used as a desktop or a tower, and this change takes literally 90 seconds. It is just so incredibly easy to add or replace an optical drive in a Dell because of the case design.
This complaint is personal but would apply to any of us who would only want one or two internal. Again, Dell's design for hard drives is so simply and yet so brilliant. Two pull-out plastic enclosures. No screws needed. Pull one out, slide in a hard drive, and pop it back in. It is just so easy, and this is definitely something that some case makers could easily implememnt.
quote: It's almost a shame that most people that purchase an XPS 410 are unlikely to appreciate the ease with which the system can be upgraded.
That said, the XPS 410 chassis is not designed to house dual GPUs or a variety of other options. It's a good all-in-one system for a non-enthusiast (i.e. people that don't care about overclocking), but it's not inexpensive either.
Ah, I see... maybe they want to avoid patent infringement lawsuits? ;)
One possibility is that they want to make sure their cases are more compatible. You have to be able to fit anything from an old P3 up through the latest Core 2 Quad or X2 in a standard ATX case. Part of the reason Dell cases can be easy to work with is that they are often designed for a specific, proprietary motherboard. I'm still surprised we haven't seen more screwless designs that actually work well, however.
Yes, patent infringement is certainly a possibility.
And yes, Dell has an edge in that they are specifically made for their motherboards. They've done a good job utilizing that, too. One particular nice feature is that blue thing that gives physical support for heavier video cards, to prevent them from bending over time. I work on a lot of Dells, I've replaced everything possible in the xps 410 and Prec 390, except for the case/mobo/psu. They are just so damn easy to work with. Even replacing the cpu is a breeze.
Yes it looks very nice but I for one will not be buying as I consider that Antec have only done half a job in this case by failing to invert the motherboard after fitting the PSU atthe bottom of the case, also no removeable MoBo carrier
Is there a way to check ahead of time if your power supply has long enough cords? Of course this being if you haven't bought the PSU yet. I do not see anything on newegg that says how long PSU cords are or how long you need to have. Or have all the big PSU companies adjusted and made their cords longer over time?
A little off topic, but could anyone point me to the mATX roundup mentioned in the article?
I'm building a SFF PC for my cousin, and would like to see Anand's take on several MB models.
A search for various 'mATX' 'roundup' 'micro ATX' etc. terms didn't reveal any articles, especially since the review indicated the roundup was fairly recent.
Just a heads up, the new P180 cases are modified and have all the same features as the P182.
I just got my P180b yesterday from Newegg. $129 w/$30 rebate
It is essentially the same case, with a black finish. The inside is not black though but he standard steel finish. It has the raised mobo so I routed my cables behind it, the same tri-cool fans with the switches on the outside, and the holes for water cooling.
It's a pretty great deal since you are essentially getting a P182 (without the mirror finish) for $99.
Yep... I mentioned that ^ up there already :). I got the hybrid case as well back in March (others reported getting it since late Feb.). The primary difference, as far as I can tell is that it's black, instead of the new gun-metal grey of the 'regular' P182.
Is there any other differences between the P182SE vs the P182 besides the finish? I'm really not into flashy looking cases but the features described in the article def appeal to me as I'm looking to buy a new case.
and the cable routing features behind it? They didnt even install the PSU that way or take advantage of them, and its a hell of a rat's nest in their install picture.
Anyways I already have a P182SE on order to replace my P180
I love my Antec P150 (now also available as the SOLO (no included PSU)). I've had it since they were first available a little over a year ago and it's been an excellent case. An assortment of nice quiet/silencing features, a good amount of room inside for a "mini" tower, and what seem to be very good quality parts.
If anyone is looking at the 180 or 182 and wishing there was something a bit smaller, definitely look at the P150 or the SOLO.
Agreed. The Solo is easily my favorite case and that's what I chose to house my Core2Duo build this past October. The silencing features, cable management and appearance make it the best case out there.
Antec made notable changes regarding cable management for the P182, particularly the design of the motherboard tray. Specifically, there are cut-outs in the tray for routing cables behind the tray between different compartments, and there is more room behind the tray to allow for thicker cables (like a 20/24-pin ATX PSU connector).
I would think such important differences between the P182 and the P180 should be touched upon in the article; perhaps you could even incorporate some of the cable routing features into your "Installation" portion of the article?
Yes, I own a P180. The case is great except for the fact that all the cables from the bottom power supply/hard drive compartment route through the panel opening. The new cable routing features, instead of the mirror finish should have been the focus as in my opinion this is the best update to the case.
Did I miss the pricetag for this special finish model?
Also, how many fans are being used? It looks like you have the top and rear fans installed, plus another 120mm between the lower HD cage and the power supply. But what about the two front fans, in the upper and lower compartments?
ATACOM should be, I've ordred from them before. ExcaliburPC IS safe, as is computerbrain, never heard of etchforsale, and anyone putting numbers in their business name, can not be all that sophisticated, now can they ;)
It's a bit of a lower end case, but, shockingly enough, it actually does come with hard drive suspension gear. I picked it up for $60 at a Fry's sale. It's definitely not as pretty as the P180's that were sitting next to it, but I couldn't believe I how cheap I was getting a tooless, quiet (comes with modest sound dampening material) case w/4 HDD suspension mounts and dual air filters. Obviously there's much better cases out there, but not for $60. The only thing it lacked was a front intake fan, easily solved for another $10 though.
Actually, even excluding the power supply, they are not 100% identical. The P150 uses "trap doors" to cover the 5.25" and 3.5" drives. I don't mind it, but many do. It you like to use things like the headphone jack on a DVD drive or see the activity light, then you may not want the P150 anyway. Of course the Solo is cheaper due mainly to its lack of PSU, but in my opinion the Solo is not as good looking. I own both.
quote: "If you like to use things like the headphone jack on a DVD drive "
Wow, do people actually use that? The last time I did was 1996 when I had my first computer and tried that jack out with a pair of headphones just to see how it worked. :D
My experience is that many folks use the jack at work if the PC enclosure doesn't have a front headphone jack. And my experience is many work PC's at large, cheap companies do not.
I agree. I got the Solo for about $40 (shipped) from Outpost recently. That, of course, is after rebate. I wanted something smaller and quiet. I also have the P150, which is almost identical to the Solo. I'm not sure which I prefer. Still, if I decided I wanted to go back to a taller case, this would probably be at the top of my list. I'd have to wait for a special though, the list price is simply too high. By the way, I believe the Solo and P150 support 3 suspension mounts, not 4. The following are from the specs listed at Newegg:
quote: 4x 3.5” (Tray Mount) or 3 x 3.5” (Suspension Mount) for HDD
I'm not sure if it happened earlier than the 182 rev or not, but the mb tray has also been inset a bit from early 180s. This gives room 'behind' the mb tray to run some of the power cables (I have my big, primary 24-pin power cable running up the back of the mb, out of the way).
Also, I ordered the P180B from Newegg at the beginning of March and what I recieved was basically a P182, but painted black, instead of gun-metal grey. Apparently Antec/Newegg started shiping these hybrid models out in late Feb. - others have reported this as well.
Yes I bought a 180B a couple of weeks ago, it too has the twin switches externally accessible for the rear fans plus space behind the motherboard for wire routing.
A plus was being able to fit a 120x38mm fan infront of the middle tray (just) because I simply do not like 25mm wide 120s so took them all out, speedfan is great for controlling fan arrays so the tri-switched fans were less than useful compared to my own.
Cons were that I needed to buy a 12v4 extension as my seasonic s12 would not make the stretch to the top 12v on the A8N32-SLI mobo, also I still cannot see the point of the PSU cage when it has the 4x standard bolt holes in the rear, another useless item that is now thrown in a box to gather dust.
The rubber grommets that hold the hard drives in were also a bit flimsy and easily distorted before a good grip was had and also the top toolless optical mounting jams in somewhat.
Otherwise its a great case for cooling, my temps have never been lower and even while gaming speedfan rarely has to bump them up, whereas before in my old case with the same fans, just 10 minutes of BF2 and up went the temps making the fans lift...Ill have to wait for summer to see how good it really is but do far im impressed with the cooling ability.
IF they do sell for $170usd, I would have to say that is too much. I have seen the regular P180's at around $100 usd, and sometimes less. Having said that, I personally own a Lian-Li PC-G50(silver), and while without buying the add-on 3x5.25" to 4x3.5" drive converter, you would not be able to get more than 3 drives in it. Now, I do own one of these bay converters, and I do have 4 HDDs internally (soon to be 6), and I have to say, comparred to this case, it is much more of a bargin. Keep in mind that I am a fan of Antec, and I love the fact they make good, solid cases (and PSUs), that are very functional, with lots of room.
This Lian-Li case I own, is also far more in-expensive, made of 100% aluminum, looks very good( clean, no bright colors, or 'fancy' lines ), very functional, is a reverse ATX layout (if you are into that sort of thing), very quiet, even with the stock fans, and is only 15" tall ! Add the bay converter kit, and you start to encroach on the Antec case in price.
Now the one major thing I have as an issue with my own case . . . No room for a HUGE third party CPU fan, in fact, the best I could probably fit in it, would be the cooler supplied with some AMD Opterons, which is exactly what I bought, just have not put it in yet.
All in all, I'd have to say, the P182SE sure is a flashy case, probably too bright for me, and I would probably prefer a black P180 instead. That being said, the internal layout is pretty dahmed nice.
Forget about newegg, they tend to jack up prices because . . . Someone gave the item a good review, people are buying it moderatly and they have a script that jacks the price up(cost, and demand), and hardly seem to be in a big hurry keeping the 'hot' item in stock.
I bet if you froogle around, you'll find someone like eWiz, ZZF, or mWave has it for a much better price. All of thee companies are as reputable as newegg, just some of them do not have as good shipping (ZZF usually has free shipping on everything though), and may take up to 7 working days to arrive at the doorstep . . .
Yes, I own a P180. The case is great except for the fact that all the cables from the bottom power supply/hard drive compartment route through the panel opening. The new cable routing features, instead of the mirror finish should have been the focus as in my opinion this is the best update to the case.
I'm definitely interested in this case for my new comp build at the end of this summer. My goal is to try and build a computer that is dead silent, I want to be able to sleep in the same room at night with my computer 10 feet away and not hear a single whisper. Not sure if this is possible with air cooling but I'll try, so would most people say this is the silentest case you can buy?
Well, I did not go for a silent build but I wanted quiet and with the p180B and my components its very quiet. I'd imagine with the right components like samsung HD, fan less cpu and fan less cpu it could be done. A nice 120mm fan with low rpm is silent so it comes down to components.
Nice case but doesn't allow for good cable management. It looks like a rats nest in there. Oh well, I guess I'll keep my Aspire case for a few more years.
Actually that's not true at all.. there are a ton of options for cable management. I just didn't take the time to manage them all very carefully because we wanted to get this review out asap.
I believe a hole in your otherwise very well-done review is that you used a mATX board, which does not push the case's internal capacity to the limit.
I have a P180 and use a regular ATX board (Asus A8V Deluxe), and let me tell you - it gets VERY crowded down at the bottom of the motherboard...
I have: power supply cabling coming up from the bottom, a PCI TV Tuner card installed in the lowest PCI slot, the front-panel case cables coming in to the motherboard port, and the lower hard disk's cables coming up to the motherboard.
It's very very crowded and difficult to work with.
I personally would not use a full sized board again with the P180; I'd find another classy case or just use a mATX board.
To all of you who wants to build a new pc with this Case, Antec P182. I got one my self and I think I have a lot of rooms to work with. All you have to do is run most of you cables thru the other side of the case.
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Anorax - Sunday, July 15, 2007 - link
Hi Joshua. Just read this review. To be honest this is a fairly average review. What sets the P182 series apart from other cases is specifically the ability to route cables behind the backplate the motherboard is fixed to and between the rear case cover. There are cable ties, fixing points, and access holes for just this purpose.By removing the cable mess from the area over the motherboard you give the case a much better airflow and therefore lower overall ambient temperatures. You say the review was rushed but there would have been little if extra time involved in quickly routing the cables behind the keyboard.
So really you have defeated the whole purpose for using this case in the first place. Sorry but a little more attention to detail next time would be good.
Anorax - Sunday, July 15, 2007 - link
The word *keyboard should read *motherboard.Jodiuh - Friday, April 13, 2007 - link
Why must they continue to put the bottom 120 in the middle of the case? My HDD's will roast 10C hotter in that config as opposed to blowing cool air OVER the HDD's. :(Leth - Tuesday, May 22, 2007 - link
You can move the middle mounted 120mm fan to the front of the case if you wish, or even add an extra so you have two 120mm's in the bottom part. Having two gives you a push/pull airflow setup for hd's mounted in the bottom ;)afilis - Friday, April 13, 2007 - link
Correct me if i'm wrong but i haven't seen anywhere in the review if you can fit a pair of 8800gtx with both cages installed, as these gfx cards are extra long...??bamacre - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Don't get me wrong, this case, and others have a lot of features not found in a Dell, but take a peek inside a Dell XPS 410 or Precision 390.Dell's assembly for the optical drives is one major thing that no other cases I have seen have tried to duplicate. The Precision 390 case design even allows for the changing of the optical drives to be rotated so that the system can be used as a desktop or a tower, and this change takes literally 90 seconds. It is just so incredibly easy to add or replace an optical drive in a Dell because of the case design.
This complaint is personal but would apply to any of us who would only want one or two internal. Again, Dell's design for hard drives is so simply and yet so brilliant. Two pull-out plastic enclosures. No screws needed. Pull one out, slide in a hard drive, and pop it back in. It is just so easy, and this is definitely something that some case makers could easily implememnt.
Reference:
http://www.majortoker.com/images/xps410a_04.jpg">http://www.majortoker.com/images/xps410a_04.jpg
The hard drive enclosures are located on the bottom left and center.
JarredWalton - Friday, April 13, 2007 - link
Already done http://www.anandtech.com/systems/showdoc.aspx?i=28...">months ago. A quote you'll probably agree with:That said, the XPS 410 chassis is not designed to house dual GPUs or a variety of other options. It's a good all-in-one system for a non-enthusiast (i.e. people that don't care about overclocking), but it's not inexpensive either.
bamacre - Friday, April 13, 2007 - link
Yeah, I remember the article, it was very good actually.But what I meant to say was that other case-makers should implement some of the nice features that Dell has in their cases.
JarredWalton - Friday, April 13, 2007 - link
Ah, I see... maybe they want to avoid patent infringement lawsuits? ;)One possibility is that they want to make sure their cases are more compatible. You have to be able to fit anything from an old P3 up through the latest Core 2 Quad or X2 in a standard ATX case. Part of the reason Dell cases can be easy to work with is that they are often designed for a specific, proprietary motherboard. I'm still surprised we haven't seen more screwless designs that actually work well, however.
bamacre - Friday, April 13, 2007 - link
Yes, patent infringement is certainly a possibility.And yes, Dell has an edge in that they are specifically made for their motherboards. They've done a good job utilizing that, too. One particular nice feature is that blue thing that gives physical support for heavier video cards, to prevent them from bending over time. I work on a lot of Dells, I've replaced everything possible in the xps 410 and Prec 390, except for the case/mobo/psu. They are just so damn easy to work with. Even replacing the cpu is a breeze.
soydios - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Page 2: "...easy access to both 12" fan filters for easy cleaning" should read "access to both 120mm fan filters."JoshuaBuss - Monday, April 16, 2007 - link
thanks.. fixedWelshtrog - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Yes it looks very nice but I for one will not be buying as I consider that Antec have only done half a job in this case by failing to invert the motherboard after fitting the PSU atthe bottom of the case, also no removeable MoBo carrierCorbaTheGeek - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
I didn't see the brand and model number of the power supply used in the article.CorbaTheGeek - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Sorry. Just found it. Zalman ZM460-APS PSU.Richey02hg - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Is there a way to check ahead of time if your power supply has long enough cords? Of course this being if you haven't bought the PSU yet. I do not see anything on newegg that says how long PSU cords are or how long you need to have. Or have all the big PSU companies adjusted and made their cords longer over time?InuYasha - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
oh god, i can just see my finger prints all over it and i'll never wipe them offsjholmesbrown - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
A little off topic, but could anyone point me to the mATX roundup mentioned in the article?I'm building a SFF PC for my cousin, and would like to see Anand's take on several MB models.
A search for various 'mATX' 'roundup' 'micro ATX' etc. terms didn't reveal any articles, especially since the review indicated the roundup was fairly recent.
Thanks in advance.
JoshuaBuss - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
http://anandtech.com/casecooling/showdoc.aspx?i=29...">http://anandtech.com/casecooling/showdoc.aspx?i=29...chicagofilms - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Just a heads up, the new P180 cases are modified and have all the same features as the P182.I just got my P180b yesterday from Newegg. $129 w/$30 rebate
It is essentially the same case, with a black finish. The inside is not black though but he standard steel finish. It has the raised mobo so I routed my cables behind it, the same tri-cool fans with the switches on the outside, and the holes for water cooling.
It's a pretty great deal since you are essentially getting a P182 (without the mirror finish) for $99.
Spanki - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Yep... I mentioned that ^ up there already :). I got the hybrid case as well back in March (others reported getting it since late Feb.). The primary difference, as far as I can tell is that it's black, instead of the new gun-metal grey of the 'regular' P182.i4mt3hwin - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Is there any other differences between the P182SE vs the P182 besides the finish? I'm really not into flashy looking cases but the features described in the article def appeal to me as I'm looking to buy a new case.Deusfaux - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
and the cable routing features behind it? They didnt even install the PSU that way or take advantage of them, and its a hell of a rat's nest in their install picture.Anyways I already have a P182SE on order to replace my P180
BPB - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
May I ask from where you ordered it? The http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N8...">Newegg price is so high.classy - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
The P180 series is flat butt ugly.Spanki - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
It's the classiest case on the market today. I'm guessing you're one of those winky-blinky, windows and neon type of guys :).strikeback03 - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
They're classy with the door closed. IMO doors make cases pretty much useless though, and the front of the case inside the door is nothing special.yacoub - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
I love my Antec P150 (now also available as the SOLO (no included PSU)). I've had it since they were first available a little over a year ago and it's been an excellent case. An assortment of nice quiet/silencing features, a good amount of room inside for a "mini" tower, and what seem to be very good quality parts.If anyone is looking at the 180 or 182 and wishing there was something a bit smaller, definitely look at the P150 or the SOLO.
Icepick - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Agreed. The Solo is easily my favorite case and that's what I chose to house my Core2Duo build this past October. The silencing features, cable management and appearance make it the best case out there.jpeyton - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Antec made notable changes regarding cable management for the P182, particularly the design of the motherboard tray. Specifically, there are cut-outs in the tray for routing cables behind the tray between different compartments, and there is more room behind the tray to allow for thicker cables (like a 20/24-pin ATX PSU connector).I would think such important differences between the P182 and the P180 should be touched upon in the article; perhaps you could even incorporate some of the cable routing features into your "Installation" portion of the article?
kellehair - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Anybody have a list of differences between the 180 and the 182? I have the 180 already but would consider upgrading, assuming it really is an upgrade.cbuchach - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Yes, I own a P180. The case is great except for the fact that all the cables from the bottom power supply/hard drive compartment route through the panel opening. The new cable routing features, instead of the mirror finish should have been the focus as in my opinion this is the best update to the case.Sunrise089 - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Did I miss the pricetag for this special finish model?Also, how many fans are being used? It looks like you have the top and rear fans installed, plus another 120mm between the lower HD cage and the power supply. But what about the two front fans, in the upper and lower compartments?
Richey02hg - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
yes you did, last page i believe it says 229 (yikes!)Sunrise089 - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Nope, that was added after the article was posted.JoshuaBuss - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
newegg has it for $230, as mentioned by someone else in the comments here.JarredWalton - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Not the SE version, but the standard P182 is a lot more readily available (and cheaper):http://www.atacom.com/program/print_html_new.cgi?c...">ATACOM $130 + shipping
http://www.etech4sale.com/ANTEC_PERFORMANCE_ONE_SE...">Etech4Sale $125 + shipping
http://www.excaliberpc.com/ANTEC_PERFORMANCE_ONE_S...">ExcaliburPC - $127 + shipping
http://www.computerbrain.com/applications/search/i...">Computer Brain - $132 + ship
No idea if these guys are safe or not, but I also found the P182SE for $191 + shipping from http://ozdirect.com/product_info.php?products_id=6...">OZDirect
http://froogle.google.com/froogle?q=antec+p182&...">Froogle is your fried! :)
yyrkoon - Sunday, April 15, 2007 - link
ATACOM should be, I've ordred from them before. ExcaliburPC IS safe, as is computerbrain, never heard of etchforsale, and anyone putting numbers in their business name, can not be all that sophisticated, now can they ;)Anyhow, look on resellerreview . . .
nicolasb - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
> Also, how many fans are being used?Like the P180, the case comes with three fans, but there are mounting points for another two if you really want to go nuts....
Can anyone tell me what the dimensions of the PSU compartment are? It'd be nice to know which 750W-850W PSUs will actually fit into this case.
giantpandaman2 - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
It's a bit of a lower end case, but, shockingly enough, it actually does come with hard drive suspension gear. I picked it up for $60 at a Fry's sale. It's definitely not as pretty as the P180's that were sitting next to it, but I couldn't believe I how cheap I was getting a tooless, quiet (comes with modest sound dampening material) case w/4 HDD suspension mounts and dual air filters. Obviously there's much better cases out there, but not for $60. The only thing it lacked was a front intake fan, easily solved for another $10 though.Icepick - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
They already did test it back in 2005. http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.aspx?i=2670&p...">http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.aspx?i=2670&p...Well, they tested the P150 but, it's identical to the Solo (power supply excepted, of course).
BPB - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Actually, even excluding the power supply, they are not 100% identical. The P150 uses "trap doors" to cover the 5.25" and 3.5" drives. I don't mind it, but many do. It you like to use things like the headphone jack on a DVD drive or see the activity light, then you may not want the P150 anyway. Of course the Solo is cheaper due mainly to its lack of PSU, but in my opinion the Solo is not as good looking. I own both.yacoub - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Wow, do people actually use that? The last time I did was 1996 when I had my first computer and tried that jack out with a pair of headphones just to see how it worked. :D
yacoub - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
(obviously referring to a CD-ROM drive btw, not a DVD-ROM drive)BPB - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Not so http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N8...">obvious! Click on the image and you will see, why strong wording and the truth, do not always agree.My experience is that many folks use the jack at work if the PC enclosure doesn't have a front headphone jack. And my experience is many work PC's at large, cheap companies do not.
BPB - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
I agree. I got the Solo for about $40 (shipped) from Outpost recently. That, of course, is after rebate. I wanted something smaller and quiet. I also have the P150, which is almost identical to the Solo. I'm not sure which I prefer. Still, if I decided I wanted to go back to a taller case, this would probably be at the top of my list. I'd have to wait for a special though, the list price is simply too high. By the way, I believe the Solo and P150 support 3 suspension mounts, not 4. The following are from the specs listed at Newegg:Spanki - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
I'm not sure if it happened earlier than the 182 rev or not, but the mb tray has also been inset a bit from early 180s. This gives room 'behind' the mb tray to run some of the power cables (I have my big, primary 24-pin power cable running up the back of the mb, out of the way).Also, I ordered the P180B from Newegg at the beginning of March and what I recieved was basically a P182, but painted black, instead of gun-metal grey. Apparently Antec/Newegg started shiping these hybrid models out in late Feb. - others have reported this as well.
Richey02hg - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
so you are basically getting a black p182 (the color i'd want) for the price of a p180?Spanki - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Yes. As far as I can tell, the case I got is the one shown in the first few photo's http://www.silentpcreview.com/article717-page1.htm...">on this page.MadAd - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Yes I bought a 180B a couple of weeks ago, it too has the twin switches externally accessible for the rear fans plus space behind the motherboard for wire routing.
A plus was being able to fit a 120x38mm fan infront of the middle tray (just) because I simply do not like 25mm wide 120s so took them all out, speedfan is great for controlling fan arrays so the tri-switched fans were less than useful compared to my own.
Cons were that I needed to buy a 12v4 extension as my seasonic s12 would not make the stretch to the top 12v on the A8N32-SLI mobo, also I still cannot see the point of the PSU cage when it has the 4x standard bolt holes in the rear, another useless item that is now thrown in a box to gather dust.
The rubber grommets that hold the hard drives in were also a bit flimsy and easily distorted before a good grip was had and also the top toolless optical mounting jams in somewhat.
Otherwise its a great case for cooling, my temps have never been lower and even while gaming speedfan rarely has to bump them up, whereas before in my old case with the same fans, just 10 minutes of BF2 and up went the temps making the fans lift...Ill have to wait for summer to see how good it really is but do far im impressed with the cooling ability.
yyrkoon - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
IF they do sell for $170usd, I would have to say that is too much. I have seen the regular P180's at around $100 usd, and sometimes less. Having said that, I personally own a Lian-Li PC-G50(silver), and while without buying the add-on 3x5.25" to 4x3.5" drive converter, you would not be able to get more than 3 drives in it. Now, I do own one of these bay converters, and I do have 4 HDDs internally (soon to be 6), and I have to say, comparred to this case, it is much more of a bargin. Keep in mind that I am a fan of Antec, and I love the fact they make good, solid cases (and PSUs), that are very functional, with lots of room.This Lian-Li case I own, is also far more in-expensive, made of 100% aluminum, looks very good( clean, no bright colors, or 'fancy' lines ), very functional, is a reverse ATX layout (if you are into that sort of thing), very quiet, even with the stock fans, and is only 15" tall ! Add the bay converter kit, and you start to encroach on the Antec case in price.
Now the one major thing I have as an issue with my own case . . . No room for a HUGE third party CPU fan, in fact, the best I could probably fit in it, would be the cooler supplied with some AMD Opterons, which is exactly what I bought, just have not put it in yet.
All in all, I'd have to say, the P182SE sure is a flashy case, probably too bright for me, and I would probably prefer a black P180 instead. That being said, the internal layout is pretty dahmed nice.
BPB - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Forget about $170usd. Here's http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N8...">Newegg's pricing: $229.99 + $23.72 for shipping for a total of $253.71! Yikes, that's awfully high.strikeback03 - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
The review stated that the normal P182 is around $170, with the SE version (which you linked to) at $230yyrkoon - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Still, for $250, you can get a very nice Lian Li case, somethign I myself would preffer.yyrkoon - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Forget about newegg, they tend to jack up prices because . . . Someone gave the item a good review, people are buying it moderatly and they have a script that jacks the price up(cost, and demand), and hardly seem to be in a big hurry keeping the 'hot' item in stock.I bet if you froogle around, you'll find someone like eWiz, ZZF, or mWave has it for a much better price. All of thee companies are as reputable as newegg, just some of them do not have as good shipping (ZZF usually has free shipping on everything though), and may take up to 7 working days to arrive at the doorstep . . .
cbuchach - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Yes, I own a P180. The case is great except for the fact that all the cables from the bottom power supply/hard drive compartment route through the panel opening. The new cable routing features, instead of the mirror finish should have been the focus as in my opinion this is the best update to the case.Gigahertz19 - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
I'm definitely interested in this case for my new comp build at the end of this summer. My goal is to try and build a computer that is dead silent, I want to be able to sleep in the same room at night with my computer 10 feet away and not hear a single whisper. Not sure if this is possible with air cooling but I'll try, so would most people say this is the silentest case you can buy?tydas - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Well, I did not go for a silent build but I wanted quiet and with the p180B and my components its very quiet. I'd imagine with the right components like samsung HD, fan less cpu and fan less cpu it could be done. A nice 120mm fan with low rpm is silent so it comes down to components.hubajube - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Nice case but doesn't allow for good cable management. It looks like a rats nest in there. Oh well, I guess I'll keep my Aspire case for a few more years.JoshuaBuss - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Actually that's not true at all.. there are a ton of options for cable management. I just didn't take the time to manage them all very carefully because we wanted to get this review out asap.crimson117 - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
I believe a hole in your otherwise very well-done review is that you used a mATX board, which does not push the case's internal capacity to the limit.I have a P180 and use a regular ATX board (Asus A8V Deluxe), and let me tell you - it gets VERY crowded down at the bottom of the motherboard...
I have: power supply cabling coming up from the bottom, a PCI TV Tuner card installed in the lowest PCI slot, the front-panel case cables coming in to the motherboard port, and the lower hard disk's cables coming up to the motherboard.
It's very very crowded and difficult to work with.
I personally would not use a full sized board again with the P180; I'd find another classy case or just use a mATX board.
Johnspree - Saturday, December 26, 2009 - link
To all of you who wants to build a new pc with this Case, Antec P182. I got one my self and I think I have a lot of rooms to work with. All you have to do is run most of you cables thru the other side of the case.JoshuaBuss - Thursday, April 12, 2007 - link
Certainly in my experience this case has one of the best potentials for building the quietest PC possible..