Introduction
Already figured out what you are going to get for your new gaming rig, but can’t decide on a case? Take a look at what we just got from Antec. The Antec Six Hundred v2. This mid-tower can hold up to six 3.5″ HDDs, three 5.25″ drives, and has a bottom mount for 2.5″HDD/SSD as well as front-loading 2.5″/SSD hot-swap bay for quick drive changes. Not only that, but the Antec Six Hundred can hold up to an 11.5″(292mm) video card which should fit all but the most extreme video cards. Still interested? Good. Read on to find out more about the Antec Six Hundred v2.
Features & Specifications
- Bottom-mounted power supply isolates heat and noise
- Front-loaded hot swap 2.5″ drive caddy
- Perforated front bezel delivers maximum air intake
- CPU cutout allows for easy installation of CPU coolers
- Windowed top panel for unique “moonroof” visibility
- Windowed side panel with optional fan mount
- Cable management compartment organizes cables discreetly
- Front-loaded HDD cage for up to 6 hard disk drives
- Cable management ties help keep your case tidier
- 11 drive bays
– 6 x internal 3.5″ HDDs
– 3 x external 5.25″ HDDs
– 1 x external front-loaded hot swap 2.5″ SATA HDD caddy
– 1 x internal bottom-mounted 2.5″ SSD drive - 7 expansion slots
- Cooling system
– 1 x top 200mm TriCool™ blue LED fan
– 1 x rear 120mm TwoCool™ blue LED fan
– 2 x front 120mm fans for HDDs (optional)
– 1 x side 120mm fan for graphics cards (optional) - Front ports
– 3 x USB 2.0
– Audio (AC’97 and HDA compatible) In and Out - Washable air filters for quick, easy cleaning
- Maximum video card size: 11.5″/292mm (Note: some video cards may block access to the adjacent hard drive bay)
- Motherboards: Mini-ITX, microATX, Standard ATX
- Power supply not included
- Unit dimensions
– 491 mm (H) x 212 mm (W) x 492 mm (D)
– 19.3″ (H) x 8.3″ (W) x 19.4″ (D) - Package dimensions
– 565 mm (H) x 273 mm (W) x 559 mm (D)
– 22.2″ (H) x 10.7″ (W) x 22.0″ (D) - Net weight: 15.3 lbs / 6.9 kg
- Gross weight: 18.7 lbs / 8.5 kg
Closer Look
The Antec Six Hundred comes boxed in the usual fashion with Styrofoam and plastic, so you shouldn’t worry about this shipping to you damaged. All the screws and manuals come in a zip-top bag. The manual does not differentiate between screws, but most of them have the same threading and there are enough to match for various parts of the rig.
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Antec says the Six Hundred was “designed for gaming purists,” and while this may be true, it’s also rather masochistic. The reason I say that is because this is not at all a tool-less case. While the hot-swappable 2.5″/SSD port is cool, I’d really like it if this case came with more thumb screws. My Antec Three Hundred came with enough thumb screws for all the hard drives. The Six Hundred however only has thumb screws to remove the side panels. This probably isn’t an issue for a lot of people especially if you don’t plan on changing much after your initial setup.
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While not positioned as a LAN case, the 15.3lbs empty weight could easily bring you to a LAN with minimal muscle use.
If cooling is what you are after, you shouldn’t be left out with the Six Hundred, but if you want a system that comes with all the fans look elsewhere. The Six Hundred comes with the big 200mm fan on top and a 120mm on the back and space for two 120mms on the front for the HDDs and one on the side for the graphics card. This leaves three fans for your customization. These fans also have individual control switches on the back, so you can manually adjust thespeed.
Installation
Test Rig
| Motherboard | Gigabyte 890gpa-ud3h |
| CPU: | AMD Phenom II x6 1075T 3.0GHz |
| Heatsink | AeroFlow FX 120 |
| Power Supply | Cooler Master Silent Pro M 600W |
| RAM | 4GB OCZ Platinum 1600 |
| Case | Antec Six Hundred v2 |
| GPU | Sparkle Nvidia GTS450 1024MB |
| Hard drive | 1TB Western Digital Black; 1TB Seagate |
This Antec Six Hundred is small, but save for one issue, I had no problem getting my rig inside. The issue isn’t really an issue but more of an incompatibility. The PSU I have (Cooler Master Silent Pro M 600w) comes with vibration reducing rubber fittings that do not fit in the PSU slot that Antec provided. This is because the spot for the PSU was designed to hold the PSU in place along with the screws, creating a nice and tight fitting. This actually made PSU installation very easy. I’ve had cases without these that force you to hold the PSU in an awkward manner while you try to screw it in. So, while I can’t use the rubber fittings, the install was very easy, and the fit was perfect. Large PSUs, however, might not fit, but if you have a large PSU, you are probably looking to get a full tower (or at least a bigger case than this).
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Installation Continued
As I said before, this system is not tool-less, so this install did not go as quickly as I’ve done in the past. This still really isn’t an issue, but more of a lack of a feature. The case has lots of room for cable routing, but I found it to be a little to far away to be actual cable management. It was more of some extra space to stuff cables. My very large Vantec Aeroflow 120 (that’s a 120mm fan) fit nicely. I’ve had cases of a similar size fail at containing a large heatsink, but this one took it without a complaint.
Conclusion
I can’t really say anything terribly bad about the Antec Six Hundred. I personally didn’t like its looks initially, but that’s just me. It’s definitely not an eye sore. After assembling my rig and putting it in it’s place on the floor, I stepped back, had a look, and liked what I saw. It’s small, quiet, holds lots of stuff, and keeps my system cool. After firing this up my CPU ran at a cool 25º C (75ºF). This is a 2ºC increase from my previous case the AZZA Hurrican 2000 which was loaded with fans. So, while ambient temp increased, it wasn’t by much. To top it all off, this case is solid. There is no rattling, the top thing that holds that fan is screwed down tight (I used it as a handle for a little, but I wouldn’t recommend it since it doesn’t say it’s a handle), and it’s just built well. I definitely recommend this case, and at about $80 online, it’s not a bad price either.
I disagree about finding better options for the $80 retail pricetag. Ive seen many of the options you speak about. I hope you have plenty of bandaids around for the cuts your going to get. Also the plastic on the ~80 models is very cheap and flimsy. Another area I personally think this model excels at is looks. It doesn’t pretend to be a transformer or an airplane. This is a case I would not feel ashamed to have at a LAN.
I agree.
I think I failed to mention something. While the case was lacking a few features, it was made very well. The edges are all smooth. The case is rigid, and light. It’s a very well made case with that lacks a few modern features. But, unless you plan on going in and out of your case, the lacking features are only going to be a problem once.
Horrible. Just horrible.
No cable management? Gray interior? Dumb HDD orientation. No removable HDD cage. Not tool less. What a joke this whole thing is for its price. Are they even trying to compete with CM or the others?
Personally I find the cable management very poor in this chassis. I realize it is 80 dollars but there are other PC cases in the same price category with far superior cable management. Antec just isn’t listening to their customers.
Could’t agree more Robert. Utterly useless and ugly interior and many more better options out there.
Antec used to be on everyone’s shortlist for a case but these days they are falling behind rather severely.
Consider something such as a CM690II from Coolermaster or even one of the cheaper Zalman cases which go for a song and have pretty good options for cable management etc.
I agree. It has cable management, but it’s more of an extra space to shove cable so they don’t hit fan blades. And with the way Gigabyte puts their ports on their boards, you’re guaranteed to have cables everywhere.