My Antec SLK1650B-UK has served me well for years, but my needs have outgrown it of late with the inclusion of a rather large graphics card that has left me no option but to remove the hard drive bay from the case and sit it on the floor. This of course means that the case is open, it's noisy, it's dusty and it's overheating. So I need a new case.
I have been in love with the Fractal Design Define XL Black Pearl since I saw it, and I am sorely tempted to pick one up, however it is slightly over my budget, so I am looking at alternatives. My requirements are:
Black (also a black interior if at all possible)
Good cable routing/tidying options built in
Decent airflow without the need to purchase too many additional fans
Large enough for my MSI GTX 560 Ti Twin Frozr II, a Corsair A70 and about 5 x 3.5" HDD's
No flashy lights (or bells and whistles!)
That last one seems to have ruled most Antec cases out, except possibly the P280. Lian Li, lovely but all seem to be way too expensive and I am not keen on the shiny interiors. Thermaltake? Don't really like the look of any of them. The Fractal Design Define R3 looks the best of the rest in my opinion and at about £35 cheaper than it's bigger brother, it certainly appeals to my wallet. But will I regret making the decision of buying the little version? Will it comfortably fit my kit in it?
Any other ideas on other cases I may have overlooked? Do you think a mid tower will do?
P.S. If anyone from Scan reads this, you have the Define XL Black listed under mid towers and the Titanium Grey under full towers (they are the same case, just different colours).


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