Antec 380 Watt M-ATX Desktop Case NSK1380 (Black/Silver) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)This was my first build for a HTPC to put in my media cabinet. I decided on this case mostly because it was the only decent sounding (review-wise) case that would fit into my media cabinet. The build itself was such a pain (literally) starting with trying to put the clip-in motherboard standoffs in. The very first one sliced under my fingernail drawing blood. Once I got the mobo in the very first thing I noticed was that the cables come out underneath the PSU and connecting the ATX power made all the very short cables rest right on top of the NB heatsink. The only way to route the cables was to buy a 10" power extension and molex to 2x ATA adapter. This mess blocks the PCI-e slot and one HDD space. The OD screw holes don't all line up with the drive cage holes on two drives I tried. Once built it's now working like a charm but it's not at all attractive (too much plastic) and looks out of place in my A/V cabinet. To do it over again I'd choose different. It works for now.

Now I'd skip the whole HTPC self-build and get a Dell Zino HD but they didn't have those when I did this.Or, I'd look at mini-ITX and a ION board/build.

Pros:
- Silent
- Well made panels
- Fits in small spaces
- Stays cool with very creative cable routing
- Works

Cons:
- Clip-in motherboard standoffs difficult to put in and very sharp
- Cabling comes out bottom of power supply and with the GA-MA78GM-US2H mobo rests right on the NB heatsink
- Cables much too short - had to buy extension/adapters
- Power LED way too bright
- Difficult to install OD and HDD
- Poor fit and finish - not all screw holes align with OD screw holes for any drive I tried (3 of 8 max)
- Difficult to get top back on
- Not very attractive looking - too much plastic on the outside and it looks that way
- Doesn't look like it fits in with other A/V equipment
- Included internal fan takes up PCI slot and stays on even when the system is shut down.
- OD drive shield is flimsy and button doesn't reach OD button - I just ended up removing it
- No HDD LED (is it working or is it hung?)
- Not sure how I'll ever get a graphics card in here because of the aforementioned cabling issues but with the 780G chipset on my mobo I haven't found the need
- Expensive for so much plastic facade (the price hasn't dropped at all!)

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Antec NSK1380 380W M-ATX Desktop Case (Black/Silver)

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