• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

Why aren't there many cases without glass?

Joined
Aug 28, 2023
Messages
202 (0.41/day)
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard ASUS Prime X670E-Pro WIFI
Cooling Noctua NH-D15S
Memory Kingston FURY Beast 2x16GB 6000MHz CL36
Video Card(s) Gainward RTX 2070 Super
Storage Samsung 990 Pro 2TB, Samsung 990 Pro 4TB, Samsung 970 EVO Plus 2TB, Lexar NM790 4TB
Case Fractal Design Meshify 2
Power Supply Corsair HX1000i ATX 3.1
There are only a handful and I have hard time finding something similar to NZXT H7 Flow (2024) but with side intake instead of front.
 
Joined
May 7, 2023
Messages
682 (1.14/day)
Processor Ryzen 5700x
Motherboard Gigabyte Auros Elite AX V2
Cooling Thermalright Peerless Assassin SE White
Memory TeamGroup T-Force Delta RGB 32GB 3600Mhz
Video Card(s) PowerColor Red Dragon Rx 6800
Storage Fanxiang S660 1TB, Fanxiang S500 Pro 1TB, BraveEagle 240GB SSD, 2TB Seagate HDD
Case Corsair 4000D White
Power Supply Corsair RM750x SHIFT
There are only a handful and I have hard time finding something similar to NZXT H7 Flow (2024) but with side intake instead of front.
There are tons of cases without glass side panels, you will struggle to find one in 2024 with a side intake however as that was mainly a thing in the 00's/early 10's not so much now and the best method of airflow and getting rid of warm air from a PC case is front intake and rear exhaust, of course you can mod a side panel and put a fan/s on it as you wish
 
Joined
Aug 28, 2023
Messages
202 (0.41/day)
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard ASUS Prime X670E-Pro WIFI
Cooling Noctua NH-D15S
Memory Kingston FURY Beast 2x16GB 6000MHz CL36
Video Card(s) Gainward RTX 2070 Super
Storage Samsung 990 Pro 2TB, Samsung 990 Pro 4TB, Samsung 970 EVO Plus 2TB, Lexar NM790 4TB
Case Fractal Design Meshify 2
Power Supply Corsair HX1000i ATX 3.1
There are tons of cases without glass side panels, you will struggle to find one in 2024 with a side intake however as that was mainly a thing in the 00's/early 10's not so much now and the best method of airflow and getting rid of warm air from a PC case is front intake and rear exhaust, of course you can mod a side panel and put a fan/s on it as you wish
So why do dual chamber cases put the exhaust on the side instead of front? There are thousands of cases like the Lian Li O11, but not without glass.

I was of getting a Lian Li LANCOOL III, but you are pushing fresh air out on the bottom since it's fully open and the front too if I make it side intake. So how do I seal the front and how do I drill the glass?

At that point I just make my own case using Plywood ans mesh filters.
 
Joined
Dec 31, 2020
Messages
1,010 (0.69/day)
Processor E5-4627 v4
Motherboard VEINEDA X99
Memory 32 GB
Video Card(s) 2080 Ti
Storage NE-512
Display(s) G27Q
Case DAOTECH X9
Power Supply SF450
The bottom doesn't push air out unless you deliberately reverse the fans. You can make a custom carbon fiber side and front panel with holes to mount the fan where needed, but I really don't see why you want it that way. Better as a chimney and cover the rest with mesh filters, Why have side intakes..
 

Ruru

S.T.A.R.S.
Joined
Dec 16, 2012
Messages
13,035 (2.97/day)
Location
Jyväskylä, Finland
System Name 4K-gaming / console
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5800X / Intel Core i7-6700K
Motherboard Asus ROG Crosshair VII Hero / Asus Z170-K
Cooling Alphacool Eisbaer 360 / Alphacool Eisbaer 240
Memory 32GB DDR4-3466 / 16GB DDR4-3000
Video Card(s) Asus RTX 3080 TUF OC / Powercolor RX 6700 XT
Storage 3.3TB of SSDs / several small SSDs
Display(s) Acer 27" 4K120 IPS + Lenovo 32" 4K60 IPS
Case Corsair 4000D AF White / DeepCool CC560 WH
Audio Device(s) Sony WH-CN720N
Power Supply EVGA G2 750W / Fractal ION Gold 550W
Mouse Logitech MX518 / Logitech G400s
Keyboard Roccat Vulcan 121 AIMO / NOS C450 Mini Pro
VR HMD Oculus Rift CV1
Software Windows 11 Pro / Windows 11 Pro
Benchmark Scores They run Crysis
So why do dual chamber cases put the exhaust on the side instead of front? There are thousands of cases like the Lian Li O11, but not without glass.

I was of getting a Lian Li LANCOOL III, but you are pushing fresh air out on the bottom since it's fully open and the front too if I make it side intake. So how do I seal the front and how do I drill the glass?

At that point I just make my own case using Plywood ans mesh filters.
Wait, what? Exhaust in the front? That's an intake, not exhaust :confused:
 

Space Lynx

Astronaut
Joined
Oct 17, 2014
Messages
17,437 (4.68/day)
Location
Kepler-186f
Processor 7800X3D -25 all core
Motherboard B650 Steel Legend
Cooling Frost Commander 140
Video Card(s) Merc 310 7900 XT @3100 core -.75v
Display(s) Agon 27" QD-OLED Glossy 240hz 1440p
Case NZXT H710 (Red/Black)
Audio Device(s) Asgard 2, Modi 3, HD58X
Power Supply Corsair RM850x Gold
There are tons of cases without glass side panels, you will struggle to find one in 2024 with a side intake

yeah, to this day I regret getting rid of my corsair carbide 500r with custom made dust filters. :banghead:
 

Ruru

S.T.A.R.S.
Joined
Dec 16, 2012
Messages
13,035 (2.97/day)
Location
Jyväskylä, Finland
System Name 4K-gaming / console
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5800X / Intel Core i7-6700K
Motherboard Asus ROG Crosshair VII Hero / Asus Z170-K
Cooling Alphacool Eisbaer 360 / Alphacool Eisbaer 240
Memory 32GB DDR4-3466 / 16GB DDR4-3000
Video Card(s) Asus RTX 3080 TUF OC / Powercolor RX 6700 XT
Storage 3.3TB of SSDs / several small SSDs
Display(s) Acer 27" 4K120 IPS + Lenovo 32" 4K60 IPS
Case Corsair 4000D AF White / DeepCool CC560 WH
Audio Device(s) Sony WH-CN720N
Power Supply EVGA G2 750W / Fractal ION Gold 550W
Mouse Logitech MX518 / Logitech G400s
Keyboard Roccat Vulcan 121 AIMO / NOS C450 Mini Pro
VR HMD Oculus Rift CV1
Software Windows 11 Pro / Windows 11 Pro
Benchmark Scores They run Crysis
yeah, to this day I regret getting rid of my corsair carbide 500r with custom made dust filters. :banghead:
I regret selling my Antec P280 White in 2015, that was probably the best case I've ever had. Also hella good sound insulation in that case, my then-PC (i7 920, 24GB, GTX 570) was practically inaudible.
 
Joined
Feb 1, 2019
Messages
3,667 (1.70/day)
Location
UK, Midlands
System Name Main PC
Processor 13700k
Motherboard Asrock Z690 Steel Legend D4 - Bios 13.02
Cooling Noctua NH-D15S
Memory 32 Gig 3200CL14
Video Card(s) 4080 RTX SUPER FE 16G
Storage 1TB 980 PRO, 2TB SN850X, 2TB DC P4600, 1TB 860 EVO, 2x 3TB WD Red, 2x 4TB WD Red
Display(s) LG 27GL850
Case Fractal Define R4
Audio Device(s) Soundblaster AE-9
Power Supply Antec HCG 750 Gold
Software Windows 10 21H2 LTSC
For me side intake is a game changer, if its rare on modern cases, I assume designers have made an assumption is no front mounted storage, and that AIO is used for CPU cooling, because the problem with front intake is the air has to navigate around storage and then around CPU heatsink. It isnt good enough.

Dont need to use it on AMD system, as that system generates far less heat plus its just using a stock CPU cooler which barely blocks anything.
 
Joined
Jan 22, 2020
Messages
340 (0.19/day)
System Name myPC
Processor i5-11600k @ stock
Motherboard Asus TUF Z590 Gaming Plus
Cooling Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE
Memory Corsair Vengeance LPX 2x8GB DDR4 3200
Video Card(s) Asus Dual RTX 3060 ti
Storage Boot: WD Black SN770 1TB - Game Storage: WD Black SN770 2TB - Other Storage: 4TB
Display(s) Samsung Odyssey G5 curved 27" 1440p 144hz
Case Thermaltake v100 perforated
Audio Device(s) Some headphones and some speakers
Power Supply Gigabyte UD750GM
Mouse Logitech G203
Keyboard Redragon K509
Software W11 Pro
I didn't know my case was a unicorn these days.

 
Joined
Jan 31, 2012
Messages
2,671 (0.57/day)
Location
East Europe
System Name PLAHI
Processor I5-10400
Motherboard MSI MPG Z490 GAMING PLUS
Cooling 120 AIO IWONGOU
Memory 32GB Corsair LPX 2400 Mhz DDR4 CL14
Video Card(s) PNY QUADRO RTX A2000
Storage Intel 670P 512GB
Display(s) Philips 288E2A 28" 4K + 22" LG 1080p
Case Silverstone Raven 03 (RV03)
Audio Device(s) Creative Soundblaster Z
Power Supply Fractal Design IntegraM 650W
Mouse Logitech Triathlon
Keyboard REDRAGON MITRA
Software Windows 11 Home x 64
yeah, to this day I regret getting rid of my corsair carbide 500r with custom made dust filters. :banghead:
Always wanted to have one of those. Narrowly missed one at the second hand market. Looks like a very versatile case.
 

bug

Joined
May 22, 2015
Messages
13,844 (3.95/day)
Processor Intel i5-12600k
Motherboard Asus H670 TUF
Cooling Arctic Freezer 34
Memory 2x16GB DDR4 3600 G.Skill Ripjaws V
Video Card(s) EVGA GTX 1060 SC
Storage 500GB Samsung 970 EVO, 500GB Samsung 850 EVO, 1TB Crucial MX300 and 2TB Crucial MX500
Display(s) Dell U3219Q + HP ZR24w
Case Raijintek Thetis
Audio Device(s) Audioquest Dragonfly Red :D
Power Supply Seasonic 620W M12
Mouse Logitech G502 Proteus Core
Keyboard G.Skill KM780R
Software Arch Linux + Win10
There are tons of cases without glass side panels, you will struggle to find one in 2024 with a side intake however as that was mainly a thing in the 00's/early 10's not so much now and the best method of airflow and getting rid of warm air from a PC case is front intake and rear exhaust, of course you can mod a side panel and put a fan/s on it as you wish
And that's because airflow was not a thing back then. All we needed was to push a bit more air over the CPU cooler. Used to be enough.
 
Joined
Jul 31, 2024
Messages
464 (3.14/day)
As far as I know, the fractal design north has a variant in white with mesh side panel.




 
Joined
Oct 17, 2021
Messages
63 (0.05/day)
System Name Nirn
Processor Amd Ryzen 7950X3D
Motherboard MSI MEG ACE X670e
Cooling Noctua NH-D15
Memory 128 GB Kingston DDR5 6000 (running at 4000)
Video Card(s) Radeon RX 7900XTX (24G) + Geforce 4070ti (12G) Physx
Storage SAMSUNG 990 EVO SSD 2TB Gen 5 x2 (OS)+SAMSUNG 980 SSD 1TB PCle 3.0x4 (Primocache) +2X 22TB WD Gold
Display(s) Samsung UN55NU8000 (Freesync)
Case Corsair Graphite Series 780T White
Audio Device(s) Creative Soundblaster AE-7 + Sennheiser GSP600
Power Supply Seasonic PRIME TX-1000 Titanium
Mouse Razer Mamba Elite Wired
Keyboard Razer BlackWidow Chroma v1
VR HMD Oculus Quest 2
Software Windows 10
As far as I know, the fractal design north has a variant in white with mesh side panel.




that whole case looks good except for the faux wood front panel.
 

Space Lynx

Astronaut
Joined
Oct 17, 2014
Messages
17,437 (4.68/day)
Location
Kepler-186f
Processor 7800X3D -25 all core
Motherboard B650 Steel Legend
Cooling Frost Commander 140
Video Card(s) Merc 310 7900 XT @3100 core -.75v
Display(s) Agon 27" QD-OLED Glossy 240hz 1440p
Case NZXT H710 (Red/Black)
Audio Device(s) Asgard 2, Modi 3, HD58X
Power Supply Corsair RM850x Gold
that whole case looks good except for the faux wood front panel.

I think it looks amazing with the white/wood theme personally, I really like this case. A little too pricey for me though.
 
Joined
Jun 2, 2017
Messages
9,385 (3.40/day)
System Name Best AMD Computer
Processor AMD 7900X3D
Motherboard Asus X670E E Strix
Cooling In Win SR36
Memory GSKILL DDR5 32GB 5200 30
Video Card(s) Sapphire Pulse 7900XT (Watercooled)
Storage Corsair MP 700, Seagate 530 2Tb, Adata SX8200 2TBx2, Kingston 2 TBx2, Micron 8 TB, WD AN 1500
Display(s) GIGABYTE FV43U
Case Corsair 7000D Airflow
Audio Device(s) Corsair Void Pro, Logitch Z523 5.1
Power Supply Deepcool 1000M
Mouse Logitech g7 gaming mouse
Keyboard Logitech G510
Software Windows 11 Pro 64 Steam. GOG, Uplay, Origin
Benchmark Scores Firestrike: 46183 Time Spy: 25121
As far as I know, the fractal design north has a variant in white with mesh side panel.




Does that come with mounting for a side fan or would you have to Frankenstein a mount?
 
Joined
Jul 31, 2024
Messages
464 (3.14/day)
Please accept the quick and dirty screenshot of https://www.fractal-design.com/app/uploads/2022/12/North-Manual-V1.2.pdf

It seems that is only a part of the mesh version.

25-11-2024_14:57:24_screenshot.png



A little too pricey for me though.

I do not think so.
I have a Fractal Design Meshify 2 Case.
I sold a new Jonsbo D41 Case with screen where all my hardware was put in for a month. The cheaper cases like the D41 do not have the build quality, the text build manual or the spare parts.
The Be Quiet Pure Base 500 Case is another case I personally build in which is far overpriced for the low asking price.

Fractal puts a lot of time and efforts in their cases.

If you want to save a few coins you can buy second class computer cases. The seller here calls it "B-Ware". My case was also "B-Ware". I did not saw any scratches or other imperfections on the case. Sometimes "B-Ware" is just returned goods from a buyer or a damaged packaging case. Not sure if the english call it "B-grade".
 
Last edited:
Joined
Apr 16, 2011
Messages
732 (0.15/day)
Location
coventry UK
System Name Gwafwar
Processor Ryzen 5 3600
Motherboard Msi MPG X570 Gaming Plus
Cooling Montech D24
Memory 16Gb Adata Spectrix 3600 Cl18
Video Card(s) XFX 7900 GRE
Storage Adata 512Gb SX8200 pro
Display(s) 3x 27" 1080p Lg's
Case Montech King 95 pro
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply Coolermaster 750W Masterwatt
Mouse Saitek X65-f HOTAS
Software Win10 Pro
I got a Montech King 95 pro for my last case and I can't fault it.


There is a hinged fan mount at the front of the case, and the front curved glass can be replaced with a mesh section that is also included.

In the standard configuration the bottom 3 fans are intake, the offside internal fans are intake, and you have a single exhaust at the rear with an open mesh top.

In the mesh configuration the bottom 3 are still intake, but you have to reverse the offside fans that are swung to the front of the case on the hinge to then become intakes, and you retain the single exhaust and the open top.

 

freeagent

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Sep 16, 2018
Messages
8,918 (3.89/day)
Location
Winnipeg, Canada
Processor AMD R7 5800X3D
Motherboard Asus Crosshair VIII Dark Hero
Cooling Thermalright Frozen Edge 360, 3x TL-B12 V2, 2x TL-B12 V1
Memory 2x8 G.Skill Trident Z Royal 3200C14, 2x8GB G.Skill Trident Z Black and White 3200 C14
Video Card(s) Zotac 4070 Ti Trinity OC
Storage WD SN850 1TB, SN850X 2TB, SN770 1TB
Display(s) LG 50UP7100
Case Fractal Torrent Compact
Audio Device(s) JBL Bar 700
Power Supply Seasonic Vertex GX-1000, Monster HDP1800
Mouse Logitech G502 Hero
Keyboard Logitech G213
VR HMD Oculus 3
Software Yes
Benchmark Scores Yes
I actually don't mind glass that much. I dropped the glass for my Meshify C a couple of times and it was ok, so I thought I would try a Torrent. I lay it down on the glass all the time, though I used to take it off, but I got brave. As long as the surface is flat and clean you will be ok. And don't kick it if its on the floor :D I keep mine at the height of a TV stand so its a couple of feet off the floor.
 
Joined
Jun 2, 2017
Messages
9,385 (3.40/day)
System Name Best AMD Computer
Processor AMD 7900X3D
Motherboard Asus X670E E Strix
Cooling In Win SR36
Memory GSKILL DDR5 32GB 5200 30
Video Card(s) Sapphire Pulse 7900XT (Watercooled)
Storage Corsair MP 700, Seagate 530 2Tb, Adata SX8200 2TBx2, Kingston 2 TBx2, Micron 8 TB, WD AN 1500
Display(s) GIGABYTE FV43U
Case Corsair 7000D Airflow
Audio Device(s) Corsair Void Pro, Logitch Z523 5.1
Power Supply Deepcool 1000M
Mouse Logitech g7 gaming mouse
Keyboard Logitech G510
Software Windows 11 Pro 64 Steam. GOG, Uplay, Origin
Benchmark Scores Firestrike: 46183 Time Spy: 25121

eidairaman1

The Exiled Airman
Joined
Jul 2, 2007
Messages
42,698 (6.68/day)
Location
Republic of Texas (True Patriot)
System Name PCGOD
Processor AMD FX 8350@ 5.0GHz
Motherboard Asus TUF 990FX Sabertooth R2 2901 Bios
Cooling Scythe Ashura, 2×BitFenix 230mm Spectre Pro LED (Blue,Green), 2x BitFenix 140mm Spectre Pro LED
Memory 16 GB Gskill Ripjaws X 2133 (2400 OC, 10-10-12-20-20, 1T, 1.65V)
Video Card(s) AMD Radeon 290 Sapphire Vapor-X
Storage Samsung 840 Pro 256GB, WD Velociraptor 1TB
Display(s) NEC Multisync LCD 1700V (Display Port Adapter)
Case AeroCool Xpredator Evil Blue Edition
Audio Device(s) Creative Labs Sound Blaster ZxR
Power Supply Seasonic 1250 XM2 Series (XP3)
Mouse Roccat Kone XTD
Keyboard Roccat Ryos MK Pro
Software Windows 7 Pro 64
There are only a handful and I have hard time finding something similar to NZXT H7 Flow (2024) but with side intake instead of front.
Popular thing is why.
 
Joined
Aug 28, 2023
Messages
202 (0.41/day)
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard ASUS Prime X670E-Pro WIFI
Cooling Noctua NH-D15S
Memory Kingston FURY Beast 2x16GB 6000MHz CL36
Video Card(s) Gainward RTX 2070 Super
Storage Samsung 990 Pro 2TB, Samsung 990 Pro 4TB, Samsung 970 EVO Plus 2TB, Lexar NM790 4TB
Case Fractal Design Meshify 2
Power Supply Corsair HX1000i ATX 3.1
The bottom doesn't push air out unless you deliberately reverse the fans. You can make a custom carbon fiber side and front panel with holes to mount the fan where needed, but I really don't see why you want it that way. Better as a chimney and cover the rest with mesh filters, Why have side intakes..
It does if I dont put fans in there. In my current Meshify 2 the front fans push air out of through the PSU. How do I tell them not to do that? I tried asking nicely or yelling at then, but they wont listen. Please help me out here m8.
Wait, what? Exhaust in the front? That's an intake, not exhaust :confused:
So if I get a 7000D AIRFLOW, put fans on the side(intake) and nothing in the front, you say it wont just push out the air through the front mesh? Who's telling the air not to do that?


So who's in the wrong. You guys who don't understand what side intake is or the manufacturers who list the intakes as side intake?

This is the case i'm looking for

innerside1.jpg




casenew.jpg
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: N/A
Joined
Oct 23, 2023
Messages
41 (0.10/day)
Location
planet Earth
Processor Ryzen 7 7800X 3D
Motherboard Gigabyte B650 Gaming X AX
Cooling Deepcool AK620
Memory Corsair Vengeance 32GB 6000 CL30
Video Card(s) MSI GeForce RTX 3080 SUPRIM X 12G LHR
Storage Samsung 980 NVMe 1TB, Kingston KC3000 NVMe 2TB
Display(s) Dell Alienware AW2724DM, Dell S2522HG
Case Phanteks Eclipse P600s black
Power Supply EVGA supernova G6 850W
Mouse Razer DeathAdder V2
Keyboard Razer Ornata v3
Software Win 11 pro
Joined
Oct 19, 2024
Messages
44 (0.65/day)
that's why im going to mod my 14years old Corsair Carbide 300r to bring it up to spec to the year 2025

remove the drive cage to ensure extra airflow from the front, substitute the optical drives bay with a grill, a dust filter and a fan, add a mobo tray side panel to help hide the cables and to hang a couple of HDD vertically, I don't have a side intake, I have 2 140mm ones and they fit perfectly even a bulky fan and a tall gpu.
 
Joined
Oct 22, 2014
Messages
14,170 (3.81/day)
Location
Sunshine Coast
System Name H7 Flow 2024
Processor AMD 5800X3D
Motherboard Asus X570 Tough Gaming
Cooling Custom liquid
Memory 32 GB DDR4
Video Card(s) Intel ARC A750
Storage Crucial P5 Plus 2TB.
Display(s) AOC 24" Freesync 1m.s. 75Hz
Mouse Lenovo
Keyboard Eweadn Mechanical
Software W11 Pro 64 bit
There are only a handful and I have hard time finding something similar to NZXT H7 Flow (2024) but with side intake instead of front.
Get the H7 flow and an extra mesh side panel to replace the glass, I don't mind the glass on mine, but use the fans on the base for intake so the "flow" is bottom to top.

You guys who don't understand what side intake is or the manufacturers who list the intakes as side intake?
Side intake is a fad that needs to die, it has no inherent advantages and is mainly for appearance.
 
Top