Antec’s Newest Flagship Gaming Case

It’s been a few years since I built my last computer rig.  At that time, my main concern was finding an economical case that could support multiple hard drives.  Simple.  I looked for the cheapest case I could get and was fairly happy with the results.  I was tempted to use that same approach for this new computer building project I was starting – let me go get the cheapest case and I’ll be happy. Unfortunately, hanging around the Legit Reviews Bunker gives you a glimpse of just how much I was missing with limiting my search. 

In the past month or so, Legit Reviews has reviewed a number of fantastic computer enclosures and cases.  We have seen the super cool, but uber-expensive Corsair Obsidian, the disco-light-driven Thermaltake Element G and the low-cost Azza Helios. Each case is unique and will not only function well with essentially any system you could stuff in them, but they are great to look at too.  Each of these cases represents their manufacturer well in sales and in design.

Companies today really have to bring their “A”-game when it comes to case design and manufacturing because each one of them, Thermaltake, Corsair, Cooler Master, etc. are looking to catch the market leader and bestseller, Antec.  When Antec introduced the Nine Hundred gaming case in 2007, it quickly became one of the most popular cases on the market.  Gamers, enthusiasts, and novices purchased the case for its build quality and ease of use.

Antec has now decided to upgrade their most popular case with the new Nine Hundred Two.  This is supposed to be the next-generation gaming enclosure.  The Nine Hundred Two is a “mid-tower” case standing just over 19” in height that features a vented front panel, space for up to six case fans, and an aggressive, modern look.  The Nine Hundred Two has a huge side window with vent, as well as room for 6 internal drives and 3 external 5.25” drives.  The case is designed with the power supply mounted on the bottom of the case freeing up room at the top for those considering running water cooling.

Priced at $139.95, the Nine Hundred Two improves its design over the original Nine Hundred by adding a top 200mm Big Boy TriCool fan with blue LED, fan control knobs plus built-in washable air filters right in the front panel, and adds eight expansion slots for even greater versatility than the original. The designers knew they had to bring their “A-Game” to continue the great tradition of Antec gaming cases and on paper it looks like they did. 

Let’s take a closer look at what Antec calls their “Ultimate Gaming Case.”

Features:

• 9 drive bays
  – External 3 x 5.25″; Internal 6 x 3.5″ for HDD, or
  – External 6 x 5.25″; Internal 3 x 3.5″ for HDD, or
  – External 9 x 5.25″
• Advanced cooling system:
  – 1 rear 120 x 25mm TriCool™ blue LED exhaust fan
  – 1 top 200 x 30mm “Big Boy” TriCool™ blue LED exhaust fan
  – 2 front 120 x 25mm special black blue LED intake fans with front speed control
  – 1 side (Optional) 120 x 25mm fan mount
  – 1 middle (Optional) 120mm fan mount
• Built-in washable air filters
• 8 expansion slots to support multiple graphics cards, including NVIDIA 3-way SLI®
• Front mounted I/O ports
  – 2 x USB 2.0
  – 1 x eSATA
  – Audio In and Out (AC’97 and HDA compatible)
• Maximum video card size: 13.5″/343mm (Note: some video cards may require removal of the adjacent hard drive cage)
• Compatible Motherboards: Mini-ITX, microATX, Standard ATX
• No power supply included
• Unit Dimensions:
  – 19.4″ (H) x 8.6″ (W) x 18.6″ (D)
  – 49.3cm (H) x 21.8cm (W) x 47.2cm (D)
• Weight:
  – Net: 25.4 lbs / 11.5 kg
  – Gross: 28.9 lbs / 13.1 kg