Early last year, Antec launched their gaming line of cases with the Antec Nine Hundred - instantly garnering praise throughout the PC enthusiast crowd.  Its main claim to fame was the complete openess of the front bezel, using perforated bays and 120mm fans to keep airflow rushing inside.  Also notable was the expansive interior, bottom-mounted power-supply unit, and oversized "Big Boy" 200mm fan placed at the top that allowed some massive cooling over the CPU socket area.  We were able to take a look at the Nine Hundred ourselves and were pretty impressed overall, although we noted there were a few things that could have used some improving.

Well, Antec is back at it again with a dual offering for this year.  The Antec Twelve Hundred is a beast, featuring twelve bays and 6 large fans with two more mounts for installing additional units.  Price, however, can be an obstacle as the Twelve Hundred sells north of $200 US.  As a counterpoint, Antec has now released the Three Hundred Gaming Case.  As its name might suggest, the Three Hundred is a pared down version of their Nine Hundred gaming case, that sells for less.  It features six bays like the Nine Hundred, and includes some of the newer ideas used on the Twelve Hundred, but ships with fewer fans and accessories.  Up for today's evaluation is the budget-priced Antec Three Hundred.

SPECIFICATIONS: Model: Antec Three Hundred Case Dimensions: 18"(H) x 18.3"(D) x 8.1"(W) Drive Bays: 9 total Front accessible: 3x 5.25" Internal: 6x 3.5" for HDD Cooling System: - 1 rear 120mm TriCool Fan with 3-speed switch control - 1 top special 140mm TriCool Fan with 3-speed switch control - 2 front (optional) 120mm Fans - 1 side (optional) 120mm Fan to cool graphics cards Motherboard Class: Standard ATX Main Board Size: 12"(W) x 9.6"(L) Expansion slots: 7 slots Weight (net/gross): 15.9/18.7 lbs Top I/O: 2 USB 2.0 ports, Mic-In & Headphone out jacks, Power and Reset buttons Special Features: Washable air filters reduce dust build up in system, Perforated front bezel for maximum air intake NOTE: No power supply included

The Three Hundred ships in a box nearly identical to the Nine Hundred except for the graphics and text, but that's where the similarities end.  With the goal of keeping expenses to a minimum, Antec has only provided the end user with a manual, and two sets of screws: one set of larger thumbscrews for installing hard drives and another smaller group used for the motherboard and optical drives.  Missing is the 3.5" to 5.25" conversion kit, which allows a smaller drive (read: floppy drive or card reader) to be installed into one of the external bays.  Antec does offer this item for an additional $10 on their website, but you will need to look under the Nine Hundred accessory list to find it. 

The final piece, which isn't separate as we have shown it but comes pre-installed instead, is a mesh filter that resides within the front bezel.  If you recall, one of our nitpicks regarding the Nine Hundred was its propensity for gathering in dust through the front fans and settling within the chassis.  The Nine and Twelve Hundred models come with these built-in filters to reduce just such build-up.  The irony, then, is that there are no fans that come with the Three Hundred to make the same fuss over.  We assume most users will take it upon themselves to add at least one additional fan here, however, so no harm, no foul.

Exterior of the Antec Three Hundred Great looks at a great price

 
Antec Three Hundred

The Antec Three Hundred has a similar overall construction to the Nine Hundred, yet it's missing some of what made the former model so special.  The angular construction, open side window, LED-lit fans - even the Big Boy 200 is missing from the budget-minded Three Hundred.  It stands 18" tall or about the same as the Nine Hundred minus the plastic modeling on top and weighs in at a mere 15.9 lbs.  Instead the Three Hundred offers up a much more standard look, featuring squared off edges, and it comes with only a single 120mm fan mounted along the rear, and a 140mm fan placed topside.  There are mounts for two front fans and a side fan as well, all sized to fit Antec's 120mm TriCool fans (naturally).

The front bezel is almost entirely perforated, allowing for ample air exchange between the interior and exterior of the Three Hundred.  A welcome addition is the washable air filter that is built-in.  We clamored long about the dust build-up of the Nine Hundred which came sans filters and we're glad to see that Antec took this to heart when designing the Three Hundred.

Large thumbscrews are used to keep chassis doors shut and also for installing hard drives.  As such, it's quite simple to get inside the Three Hundred made even more so by the raised handles on either door.  Rubber feet keep the case perfectly balanced and free from sliding around one's desk.  The outward appearance is minimalistic: all-black painted aluminum body with a plastic front bezel featuring two USB ports, audio and headphone jacks, and unobtrusive power and reset buttons.  The reset button's construction isn't perfect - a smallish button surrounded by plastic that is sometimes a bit hard to push in properly.  As shown in the photo, one of our USB ports was also a bit mangled, but this is most likely an isolated incident.

Taking a peek inside the Antec Three Hundred A Well-rounded Chassis

As it was with Nine Hundred, the power supply unit in the Three Hundred is located at the bottom of the chassis, which could cause some consternation with drive placement and cabling.  PSUs with bottom mounted fans must be installed in an inverted position, and the Three Hundred is constructed to accept either orientation.  We did have an issue with installing an older Vantec Stealth PSU, as the power switch didn't fit in neatly within the provided opening, but most other models should have no problems here.  One must also check that their own PSU also has long enough cables to reach the top of the chassis, where the furthest most drive may be installed.

Both fans that come standard derive their power from 4-pin Molex connectors, rather than the 3-pin kind that plug directly into the motherboard, and have speed controls that hang nearby.  The 120mm rear fan has speed/noise settings as follows: "High" runs at 2000 rpm, producing an airflow of 79 CFM at 30 dBA, "Medium" at 1600rpm with 56 CFM at 28dBA, and "Low" running at 1200 rpm and 39 CFM at 25 dBA.  The 140mm fan mounted on top has slower speeds, but pushes more air and has quieter operation.  Its High operation runs at 1500 rpm, 94.6 CFM, and 31.8 dBA, Medium at 1100 rpm, 66.8 CFM at 21.4 dBA, and Low at a mere 700 rpm, 47 CFM, and 19.8 dBA.

There are nine bays in all, three for external 5.25" drives, and six more for internally installed 3.5" drives.  Whereas the Nine Hundred came with at least one 3.5" to 5.25" drive bay adapter, the Three Hundred doesn't come with one, so those looking to install a floppy drive or other smaller device must contact Antec for one for an extra $10.  The drive cages are standard, screw-in types and we we're a little bit letdown by not finding any improvement in this area. We would have preferred to see some sort of toolless installation option; either rail driven or some either means.  Even better would have been the inclusion of sound-dampening measures to limit the chattering of the hard drives.  Second to the noise output of the numerous fans in today's chassis is the noise caused by the ever present movement of the hard drive, especially so when running Vista.

Cables dangle from the front panel into the main area, consisting of audio and USB headers, as well as the power, reset, and IDE usage LEDs.  The backplane has tie-down points, good for anchoring cables and arranging them out of the way of needed airflow.  A large opening towards the front also allows cables to run underneath the tray, further reducing cable clutter and bettering aesthetics, although without a windowed opening, no one will likely see the interior.

After working with the Nine Hundred last year, we expected that things would go rather smoothly as the construction of the Three Hundred is somewhat similar.  The oversized thumbscrews and pull tab handles allow quick access to the interior and every edge has been either rounded or folded inward making it safe for DIY builder's - no cut hands or forearms here.  Getting our Vantec Stealth PSU installed was a bit tricky, however, as it didn't settle in easily within the brackets.  Even after getting the placement correct, we found that the power plug didn't match up nicely with the cutout.  It was liveable for the time-being, and we did not encounter the same issue with two other units from Antec: a Neo 480 and a Trio 650.

System Installation Notes Putting the pieces together

Unlike the hassle we ran into last year, there are no removable drive cages with hard-to-reach screw holes on the Three Hundred.  To install our drives, we had to remove the front bezel by releasing three clips along the front corner and swinging the bezel to the right.  Optical drive installing is easy enough as they slide directly in and get screwed directly to the cage on either side.  Hard drives, of which the Three Hundred seats up to six, require that an outer cage be unlatched first before installing the drives.  This outer cage is, of course, where the optional 120mm fans are installed.

The long front panel audio and USB cables should provide enough length to reach the far side of most motherboards where these pins are typically found.  We were able to get ours installed with just enough extra slack to run them alongside the edge of the board and out of the way of the drives and other components.  Ditto with the power cables from the PSU.  We were able to run cables around or under the back of the board to keep cable clutter to a minimum.  The space above the board remains almost entirely open, and with the ample exchange of airflow should allow for proper cooling of all components.

The Final Build

Antec's Three Hundred isn't on the same level as the Nine Hundred, but it fits the bill as a budget gaming case quite well.  Sure, it's boxy and doesn't truly stand out aesthetically, but it has what really counts - ample fan mounts, an open-air design, and large, speed-adjustable fans to keep airflow moving about the PC.   It's also a good thing to see a company consider the feedback from reviewers and rethink their process.  Many complaints were made regarding the dust buildup within the Nine Hundred, and now we've got filters on both of their new models.  There was also some frustration noted with the installation of hard drives and that has been alleviated as well. 

That's not to say that we don't have a few gripes about the Three Hundred.  We'd like to see some kind of improvement with the hard drive bays, whether that be in the way of a toolless installation method, or perhaps rubber grommets to reduce noise chatter, especially with the thought of having up to six drives running in a single machine.  We also still harbor some concerns about the openness of the upper mounted fan, as the openings in the fan grate are large enough to allow small objects to fall through and contact components directly beneath.  Even with the minor faults, and the lack of additional components necessary to keep prices low (about $60-70), we still recommend the Three Hundred for those looking for an affordable, no-nonsense alternative to some of higher-priced PC cases out there.