Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Most 'Mac-like' PC case

rogersmj

rogersmj

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Sep 10, 2006
2,169
36
Indianapolis, IN
I'm curious what you all would consider the most Mac-like PC case. Please note I'm not looking for something that looks identical to the Mac Pro...I'm more looking for opinions on what PC case most closely adheres to the Apple/Mac aesthetic -- clean lines, basic shapes, solid construction, and no superfluous bits or pieces or lights or wings sticking out of it. Obviously, nothing is going to measure up completely, I'm just looking for the best 'case' scenario (haha...sorry).

In other words, something that would look good alongside real Mac equipment.

Additional huge bonus if it's a quiet case ;)
 
You could always take the road that would involve getting your hands a little dirty and modify an existing Mac case in order to fit the various parts you wish to stick inside of it.

I've seen several people who have modified G5 Towers to fit their needs in terms of creating a Hackintosh. This, however, will require some cutting and fitting, maybe a touch of MacGyver before you'll be done.
 
04.jpg


I have a Lian-Li V600. It has the same brushed aluminum finish as a mac pro but is really small. It was expensive, like $130. There is also a full sized case like that called the V1000.

If I were to get another case I would definitely get a G5 case on ebay and a lian-li motherboard tray and just build my own since it would end up being cheaper and look a little better. Its actually pretty easy to mod a G5 case as long as you pick up the motherboard tray, all you need is a dremel to cut out a hole and some super strong metal epoxy to glue the tray to the G5.

Ive seen mint G5 cases for like $50 on ebay, then the motherboard tray is something like $30, metal epoxy is like $5.
 
That Lian-li looks pretty nice. The interior arrangement is kind of odd though. I'm not sure I like the power supply sitting directly over the CPU. But it looks nice.

I keep hearing great things about the Antec Sonata III. It's pricey, but it's very well built and very quiet, and looks pretty sleek for the most part. Not aluminum, but still clean looking. That's on the short list with the Lian-Li I think.

Any other suggestions?
 
I had an Antec Sonata III PC case and it had incredible build quality and was really sturdy and HEAVY. I liked it a lot.
 
mrogers said:
That Lian-li looks pretty nice. The interior arrangement is kind of add though. I'm not sure I like the power supply sitting directly over the CPU. But it looks nice.

I keep hearing great things about the Antec Sonata III. It's pricey, but it's very well built and very quiet, and looks pretty sleek for the most part. Not aluminum, but still clean looking. That's on the short list with the Lian-Li I think.

Any other suggestions?
Click to expand...

Like I said the case is really small, so theres not a lot of room. The power supply prevents me from ever buying a third party heatsink, since those are always very tall and dont have enough room for the PSU. I wish they would have made it a little taller to fit the PSU on the bottom. Otherwise its not a big deal, Im able to overclock a e4300 Core 2 Duo to 2.7ghz and keep the temps at 39c on stock cooling, so the airflow is still decent.

The V1000 is full sized though. It has one of the nicest interiors youll find in a PC case. http://lib.store.yahoo.net/lib/xoxide/pc-v1000-plus-s-2.jpg

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112066
 
velocityg4 said:
Here are three really nice one from Antec.

Silver P180
Gun Metal P182
Silver Mirror P182SE

Though it is not very Mac like this is one I really like
Raidmax Smilodon
Click to expand...

Having helped build 3 computers in Antec P180s, I can vouch for them being excellent cases. It's got 3 120 mm fans, the drive mounting system is simple yet effective, and it has rubber grommets to dampen drive vibration. Plenty of space, and build quality is just about the highest I've ever used. These things run cool, and they run quiet. Highly recommended.

My biggest dislike is that it has a door on the front that you have top open to get at the drives and power/reset buttons, but I don't use my drives frequently enough to mind. The front ports are all accessible without opening it. It's also quite heavy, but with rolled steel construction, that's to be expected.
 
mrogers said:
That Lian-li looks pretty nice. The interior arrangement is kind of add though. I'm not sure I like the power supply sitting directly over the CPU. But it looks nice.

I keep hearing great things about the Antec Sonata III. It's pricey, but it's very well built and very quiet, and looks pretty sleek for the most part. Not aluminum, but still clean looking. That's on the short list with the Lian-Li I think.

Any other suggestions?
Click to expand...

There is ONLY ONE case,Lian-li,period.That's after 50 + case builds, all my computers are in Lian Li Cases
 
One time I saw an extremely crappy looking case that looked exactly like a Mac Pro, only smaller and totally plastic and it just looked like garbage. Had the handles and everything.

As a Mac Pro owner, I chuckled...
 
soms said:
Any case made by Lian-Li will work great. I used to know of one that looked like a Ps3/Ps2, it was AWESOME. I'll try and find it.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112121

Its spendy, but I've heard its great. Plus they make REALLY quiet cases.
Click to expand...

This looks good/great for a server build.

Some years back before the Cooler Master and Silverstone off shoot brand there was a case that looked like the Mac Pro with a full cheese grater front. I can't remember the name but remember distinctively that you could mount it horizontally in a server rack. I would even go so far as to say it looks better than the G5/Mac Pro.
 
Baack from the dead.... this thread.

Since Hackintoshing is in full swing lately, I'd like to get some new opinions on this case idea.

I still like the Lian Li cases, if not the most mac-like, at least the most un-PC.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112154

Just a clean black box, no neon green or blue LEDs, or silver swooshes or any of that tacky PC garbage.

There is one that is pretty much beyond the scope of the Hackintosh as far as price is concerned, but it's beautiful.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112311

The vertical lines on the front door that hides all the bays and controls... very tasteful style, if not Mac-Like.

Any others?
 
If you want similiar build quality go with SilverStone or Lian Li

Silverstone FT02
ShowImage.aspx

Revolutionary cooling system, the motherboard is mounted up so the PCI-E express cards are facing up, three fans on the bottom, supposed to cool a lot better. And from what I have seen it is true. Takes full ATX, mATX.

Silverstone FT03
silverstone_ft03s.jpg

Same cooling design as the FT02, but this is only for mATX motherboards.

You will not get something similiar to Apple design and quality without paying a big fee. The FT02 costs around $200 and the FT03 costs around $150. Lian Li cases cost around the same price.

You should just mod a G5 case. Tons of tutorials online, and it is not that difficult. Good luck!
 
Well the original post was not to copy the Mac case, so modding is not really the point here. It was more of "other" cases that are well designed.

I think Lian Li really has a good design team. I'd like to see other companies that are similar to them.

I like the idea of the door that covers all the little ports and bays. You don't really use those too often, so a nice, sleek, stylish door looks great to me.

"One door to cover them all" :D
 
Pigumon said:
Well the original post was not to copy the Mac case, so modding is not really the point here.
Click to expand...

Keep in mind that this dead thread was revived from 3 1/2 years ago... I think at this point it is perfectly acceptable for whoever wants to post about whatever...
 
revelated said:
Why not just buy a used older Mac Pro or something, gut it and put what you want in there?

Note, I have never done it, but it seems to be the most time-effective option.

Example:

http://www.powermax.com/parts/show/c-u73611

Gut that bad boy and put your own stuff in it.
Click to expand...

This takes an extraordinary amount of time and effort to accomplish. It took me 16 to 20 hours to convert a G5 case into something that accepts ATX parts. What with all the cutting and fabrication of mounts. This was with taking a short cut and using a removable ATX tray and putting it into the G5 case.

A Mac Pro case would probably be easier. It could probably only take a m-ATX board though. I would still think it would be a fair amount of labor to utilize the drive bays, mount an ATX PSU, use the front panel, fit an m-ATX board and getting fans running for the front to rear air flow.
 
I went with the Cooler Master Elite 335 case when building my hackintosh.

http://www.coolermaster-usa.com/product.php?category_id=19&product_id=2817

I wasn't as concerned with a Mac-like esthetic as I was a Mac Pro-like flow-through cooling. Apple's cooling scheme allows for slow-moving, quiet fans. I like that.

I have a single, semi-large fan on the back of the case pulling air out and an identical fan on the front of the case pulling air in. Both fans are running off the 5V line so they're slow-moving and silent, yet the internals stay very cool.

This case is also very well built. I have thumbscrews on it so it's easy to open (which, ironically, I rarely do). The perforated aluminum on the front of the case has a thin layer of foam behind it, helping to keep dust out.

The hard drive/CD-ROM bays have quick disconnects. This works well, but if you have a massive video card, you might have difficulty getting drives in and out.

The best part? This case is relatively inexpensive. A quick Google search shows $43-50 price without power supply. I think I got the case for even less than that.
 
aarond12 said:
I went with the Cooler Master Elite 335 case when building my hackintosh.

http://www.coolermaster-usa.com/product.php?category_id=19&product_id=2817

I wasn't as concerned with a Mac-like esthetic as I was a Mac Pro-like flow-through cooling. Apple's cooling scheme allows for slow-moving, quiet fans. I like that.

I have a single, semi-large fan on the back of the case pulling air out and an identical fan on the front of the case pulling air in. Both fans are running off the 5V line so they're slow-moving and silent, yet the internals stay very cool.

This case is also very well built. I have thumbscrews on it so it's easy to open (which, ironically, I rarely do). The perforated aluminum on the front of the case has a thin layer of foam behind it, helping to keep dust out.

The hard drive/CD-ROM bays have quick disconnects. This works well, but if you have a massive video card, you might have difficulty getting drives in and out.

The best part? This case is relatively inexpensive. A quick Google search shows $43-50 price without power supply. I think I got the case for even less than that.
Click to expand...

Why is this on a MAC forum????
 
RUGERMAN said:
Why is this on a MAC forum????
Click to expand...

Cause some people do use windows or make a hackintosh. we do not all use just a mac.
And other people like the design for this instance of the mac pro and want to have it but don't want to pay the price.

That's why it's on macrumors forum
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back