Best Mini ATX Case for Gaming?

[MikeSlinty]

Hi,

I am a pro gamer but a total noob when it comes to my PC configuration. I wanted to ask about the best options as of current 2019 for a mini ATX/ITX case.

I want to make a custom gaming rig for a budget of around $1500. It should occupy less space and and look kinda sober (yes, I hate those fancy Christmas lights in my CPU). So no fancy radiator fans and stuff.

I checked this post online for a good ATX -> https://www.thetechswag.com/smallest-atx-case/

Though it is a simple review website which I am certainly finding hard to trust, could anyone suggest me the best option in the $100-$150 range for buying an ATX.

 

[Bond007]

A few questions to make sure we suggest something appropriate. Just to be clear, you are after mATX or ITX case, and not an ATX case (your first and last paragraphs say you are after the opposite)? Do you care if it is a tower/a cube? Do you want windows? Do you prioritize the smallest size (tiny ITX cases are available, but they require very specific part selection and quite a bit more work to assemble, where as a bit bigger (but still small compared to ATX) allow much more ease of assembly and part selection? A lot of new cases have removed the disc drive, do you need one, or are you happy without, or with an external if required?

A lot of questions, but it makes for better suggestions.

 

[Luay79]

If you're looking for a compact ATX mid-tower like the Corsair 460X without the glass and RGB, Corsair's newest 275Q is an updated version of that same design that focuses on sound dampening and subtle aethstetics. I would probably choose it over the define C, Metallic Gear Neo and H500.

 

[Marzipan]

the 400Q or 600Q from Corsair, if you can find them, are excellent cases too.

 

[syncro2017]

I have Thermaltake Versa H18 Tempered Glass and i love it considering you can get it for less than $60 brand new at amazon

 

[FreeKnight]

There really isn't such a thing as a case for 'gaming'. They might be labelled as such, but it's entirely up to your hardware to determine if it's any good. All the case really does is determine what hardware you can fit into it and cooling performance.

We'd really need to know what hardware you're actually going to put into it and then can put together better suggestions. If the only storage you have is an M2 drive on the motherboard, you don't have to worry about drive cages and that affects your options. Similarly, do you need a disc drive or a 5.25" bay? Do you want to watercool or use an AIO cooler, or just stick with a tower air cooler? What GPU are you putting in there? The shift to cards taking up 2.75" to 3 slots will drastically change your options if you are looking at mITX versus mATX.

Figure out what you want and what you need, then we can really help narrow down your options. Like Bond007 mentioned knowing if it's mITX or mATX makes a huge difference. There's just such a wide market in cases right now that there's no such thing as a 'best' case without knowing what's going in it and your priorities (silence, absolute over clocking performance, size limits, etc)