Hi everyone, this is my first post here. I'm wanting to buy a MM UFO case (http://www.mountainmods.com/) and get into some serious water-cooling (PA120.3, etc). But I am undecided on which version of the case to get.
U2-UFO (original)
U2-UFO Opti-1203
U2-UFO Horizon
Each version seems to have its own advantages, subtle as they may be. I don't think you could go wrong with any of them, but it's still an agonizing decision for me.
The original (and Horizon too I guess) have a slight advantage with depth for 120.3 radiator mounting, so if you were dead set on using dual shrouds and push/pull 38mm fans, that would be the way to go. This is not important to me, as it seems a bit overkill, IMO.
The Opti clearly has the most 5.25 bays (10), but I could live with the 5 or 6 of the other versions. The Opti also uses a bottom mounting location for the 120.3 radiator, which is thermally ideal (according to what I've read). I like this because it puts all that mass at the base of the case, and further away from your ears.
What intrigues me about the Horizon is the horizontal mounting of the motherboard. Three things appeal to me about it (and these are just my opinions/feelings, not necessarily fact):
1 - There should be less stress on parts (video cards, etc) compared to vertical mounting, i.e. from gravity dragging down on heavy heatsinks/etc. Maybe the waterblock would sit flatter (by some miniscule amount) on the CPU since the forces are straight up/down.
2 - Better cooling. Heat rising off the motherboard goes straight up and doesn't get trapped as easily.
3 - Easy mobo access from above when the top case panel is removed. As well as a nice view through windows / clear panels.
Are points 1 and 2 true? Horizontal mounting just feels intuitively like a better design to me, but I know any advantage is pretty subtle. Does anyone here have a UFO Horizon yet? I know they are a very new model.
Since I am torn over this, I am thinking about contacting Mountain Mods and inquiring about a custom case... a fusion of the Horizon and Opti. It would have the horizontal motherboard layout of the Horizon, and the front panel configuration of an Opti, with bottom radiator mounting. I know the 5.25 bay cages would be very close to the motherboard tray, and there would only be clearance for optical drives (and other long devices) in certain positions, but I think it would work for me.
Any thoughts on this idea?
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