First Look At Wild New "Level 10" Concept PC Case

notthatwillsmith writes "Maximum PC just posted an exclusive hands on with Thermaltake's unique Level 10 case. This concept design features individual compartments for different components (each with dedicated cooling) all mounted on a black steel frame. The case looks like a prop from 2001, rendered in black steel instead of white plastic. It's absolutely unlike anything I've ever seen before."

Comments

Re:very pretty

[0racle]

Cases like this are aimed at the hobbyist, not at corporate desks or people only interested in a tool.

Personally, I kinda like it.

Can't wait to dust it.

[Anonymous Coward]

All those nooks and crannies, I'd say it looks like the moore's law version of an english muffin. Hope your apartment is actually a fab's clean room.

Ok.

[Anonymous Coward]

Cool? Yes. $700 cool? No.

Re:Ok.

[theIsovist]

I find it interesting that they intend to sell it to architects. The case design is clutered and littered with ornamental additions. the reveals on the flat side take away from the clean plane they attempted to create. Modern architecture and design is about simple, elegant beauty. This case is overly elaborate and the added details do nothing to enhance the function. For the record, IAA.

Pretty but still not perfect

[Anonymous Coward]

If you look at the drive bay covers they are not perfectly aligned. For $700, you would expect Jobsian OCD attention to detail, regardless in shortcomings to the other design elements.

Re:very pretty

[sadness203]

47 pounds case ? It's for no hobbyist, it's for body builder. No normal geek could even think of moving this behemoth.
And I find it rather ugly.

The bottom line: $700

[steveha]

That's all I really need to know. It looks interesting, it might be cool, but I'll never buy one.

steveha

Terrible

[ShooterNeo]

Why this case is a bad idea :

1. $700. That would buy a whole generation of core component upgrades (CPU/video card/RAM)
2. It uses small, noisy fans rather than larger, quiet ones like this case : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811103011
3. Having a sweet looking computer case isn't going to impress anyone any more than having a sweet comic book collection. Save the money for spending things on stuff that actually (theoretically) have a chance of getting you laid, like better clothes or a nicer car.
4. You could buy a vapor chill cooler instead and overclock like mad. This case won't give you any more performance than a standard case.

In short, $700? No Wi Fi? Less space than a server case? Lame.

Re:Terrible

[Stevecrox]

Why does everyone assume fancy cars or superbikes will get you laid. When I bought my £4k superbike every person (men and women) all thought the said the same thing. The problem is if you pull up outside a crowded pub in a top class Mercedes/ Audi A4 controvertible or a superbike all that happens is 10 guys come up to have a look at it and tell you how awesome it is. Then they tell you how they'd love to own one and ask you how it drives/rides.

It's like the myth that owning a motorcyle makes you cool to the opposite sex. Honestly in 7 years of riding I've met three random girls who liked the idea. Every other woman I've met when it comes up in conversation has used this exact phrase "Thats so cool, but I could never ride a bike its too scary." I ride a bike because its a joy, not because it makes me "cool". As for the Mecredes and the Audi pure luck from work rentals off of Hertz.

My point? Buy what makes you happy, if its a superbike or a massive comic collection. Just because you have a particular possession you won't magically become more attractive to the opposite sex. For me this case seems like a massive waste of money, but then I think iPhones are massive wastes of money.

Re:Terrible

[schon]

It's like the myth that owning a motorcyle makes you cool to the opposite sex.

How is it a myth again? The rest of that paragraph even shows it:

in 7 years of riding I've met three random girls who liked the idea. Every other woman I've met when it comes up in conversation has used this exact phrase "Thats so cool, but I could never ride a bike its too scary."

See? By your own words, every woman you've met thinks it's cool. (We assume that the three random ones that like it think it's cool.)

Incidentally, the ones who say "it's too scary" are waiting for you to convince them it's perfectly safe, so that you'll take them for a ride. :)

I ride a bike because its a joy, not because it makes me "cool".

Agreed. There is *nothing* like the freedom of a motorcycle.. the women are just a bonus.. (although not so much since I got married, but it's still a stroke of the ego when you're in your late 30's, get off the bike and a hot 19 year-old comes over to talk to you about it :)

Re:Terrible

[Chris Mattern]

Wiring up a house to have the same effect is expensive

Cable runs with good-looking and unobtrusive molding do not cost that much and are easy to run along where the ceiling meets the wall. Unless you're actually running a data center, you only need to run a single Cat 5 to each point needing connectivity; that's what switches are for (and you can get a good switch dirt cheap).

and then you are still tethered.

Because once you have WiFi, the power cord doesn't tether you at all! Note that I'm not arguing against WiFi for actually mobile devices--I have WiFi in my own apartment. I'm using it to type this post on this laptop right now, and I also use it for my handheld game consoles. But if you're already tethered, you might as well go with the speed, security and reliability of having a wire.

Re:Terrible

[Nethead]

Just because you have a particular possession you won't magically become more attractive to the opposite sex.

A paid for house will.

no Firewire ports

[arizonagroovejet]

For $700 I'd expect at least one FW800 port on the front.

Dumb.

[rAiNsT0rm]

I've been a system builder since the 486DX2 66MHz days and of all the case designs I've seen come, go, and be claimed to be the next coming, the only one to ever be a perfect blend of form and function is the Mac Pro cases by Apple. I'm not even a fanboy, and most of those cases probably were never even cracked, but there is no denying them. This thing is just dumb.

Cables length?

[tlhIngan]

One of the strengths and unfortunate weaknesses of PCs is that components are interchangable. This is a plus, since it means anyone can replace a part, but the downside is, the replacement parts may not fit the "concept" quite wel.

In this case, it appears that while there's the central stand for wire routing, I'm not sure if it comes with the requisite power supply and cables trimmed to the right length. Too much cable is OK, you can hide the slack in the tower, but more often than not, cables are just a wee bit too short.

A design like the old G4 towers where one side flips down with the motherboard exposed and all the cables running along the edge is what I envision a good case to be, but even in OEM PC designs from Dell and the like, they incorporate such "flip open" design. Unfortunately, it fails as some cable is too short, meaning it flips open a little bit, you disconnect it, open it more, disconnect the next too-short cable, etc. A real mess that spoils the nice servicability.

My one concern is that - what happens if the power supply you bought doesn't have cables that reach? You have to invest in extensions? Or is that vertical stand contain a backplane, and all you do is plug the power/sata/IDE/etc cables into it, where they will go to the right component?

Re:very pretty

[PitaBred]

Just saying "any normal geek" already excludes Mac users. It has nothing to do with when Apple stopped using CRTs.

/me dons asbestos undies

Re:It's a luggable.

[Rakishi]

It weights 50lbs, you're not going to move it around your house at will unless you shove some wheels on it. Then you have to drag your monitor, find a flat place for the keyboard, plug all the 20 cables back in and so on. There's a handle I'm guessing so you can move it around at all without spending the next week with ice on your back.

Re:not very interesting

[Nadaka]

Exactly. Its not expensive, is very stylish and easily modifiable. Unlike the huge clunky piece of steel the original article is about (some could justifiable argue that the Level 10 is stylish, but that is in the eye of the beholder).

One thing that I plan on doing is modding the top panel to hinge open instead of screw down, in that space above the drive bays I will have space for a multimedia remote, wireless mouse and possibly a wireless keyboard if I can find one small enough for a reasonable price.

Re:Remember, folks

[amicusNYCL]

If a Mac user spends the money on something jaw-droppingly cool, they're an elitist snob who pays more for white plastic with a logo on it.

Actually no, they're still just a hobbyist who's into cool computer hardware because nothing that could be described as "jaw-droppingly cool" comes in white plastic with an Apple logo on it.

Re:very pretty

[node 3]

Just saying "any normal geek" already excludes Mac users. It has nothing to do with when Apple stopped using CRTs.

Only for extreme definitions of "geek" (which is excluded by the term "normal geek").

Macs are very geek-friendly. Unix + a commercially-supported desktop system? Even Linus Torvals uses/used a Mac. He ran Linux on it (obviously), but still...

Now, had the term been "gamers" or "oss geeks" or something, you'd have a point.

/me dons asbestos undies

Or, paraphrased: I'm going to pre-label anyone who disagrees with me as a troll or fanatical fanboy.

Re:very pretty

[Vexorian]

First, who moves their desktop computer?

geeks?

Re:very pretty

[Anonymous Coward]

As a hobbiest, I like having my components inside a rather simple monolithic block, rather than in separate sub-enclosures that achieve the same purpose. It's not because of style or anything, but if you've seen how dusty it gets in here on occasion... The less horizontal surface area, and less overall external surfaces, the easier it is to keep the damn thing clean. (And any dust that makes its way inside, about 90% stays near the vents or on the fan. So quarterly cleaning maintenance is effective enough.) Also it's quite a bit lighter, on the rare occasion I may need to move it.

So plain ol' generic black case wins for me, but only for reasons of pragmatism and lazyness.

Re:very pretty

[quanticle]

First, who moves their desktop computer?

Geeks going to LAN parties, of course. What's the point of buying a case like this, if you can't take it around and show to all your (now green with envy) friends?

So which is it?

[Clockwork Apple]

Either "The case looks like a prop from 2001" or "It's absolutely unlike anything I've ever seen before."

Make up your mind.

C.