Thermaltake Armor LCS VE2000BWS

[Rob Williams]

Thermaltake has had great success with their Armor and Kandalf cases, and there was a natural step to take to bring them both to the next level... water cooling! For $100 more above the price of a standard Armor case, you can have one complete with a well designed WC setup.

You can read the full review here. If it suits your fancy, you can discuss it here!

 

[Greg King]

Sexy case.... nice review. Thermaltake is quickly becoming my go to company for new and improved cases. I still love Antec to death but it seems that Tt comes out with something new all the time. If you can count taking an exsisting case and throwing water in it new...... which I do.

 

[madmat]

I'm happy to see that the LCS isn't a joke like some of the other intergrated WC setups are. Not quite as hardy as an aftermarket setup but then again not nearly as expensive either.

 

[Greg King]

It really seems to be a viable solution for those that want to try water but either dont have the courage to tackle a fullly custom kit.. or lack the money to do so.

 

[madmat]

My thoughts exactly. I have heard horror stories about that waterblock and I was under the impression that the LCS came with the new solid copper version. I guess not.

 

[Unregistered]

While I have not used that case (or any thermaltake case/water block) I will say that in general Lucite tops and water is a bad idea (Lucite cracks way to often). That being said I like the idea behind this case and the Kandalf lcs (with a 3 by 120mm radiator) as the only other case which came from the factory set to install a 3x120 is the one I half (mountain mods u2ufo) which is a great case buts its gigantic (also way more expensive then this). I could see getting the kandalf lcs for a future build (though I would probably use my own pump/waterblocks/tubing and just use their radiator as I like the way they have it installed in the case.

 

[Greg King]

I have been working with Moutain Mods to get a UFO to review....they are nice looking cases and the mani reason I would like to work with them is for the cooling.

 

[Unregistered]

Thanks for the candid review! I'm building a new system for myself and would like to try liquid cooling for the first time so this case sounds ideal. Not only am I new to these cooling systems but I also don't have the money to have a go at a custom setup. Thanks again.

Sharrea

-- Help Microsoft stamp out piracy, give Linux to a friend todaya8SFM4

 

[Unregistered]

Armor LCS Radiator

Hi i have some questions regarding the supplied radiator, is it possible to upgrade the fittings to 1/2? If not, could you give me the dimensions of the supplied radiator/the size of the mounting area. I would like to replace it with an aftermarket radiator if the fittings cannot be changed, wasnt sure how sub-standard the supplied radiator is.

 

[Rory Buszka]

I still think that even as Thermaltake's case-building know-how has improved greatly over the past few years, they still haven't lost their taste for the gaudy, flashy stuff that I can't stand. And even as Thermaltake has developed better and better cases, Antec's products have become even more groundbreaking, and incorporate even more thoughtful touches in their design. My P150 case has a set of hooks that are used to coil up extra cables and keep them out of the way, and all the drives slide in on rails from the front of the case. There's even shock cord for those who want to mount their hard drives elastically, though the hard drive trays feature silicone grommets for vibration reduction. I do think Antec could have done without the Nine Hundred, though. The P180 also has a very smart design, though I didn't want another big tower case. My old SX1040B is extremely sturdy and offers plenty of airflow, though it doesn't travel well, and the small 80mm fans can't run as quietly as the 120mm fans common in today's cases.

 

[Greg King]

Ahhh.... the old SOHO 1040 case. I have 2 here at the house. They served me very well. The P180 is an incedable case but somewhat of a bitch to work in if you change hardware often. Also, watercooling in that case isn't for the noobish either. It's just so small. The things I love about Antec are the rubber spacers for the HDD's to not only reduce vibrations but also allow the HDD to "float" in the tray as opposed to being bolted to a metal housing. The drive rails I can take or leave, not that impressive to me TBH.

Thermaltake does make some quality cases but I agree with you 110% when you say that the still have an eye for the gaudy. A good example would be my Kandalf case that we reviewed a few months back. The front of the case is absolutly hideous so I removed the large curved doors and now have an armor for the most part.

Regardless, good points Tater.

 

[Unregistered]

Thermaltake Armour LCS Enquiry

Hi Guys,

I have bought Thermaltake Armour LCS case on Thursday 5th of July 2007. I was told from the seller that the box has been open for making sure there is no leak on the pipe. However, when the parcel arrived. Everything is in there except the screw for the HDD for the front radiator and it only come with one Transparent UV tube. Are there suppose to be three transparent UV tubes or only one? Base on thermaltake pictures, it shows that at least three tubes are used for the cooling system. Does it mean I have to cut the Transparent UV tube to 3 parts?

Many thanks,
Darren Chan (darren@darrenchan.org.uk)

 

[Merlin]

Last Two Builds with Armor

I love the case, so much room and air space.
The first Armor case was the black steel one, I knew then this was a great case. I don't move it that much at all so the weight doesn't matter.
The only thing was the useless swinging pair of flaps on the front, I took them off as well as the quick release slot covers. I tried them at first but it seemed they would not stay locked onto the card.
Even with the three fans it was quiet, the front intake 120mm draws ambiet in and the rear 120mm fan draws it out, also the fans cooling the drives above the rear 120mm fan does a great job drawing the heat from the drivebay and the PSU.
The last build was the Thermaltake Armor Aluminum case, same fans as the black steel case, but this Aluminum case has a huge 12cm fan on the side door, all still quiet.
Some may have seen the images from the last build using the Armor Aluminum case.
http://forums.techgage.com/showthread.php?t=1934

Plenty of room to instal, mod and route the wiring.
I have put off hiding the wiring untill I install the final video card ( still waiting ) Then I'll do all the wire routing complete.
Both cases are great for modding, either water cooling, air cooling or the Chiller Cooling.
If I do another build it will also be with the Armor series cases

Merlin