Antec 1200 PC case

Almost exactly three hundred more... something than the Antec nine hundred PC case... Uncanny!

Gaming cases are a finicky thing – you’ve got to have the right balance of functionality, airflow and raw dripping tech appeal to get it right. Well, Antec has evolved its Nine Hundred case into something with just that little bit more – the Twelve Hundred.

Named after its increase in 5.25in bays to twelve (over, you guessed it, nine), the case is very large, and has surprising heft – you’ll need to be careful with this case once you’ve installed a system into it. The front facia is made of perforated mesh, complete with dust filters, giving the three 12cm fans plenty of room to suck the most air through the chassis. These are lit blue, and let off an appreciably cool glow when on, one that’ll look pretty good in a dark room – just don’t expect to sleep near it!

The side panel has a large Pacman-shaped window in it, secured by rivets. There’s also a meshed area, where you can add another 12cm fan – this really isn’t needed for most people (then again, you’re not most people, are you?). Just make sure your cabling job is neat; this window will display all your it’ll-do cabling and other messed up areas – and put you to shame.

Up on top of the case is power and reset buttons, two USB, audio and an eSATA port. Unlike the recessed plastic tray of its predecessor, this case has a sloped ramp with a rubberised mat that should stop anything you put there from sliding around; anything you put there, well, stays there. There’s an interesting gridwork pattern up here too, but it doesn’t really help anything practically. Handling the job of expelling airflow is a massive 200mm fan, joined by a further two 12cm fans at the rear of the case. All of the fans in the case are speed-controllable (via switches on the back for the rear/top, and dials on the front), and the LEDs can be switched off altogether in the 200mm fan. Also present are two large watercooling holes, pre-grommeted to protect the fragile tubing, and the PSU is mounted at the bottom of the case.

Moving inside, every surface in there is powder-coated in matte black, which looks very, very good. There’s also a lot of room behind the mobo tray for running power supply cables up the back, which is essential for keeping it neat and tidy in there. The three cages that give HDD access and fans can be relocated as you see fit. Out of these, the top cage can have an additional 12cm fan added, giving even more airflow to this already airflow-laden case.

Mounting for the power supply is at the bottom of the case, where it rests on four little rubber pads to minimise vibrations, as well as allowing some airflow in and around the PSU. Some of the more common standoffs are preinstalled by default, but it’s very easy to add more to suit your setup.

Every part of this case is expertly finished, and the paint job is consistent the whole way through. The only pitfall is that the LEDs do get rather bright – this may well get annoying in a very short period of time.

For gamers with a lot of tech, this really is the perfect case – for everyone else, it’s a strong contender for your hard-earned, if you like the looks.