I do agree with your conclusion. In my personal opinion the advantages of a carefully chosen modern case vastly outweigh the disadvantages (mainly being period-incorrectness).

For my recent builds I used one of the last "new" atx desktop cases in white/beige for the oldest system (Pentium Pro), and two Fractal Design Define R5 cases in white (window-less of course) for the newer systems (P II & P III-S). What I consider as one of the main advantages of modern cases is ventilation. The desktop case I have is really "old school" in its design/structural conception, allowing only a single front fan (80mm) with totally obstructed front intake, and two rear fans (60mm each). The Fractal Design cases however allow for almost noiseless ventilation with many mounting places for 140mm fans, and the performance of that is more than enough for anything retro around there I'd assume. Then add dust filters to the list, decent cable routing, (almost) tool-less assembly, being easily available, and, in case of the Fractal's, unobtrusive design.

My conclusion is, when you don't have any chance to get a real period-correct case in a decent state, why wait with your build? Get a nice new case you like (who cares what someone else thinks about this?), assemble, install, configure and have fun 😀 I mean, that's what the hobby is about, ain't it? And when the day comes on which you find the one old case you were looking for, well, get it too and transplant the system.

I've got no problems putting retro hardware in modern cases, it's not like I care a lot about period correctness otherwise either. My build goal is to maximize performance while retaining game compatibility, not recreating the rigs of times past.

I particularly like the Cooler Master Elite 361 for retro purposes. It's extremely compact to be an ATX capable case, which allows me to have more systems wired up and ready to use. It's cheap, is of decent build quality, looks good, and it's somewhat odd PSU placement makes it easy to work with when replacing parts, despite its small size.

Only using old cases for AT rigs, simply because there are no modern AT cases.

In my opinion, period correctness is the only advantage older cases have over modern ones.

Whatever makes you happy 😀

I dig using modern cases, and other parts, but I understand that it's not for everyone. And that's totally ok.

The best thing is that it is a hobby, and you get out what you put in. If you want to build a retro PC and put it in a modern case for convenience and finger safety, do it.

What you may find is that you'll build in a new case, be OK with it, and then suddenly a retro case drops in your lap that makes you want to transfer all your stuff over to it. Do you want and realize nothing is permanent (and that is part of the fun).

I like building in retro cases, but just like ATX power supplies <zing> they can be hit or miss. I actually have a clone XT case sitting out that I pulled hardware from that has a terrible form factor, is heavy as anything, and has been modified to accommodate a CD-ROM drive's ejecting tray. So any fun retro aesthetic that it would have possibly had has gone out the window thanks to part of the case being cut away. Now it is just a HEAVY, steel, boat anchor that I can't imagine most people would want to build inside.

I prefer to use at least somewhat period-correct cases, though this isn't a golden rule for me.
Part of the reason is that I already have plenty cases to choose from (I also don't like those cases where the floppy bay has such a slid instead of the usual 3.5in opening, so I tend to not use those. Or I use a 5.25in-3.5in adapter and put the floppy drive in there).

Perhaps it's also because I'm already used to using cases of that era.

While it's cool to have everything period correct, in the end function wins over form for me.

There's a definite welcome nostalgia kick from using an older case, but frankly a lot of new cases are cheap, light, and better constructed than older ones. The only disadvantage is that it's not possible to stand on the computer without ruining it..

I'm not even slightly precious about using period correct kit, it's all about compatibility. I'll happily stick in an SSD and floppy to SD converter.

I used a cheap Zalman case for my 'modern' (ish) games PC and it's excellent. The main cost cutting area I can think of is a lack of expansion slot covers. I don't miss cutting myself on sharp cases of your, either.

clueless1 wrote:

While it's cool to have everything period correct, in the end function wins over form for me.

I agree with this. The thing for me though is that if I wanted to put an old system into a brand new case, I'd have to purchase that case while having plenty cases standing around to choose from. I'd rather spend that money on something more useful 😀
So it's a bit different in my case 😁

I try not to put anything in a brand spanking new case, but for example my Win98 PC is in a case from about 05/06 and I don't mind it at all. It looks blocky and kinda retro, but doesn't look too out of place on a desk either.

I understand and am on both sides honestly.

I've got beige boxes, I've got modern cases. I think for most people it just comes down to what you enjoy, and what you want out of your build at any given time.

If you just wanna rock some old games or enjoy non-emulated old OS/Software, nothing wrong with a new case (or storage, or optical drive, or PSU). They are easier to find, easier to work with, won't slice your hand open and, as you said, won't have broken bits and pieces (or warranty if it does). You can cable manage and have better cooling, all while weighing a lot less.

Irrelevant to this exact topic, but I think this is where people new to the hobby should start. Once they get a feel for and understand the differences in hardware between new PCs and older ones - and to see if they even like the hobby, then they should start period authenticity. Tracking down old cases that are actually working and in good shape is finding a needle in a haystack for a lot of people. Unless you are trying to create something specific, I think any budget you may have to build a retro PC is best spent on what will provide you with the best performance per dollar for the time period you are after, not aesthetics. Any old modern-ish case, whether from your home, the store or the side of the road is money and time saved on finding and potentially posting a beige box.

But yeah, if you're after complete period accuracy for nostalgia or for collecting, a period accurate case is the only way to go, and that's something you can do over weeks, months or years. Like anything, you have to give up modern comforts and convenience to keep something old authentic.

Though if I need to do something unusual or use some unorthodox hardware, I'd much rather be sawing metal off of and cutting holes into a new case to fit some old things in, than ruining an older case to fit something in - using a dremel to take out HDD/Optical bays for GPUs or larger motherboards, for example.

I have 3 active (sharing the KVM with my main rig and ready to use all the time) retro machines. One is the XP box (Opteron 180 on an Asus soket 939 board) and it has a reasonably period correct Aopen A600 (a really lovely aluminum case).

The other two are a Pentium MMX and PIII Tualatin and both use this case:

http://nenoksan.com/UrunDetay/110557/everest_ … 50w_siyah_kasa/

This was the cheapest that has enough bays and having a decent thickness of sheet metal.

I choose modern cases over "period correct beige ones" because they are readily available for cheap prices and presents better building options (fan placement, number of bays, etc.).

But you need to be aware of the fact that the real cheap ones are like tin foil. I bought one online by trapping myself for the cheap price, but forced to send it to the garbage the same they (falling apart, buckling under slightest of force, screw holes become loose after just a couple of screwing /unscrewing...). During the beige cases era, this was not the case (pun not intended 🤣), even the cheapest shit from PRC was being produces from sheets thick enough to at least holding their own weight.

Not going for the cheapest pos available is sound advice. I ended up ordering two of the below Aopen case for around $6 each (used but clean), one for my P2 build and one for my Tualatin build.

The MMX stays in the Elan Vital for now. I love that case. As soon as I find more of it I will move the P2 to it as well. P3 and onwards can use modern ATX cases for all I care..

I usually go for the case which looks the best for the intended build, but I always prefer period correct cases whenever possible. In a way, it helps me remember what hardware I have inside the case. I'm not at all keen on using black or silver cases for a period of hardware in which such case colours were not the norm. I have a black P4 Prescott, a silver Mac Pro desktop, and a black/silver P4 Prescott; the rest are beige amd are P3 or older.

I am not into straight era correct cases. I just feel that cases from before 2000 are the best for P-III and down.
Especially the thick heavy ATX cases, made from steel, and not the light flimsy aluminium cases.

We need some pictures I think 😀

P II 450 with V2 SLI and SSD. BitFenix Aurora case with tempered glass and RGB lighting. Case doesn't have external drive bays which I realised too late. I certainly was pushing it with this build:

P II 300 with Riva 128. BitFenix case with LED fans. Turned out well and doesn't look too out of place.

486 DX 66 VLB machine. I really liked this one. Gigabyte case that looks clean and neat with lots of drive bays. Miss this build to be honest.

Pentium III 1.4 GHz with V2 SLI. uATX board and case from Gigabyte. A reverse sleeper if you like.

4 in 1 Gamer with K6-III+ and Voodoo 3. This is pretty much my favourite build as it bridges generations and can run so many games from 386, 486 and faster era. Extremely flexible and compatible. For people that don't mind tweaking and re-configuring their machines. Cheap case, but worked out well.

Nice! Way cleaner than my black 486. 🤣.

Love that black CRT, goes really well.

The only modern case I've used for one of my retro builds is an Antec Sonata Proto. The case design has remained nearly unchanged since 2003 (or 04?) and the front I/O can easily be covered up.

For me, pretty much any retro build in a modern case is atrocious.

I mean geeze, if my retro build is going to look like Joe Blow's facebook machine why even bother with retro hardware? It would be better to go with a cheap sandy bridge or C2D setup and use Emulation and/or fixes which are available for many games.

A lot of the cases from the 486 & earlier period had some character and added to the machine. Those are cool, and those boards are all baby-AT so they're difficult to house in something modern anyway.

But to be honest most of the "beige tower" cases from the Socket 5/7 era all the way up to the end of the P4s were just cheaply made junk. No design, no engineering effort, most of them looked exactly like one another. Completely interchangeable consumer crap built to a price point alone. (Every other 386 had a programmable LED clock speed display, but It took at least a decade just to get front mounted USB ports??) Those can all be recycled to make economy cars & soda cans for all I care.

(Note: this is why Apple were such a big deal when they came out with the G3 iMac/PowerMac and the various stunning G4 models. They were one of the only manufacturers saying "hey, look, we give a shit about design!" We take that for granted now but in the early 2000s it made them stand out big-time. SGI & Sun had some pretty good designwork back then too but they weren't aiming at private consumers the way Apple did.)

For my recent PII build (actually my first ever Slot 1 machine!) I took all the guts out of a "period correct" beige tower & used a very nice Antec Sonata III. Partly because I already had it, but still, I couldn't be more pleased with that decision.