Antec Lanboy Air Gaming Case

[JCAddy]

The Air LanBoy Antec has an unusually stable conspicuous colored painted skeleton from square sections. This metal framework provides the basis for the modular concept, which followed the manufacturer with this Case. Some of the opportunities that the Air offers LanBoy way we see ourselves in the later part of practice in more detail. First, we begin as always at the front. There are three bays for 5.25 "devices. The modern panels are bolted with two bolts to the backbone and sit appropriately. In the lower area there are two 120 mm fans, which are clipped into the brackets provided. Each of the two fans has its own knob, can be customized with the help of the rotation speed. Unfortunately, the knob fixed to the bracket, another fan model is not readily usable. Is already noticeable on the front that remain between the individual attachments to the larger part of column, it seems the manufacturer intends to be so and will still meet us at many other places.

You can remove almost all the parts and assemble some also in alternative positions. This creates a unique flexibility, but also limits the practicality of the Antec one LanBoy Air. The housing is kept open, so get that sound without detours to the outside. Even the dust, which makes his way inside, is contrary to virtually nothing. And you have to be a little show-off, in terms of hardware installed inside.

Features:
Fully-modular chassis
Open-frame construction mesh panel
AirMount HDD mount suspension system for up to 6 HDDs
CPU cooler Maximum height: 150 mm with optional side fan installed, 160 mm Without
11 drive bays:

• 6 x internal 3.5 "HDDs
• 3 x external 5.25 "HDDs
• 2 x internal bottom-mounted 2.5 "SSD bay

Advanced cooling system - up to 15 fans
Standard fans:

• 2 x front variable-speed 120 mm LED fans with stepless control knobs
• 1 x rear 120 mm LED fan TwoCool
• 2 x side 120 mm LED fans TwoCool graphics cards for cooling

Optional fans:

• 2 x 120 mm fan for cooling CPU and memory
• 6 x 120 mm side fan drive bay
• 2 x 120 mm top fan

Water cooling support:

• Top water cooling radiator fitting
• Rear water cooling grommets

8 expansion slots for three graphics-card configurations
Maximum graphics card size: 16.0 "/ 406 mm
Front ports:

• 1 x USB 3.0
• 2 x USB 2.0
• Audio (ACI ¿½ E7 and HDA compatible) In and Out

Motherboards: Mini-ITX, microATX, Standard ATX
Power supply not included
Unit Dimensions:

• 20.3 "(H) x 8.7" (W) x 20.2 "(D)
• 517 mm (H) x 222 mm (W) x 512 mm (D)

Package Dimensions:

• 23.2 "(H) x 11.3" (W) x 22.8 "(D)
• 590 mm (H) x 288 mm (W) x 580 mm (D)

Weight:

• Net: 20.3 lb / 9.2 kg
• Gross: 24 lbs / 11 kg

Design

The two sides consist of two parts. In the front part there is a door that covers the entire height of the housing and covers the drive cages. The flap is made of plastic and has a large-scale use of perforated sheet metal. The second part of the cover page, it looks at first glance like three separate panels. To the impression of individual segments in front of you is awakened by the two horizontal metal strips. After the release of all six thumb screws to set firm but that it is only by a single part. At slots for fans here, there is definitely no shortage of up to seven 120 mm can theoretically be installed on each side. Two are already mounted on the left from the factory. On the right side will reach virtually anyone the full development stage, this is the motherboard will support anything close to the fans, cable management in this case would also no longer possible. Remains, as already mentioned, in a purely theoretical option.

In the case LanBoy Air instead of conventional panels using a grid, allowing for adequate ventilation. The set includes five 120-mm fans with LEDs (two for the front and three two-speed TwoCool to be placed on the side or rear wall). Just a body can be set up to fifteen fans. Location coolers specially thought so as to create a cool air stream, blowing graphics and hard drives and that will warm the air through the perforated panel module housing. Internals LanBoy Air fully demountable and can accommodate up to 11 devices, including six in the 3.5 "bays, three 5.25" bays and two-SSD-drive 2.5. "Also, mounting devices 3, 5 "bays uses a proprietary system AirMount, which reduces vibration when using hard drives and makes them easy to fix. In addition, the 3.5 "and 5.25" bays can be attached in three positions: right, left or right side of the front wall.

[JCAddy]

Although at first glance you does not look at the rear portion of the side panel is a cohesive element, which is fitted with six thumb screws on the frame of LanBoy Air. After the screws were removed, this can be easily removed. The two struts which give the largely consists of plastic side panel added stability. Antec has two fans mounted in the middle with 120 mm diameter. These TwoCool fans are black and equipped with seven leaves and four LEDs. The fans blow into the case and are again fed via Molex connectors. They are also equipped with black cables which terminate in a rectangular plastic piece. In this there is a slider with which you can speed between the low (L = low) and high (H = high) switch. The front half of the side panel can be opened by removing a thumbscrew more like a door. Here are the drive bays, although one can speak in the face of such open construction of limited slots. Hard drives and optical drives you can block the way, both longitudinally and transversely to the housing, also can be converted into the ports of the devices at both the cross-variation to the right and left. If desired, on each page of the drives three more 120mm fan space. So that puts you firmly in the longitudinal direction, however.

The top of Antec's LanBoy Air is made of plastic. This also has ventilation holes, but these are significantly larger than in the area of perforated sheets. We see a cross brace, which divides the top of the housing at a ratio of 2:3. Although visually it looks a little like this: The brace cannot continue to be put in the middle. The attachment of the handles is done using normal Phillips screws, so they can also be easily removed. So the paint is not scratched, Antec uses red washers, as we know them from motherboards ago. As you might have found safety with visually attractive solutions. Well, alternative washers do not cost the world. Thereto, however, shows that Antec has not the Air LanBoy thought at any point until the end. An example is the optional top fan: These are not just sitting on the outside of the housing, they also come to the rear carrying handle in the way and also hover over the top few millimeters.

Front Panel

The front connectors are located at Antec's LanBoy Air fortunately very top, where they can also achieve well. From left to right, we first see the reset button, then the two LEDs for power and drive activity. There are three USB ports, which correspond to the two black and versions 2.0 to version 3.0. Between the USB ports are the audio jacks for microphone and headphones. On the right edge is the power switch to the financial statements. It covers the three follow from the slots for the external 5.25-inch drives, including close to the two 120mm fans. Both the aperture and the fans are held by two Phillips screws. Why Antec does not use thumbscrews here, is incomprehensible to us. The location of the fan and the drives can be varied in any way.

Antec has equipped the two blown front TriCool fan with little knobs that allow you to control your speed. The black fan and have seven leaves home to four LEDs. Power is supplied via a Molex connector which serves as the Y-adapter and can be looped through another connector. At the bottom there is still a discreet, black screen. Antec describes this as a tool box and stored it the screws that we need to install the hardware. Unfortunately, the tool compartment with two Phillips screws was attached to the grid frame, making it difficult to access.

Connectors

The motherboard support is located above the power supply. The back, which you can remove, includes a connector kit, the cutout for the connector panel of the motherboard and another fan with 120 mm diameter. Again, this fan has seven blades, is illuminated by four LEDs, and blowing into the interior of the housing. Under the fan is a small slider with which you can speed between the low (L = low) and high (high = H) may vary. A second recess may include a second controller, for example, one of the two side fans. Slightly lower following the eight-slot aperture, which Antec has equipped with large air vents. The bottom panel is back for passing cables.

For the water cooling hoses, there are two specific breakthroughs, which are lined with rubber. The bottom row is part of the network carriers. This consists of two parts: a screw inside the housing and a guide to moving frame. This framework was fixed with a screw and can be easily pulled out.
Those who use a PSU with short cables or has the concept of the power supply installed below simply cannot, must not despair when LanBoy air, but once again whip out the screwdriver. You can the motherboard support that is also block down and relocate the power supply to the top.

[JCAddy]

Motherboard Installation

Below the CPU cooler, Antec has placed a large opening in the main board of the carrier LanBoy Air. In this way is possible, screw chiller to remove, and without having to remove the motherboard must. The motherboard supports the Antec LanBoy Air is held by two black crossbars on the back to find some eyelets to run wires. These efforts serve as a guide, because once the back wall was removed, we can pull out the carrier. The motherboard can be easily mounted outside the housing and are pushed together with the carrier in the Air LanBoy.

Preferably you installed the CPU cooler before you screw the motherboard to the carrier, but at particularly high coolers, this is not possible. The Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme, which we used for our test setup is, for example, two millimeters too high. With a height of 160.5 mm, the Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme very high, but not other CPU coolers to fit through the frame. Since we can screw the CPU cooler and subsequently, this is not the end. Nevertheless, five millimeters would have done more leeway to the well casing. Buyers should make possible the fact that the amount of their CPU cooler exceeds 158 mm.

SMPS Installation

When delivered, we find the power supply holder at the bottom of Antec LanBoy Air It is mounted on a guide is loose and fairly. Power Supplies with restless, fast-rotating fans here might cause unwanted vibrations. Once we have removed a thumbscrew on the back of the case, we can pull out the bracket to the rear. The next step is placing the power supply into the bracket and bolted it with this. Antec has designed the frame so that the user can select the orientation of the AC adapter free. Antec has explicit instructions in his attention to that fact, but since this is only the internet as a PDF document, which is many a buyer the power supply just as we use the wrong way.

Hard drive Installation

At the top of Antec's Air LanBoy we find the rails for the installation of the 5.25-inch devices. Maximum block can be three such drives, as only three pairs of rails are available. These bars put on the back in a small recess and are screwed to the front. They can be easily removed and used later if desired. It is solely up to the user in which order he wants to arrange the optical drives, fans and hard drives. After seeing the drive bezel which is secured with two Phillips screws that you removed, we assemble the DVD drive, first at the top and directed to the charge forward. We mention that the orientation of the drive may initially seem superfluous, but the LanBoy Air is not a normal case. You can also rotate around the rail that is 90 degrees right or left.

Now shows the loading of the drive to the left, but it can also be aligned to the right. The drive is now disappearing behind the side door and front panel retains its uniform appearance. Directed to the optical drives and hard drives in the transverse direction, the wiring is located in one plane and one gets additional clearance for the motherboard.

Coupling the Hard disk

For hard drives, Antec has invented something special because they are screwed in the Air Lan Boy not simply, but effectively decoupled. To this end, the mounting system provides Antec AirMount. First we screw two AirMount on our hard drive. The hooks are made of plastic AirMount, between them stretches a thick rubber hose. On each floor of the Air LanBoy eyelets are right, in which we can hook the AirMount. The disk floats now decoupled in the housing and retains its vibrations for themselves. Under the disk, we see a solid state drive, which we will discuss shortly in more detail. Anyone who wants can also be implemented in its HDDs transverse direction and the connection either to the right or left orientation.

Once the hard drive is wired, they have excess weight on the back and hangs right angle in the case. Therefore, we would have liked a slightly tighter version of AirMount. In his manual, Antec has indicated that we should remove the hard drive before shipping the computer. A maximum of two drives in the 2.5-inch format can be screwed to the floor of the Air LanBoy, with rubber wheels provide a little distance and isolation. In the case of Solid State Drives, the decoupling is indeed unnecessary, but one or the other user will probably also use hard drives of this size.

[JCAddy]

Cooling performance and Noise Reduction

When ventilating may be up to 15 120 mm fan in the record format LanBoy Air. In theory, the right side as well take a lot of fans, as the left counterpart, however, prevents the motherboard supports the installation of four additional fans. Antec TriCool fans criticized the often sent into retirement and used, as already in the Dark Fleet series, the new models TwoCool. These have a small switch with the rotation speed can be set to be 900 or 1500 U / min. The two front fans on the other hand each have a small knob, which regulates the rotation of 1000-2000 U / min may be infinitely.

High temperatures reduce the life expectancy of the system. Components age and then quickly have less reserves for warm summer days or a thick layer of dust that accumulates over time, inevitably. The hardware installed in our temperature sensors are absolute standard goods, which are used mainly for temperature control and more are not designed to be used for accurate measurements. Thus we can ignore differences between measurements from 1 K confidently, only for larger deviations it is interesting. About the absolute accuracy of the sensors, we know not modest, so we can only advise to pay attention to this when compared with other systems. Among themselves, however, our tests are comparable, because the hardware does not change.

Conclusion

Even the unusual appearance of this housing is not able to please everyone, and given its openness to air, noise and dust are the checkered flag in particular thanking friend’s quieter computer. No question, this is not a PC housing LanBoy Air for Everyone. The target group of the Air LanBoy like tinkering and may also visit one or another LAN party. These buyers will appreciate the modular concept of the housing. Also for the overclockers LanBoy Air is interesting, but you can fan the 15-120mm class fit, with only five Antec fan. The fan speed can be adjusted coarsely, with its volume keeps in the frame. If all five fans running, we have measured a noise level between about 30 and about 40 dB (A).

While we find the two handles very convenient to use the red washers, which are known from motherboards are not just an optical cracker. LanBoy Air has enough space to make it possible to install a video card was a length of 380 mm and larger. In addition, in case there is a carrying handle, a place in the six expansion slots on the motherboard, three USB ports, including a USB 3.0, as well as convenient storage box bolts.

[dkjazz]

brackets provided. Each of the two fans has its own knob, can be customized with the help of the rotation speed. Unfortunately, the knob fixed to the bracket, another fan model is not readily usable. Is already noticeable