Antec ONE Case Review

1. Introduction2. Packaging & Bundle3. Antec ONE: Exterior4. Antec ONE: Interior5. System Installation6. Testing Methodology and Thermal Performance7. Acoustic Performance8. Closing Thoughts9. View All Pages

A pair of rails attaches to a 3.5″ hard drive's side, forming the tool-less mechanism. The connection isn't secure until the drive is installed into its 3.5″ bay.

2.5″ drives can be installed on the 3.5″ drive bay's floor and roof. For a floor mount, the drive is secured from underneath by 4 screws. This makes it a potentially difficult procedure when the case is fully laden.

Fitting our large ATX hardware into the ONE was a challenge at times. Connecting the cables in such a confined space was the main contribution to the procedure's difficulty.

Graphics cards up to 266mm in length can be installed in the ONE. That figure will be reduced if your card uses forward-mounted power connectors; the HDD cage will cause interference.

Our 159mm-tall Prolimatech Megahalems CPU cooler was able to fit easily inside the ONE. Antec states CPU cooler clearance as 155mm, but the bulged side panel extends this figure to between 160 and 165mm.

With a case of this size being used alongside a non-modular power supply, cable management never was going to be straightforward. A lot of time and patience is required to make the build even remotely neat. While the end result certainly isn't overwhelming, it should serve its purpose of reducing the amount of blocked air.

The exclusion of a hole to route the CPU power cable is disappointing.

Finding a place to store the power supply's wires wasn't easy. Stuffed inside the 3.5″ HDD bay, a front intake fan's airflow will certainly be impeded by the mountain of cables. Unfortunately, this is a compromise that has to be made when using a non-modular power supply.

I would highly recommend a modular power supply or low-power unit with a minimalistic amount of cables for use with this case.

Complimented by the front panel's style, a 5.25″ drive fits perfectly in the ONE's effective tool-less mechanism.

Cables can be viewed through the front panel's slim material due to the absence of an intake fan.

Replacing the side panel was a task made almost impossible by our power supplies fat 24-pin cable. Antec should have designed the rear space with a few extra millimetres of clearance to elude such easily-avoidable issues.

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