Antec SONATA IV Black 0.8 mm SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 620W Power Supply

Pros: PSU, BUILD QUALITY, LOOKS & ITS FILTER

Cons: SSD MOUNT IS WORTHLESS, NO WIRE MANAGEMENT, JUST NOT ENOUGH CASE FOR PRICE BUY THERE 280

Pros: Sturdy with excellent fit and finish. Mostly excellent design (see cons). All components lined up perfectly - not a single screw hole out of place or misaligned.

Looks good and is indeed very quiet.

Vibration damping hard drive brackets work well and are easy to work with.

Plenty of power connectors, though they could be allocated better (see cons).

This case is really nice, and you'll be hard pressed to find fault with it.

Cons: Front panel USB 3.0 wired through to plug into the back is hokey - should have the option of plugging it into a MB header (a small adapter, maybe) or even into the auxiliary USB3 panel (which does plug into the MB).

Cable management could be so much better with so little effort. A couple of cable tie slots down the drive cage back panel would do a world of good. Being able to route cables into the drive cages down the right side of the case would be easy if there had been a couple of notches cut out of the air duct edges, but because there aren't the power cables had to run through the MB area (where there aren't any tie slots). Antec put sufficient cable tie slots inside the right side, but because of the duct edges you can't use the area as well as you should be able to.

A real minor nit is that the SATA power cables have three plugs on each, meaning there's no way to wire up four HDDs without stranding connectors.

Other Thoughts: The most annoying thing about this case is how close to perfect it is, and how little extra effort it would have taken to just make it perfect.

I didn't mount a 2.5" SSD, so I can't comment on its placement as some have here.

I went with an EVGA GeForce 570 HD instead of the non-HD for it's shorter board, specifically to make sure I had room in this case, and it had enough clearance for the PCIe power connectors without any trouble. The longer reference board form factor would certainly have been a challenge.

Pros: Compared to the Sonata III none except the larger power supply.

Cons: Can't mount an SSD card in the location provided for a 2.5 " HDD since there is insufficient room to connect the power and data cables.

Other Thoughts: I can't install my 32GB ADATA SSD card because the one and only mount point for a 2.5" drive does not provide sufficient space to connect the power and SATA cabling because of a lip on the panel to which the drive is mounted immediately above the mount point. I had the same card in a Sonata III but now I can't use it in the Sonata IV, and I suspect many other SSD cards will have the same problem. I've reported the problem to Antec but they had no useful advice.

Pros: - Very beautiful case and silent Power supply.
- The rear fan is only silent at the lowest setting. Medium and high are noticeable.
- Some of the Motherboard stand-offs were already installed.
- The Hard drive cage is cooled by the vent on the side/front and pulled to the back of the case. Rubber Hard Drive cage mounts work ok.
- Hard to beat a Antec PS.

Cons: - 2.5" drive slot is useless. If you install it there, you cannot wire it. There is a big structure piece in the way. If the connectors were pointing down instead of out, you could use a straight cable to install. Then I tried to install the SSD in the drive cage. I had an adapter from 3.5 to 2.5 inch drive. But since the screws are specialized for the rubber mounts, I couldn't mount it properly because the adapter takes the fine screws and the cage is the course screws.
- The SATA connectors were not arranged properly for this case. There are 2 strips of SATA connector connectors with 3 connectors per strip. They were not long enough for the placement of the drives. They should have 3 strips of 2 connectors, or 1 strip for the 4 HDs in the cage and 1 strip with 2 for the 5.25 drives. The 3 on one cannot even populate 3 HD's in the cage. Not proper lengths.
- No wire management whatsoever.
- Rubber mounts would have worked better in a horizontal position.

Other Thoughts: - Great case, but if you want to make it pretty, it is not possible.
- Antec claims they have 25 years experience. Didn't see it in this case. I made it work but it was not easy for 1 SSD, 3 HD's and a DVD drive. Almost like they placed all the drives in place and didn't wire them up to see if the power and connectors would work in their respective locations.
- Expected more of the price.

Pros: Typical of Antec Sonata cases, it's roomy, very clean and dead quiet. I've been using this series of case sense the old piano black Sonata's came out and except for the price it's a big improvement. They have some wiring routes and a SSD mount. Plus USB 3 front access. Great power supply at 620W should handle most home PC's and work stations. Little light for gaming machine.

Cons: Price is getting up there.

Other Thoughts: I use this style case for all my Mom & Pop home PC's. And even a few HTPC's because they are so quiet.

Pros: Case looks very nice and adult-looking.

MB install was easy (Asus P7P55D-E LX); everything lined up with very little forcing. In fact, everything in this case fits together well. Components like drive bays, brackets, and side panels all line up and bolt up with zero profanity.

The 2.5" drive location is awesome, and my 5.25" DVD clipped in easily. Most everything is thumbscrews or clips, so moving things around while setting up is cake. Swapping out parts and troubleshooting will be easy.

It's reasonably quiet, especially once everything is buttoned up.

Internal MB cables were nicely marked. Plenty of screws and wireties included.

Front USB 3.0 is awesome (and the main reason I chose this case).

Cons: OK, here's where things fall apart a bit.

1) Wire management stinks. They could have easily put a few holes in strategic places to make things tidier.

2) The fans are not as quiet as I would have liked. Low speed is OK, but you start to hear things at medium. For some reason I was also expecting sound-deading material to be built in, but I am obviously confusing this with another Antec case.

3) The 3.5" drive mounting system is neat, and I appreciate the rubber mount points to isolate vibration. However, my Samsung Spinpoint drives sometimes vibrate the metal-to-metal contact point between the drive sleeves and the rails. The fix is some kind of shim (probably tape), which I will need to do.

4) The PSU is not modular, so I have wires that I'll never use taking up space and restricting air flow.

5) Expansion cards are held in with traditional screws. I know this is nitpicking and I don't care that much, but this is rather old school, especially for a new high-quality case

Other Thoughts: Overall, this is a good case. If it were cheaper, I would give it 4 or even 5 stars. But at this price point, I expected perfection. That said, I would reuse this case for a future build.

Newegg delivery is the best! Had it in 2 days, and that's with a snowstorm in the middle.

Pros: Solid case, quiet, good airflow.

Cons: Awkward USB3 connection, HDD power connections, power supply placement.

Other Thoughts: The only way to get the power supply out is by removing the motherboard. This is problematic if you have a power supply failure. The daisy chain power cable that connects to the hard drives fits awkwardly due to the position of the hard drives and the design of the cable. USB3 connection is routed out the back of the case, which isn't too elegant. Otherwise it's a solid, quiet case that keeps everything nice and cool.

Pros: USB 3.0 on front panel

Cons: USB 3.0 cable for front panel routed to back panel

Other Thoughts: I'm guessing this is because there is no USB 3.0 connector on the motherboard, other than the two on the back panel. I still don't have it working, so not too sure what to say about it... nice case.

Pros: It's quiet and well made; the build quality is on par with the Sonata 3, which I also own. I really like it, but this review will mostly be nitpicks - don't get the wrong idea.

It does fit a GTX 570, but space is somewhat tight - careful where you route the cables!

Cons: The 2.5" HDD mount doesn't leave enough space for connectors. I solved this problem with a crescent wrench (bend the folder metal in front of the HDD so it comes out straight).

The power connectors aren't modular, and there isn't a sata power adapter for the top bay - there should be, or at least a converter included so I can use the new SATA DVD drives.

The mounting screws are hard to get to for the 2.5" drive - be careful with that. Not a complaint, just a warning.

Other Thoughts: I miss the side panels from the Sonata 3 - not a fan of thumbscrews.

using a full length card creates a dead air space under (lower than) the card, so don't put anything there that needs ventilation; not an issue for me, but maybe for others. This has the effect of focusing airflow across the CPU and mobo components, so net win, I guess. Still, not sure if the lower drive cage will be happy.