More Ham Shack Case Alternatives

A lot of you liked the idea of having a custom computer case for dressing up your ham shack. These cases give you PC the appearance of a high end piece of Amateur Radio gear. It is a easy project to do if you are familiar with building your own pc. If you aren’t give it a try, it is fun and quite rewarding. It is actually easier to do than you might think. The Zalman HD-160XT was a heck of a deal, but they can not be had right know for the super close out price they were going for. I suggested some alternatives that were far more expensive. I thought I would suggest some cases that were close to the Zalman HD-160XT in price or less. The best deal right now for a case with a color LCD screen is the SilverStone GD02S-MT. This case has a 4.3 inch color touch screen, aluminum construction, remote, and comes in silver or black. The remote is controlled with the included Imon software and remote. The good news is that the GD02S-MT in silver sells for slightly less than the Zalman HD-160XT on sale. The black model goes for slightly more. The 4.3 inch screen probably wont give you as much real estate for programs like PowerSDR. However, it should work well for displaying DX Spots, system information, or any other information you would like to put on there. It should come in handy for some control type functions with the built in or third party software. This model does not have a Volume knob that can be mapped for tuning control, but it may be possible to use the remote for that.

Another possible alternative that is even cheaper if you don’t care about the color LCD is the Thermaltake DH202. This is a steel and aluminum case that has a blue LCD display and a volume knob. I am not sure if the volume knob can be mapped for tuning, but it may be possible. The blue LCD can only be used for showing system information and other status information, since it is not a full color LCD and only shows a few lines. However, it can still look pretty cool. The cases mentioned above can be found for good prices on Amazon. If you are willing to do a little searching you can find the Zalman HD-160. This case is very similar to the Zalman HD-160XT, but without the 7 inch color LCD. It does have a fixed line LCD display and volume control knob. It is very similar  in appearance and function as the Thermaltake case mentioned above. However, it can be found for a bit cheaper. Any of these cases would make a great addition to your shack pc.