Ask Engadget: best barebones workstation chassis?

We know you've got questions, and if you're brave enough to ask the world for answers, then here's the outlet to do so. This week's Ask Engadget inquiry is from Charles, who's capping off the year with a fine question about DIY PC chassis. If you're looking to ask one of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com.

"I work in motion graphics and it's upgrade time. I'm a DIY and Windows nut, so I'm looking to build my own tower, but the cases are all so horrible! I don't need a plastic window, or something that looks like it was designed by aliens -- just something that's sharp, solid, good looking and has a respectable airflow. Is that too much to ask?"

Well, we trawled our brains (as well as a fair chunk of the internet) looking for some classy chassis, and this is what we found:

• Corsair's Obsidian 550D may have a plastic window, but otherwise it's a monolithic piece of imposing black metal that won't ugly up your office.
• Coolermaster's Silencio 650 is hewn from diamond-cut aluminum and drops the plastic window, and given the company's heritage, should have excellent airflow.
• Finally, there's the Lian-Li PC-A71F, which can only be described as terrifyingly sleek.

But what about you all? Let's cap the year off with some stylish PC cases, peace and goodwill to everyone and a very happy New Year to you, the Engadgeteers.

Filed under: Desktops

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