Antec Skeleton Open Air Case Review

Conclusion

So there you have it. The Antec Skeleton is undoubtedly like no other case on the market. However, we are sure that quite a few people will never consider the Skeleton due to its open air concept. Let’s face it, not everyone wants their cat chewing on PSU cables or to worry about spilling anything on their precious hardware components. For those who “think outside of the box”, we’re pleased that Antec has created something unique for them.

But is a wildly unique case really a good thing? Not always. Uncommon designs can prove to clash with common configurations as we have seen with the Skeleton. Our biggest gripe is that it is not compatible with full-sized heatsinks. An enthusiast case that does not support common enthusiast hardware is a big issue in our eyes.

Our second big problem with the Skeleton is that it is difficult to work with. We found it surprisingly cumbersome to route PSU cables and to install video cards. The top frame always seems to get in the way and makes it frustrating to install or move things around. We also found it way too cramped in the lower deck, which caused some clearance issues. There were many little nagging issues that surprised us, like not being able to slide out the lower deck with a video card installed and the totally insecure external hard drive mounting; a feature we think Antec should have just omitted.

Those considering the Skeleton as a case to use on a test-bench will inevitably be frustrated with it. It is definitely not a viable alternative to the popular Highspeed TechStation. In our opinion, it is cheaper and more convenient to work with a simple mid-tower case turned on its side. Obviously it won’t look quite as cool, but those constantly swapping out hardware for testing purposes probably don’t care too much about aesthetics. To Antec’s credit, they never intended the case to be used for test-bench purposes from what we can tell.

Compatibility and ease of use issues aside, there are some very positive things to say about the Skeleton. First and foremost, the large 250mm fan provides a very healthy amount of airflow to the entire motherboard and video cards. Buyers will not have to worry about “hot spots” with the Skeleton. Secondly, the Skeleton is very quiet. The 250mm fan is almost silent at its lowest setting and only slightly audible at full speed. The small 92mm fan is also nice and quiet.

We really tried to keep an open mind while reviewing the Skeleton, but we just can’t overlook some of its very glaring faults, not to mention its high price at almost $200 CAD. Antec is definitely on to something but we think they need to take the case back to the drawing board to address many of these issues.



Pros:

- Very unique aesthetics
- 250mm fan provides lots of airflow to motherboard components and video cards
- Quiet


Cons:

- Does not support full-size tower heatsinks
- No potential for water cooling system installation
- Difficult to mount video cards
- Difficult to route PSU cables and poor cable management features
- External hard drive mounting not secure
- Too expensive

Thanks to Antec for sending us this case