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So you’ve got the 50in plasma TV, the 5.1 Dolby Surround and a sofa big enough to seat a football team, but it’s just not the ultimate lounge setup without a media PC. While you can build a simple video playback system for comparatively little, chances are it’s not going to fit in with the rest of your high end AV kit, let alone the living room decor. Finding a suitably stylish HTPC chassis which combines looks with hardware flexibility is a daunting challenge.

Enter Moneual, a little known Korean chassis manufacturer specialising in HTPC cases that won’t look out of place beneath your telly or beside your amp. However, while the looks might be high class the price tag is too, so let’s take a closer look to see if Moneual’s top end chassis, the Moncaso 972, is worthy of its wallet melting price.

Externally the Moncaso 972 is certainly a mean and moody looking bit of kit which wouldn’t look out of place alongside any number of amplifiers or component stereo equipment. The front fascia houses plenty of controls too, with a smattering of media centre control buttons, satisfying volume knob and the highlight of a 7in 15:9 touch screen LCD. We’ll go into more detail on the touch screen it’s features later, but suffice to say it looks great and has been very well integrated into the Moncaso’s design.

The simple stylish looks on offer are hard to argue with though and are backed up with some seriously superb build quality too, easily comparably to Zalman and Lian Li"s cases. The entire case is made of black anodised aluminium plate ((it’s also available in silver though) up to 5mm thick in places, with the result of making the Moncaso feel like aluminium elephant. It’s an extremely solid bit of kit, weighing over 7.5kg when empty and feeling extremely tough and hard wearing - qualities some aluminium cases can lack.

Looking to the 972’s side panels you can see they’re made of ribbed aluminium struts, with a solid plate behind forming the interior panelling. Into these are cut four ventilation holes, with an 80mm vent on either side towards the front allowing for HDD ventilation and the larger vents to the rear allowing airflow to the GPU on the left hand side and the PSU on the right. Other ventilation is offered in the form of twin sets of ventilation slits in case’s floor and matching slits in the case’s roof above where the CPU is fitted, although bafflingly only the HDD and GPU ventilation holes are fitted with dust filters.

At 16.6 lbs., the DH102 is tied with the Moneual 972 as the lightest case in this roundup, although the Moneual 972 offers a lot more space. The case body is SECC steel and just the front panel is aluminum. While the DH102 doesn’t come off as cheaply made, the Moneual and SilverStone offerings definitely have more of a solid feel to them.

The case supports one external 5 ¼” drive and three internal 3 ¼" drives. The main external drive door is covered by a classy aluminum cover that will easily open when an optical drive pushes it, which is a good way to keep the look of the front panel clean without having to worry about the optical drive"s color or appearance (since it remains hidden most of the time). While the available drive space is similar to that of the Moneual 972, there’s really no place to put an internal card reader in the DH102, which is unfortunate. Of course, and external card reader could be used with the USB ports.

The Thermaltake’s DH102 bundle includes pin-to-molex adapters for the fans, screws, a manual, software installation CDs, and the iMon remote and batteries. Thermaltake is the only vendor in the roundup to include a cloth for cleaning the LCD touch screen.

What makes the DH102 stand out from the other cases is its small size--it"s 3/4 of an inch shorter than the next tallest case, and it’s also the smallest in length and width by a small margin. While this doesn’t sound like much, this space savings allowed us to fit the DH102 in a home entertainment center that the other cases couldn’t squeeze into. Of course, this is a mixed blessing, as the DH102 is the most cramped case to work with during installation or when making modifications.

Another unique feature is that the DH102 is the only case in this roundup with a 120 mm intake fan. This is augmented with two 60 mm fans in the rear of the case, which saves some space compared to 80 mm fans.

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There is a great deal of equipment to buy for a home theater. Consumers want the perfect screen, audio system and media hub. Some users build their own home theater PC (HTPC), so they have equipment that meets their exact specifications. The system should be stored in a HTPC case, so it"s not just a loose collection of wires and processors.

Finding the best HTPC case comes down to what the system demands and the consumer"s preferences. Some storage units have more ports and input bays than others, so users need to consider what their HTPC is going to be used for and what type of connections it demands. Cases also come with different types of available connections, like USB ports and audio jacks for microphones and headphones.

Size should be one of your bigger concerns when choosing a media center PC case. Figure out how much space your system will need to function properly and remain secure. This allows users to avoid redesigning a PC"s setup because of an excess or a lack of storage space.

For shoppers who have an eye on the overall aesthetic of their home theater, different styles of cases are available. If you want a case to go unnoticed, there are basic black models that disappear into the shadows. Different colors are available if you want your HTPC case to stick out or match the color scheme in the room. There are even some modeled after retro radios, to make the system as fun as it is functional.

Finding the right home theater pc case doesn"t have to be difficult. Consider all of your system"s needs before buying anything to ensure that your purchase is the correct one.

Another company that needs no introduction in the world of computer cases is Thermaltake. Their lineup of HTPC cases is very impressive ranging from the monstrous MozartTX to the tiny SD100 Mini. Then we have the DH series in the middle, starting with the DH101 which quickly spawned into the DH102, DH103, and now the DH104.

The DH104 is arguably Thermaltake"s most impressive HTPC case so far, featuring an impressive 7" LCD touchscreen and hot keys module. This setup is similar to what we found on the GlacialTech Altair A381, even the remotes are the same, suggesting that they are in fact using the same design. However, Thermaltake took the concept to the next level with the LCD screen, and it should be said they are not afraid to charge you for it.

Those who felt the DH101 base model was a bit rich at $250 should prepare to brace themselves as the DH104 is set to cost upwards of $500. This makes the Thermaltake DH104 the most expensive case in this round-up by quite a lengthy margin.

The Thermaltake DH104 is an impressive looking case and despite of its monstrous size, we feel it can still serve perfectly well as a HTPC case. The DH104 measures 17" wide, 8.3" tall, and 18" long, and if you were to turn the DH104 on its side it could easily pass as a mid-tower.

Although the front panel has been constructed from aluminum, the case is largely built using SECC steel and therefore it is quite heavy, weighing 10.8 kg / 23.78lb. The front panel is an impressive bit of craftsmanship.

The external 5.25" optical drive bay is well implemented, possibly the best one in this comparison. Unlike the Altair A381, there is no need to stick a panel directly to the optical drive. Rather the panel is built into the case and the user needs only to install the optical drive into the case without any kind of pre-treatment.

Thermaltake has also done an excellent job of hiding away the front I/O panel when not in use. In order to access the I/O ports you have to push the panel and it will fold down. Behind the panel is a single Firewire port, two USB ports, and two audio jacks. Above the front I/O panel is the hot keys module which is linked to the 7" LCD display.

The LCD touch screen supports 1024x768 which is a suitable resolution for a 7" screen. The screen itself is quite bright and I found it very easy to read, particularly when using the supplied Media LAB software. Scrolling through the menus is very easy and allows the user to access quite a large amount of information while it is also possible to control the computer. It is also possible to check your mail and even monitor network traffic which can be useful for a HTPC.

On the left side of the case we have the 7" LCD display which is recessed nicely into the front facade. Below the LCD is a traditional power button, surrounded by a ring which is used as the power light. Next to the power button is a small hard drive activity LED.

Around the back of the DH104 you will notice that Thermaltake has also painted the rear black. This gives a nice finishing touch to the exterior design. At the rear of the case a 120mm fan is evident, along with seven full length expansion slots for add-in devices. The seventh slot is being used by an external VGA cable, which is connected to the front mounted 7" LCD panel.

At the rear of the DH104 there is also a bracket for a standard ATX power supply. With the case upside down we see four gold feet, though there is no kind of ventilation in the bottom of the DH104. The side panels don"t house any kind of ventilation either, though they do have some nice aluminum inserts that are only there for aesthetic purposes. The case lid does feature additional ventilation with room for a single 80mm fan.

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My current HTPC build inlcludes the iMon LCD display in a silverstone case for $250. My main reason for that choice is the amount of information the LCD can display, and the practical use of the remote with an HTPC.