Antec - A company with a long history of creating durable and reliable cases and power supplies. I have been a customer of Antec for many years. Until recent events, I would only utilize Antec cases and power supplies. At one time Antec demonstrated the strength of their cases with an elephant standing on them.
In June of 2007 I purchased an Antec SLK1650B Case with power supply from a local retailer. I was building as usual when I managed to slice my left index finger to the bone on one of the exposed sharp edges of this particular case. Antec has had a history of ensuring there were no sharp edges in their cases. This was the first on the job injury I have ever sustained building a computer in over 15 years of doing so. In response to bringing this matter to Antec's attention I received the following response:
I am sorry for your injury, and thanks for the information. I will pass it on to the Product Development Dept. for investigation into the matter of the sharp edges on the cases
Thank you for using Antec Products
John Bowen
Manager of Customer Support
In June of 2008 I purchased an Antec Sonata 550 Case with power supply from a local retailer. The first power supply failed. I had to return the case to the retailer. They gladly exchanged for another Sonata 550. The second unit's Power Supply (PSU) shorted at the power switch reducing my Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3R Motherboard, and my Intel QX9850 Processor to scrap. I returned the case to the retailer and they suggested I contact Antec directly related to the CPU and Motherboard. The retailer promptly handed me another Antec Sonata 550. The most recent of the 3 works fine so far. I submitted email directly to Antec related to this matter. I have spoken with John Bowen, the customer service manager for Antec. John was unwilling to replace the parts that were destroyed as a result of the power supply failure.
I still have the following Antec products in service:
Antec 1080AMG - no longer in production but a 10 of 10 in it's day.
Antec Titan 550 - no longer in production but a 10 of 10. The Titan 650 is a very similar model.
Antec Sonata 550- See story above about reliability. Rating 3 of 10 based on power supply instabilities.
Antec NSK6580 - 9 of 10 due to the fit and finish of this case. PSU is stable, Case is a bit lacking in design.