Call me old school but I would take a simple looking, basic, black/white case with sturdy construction over anything with thrills and frills surface features. I won’t flame you guys for reviewing these “flashy” type boxes but please review some of the quality cases with less outside eye candy and focus on ones with more internal detail and functionalities.
More cases like the Ahanix X195 Knight reviewed back on 3/04 would be nice.
I believe that your more informed hardcore readers are much more interested in cases that are functional, quality driven structures that hold all our precious, expensive peripheral component pieces tightly and securely in place and cooled to the best possible levels.
Umm...that $80 price tag is because of the actually usable power supply...Assuming you liked that look(I definitely DON'T), it doesn't look like it's THAT bad a deal, as you mentioned on the end of the last page.
If i was 10 and was crazy about spidey, then this &$^$%^ might have been my case. Other than that the desing is really mediocre and FUGLY if i may say so myself :) . C'mon show us some serious cases ppl.
I think you guys should add some additional criteria to your review. Things that come to mind are:
1. How well do the USB and firewire port cables interface with the MoBo.
2. Does the firewire cable have a header for MoBo mounting or does it need to pass thru to the rear firewire port of the MoBo
3. Give extra points for rubber HDD isolators (to me this is a very nice feature that seems so simple yet is missing from many cases)
4. This case only has one removeable cover, which severly limits access to cable routing, I think that should be considered a negative.
5. Agree with the PSU points. At the minimum add a test with the standard PSU so the sound and capability of the stock case is known.
6. This last one may be more controversial, but to me the whole "tooless" trend is usually poorly implemented and makes things wose than cases with simple screws. In particular, drive rails that first attach to the drive and then snap in to the case seem pointless, and the PCI card snaps often don't work nearly as well as a screw. Personally, I would like to see more cases go with thumbscrews and I think you should make more mention of it in your review. It seems like the mechanical build up of a computer is quite small compared to the software installation and setup, and therefore I would like to see less emphasis placed on the build time and more emphasis placed on the ease of access and sturdiness once components are installed.
7. The looks of that case are....well, lets just say that if I had a 5 year old I think the kid would like it. Most others I think would find the looks "controversial" and I don't think anyone believes it has "gaming written all over it". Just IMO of course.
Anyway, nice review overall, but could use more details and I think stronger reaction towards some of the negatives of the case.
It actually looks better in person, especially without the window in the side panel, so if you can't stand the spider-man bezel, you can allways go with the "gaming bomb".
Unlike some other cases we usually use, I really liked this one, my only gripe would be with the add-in cards holding mechanism, with feels a bit too flimsy.
Well, pretty much everything has been said. I just wish Anandtech would be honest with their opinions and not try to make the review as long as possible with rubbish. Do you guys ever look at the other review sites?? For instance take a peek at Dansdata. He doesn't have a very pretty site but I think it works and he's very honest about products he reviews...but that is only my oppinion.
> with over 700 employees across the world,
> Chenbro is one of the biggest manufacturing
> companies in the world.
Haha, what are you smoking? If they had 70,000 employees, they'd be one of the largest manufacturing companies in the world...at 700, they're not even a flyspeck on the map.
Figured I might as well pipe up too - I love hearing about new cases, but really, when you reviewed this, did you actually think anyone out there would like the looks of it? Did YOU like the looks of it? I don't care if the thing has the most spacious and effecient design to date - there's no way in hell I would buy a case that looks like that. Or like the Guardian. I browse through the cases at Newegg and wonder why anyone would buy about half of them - there are so many just plain tacky designs...
I'd take a nice simple Antec 3700 over this thing any day of the week. If I hadn't been reading Anandtech for so many years and this was the first review I read off your site, I'd have trouble taking you seriously and might not come back...
Maybe you guys (at AT) just have really bad taste. I look at some of the case choices in the custom-built system guides and wonder why you'd choose those over some other options. In any case, please, please stop wasting resources reviewing junky, ugly cases like this one. Case reviews are good. Ugly case reviews are bad. I don't care if the company sent it to you for free to review or what - you guys have a reputation to uphold.
Oh, and I also agree - if the case comes standard with a power supply, it should be benched/tested with that supply. If you can buy the case without the supply, that's a different story, but test it with the included hardware. If you want to then throw a different PSU/fans/whatever in to try to make the noise comparisons fair, fine... but most people who buy a case aren't just going to gut it - they're going to want to use the goods that came with the chassis.
reminds me of a similarly named one a month or so ago... don't think its the same company, but obviously this company didn't bother to read this site before just randomly deciding to send their case to be reviewed here.
anyway, i would say the only thing missing is a little UV Spider dangling on a thin strand of UV web from inside there, at least then the design would get a smile rather then a cringe out of me.
I have no idea who some of these case article are targetted at. I do not know anyone that would dare show up to a LAN party with a case that looks like this.
Is anyone coming to this site actually interested in a plastic bezel spider case that looks like it belongs to a 5 year old? Why not start reviewing Barbie and Pokemon computer cases too???
I agree with #4. If you swapped out the power supply to equalize noise comparisons, why didn't you swap out the case fans as well? And I don't recall previous video card reviews saying that they swapped out the cooling fan, either.
At the very least, do a before/after set of readings so people who are thinking of ordering the case/power supply combo can gauge the difference between the two.
Why is the market flooded with these "gamer" cases that look like something out of a 70's gay porn movie?
Just a thought, but if you spend less time building these atrocities and more time building the cases we do want, you'll actually have better sales which translates to more money, which translates to hooking up with more women (or men, if you like this case), which translates to less time to come up with these hideous designs.
I'm not at all convinced of the "growing trend" in removable motherboard trays. Yes, they exist, but they're generally only in very expensive cases. I can see where they might be somewhat desirable, but I swap out hardware relatively often and have never felt overly distressed by the lack of a removable motherboard tray. Let's be honest: if you're removing the motherboard, it's going to be something of a pain in the ass with or without the tray. The only thing it helps with would be the installation/removal of a CPU, as getting a CPU out when the motherboard is installed is very difficult.
Maybe other people swap CPUs and motherboards frequently, but I usually only do it once or twice a year at most. I can deal with the non-removalbe tray for those times when I do remove the motherboard. A bigger concern for me is the fugly exterior and the LED fans. But I'm not the target market for this case. I believe the target market is kids with purple hair, nose rings, bad vision, and access to mommy and daddy's credit card. ;)
Can't say that I've ever found a removable motherboard tray very useful. Just gives more parts to rattle and weakens the structure. You certainly don't need it to swap out components.
Do Anandtech reviewers have a problem with aesthetics or something? Why do they keep reviewing these really butt-ugly cases? How about something (e.g. from Lian-Li or Coolermaster) that isn't completely repulsive?
" We test it with all the same PSU so that the noise comparisons are all the same.
Kristopher "
that may be good for mobo/cpu tests but you're reviewing a CASE,you just cant pick & chose the parts you like.
The case should be reviewed as is just like anybody who's going to go buy it,not everybody's going to have a spare psu handy.
And just like the other guy said it's a freaking Fortron 350 watter great psu.
very bad ideal to swap out the psu,when you buy it will it come with that other psu? NO . so if you're going to review do it as it will come from the store.
"Installation of all components took no more than 15 minutes and since the Chenbro threw in a 350W power supply, a few minutes were shaved off that total installation time. We did swap out that power supply with our own test bed unit, the OCZ 520W PowerStream, for our benchmarks."
Excuse me if I missed something, and ignore this if I did, but they just "threw in" a 350W power supply? That's a Fortron FSP350-60PN. A very high quality PSU that could handle almost any system out there today. I think there should be some credit to Chenbro for choosing a quality component that is so often ignored.
We’ve updated our terms. By continuing to use the site and/or by logging into your account, you agree to the Site’s updated Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
33 Comments
Back to Article
Bladen - Thursday, August 19, 2004 - link
If you want a gaming case, look out for the Gaming Bomb II.I have a Gaming Bomb I and it is great.
However the Gaming Bomb II is a bit on the expensive side (first time Chenbro made Al case so the machines had to be retooled).
I think the Xpider II isn't that hot, but I have heard it doesn't look that bad in real view, but Iiiiii'd rather get a GB2.
Head over too http://www.chenbro.com.tw/PR/GBII.jsp and have a looksee.
hdavis01 - Thursday, August 12, 2004 - link
Call me old school but I would take a simple looking, basic, black/white case with sturdy construction over anything with thrills and frills surface features. I won’t flame you guys for reviewing these “flashy” type boxes but please review some of the quality cases with less outside eye candy and focus on ones with more internal detail and functionalities.More cases like the Ahanix X195 Knight reviewed back on 3/04 would be nice.
I believe that your more informed hardcore readers are much more interested in cases that are functional, quality driven structures that hold all our precious, expensive peripheral component pieces tightly and securely in place and cooled to the best possible levels.
Thanks!!
yelo333 - Thursday, August 12, 2004 - link
Umm...that $80 price tag is because of the actually usable power supply...Assuming you liked that look(I definitely DON'T), it doesn't look like it's THAT bad a deal, as you mentioned on the end of the last page.CrimsonDeath - Thursday, August 12, 2004 - link
If i was 10 and was crazy about spidey, then this &$^$%^ might have been my case. Other than that the desing is really mediocre and FUGLY if i may say so myself :) . C'mon show us some serious cases ppl.AnnoyedGrunt - Thursday, August 12, 2004 - link
I think you guys should add some additional criteria to your review. Things that come to mind are:1. How well do the USB and firewire port cables interface with the MoBo.
2. Does the firewire cable have a header for MoBo mounting or does it need to pass thru to the rear firewire port of the MoBo
3. Give extra points for rubber HDD isolators (to me this is a very nice feature that seems so simple yet is missing from many cases)
4. This case only has one removeable cover, which severly limits access to cable routing, I think that should be considered a negative.
5. Agree with the PSU points. At the minimum add a test with the standard PSU so the sound and capability of the stock case is known.
6. This last one may be more controversial, but to me the whole "tooless" trend is usually poorly implemented and makes things wose than cases with simple screws. In particular, drive rails that first attach to the drive and then snap in to the case seem pointless, and the PCI card snaps often don't work nearly as well as a screw. Personally, I would like to see more cases go with thumbscrews and I think you should make more mention of it in your review. It seems like the mechanical build up of a computer is quite small compared to the software installation and setup, and therefore I would like to see less emphasis placed on the build time and more emphasis placed on the ease of access and sturdiness once components are installed.
7. The looks of that case are....well, lets just say that if I had a 5 year old I think the kid would like it. Most others I think would find the looks "controversial" and I don't think anyone believes it has "gaming written all over it". Just IMO of course.
Anyway, nice review overall, but could use more details and I think stronger reaction towards some of the negatives of the case.
-D'oh!
AtaStrumf - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
I build a bunch of PCs with chembro's gaming bomb, which uses the exact same design, but has a much more digestible front bezel:http://www.dinoxpc.com/Tests/ALTRE/ChembroGB/image...
It actually looks better in person, especially without the window in the side panel, so if you can't stand the spider-man bezel, you can allways go with the "gaming bomb".
Unlike some other cases we usually use, I really liked this one, my only gripe would be with the add-in cards holding mechanism, with feels a bit too flimsy.
ciwell - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
That has to be one of the most visually offensive pieces of scrap metal I have had the displeasure of laying my eyes on.nessus - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
Well, pretty much everything has been said. I just wish Anandtech would be honest with their opinions and not try to make the review as long as possible with rubbish. Do you guys ever look at the other review sites?? For instance take a peek at Dansdata. He doesn't have a very pretty site but I think it works and he's very honest about products he reviews...but that is only my oppinion.brian_riendeau - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
"They have released a few gaming chassis in the past few years, which we have not had the pleasure to look at until now.""The front of the case is made up of a custom molded bezel, which gives it a look that says gaming all over it."
I think these two lines pretty much sum up the entire problem... AT is becoming totally disconnected from the users who come to this site.
Nazgoth - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
Is it me or are new cases getting uglier and ulgier :/masher - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
> with over 700 employees across the world,> Chenbro is one of the biggest manufacturing
> companies in the world.
Haha, what are you smoking? If they had 70,000 employees, they'd be one of the largest manufacturing companies in the world...at 700, they're not even a flyspeck on the map.
Booty - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
Figured I might as well pipe up too - I love hearing about new cases, but really, when you reviewed this, did you actually think anyone out there would like the looks of it? Did YOU like the looks of it? I don't care if the thing has the most spacious and effecient design to date - there's no way in hell I would buy a case that looks like that. Or like the Guardian. I browse through the cases at Newegg and wonder why anyone would buy about half of them - there are so many just plain tacky designs...I'd take a nice simple Antec 3700 over this thing any day of the week. If I hadn't been reading Anandtech for so many years and this was the first review I read off your site, I'd have trouble taking you seriously and might not come back...
Maybe you guys (at AT) just have really bad taste. I look at some of the case choices in the custom-built system guides and wonder why you'd choose those over some other options. In any case, please, please stop wasting resources reviewing junky, ugly cases like this one. Case reviews are good. Ugly case reviews are bad. I don't care if the company sent it to you for free to review or what - you guys have a reputation to uphold.
Oh, and I also agree - if the case comes standard with a power supply, it should be benched/tested with that supply. If you can buy the case without the supply, that's a different story, but test it with the included hardware. If you want to then throw a different PSU/fans/whatever in to try to make the noise comparisons fair, fine... but most people who buy a case aren't just going to gut it - they're going to want to use the goods that came with the chassis.
araczynski - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
reminds me of a similarly named one a month or so ago... don't think its the same company, but obviously this company didn't bother to read this site before just randomly deciding to send their case to be reviewed here.anyway, i would say the only thing missing is a little UV Spider dangling on a thin strand of UV web from inside there, at least then the design would get a smile rather then a cringe out of me.
brian_riendeau - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
I have no idea who some of these case article are targetted at. I do not know anyone that would dare show up to a LAN party with a case that looks like this.Is anyone coming to this site actually interested in a plastic bezel spider case that looks like it belongs to a 5 year old? Why not start reviewing Barbie and Pokemon computer cases too???
Creig - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
I agree with #4. If you swapped out the power supply to equalize noise comparisons, why didn't you swap out the case fans as well? And I don't recall previous video card reviews saying that they swapped out the cooling fan, either.At the very least, do a before/after set of readings so people who are thinking of ordering the case/power supply combo can gauge the difference between the two.
Just an idea.
Aquila76 - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
Why is the market flooded with these "gamer" cases that look like something out of a 70's gay porn movie?Just a thought, but if you spend less time building these atrocities and more time building the cases we do want, you'll actually have better sales which translates to more money, which translates to hooking up with more women (or men, if you like this case), which translates to less time to come up with these hideous designs.
TrogdorJW - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
I'm not at all convinced of the "growing trend" in removable motherboard trays. Yes, they exist, but they're generally only in very expensive cases. I can see where they might be somewhat desirable, but I swap out hardware relatively often and have never felt overly distressed by the lack of a removable motherboard tray. Let's be honest: if you're removing the motherboard, it's going to be something of a pain in the ass with or without the tray. The only thing it helps with would be the installation/removal of a CPU, as getting a CPU out when the motherboard is installed is very difficult.Maybe other people swap CPUs and motherboards frequently, but I usually only do it once or twice a year at most. I can deal with the non-removalbe tray for those times when I do remove the motherboard. A bigger concern for me is the fugly exterior and the LED fans. But I'm not the target market for this case. I believe the target market is kids with purple hair, nose rings, bad vision, and access to mommy and daddy's credit card. ;)
MDE - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
Cable management 101: Don't put the giant ATX cable right next to the CPU heatsink...skunkbuster - Wednesday, August 11, 2004 - link
the message is clear! its DAMN FUGLY!ProphetCHRIS - Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - link
It comes right after the Guardian in my list of the worst cases ever....Staples - Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - link
Very ugly design. It certainly will not be my next case.kmmatney - Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - link
Can't say that I've ever found a removable motherboard tray very useful. Just gives more parts to rattle and weakens the structure. You certainly don't need it to swap out components.shuttleboi - Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - link
Do Anandtech reviewers have a problem with aesthetics or something? Why do they keep reviewing these really butt-ugly cases? How about something (e.g. from Lian-Li or Coolermaster) that isn't completely repulsive?Budman - Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - link
" We test it with all the same PSU so that the noise comparisons are all the same.Kristopher "
that may be good for mobo/cpu tests but you're reviewing a CASE,you just cant pick & chose the parts you like.
The case should be reviewed as is just like anybody who's going to go buy it,not everybody's going to have a spare psu handy.
And just like the other guy said it's a freaking Fortron 350 watter great psu.
very bad ideal to swap out the psu,when you buy it will it come with that other psu? NO . so if you're going to review do it as it will come from the store.
Sonic587 - Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - link
"Installation of all components took no more than 15 minutes and since the Chenbro threw in a 350W power supply, a few minutes were shaved off that total installation time. We did swap out that power supply with our own test bed unit, the OCZ 520W PowerStream, for our benchmarks."Excuse me if I missed something, and ignore this if I did, but they just "threw in" a 350W power supply? That's a Fortron FSP350-60PN. A very high quality PSU that could handle almost any system out there today. I think there should be some credit to Chenbro for choosing a quality component that is so often ignored.
That said, I agree it is 110% fugly.
BUBKA - Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - link
I heard it was optimized to play spiderman 2 and benches 3% fasterKristopherKubicki - Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - link
We test it with all the same PSU so that the noise comparisons are all the same.Kristopher
Degrador - Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - link
Yep, I'm with #1. Fugly.Monkeydonutstick - Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - link
Super StupidBudman - Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - link
Why in the hell would you go to all the trouble of reviewing a case but then swap out the PSU???You should have tested it with the PSU it came with.
Operandi - Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - link
WTF?Stop reviewing these things.
Pixle - Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - link
What in the....What type of designers or artists did they have. That thing gives me a headache just looking at it.
Manzelle - Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - link
Fugly..