Hey Lonewolf15, I would be interested in your cooling information, I"m always up for a good time with my drill :P
I tried to PM you cut your account does not accept PM's right now. So if you check this thread again, PM me or use my public email at [email protected] Thanks!
#35, if you want a guide on doing a blowhole for your P160 to give it the additional cooling the Chembro has, PM me in the forums, I did this and it keeps temps down even further.
#32, the part of your post I thought was "full of it was this:
"Just face it, you guys will never be satisfied with any case as long as you get it for free."
I was trying to point out how untrue this is; it was a blanket statement. Lots of us are enthusiasts and willing to pony up some cash. Even those of us who aren't can acknowledge when something is worth the price paid, even if we as individuals wouldn't pay it. I think very few of us are "I want it, and I want it FREE" types; we're willing to pay money for something provided that something is reliable, has the features we want, and we aren't being gouged on it.
I have to agree with #22. 62 decibals is borderline cacophony, yet the article seems to have played down this aspect of case performance. I also agree with #18's line of thinking.....the noise problem is significant enough to warrant further investigation of the problem. Would switching out fans make a difference? Is the noise associated with case resonance?
More than any other review site, we rely on Anandtech's thorough objective analysis and sherlockian investigative prowess to help us decide which hardware to purchase with our hard earned dollars.
On a positive note, it's great to see an attractive, high end case finally being reviewed. How about a comparison review on silent cases next?
I've been lurking over at Teacm Chenbro Forums anxiously waiting for the GBII. I drove over to the Microcenter is Dallas 2 weeks ago, they have the Silver case only in stock and yes it's $260.
It's a gorgeous case, no doubt about it, but I'm not going to pay $260 for it now. I'll wait after the first until the price drops some.
I took the case apart and examined it closely.
Things that really impressed me were:
The attention to detail, all the extra features are fantastic.
I especially like the fan cages, the ICM, the drive levers and the HD cage.
Believe it or not, I really liked the handles. They made it easy to move the case around.
One especially nice touch is that the side window is actually relatively easy to remove from the side panel itself.
This way if you ever scratch or break the window, you can just replace that instead of the whole panel.
I would also be nice for removing it if you wanted to cut a blowhole in the window.
The fixed inserts in the mobo tray are a real plus, unlike say a Lian Li where they use those dreadful spring inserts.
The negatives:
The price obviously, the case is not worth $260, $200 OK, but not $260.
I'm sorry to say IMO the case side panels are flimsy.
The case is simply not as heavily constructed as the old Coolermaster ATC cases were. Those cases felt like a brick.
The case is not as flimsy as an Antec Super Lanboy or Antec P160, but it's not excusable in a case at this price point.
To really make this case feel solid I would advise using the AcoustiPack Case insulation.
The mobo tray simply doesn't slide in and out as easily as it should, it's a very tight fit.
Alll in all, I am still planning to buy the case when the price drops.
If you want one of most beautiful silver cases on the market, and you're willing to spend nearly $300 for the case and another $100 for the AcoustiPack, then go fo it.
I can't comment on the fans since there was not a PS available to test them, but really fans are no problem. I've got some 120mm Stealths already.
I know I don't post here much, but some of you people really astound me. You would be willing to pay $$$$ for the guts of a system (say an NForce 4 SLI), but when it comes to the thing you will be looking at the most, you want to suddenly become cheapskates. You want to settle for some $100 POS that includes a PS. You're worse than bunch of old women complaining about the price of groceries.
OK on a serious note, I went to Micro Center today to check one of these bad boys out. I walked in with the money to purchase it as well if I so chose. (Cost $259.99 here locally + tax). I walked out of Micro center with an Antec 160 case, Extra 120mm fan and matching internal card reader for around $180 - $100 less than I would have sppent on just the case. It looks nice, but feature wise the Antec stood out to me. This antec is still the most expensive case I have ever purchased. If the Chenbro were priced more reasonably then I would have gone for it. So this is a personal experience, I went in looking to buy this case, but came out with another setup. Also it looks better on the web than it does in real life. oh well.
#33, what part of the statement or premise did you think was full of it.
What seems fair to you might not seems fair to others. If you just take a look at the reviews/ratings from Newegg and add up all the Antec SLK 350 Models and the Lanboy (not super) cases (which is around the same price range) vs the P160 Models (with no power supply) or any $120 and up cases the ratio is at least 10 to 1, let alone Cheap cases vs 125 dollar cases. Also, for anything that is rare it is most likely going to cost you "a arm and a leg", for example a lamborghini vs dodge viper. I don't know alot about cars, but comparing the specs the dodge viper has the advantage in many categories, like price, horse power/torque, mileage, and curb weight, etc. The Chenbro case will must likely be a rare case, since no one will be getting it. Braggin rights are more likely given to people who have rare or custom built cases. Even though most people can't tell the difference between cases that have similar features where the price isn't a factor, they will notice a rare, different/unique/custom, or a heavily modded case. Also, you listed alot of specs which are standard features in must cases like side window (the window is platic for goodness sake), low-noise fan, front USB/audio/firewire (firewire is rarely use and your motherboards has to support it to begin with, usb 2.0 is more widely used), temperature sensors (unpractical, the sensor on the motherboard counts more than any other sensor), thumbscrews, and dual slide-off sides. The removable motherboard tray will be probably only be used once or maybe twice every two to three years depending how much you upgrade, by then you would probably get a new case anyways. The vibration-dampening mounts are unnecessary, how much vibration does a liquid bearing hard drive give anyways or even a mechanical bearing for that fact? The P160 case simply does not justify the 50 dollars markup, then again it is your money.
Plenty of us have spent $100-150 for a case. I don't think this is a small sum. However, $240 for a case is another matter entirely.
The Antec P160 aluminum case I bought came with side window, removable hard drive racks with vibration-dampening mounts, two low-noise 120mm fans, front USB/Firewire/audio and dual temperature sensors, thumbscrews for the slot covers, dual slide-off sides, and a removable motherboard tray. Currently that case is available for $120-130; from NewEgg you get free shipping on it. Antec considers it their top-of-the-line case. I was willing to pay this price which I considered fair.
Contrast this with the Chenbro, whose features are fairly similar, but costs $100+ more. We're not asking for a great case for free; we're asking that Chenbro charge a competetive price. Heck, I'd have considered $180 including shipping a fair price; $240 is downright ridiculous. If others have the same features (i.e., Antec, Silverstone) for far less, why is expecting Chenbro to have a price similar to theirs unreasonable?
Just face it, you guys will never be satisfied with any case as long as you get it for free. If you want a case that stand out from the crowd build one yourself or shutup and buy the most expensive case you can find, most likely only a number of you will actually buy it. The fact is most of you won't buy a expensive (top of line case) and would probably just settle with a cheap case and a decent power supply, even if you do have the money for it. Saying that, I prefer the Lanboy or SLK 350 watt model from antec, but that is just my opinion. It is cheap, reliable, quiet, and aluminum depending which one you get; alot of people buy it for these reasons, even though the case does not stand out from the crowd, but who cares. Also, I think that toolless cases are overrated and thumbscrews can be just as easy to remove components and drives from the case around the same time it takes you push a slot or twist a knob. Taking a quick look at the pictures of the cm stacker and chenbro case, it looks to me that you still need to crack open the case to replace any part and the motherboard still require screws to mount them.
I can't really understand why everyone is ragging on the XSpider case so much. It was actually one of the quietest cases tested, it was well-built, and is 1/5 the price of this one. It didn't look that bad - you can get other colors besides red.
Like others I applaud the review of a nicer, non tacky "metal-head", case. Though there are even nicer ones out there. Personally I don't care for any type of side window, though the one on this case is bareable. However I also agree with others that 240 bucks is a bit much to spend for a case like this, especially considering that you can find many other cases with similar features, some of which look nicer, for a lot less. Still this is a step in the right direction IMO.
I knew that price would hurt them, it was supposed to be $200.
I'm still going to buy one later, which may be sitting im my bedroom until 2006 or later when I will put a new system in it.
I'll probably mod that top exhaust to fit 120mm fan to put my 4 Blue LED Blackfire A.C. Ryan fan on it.
Why complain about stock, who uses stock anyway?
It looks good and is probably solid. The ICM and Fleibay are good for modders who want looks and airflow (although having the HDDs backs facing the motherboard will reduce airflow).
Would it be possible to have a short follow-up addition about modding this case to fix the noise issues, etc? It shouldnt take that long to do (~2 hours maybe?)
hoppa: We actually did briefly mention this in the conclusion...
"The GB2 performed extremely well in our thermal benchmarks. Though very loud, the dual 120mm fans helped keep the air flowing to move warm air out of the chassis as quick as possible"
does anyone else think its unfair and incredibly biased (and unjournalistic) that they dont make a single mention of the noise this thing puts out in the conclusion? come on! this thing is on par with the noisiest case they've ever reviewed and they do all they can to skirt the issue. this thing is as loud as a f*in lawnmower! BS, if you ask me.
Good to see that the case fans are with the 3-pin connectors (I got Zalman's fanmate and multi-connector to get the fans into different volts). It's loud as default (with 12V) but how "loud" are they at 5V or 7V? This is something I would really like to know about.
Looking at the case, for the price given, there's 1 critical flaw that really hurts it: the placement of the front Aux ports. Aux ports are only useful if you can reach them, and the bottom of the case is next in the line of unreachable spots just head of the rear of the case. If I'm buying a high-end case, the Aux ports MUST be at least mid-way on the case if not ideally at the top.
The question on value is simple - $240 for the (near equal) noisiest case Anandtech has review is crap value plain and simple. This then begs the questions others asked about the fans. It seems very strange that 2x 120mm fans should be so loud so does replacing them with decent alternatives (panaflo etc) put it on par with an Antec with 2x 120mm in terms of noise? I'd hope with such a discrepancy that a little bit more journalistic investigation would have come naturally - if I spend $240 I want to know if replacing the fans is a solution or if there is an inherent flaw in the design. Apologies for rant.
What is the heat performance like with the third fan installed?
Would switching the fans to (better/quieter?) ones reduce the sound significantly?
Are they suppose to be stuck at 3200 rpm's, I thought it was standard to have variable speed fans running inside the system. Is there any sort of mod you can do to handle that?
I think the different length stand-offs were for different sized boards. The 1/3" are for universal locations, and the 1/8" with the add-on part are for customizable locations for different board sizes. That seems reasonable to me, and not a negative. Also, thanks for finally agreeing that a removable MB tray is not such a great feature. I got tired of seeing cases ripped for something that even most enthusiasts don't use. Now, about testing cases with their own PS's. Do them with the stock PS, and with your own so I know if I need to buy a new PS with the case or not. Better yet, benchmark the PS if it is a part of the sale just like you would any other part of the case it comes with.
Good review by the way. Keep up the good work, and remember you can't please everybody, so try to please me instead.
In response to #6, I agree on the dodge about whether this case is worth our money. I also agree with #8, finally a review of a case that isn't a downright tacky pre-mod.
I had wanted this case at one point and waited several months. However, I had extremely poor communications response from Chenbro, who ignored two of my three e-mails, and never gave me the information I needed on pricing and availability. I ended up buying an Antec P160 with the window, and modding a custom 120mm blowhole on top, a feature that I wanted that the Chenbro has. I'm glad I bought the Antec; $240 even for a case as nice as the Chenbro is ridiculous. I paid half that for the Antec, which is a topnotch design, and used the money I saved to do things like sleeve the power supply and rebuild the system.
One more thing: The review was very well done on the case itself. My compliments, it's one of the better reviews I've seen here in a long time.
$240?!? This isn't a server case, it's a gaming case. I'd rather blow the 240 on a video card or a 500GB RAID 0 SATA array. Maybe they should call it the Chenbro Duesenberg!
1st up: guys why are most of u stripping flesh of the reviewer. reviewers job well done IMHO.
2nd up: Nice case. personally, in the past, i have looked at the gaming bomb as a cheapo, tacky orange piece of crap. this is stylish, VERY stylish. specially like the handels on the top of the case, almost gives it a apple G5 flava, and whilst i not a fan of the G5 ( or apple in general ) they do look sweet;)
however, the price of the case does appear a tad bit expensive: 240 U$D, even with the very poor dollar, makes this case £134 UKP, now i got my coolermaster black widow for £80, and thats pushing my personal envelope for a case, budget wise. definatly a case for those who are truly hardware addicts, especially when the usd price put it at mpore that a decent 6600GT, and a lot of people would rather have a nice-ish video card then a swanky case. might hurt sales a bit. i reccon chenbro should launce a case that looks the same, but has cheaper internal features, to get it out at a price point where the majority can afford it, then, it would be a Class A case.
karlos
Frankly, I don't see the point of spending $240 on this, when HEC 6A series cases cost as little as $60, PSU included. Hell, a CM Stacker costs $170 and is worlds better than this thing.
#1 I agree with your suggestion completely. Some facts and figures on the fans will be mighty helpful. Also Purav, I know this case didn't have a PSU with it, but in the future if cases have one, can you review those as well please, if not with the case review then on its own. Also, would it be possible to see a roundup of 400W+ PSUs anytime in the near future. I've looked through many a PSU. Liked some, and not so much others. Sometimes, its nice to be able to look at reviews as they tend to have a more information than the average review at say newegg or somewhere like that. Infact I'd say reviews for case fans and CPU HS/Fan will also be very welcome.
"So, the question on everyone's mind is, 'is the Gaming Bomb II worth the money?' In our honest opinion, the GB2 is one of the best cases that we have seen in Chenbro's product line."
I'm not sure if that quote was a deliberate dodge, or just bad writing. Either way, it was pretty ugly to read.
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42 Comments
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unclebud - Tuesday, January 18, 2005 - link
i saw it for $69.95 w/o ps @ mom and pop shopBladen - Saturday, January 1, 2005 - link
Get your black (or silver) at Newegg for $209http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?desc...
arthas76 - Wednesday, December 22, 2004 - link
is this case even for available yet? microcenter has the silver version at a huge cost. i want the black!phaxmohdem - Friday, December 17, 2004 - link
Hey Lonewolf15, I would be interested in your cooling information, I"m always up for a good time with my drill :PI tried to PM you cut your account does not accept PM's right now. So if you check this thread again, PM me or use my public email at [email protected] Thanks!
LoneWolf15 - Thursday, December 16, 2004 - link
#35, if you want a guide on doing a blowhole for your P160 to give it the additional cooling the Chembro has, PM me in the forums, I did this and it keeps temps down even further.#32, the part of your post I thought was "full of it was this:
"Just face it, you guys will never be satisfied with any case as long as you get it for free."
I was trying to point out how untrue this is; it was a blanket statement. Lots of us are enthusiasts and willing to pony up some cash. Even those of us who aren't can acknowledge when something is worth the price paid, even if we as individuals wouldn't pay it. I think very few of us are "I want it, and I want it FREE" types; we're willing to pay money for something provided that something is reliable, has the features we want, and we aren't being gouged on it.
jwix - Thursday, December 16, 2004 - link
I have to agree with #22. 62 decibals is borderline cacophony, yet the article seems to have played down this aspect of case performance. I also agree with #18's line of thinking.....the noise problem is significant enough to warrant further investigation of the problem. Would switching out fans make a difference? Is the noise associated with case resonance?More than any other review site, we rely on Anandtech's thorough objective analysis and sherlockian investigative prowess to help us decide which hardware to purchase with our hard earned dollars.
On a positive note, it's great to see an attractive, high end case finally being reviewed. How about a comparison review on silent cases next?
qdemn7 - Thursday, December 16, 2004 - link
I've been lurking over at Teacm Chenbro Forums anxiously waiting for the GBII. I drove over to the Microcenter is Dallas 2 weeks ago, they have the Silver case only in stock and yes it's $260.It's a gorgeous case, no doubt about it, but I'm not going to pay $260 for it now. I'll wait after the first until the price drops some.
I took the case apart and examined it closely.
Things that really impressed me were:
The attention to detail, all the extra features are fantastic.
I especially like the fan cages, the ICM, the drive levers and the HD cage.
Believe it or not, I really liked the handles. They made it easy to move the case around.
One especially nice touch is that the side window is actually relatively easy to remove from the side panel itself.
This way if you ever scratch or break the window, you can just replace that instead of the whole panel.
I would also be nice for removing it if you wanted to cut a blowhole in the window.
The fixed inserts in the mobo tray are a real plus, unlike say a Lian Li where they use those dreadful spring inserts.
The negatives:
The price obviously, the case is not worth $260, $200 OK, but not $260.
I'm sorry to say IMO the case side panels are flimsy.
The case is simply not as heavily constructed as the old Coolermaster ATC cases were. Those cases felt like a brick.
The case is not as flimsy as an Antec Super Lanboy or Antec P160, but it's not excusable in a case at this price point.
To really make this case feel solid I would advise using the AcoustiPack Case insulation.
The mobo tray simply doesn't slide in and out as easily as it should, it's a very tight fit.
Alll in all, I am still planning to buy the case when the price drops.
If you want one of most beautiful silver cases on the market, and you're willing to spend nearly $300 for the case and another $100 for the AcoustiPack, then go fo it.
I can't comment on the fans since there was not a PS available to test them, but really fans are no problem. I've got some 120mm Stealths already.
I know I don't post here much, but some of you people really astound me. You would be willing to pay $$$$ for the guts of a system (say an NForce 4 SLI), but when it comes to the thing you will be looking at the most, you want to suddenly become cheapskates. You want to settle for some $100 POS that includes a PS. You're worse than bunch of old women complaining about the price of groceries.
phaxmohdem - Wednesday, December 15, 2004 - link
OK on a serious note, I went to Micro Center today to check one of these bad boys out. I walked in with the money to purchase it as well if I so chose. (Cost $259.99 here locally + tax). I walked out of Micro center with an Antec 160 case, Extra 120mm fan and matching internal card reader for around $180 - $100 less than I would have sppent on just the case. It looks nice, but feature wise the Antec stood out to me. This antec is still the most expensive case I have ever purchased. If the Chenbro were priced more reasonably then I would have gone for it. So this is a personal experience, I went in looking to buy this case, but came out with another setup. Also it looks better on the web than it does in real life. oh well.RuStYwAvE - Wednesday, December 15, 2004 - link
#33, what part of the statement or premise did you think was full of it.What seems fair to you might not seems fair to others. If you just take a look at the reviews/ratings from Newegg and add up all the Antec SLK 350 Models and the Lanboy (not super) cases (which is around the same price range) vs the P160 Models (with no power supply) or any $120 and up cases the ratio is at least 10 to 1, let alone Cheap cases vs 125 dollar cases. Also, for anything that is rare it is most likely going to cost you "a arm and a leg", for example a lamborghini vs dodge viper. I don't know alot about cars, but comparing the specs the dodge viper has the advantage in many categories, like price, horse power/torque, mileage, and curb weight, etc. The Chenbro case will must likely be a rare case, since no one will be getting it. Braggin rights are more likely given to people who have rare or custom built cases. Even though most people can't tell the difference between cases that have similar features where the price isn't a factor, they will notice a rare, different/unique/custom, or a heavily modded case. Also, you listed alot of specs which are standard features in must cases like side window (the window is platic for goodness sake), low-noise fan, front USB/audio/firewire (firewire is rarely use and your motherboards has to support it to begin with, usb 2.0 is more widely used), temperature sensors (unpractical, the sensor on the motherboard counts more than any other sensor), thumbscrews, and dual slide-off sides. The removable motherboard tray will be probably only be used once or maybe twice every two to three years depending how much you upgrade, by then you would probably get a new case anyways. The vibration-dampening mounts are unnecessary, how much vibration does a liquid bearing hard drive give anyways or even a mechanical bearing for that fact? The P160 case simply does not justify the 50 dollars markup, then again it is your money.
LoneWolf15 - Wednesday, December 15, 2004 - link
#32, your post is full of it.Plenty of us have spent $100-150 for a case. I don't think this is a small sum. However, $240 for a case is another matter entirely.
The Antec P160 aluminum case I bought came with side window, removable hard drive racks with vibration-dampening mounts, two low-noise 120mm fans, front USB/Firewire/audio and dual temperature sensors, thumbscrews for the slot covers, dual slide-off sides, and a removable motherboard tray. Currently that case is available for $120-130; from NewEgg you get free shipping on it. Antec considers it their top-of-the-line case. I was willing to pay this price which I considered fair.
Contrast this with the Chenbro, whose features are fairly similar, but costs $100+ more. We're not asking for a great case for free; we're asking that Chenbro charge a competetive price. Heck, I'd have considered $180 including shipping a fair price; $240 is downright ridiculous. If others have the same features (i.e., Antec, Silverstone) for far less, why is expecting Chenbro to have a price similar to theirs unreasonable?
RuStYwAvE - Wednesday, December 15, 2004 - link
Just face it, you guys will never be satisfied with any case as long as you get it for free. If you want a case that stand out from the crowd build one yourself or shutup and buy the most expensive case you can find, most likely only a number of you will actually buy it. The fact is most of you won't buy a expensive (top of line case) and would probably just settle with a cheap case and a decent power supply, even if you do have the money for it. Saying that, I prefer the Lanboy or SLK 350 watt model from antec, but that is just my opinion. It is cheap, reliable, quiet, and aluminum depending which one you get; alot of people buy it for these reasons, even though the case does not stand out from the crowd, but who cares. Also, I think that toolless cases are overrated and thumbscrews can be just as easy to remove components and drives from the case around the same time it takes you push a slot or twist a knob. Taking a quick look at the pictures of the cm stacker and chenbro case, it looks to me that you still need to crack open the case to replace any part and the motherboard still require screws to mount them.phaxmohdem - Wednesday, December 15, 2004 - link
Those B**tards stole my design! And now they insult me by offering it at a meager $260??? This case is worth at LEAST $549.99 Come on!kmmatney - Wednesday, December 15, 2004 - link
I can't really understand why everyone is ragging on the XSpider case so much. It was actually one of the quietest cases tested, it was well-built, and is 1/5 the price of this one. It didn't look that bad - you can get other colors besides red.Locut0s - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
Like others I applaud the review of a nicer, non tacky "metal-head", case. Though there are even nicer ones out there. Personally I don't care for any type of side window, though the one on this case is bareable. However I also agree with others that 240 bucks is a bit much to spend for a case like this, especially considering that you can find many other cases with similar features, some of which look nicer, for a lot less. Still this is a step in the right direction IMO.Bladen - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
I knew that price would hurt them, it was supposed to be $200.I'm still going to buy one later, which may be sitting im my bedroom until 2006 or later when I will put a new system in it.
I'll probably mod that top exhaust to fit 120mm fan to put my 4 Blue LED Blackfire A.C. Ryan fan on it.
Why complain about stock, who uses stock anyway?
It looks good and is probably solid. The ICM and Fleibay are good for modders who want looks and airflow (although having the HDDs backs facing the motherboard will reduce airflow).
ksherman - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
no thanks... ill stick to my uber quite Antec SonataWolfz - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
Would it be possible to have a short follow-up addition about modding this case to fix the noise issues, etc? It shouldnt take that long to do (~2 hours maybe?)diehlr - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
uglyPhantronius - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
I"ll stick with my aluminum chieftec, thanks.PuravSanghani - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
hoppa: We actually did briefly mention this in the conclusion..."The GB2 performed extremely well in our thermal benchmarks. Though very loud, the dual 120mm fans helped keep the air flowing to move warm air out of the chassis as quick as possible"
Hope that helps!
hoppa - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
does anyone else think its unfair and incredibly biased (and unjournalistic) that they dont make a single mention of the noise this thing puts out in the conclusion? come on! this thing is on par with the noisiest case they've ever reviewed and they do all they can to skirt the issue. this thing is as loud as a f*in lawnmower! BS, if you ask me.Jackular - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
Good to see that the case fans are with the 3-pin connectors (I got Zalman's fanmate and multi-connector to get the fans into different volts). It's loud as default (with 12V) but how "loud" are they at 5V or 7V? This is something I would really like to know about.ViRGE - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
Looking at the case, for the price given, there's 1 critical flaw that really hurts it: the placement of the front Aux ports. Aux ports are only useful if you can reach them, and the bottom of the case is next in the line of unreachable spots just head of the rear of the case. If I'm buying a high-end case, the Aux ports MUST be at least mid-way on the case if not ideally at the top.Noli - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
The question on value is simple - $240 for the (near equal) noisiest case Anandtech has review is crap value plain and simple. This then begs the questions others asked about the fans. It seems very strange that 2x 120mm fans should be so loud so does replacing them with decent alternatives (panaflo etc) put it on par with an Antec with 2x 120mm in terms of noise? I'd hope with such a discrepancy that a little bit more journalistic investigation would have come naturally - if I spend $240 I want to know if replacing the fans is a solution or if there is an inherent flaw in the design. Apologies for rant.Wolfz - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
What is the heat performance like with the third fan installed?Would switching the fans to (better/quieter?) ones reduce the sound significantly?
Are they suppose to be stuck at 3200 rpm's, I thought it was standard to have variable speed fans running inside the system. Is there any sort of mod you can do to handle that?
bldckstark - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
I think the different length stand-offs were for different sized boards. The 1/3" are for universal locations, and the 1/8" with the add-on part are for customizable locations for different board sizes. That seems reasonable to me, and not a negative. Also, thanks for finally agreeing that a removable MB tray is not such a great feature. I got tired of seeing cases ripped for something that even most enthusiasts don't use. Now, about testing cases with their own PS's. Do them with the stock PS, and with your own so I know if I need to buy a new PS with the case or not. Better yet, benchmark the PS if it is a part of the sale just like you would any other part of the case it comes with.Good review by the way. Keep up the good work, and remember you can't please everybody, so try to please me instead.
Avalon - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
I was really starting to like the case until I read the price. I was expecting half of that, at the most. Jesus.TinyTeeth - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
Interesting. But damn, a Coolermaster Wavemaster with 120mm fans would be perfect!LoneWolf15 - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
In response to #6, I agree on the dodge about whether this case is worth our money. I also agree with #8, finally a review of a case that isn't a downright tacky pre-mod.I had wanted this case at one point and waited several months. However, I had extremely poor communications response from Chenbro, who ignored two of my three e-mails, and never gave me the information I needed on pricing and availability. I ended up buying an Antec P160 with the window, and modding a custom 120mm blowhole on top, a feature that I wanted that the Chenbro has. I'm glad I bought the Antec; $240 even for a case as nice as the Chenbro is ridiculous. I paid half that for the Antec, which is a topnotch design, and used the money I saved to do things like sleeve the power supply and rebuild the system.
One more thing: The review was very well done on the case itself. My compliments, it's one of the better reviews I've seen here in a long time.
Aquila76 - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
$240?!? This isn't a server case, it's a gaming case. I'd rather blow the 240 on a video card or a 500GB RAID 0 SATA array. Maybe they should call it the Chenbro Duesenberg!Filibuster - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
Looks like an overpriced Antec P160 ripoff.arswihart - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
just get a PC-60 with door fan/windowkarlreading - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
1st up: guys why are most of u stripping flesh of the reviewer. reviewers job well done IMHO.2nd up: Nice case. personally, in the past, i have looked at the gaming bomb as a cheapo, tacky orange piece of crap. this is stylish, VERY stylish. specially like the handels on the top of the case, almost gives it a apple G5 flava, and whilst i not a fan of the G5 ( or apple in general ) they do look sweet;)
however, the price of the case does appear a tad bit expensive: 240 U$D, even with the very poor dollar, makes this case £134 UKP, now i got my coolermaster black widow for £80, and thats pushing my personal envelope for a case, budget wise. definatly a case for those who are truly hardware addicts, especially when the usd price put it at mpore that a decent 6600GT, and a lot of people would rather have a nice-ish video card then a swanky case. might hurt sales a bit. i reccon chenbro should launce a case that looks the same, but has cheaper internal features, to get it out at a price point where the majority can afford it, then, it would be a Class A case.
karlos
Gholam - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
Frankly, I don't see the point of spending $240 on this, when HEC 6A series cases cost as little as $60, PSU included. Hell, a CM Stacker costs $170 and is worlds better than this thing.kcma - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
OMFG!!! a case review that doesnt review a BUTT UGLY TACKY AS HELL case!!!avijay - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
#1 I agree with your suggestion completely. Some facts and figures on the fans will be mighty helpful. Also Purav, I know this case didn't have a PSU with it, but in the future if cases have one, can you review those as well please, if not with the case review then on its own. Also, would it be possible to see a roundup of 400W+ PSUs anytime in the near future. I've looked through many a PSU. Liked some, and not so much others. Sometimes, its nice to be able to look at reviews as they tend to have a more information than the average review at say newegg or somewhere like that. Infact I'd say reviews for case fans and CPU HS/Fan will also be very welcome.Poser - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
"So, the question on everyone's mind is, 'is the Gaming Bomb II worth the money?' In our honest opinion, the GB2 is one of the best cases that we have seen in Chenbro's product line."I'm not sure if that quote was a deliberate dodge, or just bad writing. Either way, it was pretty ugly to read.
Zepper - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
Avert your eyes - tortured language ahead:"Instead, we received a case that had the looks of something for which only an enthusiast would feel comfortable spending." ... and there's more.
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. When you can get a similar Kingwin for under $100. ??? Sorry, looks aren't worth $150.!
.bh.
mongoosesRawesome - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
Finally a case reviewed here that isn't butt ugly. Too bad its 240 bucks.Try reviewing cases someone would actually buy for a change.
Degrador - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
Hmm... I guess I was just expecting a little more out of the GB2. Makes me feel a bit better about the Stacker I bought though.CrystalBay - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
Nice case,but I'll wait for a cheap knockoff, or a CM Stacker. That infrared heat graph is a nice effect though.Operandi - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - link
Looks like a very nice case with horribly loud fans.Purav; For future reviews it would be nice if you would include more information on the fans, make model, RPM, CFM, ect.