SuperCharge, SofTouch, Prodigy, stock water cooling support, brightest LED strips, most dense sleeving extensions, first internet connectivity fan controller, and unnecessary flashy in-your-face look cases.
Dustin you really hit the nail "modern conventions are far from perfect and there's a lot of room for improvement".
As an example, the case is wide - why not turn the PSU 90 degrees and have the cables feeding directly into the area behind the motherboard. Lian Li at least experiment with different locations.
I would love to see a case where there is a built in power splitter for the 5.25 bays and Hard drive cages so one molex cable goes to a daughter board which has several socket to run short cables up to the hard drives for example - a bit of imagination would result in a very neat cabling job.
This case really excels for watercooling. Perfect for using a 200x200 mm radiatior (or even 2, front and top)
The review compares a mATX case 2/3 of the price of this case, an aluminum case with almost no water cooling support that's 2x the price, and ambient temperatures that vary with each review resulting in a default temperature, and noise level being already higher, or lower.
The case was designed for watercooling in mind, which the reviewer poorly covered. Not thorough if you ask me.
Must admit I cannot remember Anandtech reviewing watercooling either.
Watercooling is a niche for those who like to have a bit of fun and get their hands dirty (I think that should read "wet") on the innards of their computer.
I love it, but I know it is not very everyone.
The case looks as though it would be very good for watercooling possible even better than the legend that is the Silverstone TJ07. Certainly more than capable of cooling two hot running GPUs, a seriously overclocked CPU and maybe even the RAM as well without really breaking sweat. So would be pretty quiet compared to trying to air cool that lot
Are there are fan filters integrated into the case? Are they easily accessible? Also is the hard drive cage module/removable? For the same price, it seems the Switch 810 comes with a few more bells and whistles. I personally don't like the cheap, glossy plastic though. I like the clean, subdued design of the XL personally.
Anyway, can Anandtech invest in a 360/240mm rad so at the very least you all can demonstrate the water cooling potential of cases in future reviews?
I know assembling a full loop would be very time-consuming and not really provide any extra insight, but just some pictures of a radiator installed in the supported areas would be a great addition to case reviews.
There's a filter over the front 230mm intake, but you have to remove the fascia to get to it. There's also a filter under the PSU intake that slides out from the back.
The Switch 810 isn't a bad case and the boutiques seem to like it (though that may be because NZXT seems to have a very thriving business with boutiques), but honestly unless you're doing any serious watercooling I'd look elsewhere. The Shinobi XL seems pretty ideal under those circumstances, although Azza's cases seem to be good for it, too.
I feel like the problem with investing in a radiator just for the sake of pictures is that it seems like all it really does is just demonstrate "this radiator fits here." Watercooling is pretty niche to begin with, and I feel like with a lot of these you should be able to at least eyeball it and get a good feeling for whether or not a radiator can fit. Of course, the problem there is admittedly that I get to manhandle these cases all I want while you guys have to make do with the photos I post. :|
I'll keep it in mind, but it's an interesting thing that many manufacturers are really attacking what's a fairly small minority of end users. "Our case is fantastic for custom watercooling!" Yeah, but what about the aircooling that the lion's share of end users are going to use?
Dustin: I do hope you are accusing Xbounrnex and not me of being BitFenix PR.
I have nothing to do with Bitfenix, I own no products by them, although I do have a water cooled Silverstone TJ07 so entirely capable of comparing the Bitfenix to that.
If anything I am a fan of Silverstone (with qualifications mostly related to build quality) as the TJ07 is the king for water cooled ATX cases and the TJ08-e (my next case) equally good for m-atx as long as you stick to one GPU
I'm referring to xbournex and it's not really an "accusation" necessarily...if you check out the review of the Prodigy, xbournex replies there basically as a rep for the company.
You may be 100 per cent certain Xbournex is Bitfenix-employed. He's a manufacturer representative who self-identifies as such on other sites, such as Hardware Canucks.
Which to give him credit makes it pretty clear he's not trying to hide his status, since he uses the same screen name.
Personally, I like the idea that manufacturers are paying enough attention to reviews to not only read them, but provide feedback. It's only fair that they have the opportunity to respond, and it indicates they're interested in what's being said -- which makes it more likely for them to consider the comments when it comes time to do the next design.
It isn't common for 5.25" bays, but what you describe is called a backplane and is available in some cases with integrated data connections for 3.5"/2.5" bays. With 5.25" devices have a great deal of difference in their lengths, whereas most 3.5"/2.5" devices are standard size and connector positioning. I don't see how this would work well for 5.25" bays.
Dustin, have you ever ventured into building your own case, and experimenting with design elements?
You do a lot of reviews, and I am sure you have a good idea what works, and what doesn't, and I would think you could design a fairly well layed out ATX case with good thermals, and acoustics.
I often think about doing one myself and wonder if any of the case manufacturers would ever consider a contest of letting users submit their own prototypes for consideration with some sort of deal worked out for the winner.
Hey Dustin, I enjoy your reviews more and read them more thoroughly than any others on Anandtech, despite not currently being in the market for anything you've covered.
I don't suppose you have a CM690-II in your review backlog do you? I'd love to know how my case compares with those that have gone through your new test suite. If you have any anecdotal experience to share I'd be happy with that.
I wish I did, but for some odd reason CoolerMaster stuff can be a bit hard to come by around here and I don't have any business requesting new kit until I've cleared out my (massive) backlog.
So unfortunately no anecdotal experience, but just from looking at it I'd expect it to perform comparably to Antec's 1100, albeit probably a bit louder.
I sincerely appreciate the kind words, though. The internet breeds negativity, so it's always nice when someone chooses to put something positive out there. :)
I have to agree with his high opinion of your reviews. It saddens me to hear that the Cooler Master stuff is hard to come by as I am in the early stages of researching parts fro a new build I want to by myself for my birthday in about two months and had my eyes on the Cooler Master HAF XM. My current case is an OLD OLD OLD Thermaltake Kandalf circa 2003 that has served me well through my last two or three builds since then.
Out of curiosity, just what do you consider massive when you mention this massive backlog of yours? Can We get a ballpark figure of how many cases are in your backlog?
One other question. What do you do with the cases once they are reviewed and the data recorded for future use. Do you have a room stock piled with cases or do you ship them back to the vendor that supplied them?
Right now my backlog is about six cases deep, so basically about two months worth of reviews. Also keep in mind that as new cases are released, they get moved to the front of the line, so unfortunately when something is sitting at the back...it tends to sit at the back for a long time, potentially indefinitely. I do my best to keep up on my workload, though, and maintain contact with the vendors.
And also keep in mind that, as you've seen, cases aren't the only thing I handle around here. They keep me busy. :)
Dustin's not explicit about the location of the radiators -- as far as I can read -- but if fan mounts = radiator mounts, then three 120 mm x 120 mm across the top, three across the front, two on the bottom and one at the back.
120 x 9 = 1080 mm. So nine radiators, 120 mm wide, lined up would produce a 3.5-foot-long radiator.
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29 Comments
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Chaitanya - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
BitFenix has some really good cases and they innovate when it comes to bringing new cases to market.Pennanen - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
And what exactly has bitfenix given to the case markets? Assuming you werent sarcastic.xbournex - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
SuperCharge, SofTouch, Prodigy, stock water cooling support, brightest LED strips, most dense sleeving extensions, first internet connectivity fan controller, and unnecessary flashy in-your-face look cases.Pennanen - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
Sorry i wasnt specific enought.What useful things have bitfenix given to the markets?
killerclick - Sunday, July 15, 2012 - link
Lack of girlfriend detected.cjs150 - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
But the review is nice and thoroughDustin you really hit the nail "modern conventions are far from perfect and there's a lot of room for improvement".
As an example, the case is wide - why not turn the PSU 90 degrees and have the cables feeding directly into the area behind the motherboard. Lian Li at least experiment with different locations.
I would love to see a case where there is a built in power splitter for the 5.25 bays and Hard drive cages so one molex cable goes to a daughter board which has several socket to run short cables up to the hard drives for example - a bit of imagination would result in a very neat cabling job.
This case really excels for watercooling. Perfect for using a 200x200 mm radiatior (or even 2, front and top)
xbournex - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
The review compares a mATX case 2/3 of the price of this case, an aluminum case with almost no water cooling support that's 2x the price, and ambient temperatures that vary with each review resulting in a default temperature, and noise level being already higher, or lower.The case was designed for watercooling in mind, which the reviewer poorly covered. Not thorough if you ask me.
xbournex - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
not as thorough as it could be**Olaf van der Spek - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
Hey xbournex,Anandtech doesn't test watercooling as far as I know.
When can we expect some BitFenix mATX cases? :p
cjs150 - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
Must admit I cannot remember Anandtech reviewing watercooling either.Watercooling is a niche for those who like to have a bit of fun and get their hands dirty (I think that should read "wet") on the innards of their computer.
I love it, but I know it is not very everyone.
The case looks as though it would be very good for watercooling possible even better than the legend that is the Silverstone TJ07. Certainly more than capable of cooling two hot running GPUs, a seriously overclocked CPU and maybe even the RAM as well without really breaking sweat. So would be pretty quiet compared to trying to air cool that lot
Dustin Sklavos - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
Of course it's not thorough if we ask you, I'm 95% certain you're BitFenix PR.soloburrito - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
Hi Dustin I enjoy reading your reviews.Are there are fan filters integrated into the case? Are they easily accessible? Also is the hard drive cage module/removable? For the same price, it seems the Switch 810 comes with a few more bells and whistles. I personally don't like the cheap, glossy plastic though. I like the clean, subdued design of the XL personally.
Anyway, can Anandtech invest in a 360/240mm rad so at the very least you all can demonstrate the water cooling potential of cases in future reviews?
I know assembling a full loop would be very time-consuming and not really provide any extra insight, but just some pictures of a radiator installed in the supported areas would be a great addition to case reviews.
Dustin Sklavos - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
There's a filter over the front 230mm intake, but you have to remove the fascia to get to it. There's also a filter under the PSU intake that slides out from the back.The Switch 810 isn't a bad case and the boutiques seem to like it (though that may be because NZXT seems to have a very thriving business with boutiques), but honestly unless you're doing any serious watercooling I'd look elsewhere. The Shinobi XL seems pretty ideal under those circumstances, although Azza's cases seem to be good for it, too.
I feel like the problem with investing in a radiator just for the sake of pictures is that it seems like all it really does is just demonstrate "this radiator fits here." Watercooling is pretty niche to begin with, and I feel like with a lot of these you should be able to at least eyeball it and get a good feeling for whether or not a radiator can fit. Of course, the problem there is admittedly that I get to manhandle these cases all I want while you guys have to make do with the photos I post. :|
I'll keep it in mind, but it's an interesting thing that many manufacturers are really attacking what's a fairly small minority of end users. "Our case is fantastic for custom watercooling!" Yeah, but what about the aircooling that the lion's share of end users are going to use?
cjs150 - Wednesday, June 27, 2012 - link
Dustin: I do hope you are accusing Xbounrnex and not me of being BitFenix PR.I have nothing to do with Bitfenix, I own no products by them, although I do have a water cooled Silverstone TJ07 so entirely capable of comparing the Bitfenix to that.
If anything I am a fan of Silverstone (with qualifications mostly related to build quality) as the TJ07 is the king for water cooled ATX cases and the TJ08-e (my next case) equally good for m-atx as long as you stick to one GPU
Dustin Sklavos - Wednesday, June 27, 2012 - link
I'm referring to xbournex and it's not really an "accusation" necessarily...if you check out the review of the Prodigy, xbournex replies there basically as a rep for the company.Galcobar - Wednesday, June 27, 2012 - link
You may be 100 per cent certain Xbournex is Bitfenix-employed. He's a manufacturer representative who self-identifies as such on other sites, such as Hardware Canucks.Which to give him credit makes it pretty clear he's not trying to hide his status, since he uses the same screen name.
Personally, I like the idea that manufacturers are paying enough attention to reviews to not only read them, but provide feedback. It's only fair that they have the opportunity to respond, and it indicates they're interested in what's being said -- which makes it more likely for them to consider the comments when it comes time to do the next design.
danjw - Thursday, June 28, 2012 - link
It isn't common for 5.25" bays, but what you describe is called a backplane and is available in some cases with integrated data connections for 3.5"/2.5" bays. With 5.25" devices have a great deal of difference in their lengths, whereas most 3.5"/2.5" devices are standard size and connector positioning. I don't see how this would work well for 5.25" bays.Olaf van der Spek - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
> the larger scale allows two of the fans to be upgraded to 200mm partsShouldn't that be 230mm?
shin0bi272 - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
Shouldnt I get one of these for free or something? meh anyway... i thought windowed cases were out of style now.SilthDraeth - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
Dustin, have you ever ventured into building your own case, and experimenting with design elements?You do a lot of reviews, and I am sure you have a good idea what works, and what doesn't, and I would think you could design a fairly well layed out ATX case with good thermals, and acoustics.
I often think about doing one myself and wonder if any of the case manufacturers would ever consider a contest of letting users submit their own prototypes for consideration with some sort of deal worked out for the winner.
Dustin Sklavos - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
I've thought about it a few times. It's just a matter of one of the case manufacturers being crazy enough to let me come up with something. ;)romany8806 - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
Hey Dustin, I enjoy your reviews more and read them more thoroughly than any others on Anandtech, despite not currently being in the market for anything you've covered.I don't suppose you have a CM690-II in your review backlog do you? I'd love to know how my case compares with those that have gone through your new test suite. If you have any anecdotal experience to share I'd be happy with that.
Dustin Sklavos - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
I wish I did, but for some odd reason CoolerMaster stuff can be a bit hard to come by around here and I don't have any business requesting new kit until I've cleared out my (massive) backlog.So unfortunately no anecdotal experience, but just from looking at it I'd expect it to perform comparably to Antec's 1100, albeit probably a bit louder.
I sincerely appreciate the kind words, though. The internet breeds negativity, so it's always nice when someone chooses to put something positive out there. :)
Darkhynde - Wednesday, June 27, 2012 - link
I have to agree with his high opinion of your reviews. It saddens me to hear that the Cooler Master stuff is hard to come by as I am in the early stages of researching parts fro a new build I want to by myself for my birthday in about two months and had my eyes on the Cooler Master HAF XM. My current case is an OLD OLD OLD Thermaltake Kandalf circa 2003 that has served me well through my last two or three builds since then.Out of curiosity, just what do you consider massive when you mention this massive backlog of yours? Can We get a ballpark figure of how many cases are in your backlog?
One other question. What do you do with the cases once they are reviewed and the data recorded for future use. Do you have a room stock piled with cases or do you ship them back to the vendor that supplied them?
Dustin Sklavos - Wednesday, June 27, 2012 - link
Right now my backlog is about six cases deep, so basically about two months worth of reviews. Also keep in mind that as new cases are released, they get moved to the front of the line, so unfortunately when something is sitting at the back...it tends to sit at the back for a long time, potentially indefinitely. I do my best to keep up on my workload, though, and maintain contact with the vendors.And also keep in mind that, as you've seen, cases aren't the only thing I handle around here. They keep me busy. :)
JarredWalton - Wednesday, June 27, 2012 - link
Silence, slave! Back to work! [Cracks whip]Dustin Sklavos - Wednesday, June 27, 2012 - link
Yes sir! Right away sir!xaviergzz - Thursday, June 28, 2012 - link
"as the case is capable of supporting a cumulative 1080x120mm of radiators"what does that mean???
1080x120mm...1080mm X 120mm ...3 three foot long rad???
Galcobar - Thursday, June 28, 2012 - link
The key phrase is "cumulative."Dustin's not explicit about the location of the radiators -- as far as I can read -- but if fan mounts = radiator mounts, then three 120 mm x 120 mm across the top, three across the front, two on the bottom and one at the back.
120 x 9 = 1080 mm. So nine radiators, 120 mm wide, lined up would produce a 3.5-foot-long radiator.