Thermaltake Matrix Computer Case
The Thermaltake Matrix computer case is toutes a “case for LAN parties” according to the detailing on the box. LAN party cases usually have unique designs, clear cases, some cold cathode lights, great cooling and good layouts inside to add to the pleasing look of the case.
The Blue LED 120mm fan located at the bottom and the 120mm fan at the back give it good airflow. The clear side panel lets you see all of your cool components inside and its light enough to lug around to any LAN party you wish to go to.
The case incorporates a tool-less design. All of the peripherals come out with just clips. This applies to PCI slots, hard drives and all the other stuff besides the motherboards screws to the case.
The case does basically what it is supposed to in a case thats priced at about $75. It has good looks and works fine. It’s nothing to write home about and won’t leave any jaws on the floor, but it does provide another option for those looking at cases in this range that are suitable to be lugged around, but are also not lacking in the design department.
The Cooler Master Stacker CM 830 breaks a little witht he tradition of quite standard cases and offers one with as many options as you can think of, styling that is impeccable and cooling suitable for the most hot-headed of overclockers.
With support with up to 9 120mm fans there is amost no way that it will not provide the necessary airflow to whatever setup you have. Part of the styling is balck mesh sides and top, which allow lots of fresh air to come from the outside. There are panels in the side of the case where extra fans can be installed and one exhaust fan at the top of the case to expel hot air.
The case is designed with Cooler Master’s liquid cooling system in mind and is designed to easily take their system, which could be an option for anyone that gets this case, as long as they have some money left after that.
Is is worthy of noting that all of the fan spots can take fans of up to 140mm in size. This is great for getting the throughflow you need without the buzz of many smaller fans.
The hard drives can be isntalled without the use of tools and are installed in small kind of container that has a 120mm fan at the front. I takes only the space of 3 traditional hard drive spots but they are kept cool by the fan. The drives themselves can be installed without tools using the little goodies given with the case. Alternatively, you can still use screws after removing the toolless stuff.
At nearly 300 bucks, this case is expensive. It is certainly worth it as you get a fine case which will last forever. There are enough extras for anyone and others will drool over its great lines and styling. Check out the full review at extremeoverclocking.
Utterly fantastic, there are not too many people who will go to this degree of detail to create their perfect case. Most cases are just slight reworks on bought cases, but why stop there. CaseModGod has made a case based on hellraiser, the end result, which at time of writing has not come yet is a case which is inspired by hellraiser with a puzzle box worked into it.
Massive browny points for creativity and total coolness. Look here if you want to creat a case that is truly unique.
LINK
The Viper 2 red gaming case might not be to everybody’s taste, but it does do a fairly good job at what it claims to do. Have a newer style of more aggressive styling it will certainly make those who like more traditional cases take a second look.
In a review at bjorn3d they have a closer look at the case and how it competes in the market it is aimed at, the gaming market.
It takes quite a lot to make it into the gaming sector as they are quite choosy about the parts they put into their computer. And with the slightly higher budgets, or just more willingless to spend it has become a cometitive market. The aggressive red front of the case is just a matter of taste and doesn’t effect the overall effectiveness of the case itself.
Internally there are many tool free solutions so that you need the minimum of effort install and take things out. The included 80mm fans and the small slots for them are a little disappointing with discrepencies between what is featured on their website and the final product. It ran hotter than their reference Antec case, which is a little disappointing, attributed mostly to the 80mm as opposed to 120mm fans.
A cool case with aggressive styling. If you are in the market for this kind of case give it a look, you’ll probably be pleasantly surprised.
The Blue LED 120mm fan located at the bottom and the 120mm fan at the back give it good airflow. The clear side panel lets you see all of your cool components inside and its light enough to lug around to any LAN party you wish to go to.
The case incorporates a tool-less design. All of the peripherals come out with just clips. This applies to PCI slots, hard drives and all the other stuff besides the motherboards screws to the case.
The case does basically what it is supposed to in a case thats priced at about $75. It has good looks and works fine. It’s nothing to write home about and won’t leave any jaws on the floor, but it does provide another option for those looking at cases in this range that are suitable to be lugged around, but are also not lacking in the design department.
Three System Cases from ASUS
X-bit labs takes a look at 3 different mid-range cases from Asus. Although Asus are not well-known for their cases they do offer decent looks, but plain. Their Vento system was a bit of a failure, having good looks, but bad functionality. Their focus now is just for those who want a middle of the range case, without too much cost involved.
The funniest one of the lot is the TA-370 which has cool looking, chess board like cover, which although may not appeal to everyone’s tastes has a unique styling to it. All of the buttons blend with the checked look of the cover, so they are almost completely covered up. The other parts have covers that slip down for use. There is a doorknob on the side panel that allows you to open it. Inside parts almost all have clips for easy undoing of parts.
The TA-252 has a more plain design, and the whole cover is white. There are large areas of mesh for good airflow. Another thing I like is that you don’t need to open a cover to get to the USB and audio ports. There is no tool-free design here and the little clips apparent in the above mentioned case are not there. The internals are plain.
The TA-212 shares the same internals, but a different front cover with the TA-252. It’s a completely gray, almost silver looking front cover where all the drives have flaps that come down to conceal them. They are functional.
They find the TA-252 the best one in its class, which I would agree with, as its the most traditional, has things placed in the right places and provides enough cooling through big vents.
See the full review at X-bit labs.
The funniest one of the lot is the TA-370 which has cool looking, chess board like cover, which although may not appeal to everyone’s tastes has a unique styling to it. All of the buttons blend with the checked look of the cover, so they are almost completely covered up. The other parts have covers that slip down for use. There is a doorknob on the side panel that allows you to open it. Inside parts almost all have clips for easy undoing of parts.
The TA-252 has a more plain design, and the whole cover is white. There are large areas of mesh for good airflow. Another thing I like is that you don’t need to open a cover to get to the USB and audio ports. There is no tool-free design here and the little clips apparent in the above mentioned case are not there. The internals are plain.
The TA-212 shares the same internals, but a different front cover with the TA-252. It’s a completely gray, almost silver looking front cover where all the drives have flaps that come down to conceal them. They are functional.
They find the TA-252 the best one in its class, which I would agree with, as its the most traditional, has things placed in the right places and provides enough cooling through big vents.
See the full review at X-bit labs.
The Cooler Master Stacker CM 830 breaks a little witht he tradition of quite standard cases and offers one with as many options as you can think of, styling that is impeccable and cooling suitable for the most hot-headed of overclockers.
With support with up to 9 120mm fans there is amost no way that it will not provide the necessary airflow to whatever setup you have. Part of the styling is balck mesh sides and top, which allow lots of fresh air to come from the outside. There are panels in the side of the case where extra fans can be installed and one exhaust fan at the top of the case to expel hot air.
The case is designed with Cooler Master’s liquid cooling system in mind and is designed to easily take their system, which could be an option for anyone that gets this case, as long as they have some money left after that.
Is is worthy of noting that all of the fan spots can take fans of up to 140mm in size. This is great for getting the throughflow you need without the buzz of many smaller fans.
The hard drives can be isntalled without the use of tools and are installed in small kind of container that has a 120mm fan at the front. I takes only the space of 3 traditional hard drive spots but they are kept cool by the fan. The drives themselves can be installed without tools using the little goodies given with the case. Alternatively, you can still use screws after removing the toolless stuff.
At nearly 300 bucks, this case is expensive. It is certainly worth it as you get a fine case which will last forever. There are enough extras for anyone and others will drool over its great lines and styling. Check out the full review at extremeoverclocking.
Hell’s Illusion: Project Lament II Case Mod at CaseModGod
| Computer Case Reviews, Modding, News | 0 Comments
Utterly fantastic, there are not too many people who will go to this degree of detail to create their perfect case. Most cases are just slight reworks on bought cases, but why stop there. CaseModGod has made a case based on hellraiser, the end result, which at time of writing has not come yet is a case which is inspired by hellraiser with a puzzle box worked into it.
Massive browny points for creativity and total coolness. Look here if you want to creat a case that is truly unique.
LINK
XG Viper 2 Red Gaming Case
| Computer Case Reviews, News | 1 Comment
The Viper 2 red gaming case might not be to everybody’s taste, but it does do a fairly good job at what it claims to do. Have a newer style of more aggressive styling it will certainly make those who like more traditional cases take a second look.In a review at bjorn3d they have a closer look at the case and how it competes in the market it is aimed at, the gaming market.
It takes quite a lot to make it into the gaming sector as they are quite choosy about the parts they put into their computer. And with the slightly higher budgets, or just more willingless to spend it has become a cometitive market. The aggressive red front of the case is just a matter of taste and doesn’t effect the overall effectiveness of the case itself.
Internally there are many tool free solutions so that you need the minimum of effort install and take things out. The included 80mm fans and the small slots for them are a little disappointing with discrepencies between what is featured on their website and the final product. It ran hotter than their reference Antec case, which is a little disappointing, attributed mostly to the 80mm as opposed to 120mm fans.
A cool case with aggressive styling. If you are in the market for this kind of case give it a look, you’ll probably be pleasantly surprised.
Systemax Venture S925 Desktop Computer
| 3GHz Pentium D 925 1GB DDR2 250GB hard drive 20x double-layer DVD±RW None nVidia GeForce 7300 LE (256MB) Windows Vista Home Premium |
Systemax Venture S925 Desktop Computer Review | |||||||
| Reviewed by: Matthew Murray Review Date: August 2007 | |||||||
| To hit its low price, Systemax powers the $499.95 Venture S925 with a 3GHz Intel Pentium D 925 processor. That chip is a bit lower-end than other budget CPUs in both Intel's and AMD's lines, and it doesn't have quite the same speed (or cool-running) properties of chips in Intel's popular Core 2 Duo series. But if you don't mind not having the latest-and-greatest processor, the Venture S925 holds its own well enough. In fact, it surpassed other under-$500 desktops we've recently tested in our Futuremark PCMark05 benchmark test, turning in a score of 3,839. That's a slight improvement over other budget desktops, and the eMachines T5230 performed just a little bit better. On our other tests, the Systemax PC's results were more or less in keeping with those of comparable budget systems. If you just need a PC for everyday work, such as Office applications and Web surfing, the Venture S925 will serve you fine. You'll want to play out any serious gaming aspirations you might have elsewhere, though. The PC's nVidia GeForce 7300 LE graphics card doesn't generate much in the way of playable frame rates in 3D titles. Other components include 1GB of DDR2 RAM, a 250GB hard drive, a 20x DVD±RW drive, and a nine-format flash-card reader. You also get a pair of speakers, and a Logitech keyboard and mouse. The operating system, as is now apparently de rigueur for budget desktops, is Windows Vista Home Premium. Inside, upgraders will find one free RAM slot, two free PCI 2.2 slots, and one free PCI Express x1 slot, as well as front-accessible 5.25- and 3.5-inch drive bays (one of each) and room in the internal 3.5-inch cage for two more hard drives. For protection, Systemax includes a standard one-year limited warranty, and a full one-year subscription to CA AntiVirus, something you don't see with many desktops, even higher-priced ones. It's a security program that protects your computer while remaining as unobtrusive as possible, which makes it an excellent companion for the equally unassuming Venture S925. Discuss this product in our desktops forum. Direct Price: $499.95 Systemax, 888-682-7236 www.systemaxpc.com ABS Ultimate X8 Stealth Extreme Desktop Computer | |||||||
| 2.66GHz Core 2 Extreme QX6700 (overclocked to 3.2GHz) 4GB DDR2 150GB hard drive Double-layer DVD±RW None nVidia GeForce 8800 Ultra (768MB) Windows Vista Ultimate |
ABS Ultimate X8 Stealth Extreme Desktop Computer Review | |
| Reviewed by: Bill O'Brien Review Date: June 2007 | |
| You can't fault ABS for building on a known success, and that may explain why its Ultimate X8 Stealth Extreme looks so familiar. It's the same Gigabyte monster tower case we've seen already (all 21x8x22.5 inches of it), with the same Gigabyte water-cooling system (adding 6 more inches to the case's depth) plumbed into the box to help everything chill. A few changes, however, should pique your interest—as should the price. Our $3,774 test model isn't the fastest PC you can configure, but it does deliver lots of bang for the buck. Unchanged (but always worth noting) is the company's attention to cable routing. Inside, you'll see some unavoidable clutter because of the coolant hoses, but that's a minor condition that affects only a small section near the rear of the graphics card. All of the electrical lines are wrapped, shielded, and routed out of the way. As a result, interior access is excellent. Also, the computer runs almost whisper-quiet. One other deviation from the last ABS system we reviewed is the Ultimate X8 Stealth Extreme's single nVidia GeForce 8800 Ultra card, instead of a dual-card 8800 GTX Scalable Link Interface (SLI) pairing. The 8800 Ultra is clocked slightly faster than the GTX, and it's eminently overclockable. Its clock-speed increases, plus some internal streamlining, theoretically make the 8800 Ultra a better version of the 8800 GTX. It's also more expensive—by a few hundred dollars—and that might explain why ABS is using only one. Keeping the price reasonable could also explain the inclusion of only a single 10,000rpm Western Digital 150GB Raptor drive instead of a pair in a RAID configuration. But there's no arguing with the 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 processor (overclocked to 3.2GHz) and 4GB of DDR2 memory. The only question is whether or not it makes the grade. We'll spare you the suspense: It does. The Ultimate X8 Stealth Extreme's 11,345 score on Futuremark's 3DMark06 at 1,280x1,024 resolution doesn't rival the 15,000- or 16,000-point scores we've peeled from high-end gaming systems, but the price of this PC is below even ABS's own $4,500 gaming computers and well-removed from the $6,000 gaming boxes offered by some boutique PC makers. Our test game F.E.A.R. (also at 1,280x1,024) ran at an average of 175 frames per second (fps). Also, our Windows Media Encoder test took less than 5 minutes, and our iTunes encoding test just over 3 minutes. These are great numbers for what is essentially an entry-level performance PC with an attitude. Of course, you can always add more of almost anything. The 1,100-watt Tagan power supply has oodles of spare amps on tap for expansion. The case can host four more front-accessible 5.25-inch drives and four more internal 3.5-inch hard drives; there's also case space for both a 3.5-inch floppy drive and a card reader. Two PCI slots are unoccupied, but expect to have difficulty accessing them if you add a second 8800 Ultra. The eVGA 122-CK-NF68-A1 motherboard has more external connectivity options than you can shake a memory stick at. The PC has six rear-panel USB ports, plus onboard connectors for four more. Two of these USB connectors are extended to the case's front panel, along with the standard mic and headphone ports and a spare FireWire port to complement the one you'll find on the rear panel. Eight-channel audio, S/PDIF output, and dual Gigabit Ethernet ports round out the list. The Ultimate X8 Stealth Extreme is neither the least-expensive nor the highest-performance computer we've seen from ABS. However, it's one of the company's best price-for-performance offerings. Special Deal: Apple 21.5" iMac Desktop Computer 1698.95 Apple 21.5" iMac Desktop Computer, 3.6GHz Core i5 Dual-Core, 4GB (2x2GB) RAM, 1TB 7200rpm Hard Drive, 8x SuperDrive DVD Burner, SDXC Card Slot, ATI Radeon HD 5670 512MB Graphics, 21.5" LED Backlit 16:9 Widescreen Display, iSight Camera, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, 802.11n Airport Extreme Wi-Fi, Wireless Keyboard & Magic Mouse, Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard iMac iMac 21.5" iMac Desktop Computer | |
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