Installation

The installation procedure doesn’t differ much from other cases. Install I/O back plate, install main board, ... Just the same as every other case, expect for some aspects:

This case features screw less installation for both add on cards (such as PCI and AGP) and the optical drives. Let's start with the drives.

Remove two of the clips on each side of the case. This can be done by turning and unlocking them. This is marked clearly as you can see on the pictures. Then you need to slide your optical drive in the desired position. Push the mechanism in the screw holes of the drive and lock the clips by turning them into the "lock" position. That's all.

Installing optical drive




The other tool-less feature is the lock mechanism for the add-on cards. Just place the card in the suited expansion slot and push down the clip. I said push. C'mon, harder, Push it. "click". A large amount of force needs to be set on the clips before they even start moving. Removing/unlocking a card is even harder....

I ran into problem with a full sized VGA card, the PCB of the video card surpasses the metal bracket, and this causes a problem with the tool-less clips.

Easy PCIe/AGP/PCI installation ?



Installing hard disks in budget minded cases is most of the time a pain in the ass. The racks can't be removed and you have to be very handy (or have a screwdriver with a magnetic head) to install those very small screws in hard to reach places.

This case is different. The hard disk cages are very solid and can be removed. By pushing in the clip the cage becomes unlocked and can be pulled out. Te reinsert them all you need to do is push them back in and the spring will push the clip back in its place, thereby locking the rack.

Just behind the front panel of the case there's also a clip-on/click-on system provided so that you can install an extra 80 mm fan for hard disk cooling.

HDD racks:



Beside the small set back with the PCI tool-less clips, installation went smooth. Unfortunately the finishing of the rear panel isn’t quite up to par with the rest of the case; this resulted into a rather deep cut in my finger. I proceeded more carefully to see if there were other sharp edges but it turned out the problem is restricted to the back panel.

No pain no gain – the hard life of a product reviewer



Now that everything is installed, time for the performance tests ->