Testing the NZXT ZEROWriting the introduction to this article I spent a considerable amount of time researching ATX tower thermodynamics as well as aerodynamics. I came to the realization my test methodologies (measurements) while accurate insofar as temps were concerned; however, they weren't necessarily focused on the hardware within. For example measuring and determining internal chassis air-temp as an
a priori effect on hardware or hardware temps as
a posteriori effect on air-temps, mattered little in the final analysis. What should be most important are specific hardware temps such as the CPU, videocard, HDD's PSU, etc. I found many reviews focused on the cause an effect relationship between internal case temp and room ambient temps. Who cares if your chassis air-temp is 33°C if your graphic card runs at 65°C IDLE whereas in another case it ran at 56°C IDLE. Measuring case internal air temp doesn't serve us in the long run if we still need to run out and buy a proprietary cooler for my video card. Therefore I decided on the usual stress tests except I focused on the operating temperatures of each individual device. From this point on comparing the temperature of each component on a case per case basis, while testing the same system and keeping room temps consistent should provide more valuable information.
Both test systems were installed into the ZERO case sharing the same video card, memory, and PSU. A comparison was also made between stock air cooling and H20 cooling using Swiftech's Apex-Ultra. In addition to temps using H20 cooling was essential to measure the chassis goal towards "noiseless" operation since each stock cooler was on each system and water-cooling. Swiftech's Apex-Ultra was included as a comparison between H20 and stock air cooling, as well a comparison between air cooling and H20 for noise.
Test Systems - A) Intel Socket-775 / B) AMD Socket-AM2 |
CPUs | A) Core2Duo (Allendale) E6400 Retail B) Opteron (Santa Ana) 1212 Retail |
Mainboards | A) Asus P5W DH Deluxe (BIOS 1506) B) Asus M2N32-SLI Deluxe/Wireless (BIOS 903) | |
Memory DDR2 | A/B)Super Talent T1000UX2G4 PC2-8000 (2x2048MB) |
Graphics | BFG 8800GTX |
Power Supply | A/B) PCPower&Cooling Silencer 750EPS 12V
|
Cooling | A/B) Stock Cooling A/B) Swiftech Apex Ultra
|
Storage | A) Maxtor 300GB SATA, Seagate Barracuda 80GB SATA Perpendicular B) Seagate Barracuda 80GB Perpendicular |
Optical | A/B) Plextor PX755-SA DVD/RW |
Operating System | Windows XP Home Edition |
Testing this case as thoroughly as possible involved installing and stressing two different systems from each of the major chipmakers to represent a diverse number of system owners. I began with the Core2Duo / Asus P5W DH system and then moved onto the Opteron 1212 / Asus M2N32SLI Deluxe system. Each shared video, memory, Optical and Power Supply to minimize variables. I also tested each with water-cooling using the Swiftech H20-220 Apex ULTRA
reviewed here. The charts below indicate CPU speeds running default ~ overclocked and then temps measured at IDLE ~ LOAD. The latter was accomplished using an instance of
(TestMem) S&M run for 20-minute loops. Temps were measured with a combination of software and hardware foremost being the
Extech Minitech MN26 multimeter. Software used to record CPU core temp went by the same name
Core Temp v.0.94. To measure GPU and HDD temperatures I used
PC Wizard 2007 .1.72 in combination with NVIDIA's
nTune v.5.05.25.00. All temps were verified with the MN26 digital multimeter and ambient room temps remained consistent within 18~20°C.
The aero- and thermal-dynamic information was interesting and enlightening. And the case review itself was thorough and descriptive. The only subject I saw missing was a mention to how easy the install process was.
I have four questions about the case.
One: What is you're take on the quality of the front door? The review on hexus.net thought it was particularly cheap feeling. But their entire review seemed to be negative.
Two: How easy was it to manage wires in the Zero? I've read a couple of complaints that there is very little ability to manage wires efficiently in the case.
Three: How is the exterior finish? I am not entirely convinced on the 'orange-peel' finish. How easily does it smudge?
Four: Would you use this case as your own rig (in an air cooling situation)?
Overall, this review has definitely piqued my interest in this case.