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Corsair Obsidian 900D Review: Making Room For High-End Gear

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Corsair already offers a heavy tower case called the Obsidian 800D. Now, the company is one-upping itself with the Obsidian 900D. Is this a genuine high-end enclosure, a bomb shelter, or a mess of sheet metal? We put the case through our bevy of tests.

Six-Channel Fan Control: Scythe Kaze Master Pro

I wanted a fan controller that'd at least somewhat match the 900D's design. After mixed experiences with touch-enabled controllers, I decided to grab one with knobs: Scythe's KM04-BK. It isn't cheap, but who would put a discount fan controller into a high-end case, anyway?

Six channels are exactly what we needed to support four case fans and the two radiator coolers. Although you can mount normal 5.25" peripherals (optical drives, for example) in the Obsidian 900D without using screws, that's not the case for shorter accessories like Scythe's controller. Screws were necessary, but they aren't any sort of hassle, and they actually improve front-panel alignment.

A word of advice about the fan connectors: it's all too easy to pull the power and sensor cables off of their respective headers when they're routed inside this case or any other. Prevent that by tying the cables together and attaching the bundle to the fan controller enclosure, as shown below. Corsair includes cable ties, and this is a good use for one of them.

38 Comments Comment from the forums
  • slomo4sho 23 April 2013 08:41
    Thanks for including the acoustics and temperature for a workhorse in addition to the gaming rig.
    Reply
  • kitsunestarwind 23 April 2013 08:50
    I am seriously waiting for this to be come available in Australia, I have the 800D , I love it, but I have no room left and I want/Need more liquid cooling Rad space without resorting to Case Mods, The Corsair 900D will do me perfectly and hopefully won't look so full
    Reply
  • greenrider02 23 April 2013 08:57
    Quite frankly, that is a beautiful case.
    Reply
  • ASHISH65 23 April 2013 09:05
    Good review! Corsair's Obsidian 900D looks so great!!
    Reply
  • mapesdhs 23 April 2013 09:36
    Igor, please at least include the option to show temps in C, not F. :D

    Ian.

    Reply
  • slicedtoad 23 April 2013 09:47
    ^yeah, I've never seen any computer related benchmarks done in Fahrenheit , lol.
    Very nice review though, Corsair makes some sweet cases, second only to the custom suppliers (mountain mods and the others) but much cheaper.
    Reply
  • JJ1217 23 April 2013 10:12
    kitsunestarwindI am seriously waiting for this to be come available in Australia, I have the 800D , I love it, but I have no room left and I want/Need more liquid cooling Rad space without resorting to Case Mods, The Corsair 900D will do me perfectly and hopefully won't look so full
    Be prepared to fork out an extra $120 because of the simple fact we're from Australia.
    Reply
  • Vatharian 23 April 2013 10:22
    I don't fully understand your review. Workstation-class rig is up to the challenge for exploring 900D abilities, but gaming rig? You slap off-the-shelf closed loop watercooler on the midrange CPU (TDP wise), one simple GPU and call it 'watercooled system'? What's the point? Get two or three water coolled GPUs in addition to CPU, set up one loop and them evaluate if the case is suitable for serious LC&OC, and if it's possible to arrange radiators such way to get rid of the heat and not kill usability. Point is: for such class of case you put low-end gaming rig. It doesn't tell us will it perform if serious system is inside. If the case performs with high-wattage rig, it will do for any smaller one, but not necessarily the other way around.
    Reply
  • Idonno 23 April 2013 11:10
    My 800D preforms great with a high end system and there is every indication the 900D is even better.
    Reply
  • christop 23 April 2013 12:27
    Good review!! I want one!!!
    Reply