Under The Plastic
Taking Off the Plastic
The plastic shroud up front needs to be taken off to install optical drives. This is a pretty easy process. It's held in place firmly by magnets, and you can remove it without worrying about accidentally ripping anything away from the case.
The same goes for the top of the case, which is also easy to remove. This gives you an unobstructed view of the four-channel fan controller and the six USB ports.
The steel frame is more than strong enough to pass our 100 kg load test with flying colors. Even under the strain of the author’s entire body weight, the case just doesn't budge.
The cables run from the small board on top of the case into the enclosure's depths via different routes. It might look a bit messy when you're peeking under the hood, but it works.
The hue control board consists of an RGB color control knob and lighting mode switches. It's conveniently hidden behind the front shroud.
The case stands on four corners, each with a rubber strip glued to it. Although the quartet of surfaces keep the Phantom 820 quite secure, they don't help with acoustics or vibration since the rubber is both thin and hard. Even still, we like everything else about the chassis' frame.
The intro (and some other content) of my German orginal is different and refers to the Switch 810 (and Phantom). This was my fault as I proofread the translation. Sorry.
Nice, thorough review, though I was interested in how you guys do your 100Kg tests! I would've also liked to see you (who I assume was referred to as the author) standing or whatever on the case as was mentioned. :lol:
BTW, I'm not much of a chassis buff, but when I saw the Corsair Obsidian 850D I was amazed at its features. It's been my dream case, but I feel a bit half-hearted about that since I am aware that there are as you said, so many cases out there. I'm not sure if you've ever had your hands on it, but if you have, mind sharing your insights and observations of it, and maybe personally compare it to this or other notable cases. Thanks! :D
I'm waiting for the corsair Obsidian 900D. My own case is an Obsidian 800D and I've modified this case with USB 3.0 and a new SATA3 PCB. It will be interesting, what the new case can better (or not).
About the test:
Simply sit down (without the plastic crap on top) and try to sit on it one minute. After this I've used my water venture... I'm a typical 100 kg heavy-weight reviewer and this is really enough to destroy something (some cases were mess after this).
Oh, so the two tests are one and the same. Hehe... I see... I hope you haven't gotten into any accidents by doing that with any cases. Ripped up pieces of metal can be nasty...
In your opinion, are Corsair Obsidians (or at least the one you have) the best you've seen? (I value your opinion because I bet you've gone through a lot of cases, or at least reviews of them.) :)