Time for a change of PC Chassis

[absic]

Just thought I would share some images of my latest rebuild. This is not a review of the Xigmatek Elysium but if you are looking at getting a full size chassis and have any questions regarding this case please ask and I will do my best to answer them for you.

I have been using an NZXT Tempest Evo PC case for the past 18 months and have been really pleased with it but, having switched to water cooling from air I felt that it would be nice to get a larger case to house everything properly. Luckily I was able to get hold of a Xigmatek Elysium Chassis and spent a day swapping things over.

As you can see from these pictures the Elysium is quite a bit larger than the NZXT Tempest Evo.







With the Tempest Evo keeping things tidy was a real nightmare and my radiator had to be mounted onto the outside of the chassis.


But with the Xigmatek there are no such problems. I have been able to mount the radiator internally, tidied up the bulk of the cables and there is still room to spare.


There's still some work to do, to tidy things up further, especially with regard to cable sleeving but things are definitely neater and there has been a drop in CPU temp of 4C.

[Dark Mantis]

It's looking good there absic. As you said there is some difference in size between the cases. Definitely looks tidier though and by the time you finish the cable routing it should be the dog's danglies!

I am going the other way with my next build. I am putting together a Gigabyte SniperM3 MicroATX in a HTPC case so there is going to be some shoehorning to get it all in especially if I decide to watercool it as I think I might.

I would suggest that you invest in one of these though as I hate the way so many manufacturers connect the USB3.0 cable.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B005IVLK3W/ref=oh_details_o05_s00_i00

[absic]

Yes, that is definitely a good idea DM and well worth the money. I don't understand why chassis makers don't include something like this in the box of parts to give users the option. Mind you, that said, most don't even supply a motherboard speaker these days.

[Dark Mantis]

Glad that you agree there. I am always telling the case manufacturers that people don't like it and now with most boards having spare headers on the motherboard there is no need to have all that mess and the using up of a couple of USB3.0 ports(probably all you have) on the back plate. Some seem to be slowly taking notice but it is a slow job.

I will be interested in your feelings about this case as I haven't been able to secure one off Xigmatec for review and it is an interesting looking case.

[absic]

It's OK but I don't feel it is worth the cost and I believe there are better options available.

Yes, it's big and offers lots of possibilities but I encountered several issues when putting things together such as minor misalignment of mounting holes, lack of fittings etc. The wheels are a joke and whoever designed this feature needs to be taken out and shot as they catch on the lower part of the case so don't move freely. The User's Manual is pathetic and a lot of the time you have to guess at how things are meant to go together or come apart.

That said it does have a few nice touches and I particularly like the hot-swap dock on the top panel. Also the amount of cutouts and loops for cable management is very impressive.

For water cooling systems there is ample space and you can mount internal radiators in the top, bottom, front and rear if you wanted to. I have seen a modded version of this case where a 360 Rad has been mounted vertically, between the HDD rack and the motherboard.

All in all though, if I had been reviewing this case I would only have given it a 6 or7 and if I had bought this case I would be very disappointed and I would have sent it back and bought something else.

[Dark Mantis]

Thanks for your feelings on the case absic. Maybe that's why they didn't want to supply one for review!  Shame though as the case looks alright and I quite liked the design of it. The trouble is some of these companies have a good design but try and skimp on the manufacture of it and end up with a case that is just not up to standard. After testing many cases I often think I wish I could get a case made with all the best points from the ones I have seen put together into a chassis that has everything.

[absic]

Once again I concur with your sentiments DM. I have also reviewed, handled and used a plethora of cases over the years and I often wonder who they get to design them.

As I said before, the Elysium isn't a bad case it just lacks in certain areas and for the retail cost of this case I would either go for the Coolermaster HAF X which is slightly cheaper or the NZXT Switch 810 which costs slightly more as I feel both of these are very suitable alternatives and I rate both Coolermaster and NZXT highly from my own experiences.

[Dark Mantis]

Yes I would have to go along with your views there too. I obviously haven't seen the Xigmatec up close and persoanl but the other two cases are certainly good quality and well designed. I am very impressed by the SilverStone cases too. I am hoping to get one of their chassis to review in the near future.

[Manxminx]

Does the Elysium have dust filters, or just the stamped holes?

There's a school of thought that says (for air cooled PC's) the bigger the case, the better the airflow, the less speed the fans have to run at, the quieter the PC.

I'm not sure if I agree with that. Personally I think with such a case the air flow would get lost in there and the sound would bounce around too much inside the case and amplify the fan sound, even with aftermarket foam silencing.

Your thoughts would be appreciated.

Ali.

[absic]

Hi Ali,

it has dust filters but, they are not thick foam, more a fine nylon mesh. They are easy to clean and I haven't noticed any problems with airflow and the temperatures are always very good. I tend to agree with the large volume case, low fan RPM's as this case is much better at keeping components cool over others I have used before. In fact, I am still using this case and I have been since buying it two years ago and I have no plans to change it as it is just so good.

As to noise, this is entirely dependent on the fans and what speed they are running at. At the present time I have 3 x 120 mm Coolermaster  Hi-Flow fans on my radiator plus another 3 x 120 mm Coolermaster fans placed at the front (x2) and rear (x1). There is also a slow speed 230 mm fan on the side panel. I am controlling the speed of the six, 120 mm fans from an Akasa Fan controller and for every day use the noisiest component is my 850 watt PSU fan. However, if I turn the fans up to full speed it becomes very noisy and is not something that I can live with for too long.

[Manxminx]

Thanks for your reply absic. It's certainly a very interesting case. Unfortunately I've just measured the height available under my desk and it won't fit  It's a great shame they don't make an identical case that's the next size down.


Ali.