RAIDMAX Sting Ray ATX-249B Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

Pros: lightweight but sturdy, has easy HD and DVD drive mounting design. Great deal for $15 on black friday after rebates

Cons: still waiting on the $20 rebate, but if I don't get it the case is an okay deal for $35 dollars.

Pros: Easy to use, well built, plenty of space, looks great, sufficient ventilation, everything you need included, free shipping, inexpensive - plus I got a mail-in rebate!

Cons: None.

Other Thoughts: This is my first tool-less case, and I will never go back!

Pros: No pro.

Cons: I bought this around Black Friday 2012 and promptly submitted the $20 rebate. It is now 3.5 months later and no rebate!

Pros: -Wide enough for a ~160 cm CPU heatsink.
-Worth a reduced price.
-So far, good for a budget starter case.
-Sturdy frame.
-Limited drive bays help to keep cables manageable.

Cons: -Barely wide enough for aforementioned heatsink.
-Getting the front panel off was a bit of a doozy.
-Likely outshined by competition at full price.
-Limited drive bays... well, are limited. Regular user shouldn't really need a dozen of each, though.
-Less sturdy I/O setup.

Other Thoughts: I managed to cram a 212 Evo (158.5cm on an i5) into it, but discovered in hindsight that forethought has to be had in order for a tall CPU heat sink to not interfere with the side panel fan. It'll fit a tall-ish HSF, but it won't be cozy.

The front panel can be removed, but it's not pleasant; the clips to do so aren't easily or reached.

I haven't had any troubles that would be worth lowering the rating; most of my issues have been a product of build inexperience. I'm quite pleased with this purchase thus far, even if the rebate doesn't arrive. (Though, Newegg's photos are misleading. It seems they ship two different types of side panel willy-nilly.)

Pros: Spacious, easy to install optical drive, easy to install PSU and sound card. Motherboard (z77 Extreme4) fits perfectly.

Cons: I opened the box and searched the case, however no mounting screws were included. That is a problem and means an extra trip to another store for computer parts. Someone messed up...

Other Thoughts: Id be happy if they were included.

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Customer

Thank you for choosing Raidmax! We are sorry for all the inconvinience, please email your address to us to rma@raidmax.com. We will send you the accessory bag immediately.

Raidmax Support Team

Pros: Looks nice. The interior is nice and matte black, with no sharp or rough edges. Plenty of 120mm fan mounts

The build was pretty easy, with a couple hiccups, noted below.

Cons: My biggest issue: The description lists the case as having 1 front usb 3.0 port and 2 front usb 2.0 ports. This is false. It has one each. I guess their meaning is that the usb 3.0 port is backwards compatible, but this doesn't help you any if you have no 3.0 headers on your mobo. One of the reasons I chose this board was to have two front USB ports for my gf's computer, and I was very disappointed in this.

Otherwise, the hard drive cage took me a little bit to figure out. The cable attachments should be on the motherboard tray side of the case, not the open side. If you don't have angled connectors, and I don't this can make it tricky to get the side back on.

Other Thoughts: If the thing wasn't so big and heavy to ship, I would strongly consider sending it back and getting a different case, and pay more attention to the pictures and less to the description next time.

Pros: -No sharp edges, even after removing the expansion slot tabs.

-Both side panels remove for access.

-Plenty of tie-down points

-Molex-shaped holes in the 5.25" bays

-Motherboard header connectors clearly labeled

-Standoffs are already set up for ATX format

-Plenty of hardware included (although they are unsorted)

-Red paper washers included, for NON-GROUNDING motherboard mounting holes ONLY

-Toolless 5.25" bays are a breeze

-3.25" drive bay cartridges also accept 2.5" SSD

Cons: One con: Due to the front USB 3.0 cable sticking out, mounting a front fan will require some ingenuity. You will have to either REMOVE that panel, or use spacers to bring the fan away from the front, toward the back.

Overall, I had no issues with this case. It is a lightweight, snazzy-looking case. The pricepoint is great, but probably because Raidmax IS distributing some with space for only 1x 140mm fan per side. Buyer beware.

Other Thoughts: -I received the version that allows for two 120mm fans, for both top and side panels.

-There was just barely enough room to route the 4-pin CPU connector around the back, and through the top left corner of the tray.

-Motherboard headers for the LDD and power LEDs are coded: white is negative, color is positive

-Hardware included: Standoffs, Motherboard/PCI expansion screws, 5.25"/3.5" drive mounting screws, and 4 screws for PSU

Pros: This is replacing a 6-7 year old case that has suffered major attrition cosmetically and had enough switches short out that use was becoming problematic. Only $15 after rebate! If i see the $20 rebate. A few major benefits come to mind:

1) Way easier to work inside it
My old case had a top mounted power source and a reinforcing bar run across the top quarter. This made it impossible to get an assembled motherboard- processor, memory, heatsink and fan- in in just one go. This thing is wide open, no blocks, everything fits and nothing runs into the other things. Makes installation a breeze to drop in your assembled board.

2) Really nice finish
I was expecting it to peel at the first little bit of stress or lightest touch, but its held up to installation of everything and my moving things around already a few times. It's finished on the outside and inside uniformly and i really like the look.

3) Light
Sure, people might say this means it's cheap, but it's not meant to stop bullets. Makes moving it around pretty easy. Much lighter than my old cases.

4) Great bays
The 5.25 bays are extremely easy to install, being tool-less. The 3.5 bays need screws but they have 2.5 bays built in, which is just super-convenient. Big improvement in that they mount on the sides rather than just the bottom like some cases, as i found more drives use this sort of mounting for some reason.

5) Quiet
I have the thing loaded up with fans, hardrives, and pci slot devices, and it's still quite a quiet case.

Cons: 1) Fan mounts- the top and rear were fine. I can't figure out how to put a fan on the side intake without it making an interminable buzzing noise! It appears to be some sort of resonance problem. A fan mounted pushing out air there is fine, but using it as an intake like you should it is just the sort of noise that drives you mad. I just mounted it on the outside and ran the wiring through the water cooling pass-throughs on the back. Problem solved! I never thought i'd use them and 2 weeks later here i am.

2) For the life of me i don't know how you mount the front intake fan. I see the screwholes and i have no idea how one would get at them. You'd need to take the front off (don't see a way to do that) or use 2 inch long screws. Any help on that would be appreciated.

Neither of these is enough to dock it an egg.

Other Thoughts: Looks like a lobster.

Pros: Case is pretty spacious
Tooless drive bays
Got it for a bargain if rebate comes through

Airflow seems to be pretty good thus far, definitely will add some more case fans.

Cons: USB 3.0 port on front io was busted in shipping (I can't plug usb cables into it so I assume some pins were bent during shipping)

Case is pretty tall for a mid-tower.

Was a bit of a challenge to get the motherboard lined up with the standoffs since they were pre-installed. In a way it could be a good thing since the motherboard came with no standoffs and not to mention I didn't see any additional standoffs with the case.

Overall the case works.

Other Thoughts: I hope I get the rebate. Also a bummer the front usb 3 port doen't work. If not for the defect port I'd probably rate a 4/5

Pros: Customer service was able to provide me with a partial refund. I received the case without header panel containing the USB and Audio Ports. I am very satisfied and I thank them for there help.

Cons: The case fan looks a little weak so that will be replaced upon the build time.