iStarUSA D-400-6-Blue Steel 4U Rackmount Compact Stylish Server Chassis 6 External 5.25" Drive Bays

Pros: This is my second iStar 4U chassy. I like this one even better than the first. The accessory cabling on this one worked perfectly. Some front accessories on my first iStar case did not.

Cons: That stabilizing bar always has to be removed for top end video cards or more likely high performance CPU coolers. It has never been a big deal. I also always install my own high quality fans.

Other Thoughts: I have an IBM full size server rack in my den :) I will soon be building a third 4U gaming rig and I will use one of these again, unless I find something of better quality for the same price.

Pros: Bought this as open box item. Case was in perfect shape (except for lock; see cons) and all accessories were included. Case has tons of room and makes a perfect NAS box. I did put a drop of epoxy on all the standoffs so they don't come out underneath the motherboard when removing screws.

The case comes with a big hulking metal bar across the case with plastic hold-downs for add-on cards. Since I'm using a small motherboard as a NAS server with no cards, it was easy to remove the bar.

The case cover removes easily by removing a screw from each side, and a thumb screw from the back, giving total access to the case. The two HD cages at the front remove easily also. I'm putting two iStarUSA sata hot-swap cages in them for a total of 6x2TB storage.

This case is well engineered and well made.

Cons: The lock that secures the two front doors was broken. It turns to the locked position, and turns to the unlocked position, but the key won't lock it in the locked position.

No big deal, wasn't going to use it anyway.

Pros: This is a pretty nice case for the price. There is enough room for just about any server board and standard ATX power supply. The case material is of good quality and sturdy.

Cons: Airflow... This case comes with 2 case fans in the rear and top that is vented about the rear 1/3. Problem is the case fans just pull fresh air from the top vents and out the back which gives absolutely no airflow for the front 2/3's of the case thereby causing the CPU and memory to overheat and shutdown (at least in my situation). This unit is used in a server room that is kept at a steady 68 F.

Other Thoughts: I ended up purchasing a combination of the following to force airflow through the case from the front which seems to have fixed my cooling problem. NewEgg Items N82E16835230005 & N82E16817996019. They are a snug fit and end up moving the fresh air to where it needed to go.

Manufacturer Response:

Dear Newegg Customer:

Thank you for choosing the iStarUSA brand to be part of your total computing system. We proudly stand behind our products and hope that you will find your next purchase an iStarUSA brand. We sincerely apologize in advance for any inconvenience caused by this experience, but do rest assured that we will do all that we can to win your trust in iStarUSA brand.

The design issue that you have mentioned in your review is duly noted. It seems like you are dealing with an overheating problem with your hard drive. We highly recommend our best selling Hard Drive cooler N82E16817121909.

Again, thank you for choosing iStarUSA. Please visit us on www.istarusa.com for upcoming news and product releases.

Warm regards,
iStarUSAcare Service

Pros: Fit my Gigabyte mobo with GTX-470 card easily. Looks like I can easily fit 5.25 HD cooler/hotswap bays in all slots without obstruction from video cards.

Cons: None that I can see so far.

Other Thoughts: It "feels" like a good case, can't describe it any better. Worth the money for me.

Pros: It is as pretty as it looks in the photos. Plenty of room inside. Sturdy construction. Ran into no sharp edges.

Cons: Lots of loose screws throughout the chassis I received. I actually found one that had worked its way completely off the unit and was sitting in the bottom of the box it was shipped in. Either a slight issue with quality control, or a desperate need for loctite on the screw threads.

Pros: The case is very well built and well finished. It looks and feels solid, and all the parts fit together cleanly and solidly. The front drive cages are removable to allow easy installation of drives.

Cons: - The card holder bar does not work with big video cards. The heat pipes on my 4870 stuck out where the bar goes. The holder is easily removable, and if you're not moving the case around all the time, not necessary.
- There are only 2 places a 3.5" drive will fit - the case mostly has 5.25" drive slots. iStar has a matching product in the form of the BPU-340SATA hard drive backplane/cage - it takes up all the 5.25" slots on one side of the case, but gives you several easily accessed 3.5" slots. Note that if you use the cage, it will need to be installed in the right hand set of bays, by the power supply - the fan on the back of the cage will hit your video card if you try to install it in the other set of bays.

Other Thoughts: Overall, I'm quite happy with it after having it for a few days. I'm converting my equipment to rack mount, and I was able to effortlessly swap the components from my previous tower case into this case. Just make sure you have a way to mount your hard drives.