Moneual Black Aluminum MonCaso 312B Micro ATX Media Center / HTPC Case

Pros: There isn't much I can add that others haven't already said, unlike other computer case makers, Moneaul totally 'gets it' with this well-thought out design, easily fooling people into thinking it's a high dollar stereo or Blu-ray player. Even the box it comes in has that 'new electronic smell' to it. The remote software appears clunky at first glance, but actually very customizable and versatile.

Cons: The space inside the case is very tight, but that is to be expected of something like a HTPC. The bezel should have a way to be bolted to the case (for drive-less configs), I had to use black electrical tape to hold it. The remote cannot do triple-tapping in Media Center.

Other Thoughts: I need to point out that this unit has gone through a revision of sorts since previous reviews and some of the information is outdated. As of today, the case comes with the blue light and the Blu-ray bezel included. Moneual does not make a 'blank' bezel (in case you don't put in a drive), but the Blu-ray logo is silk screen and can be scrapped off with a fingernail and paint remover, or fine/light sanding.

Pros: Best looking line of cases on the market IMHO. A bit pricey, but you get what you pay for. Sturdy and just the right size to fit in your home theater and fool people into thinking it's an A/V equipment piece.

Cons: You really need to plan your build. For instance, I had to install and remove the DVD drive twice (and btw it's a PITA to install the drives unless you have a long philips head screwdriver). First time: There's a button - well actually a small round piece of metal - that you press from the outside and it's supposed to press your eject button on your CD/DVD player. First time I installed the whole setup, I did not see the sticky tape holding the button from the inside of the case. So, I wondered why the eject button was not working. I took the drive out and noticed the tape.

Other Thoughts: Overall, I agree with JustInCase's comments. He's outlined the key pros and cons. I love this case tho. I give it 5 stars!

Use a magnetized screw driver.

Pros: Looks upscale and really fools people when you tell them it's a computer! I have owned it for over a year now.

Cons: Card reader never worked.

Other Thoughts: Worth the money in my opinion.

Pros: -Beautiful Case
-All aluminum
-Light weight
-Excellent front panel selection of media ports
-Remote Control and accompanying software are well designed.

If you're looking for a low-profile, small form-factor case, this is the best option on the market, but as others have stated, you have to plan this out carefully. If you end up going with this case.

1) Modular power supply is a must!

2) Good idea to get a motherboard with onboard graphics to save space. Not many options with low profile graphics cards anyway.

3) If you don't use the heatsink included with your processor, get something small and low profile.

4) Get basic RAM cards without heatsinks.

5) Don't bother with the 40mm fans; not enough airflow for the noise.

Cons: -Tight, challenging build (but can be dealt with if planned properly)
-Lack of cooling options (but well ventilated)
-Not a big deal, but be aware that the case button for the optical drive will not make contact with your drive's button unless you put sponge tape or something in there.
-Price

Other Thoughts: As other people here have done, I asked for the blue LED ring and BluRay Disc optical drive bezel. Definitely worth doing.

My System:

Mobo- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815265002

CPU- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115065

PSU- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151095

RAM- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148262

HDD- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284

Optical Drive- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136226

(For this optical drive, remove the front of the disk tray, but not the faceplate and put spongetape behind case button for drive)

TV Tuner Card- Ceton InfiniTV 4 (currently unavailable on Newegg)

Wireless Network Card- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833124342

Firewire Card- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815265002

Pros: Fits right in with the rest of my AV equipment, easy to install components into, Moneual provided blue ring and Blu-Ray faceplate upon request. Remote controls everything I need it to.

Cons: Requires 18" of depth - having a hard time finding TV stand that deep, but that's not a problem with the case.

Pros: Looks amazing. Roommates thought it was a receiver until I told them what it was. Remote software works fine.

Cons: The inside is cramped! I know most of the other reviews say this, but they're really not kidding. Make sure the DVD player and PSU you pick are as shallow as possible, or else you'll have problems.

Pros: Looks say it all, this unit looks sweet along with my Harmon Amp. I was able to get the orange volume dial replaced for a blue one by Moneaul, simple mail to them and I have a replacement in a few days.

Have the unit running ultra quiet, hard to hear anything unless your up real close, prefect for an HTPC

Cons: The HD carriers have no damping so noise levels were high and heat was hard to disipate. I pulled the drives out of the case and put them into external eSATA carriers for my 500GB boot drive and my 1TB drive dedicated for recording.

Other Thoughts: I replace a Zalman HD135, I liked the Zalman which I have for a few years. It took me a while to mod the Zalman to deal with airflow. The moneual needs soem carefull component selection but it's worked out a charm for me.

I use an Intel HD55TC mobo with the Scythe SCSK-1100 100mm Shuriken Rev. B cooler. I've put in a pair of Silenx fans (2 x 60mm) one to cool memory and the other to extract air on the lid.

Happy with the kit...

Pros: Showed my good friend a picture of my home theater stack and he had to look twice to spot the computer, that's how well it blends with other AV equipment. The finish of this case is beautiful! Everything is engineered perfectly so that it just barely fits, but fits like a glove!

Cons: Can't really think of any cons other than what others have mentioned: the remote is very cheap... but no big deal, most ANYONE who is spending the clams on this case will already be using some sort of higher end programmable universal remote, like a Harmony or Universal MX250, or something along those lines.

Other Thoughts: Running:
Athlon 2 X3 450 (unclocked 4th core)
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB DDR3 1333
ASRock 880GMH
CORSAIR Builder Series CMPSU-500CX 500W
HP BD Combo SATA Model BD240I-h01
HITACHI Deskstar 7K1000.C 1TB
MSI R5670-PD512 Radeon HD 5670 512MB - This card fits the case perfectly however it does block the right side drive cage from being used.

Pros: References in my previous review to 80mm fans are incorrect -- this case takes 40mm fans. Oops.

Cons: Nothing I didn't mention below.

Pros: This case is absolutely beautiful and fits perfectly with usual home theatre components. Design, materials and construction are superb. It is also the perfect size: big enough to fit everything you need for a complete and very capable HTPC, but not a single mm more… in any dimension. This case is surprisingly compact (actually a bit smaller than my old “low-profile” RCA DVD player), but it is big enough to make the build process a great experience. Remote IR receiver works perfectly. In short… I love this case!

Cons: Nothing that would warrant an egg-deduction:

Remote is too light and plasticky for my tastes. No eggs off because I planned all along to use a programmable universal remote anyways, so wouldn't want to have a fancy remote included with the cost of the case.

No cooling fans included, so plan on buying some. 80mm fans are generally noiser and move less air than 120mm fans, and the silent versions are more expensive than you might expect. No eggs off because using 80mm fans is one of the things that allows the case to be so low, and three of them provide plenty of cooling (you could get by with two, maybe even one). On my rig, the only fan I can hear is the CPU cooler, and that is just barely, and only when the CPU is under a pretty good load.

Eject button for ROM drive just taped in; this may be standard, and I’m not sure how else to do it, but it seems a bit cheesy! No egg off because with the ROM installed, the button works every time and feels fine.

Other Thoughts: A case like this requires you to pick components that will work with it. In particular, be aware that you'll need:

- Half-height expansion cards.
- RAM without goofy-looking over-sized heatsinks.
- Low-profile CPU cooler (100mm fan fits fine, 120mm maybe). Stock fans that come with the processor would also fit (I think).
- Shorter depth of the DVD or BluRay drive.

My HTPC build:

Moneual LAB MonCaso 312b case, MSI H57M-ED65 motherboard, Intel Core i3-530 Clarkdale processor, 4GB G.SKILL DDR3, COOLER MASTER Silent Pro M600 power supply, LG UH10LS20 Blu-ray, Scythe SCSK-1100 100mm Shuriken Rev. B CPU fan, x3 SUNON HA40201V4-0000-C99 40mm case fans, Win 7 Premium.