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Marissa M.

Marissa M.

Joined on 01/07/14

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 2
Most Favorable Review

The Best!

Cooler Master HAF XB EVO - High Air Flow Test Bench and LAN Box Desktop Computer Case with ATX Motherboard Support
Cooler Master HAF XB EVO - High Air Flow Test Bench and LAN Box Desktop Computer Case with ATX Motherboard Support

Pros: -Very airy (the amount of case that is actually screen is great) -Motherboard tray is fully removable -All the cages are removable -The entire case easily comes apart so you can install everything without having to get too creative with your cable management -Stock fans are relatively quiet -The hotswap cages that are accessible from the front of the case are really innovative -The power and reset buttons on the case have a really nice click -The filter for the PSU is actually pretty nice and counteracts the fact that the PSU is bottom-mounted and sucking in dust/hair/etc from the surface it's sitting on

Cons: -Some stock screws were tight -Modular PSU cables end up tightly tucked behind hotswap cages and are kind of hard to adjust at will

Overall Review: I saw this case more than a year ago and thought to myself, "That's my next case." I traded up from a HAF 912 and couldn't be happier! As someone who builds a lot of custom PCs, I love this case. The top, both sides, and the front all come off, the motherboard tray comes out, and all the cages are removable. You can start at zero and put all of your components in without having to fight your way around cage walls and small holes with an inch of clearance. All of my components fit nicely into the main areas of the case, and I love that I can tuck all my cables into the space under the motherboard tray without having to worry about how it looks. Cable management is no longer a part of my computer experience and that's SO GREAT. My only complaint is that I tried to replace the stock 120mm front fans with my Chameleon LED ones, but the screws were too tight to remove with the tools I had on hand. However, the stock fans are black and contribute to the overall tight look of the case so I'm not upset at all. 10/10 A++ Would recommend/have recommended to literally everyone I know

Serves its purpose well, but isn't my favorite.

ASRock 970 Extreme3 R2.0 AM3+/AM3 AMD 970 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard
ASRock 970 Extreme3 R2.0 AM3+/AM3 AMD 970 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard

Pros: Lays super flat in case (zero warpage), nice number of SATA ports AND they face out instead of to the side (nice for quick hotswap access), BIOS screen is incredibly user-friendly and has a nice space-themed background.

Cons: It was a little too narrow for my case, so the two mounting holes on the right had nothing to attach to and just sort of hung out, making the mobo feel less secure than it probably should have. I had some trouble getting my sound card to cooperate with this motherboard and the onboard sound failed me (but I think that's more my bad than anything).

Overall Review: I bought this motherboard for a build that isn't staying with me. I tested it in my personal build to make sure that it worked, not for permanent installation. Had I given this mobo more time, I probably would have grown to like it more.