iStarUSA D-313SE-MATX Black Aluminum / Steel 3U Rackmount Compact Industrial Chassis - Black Bezel 2 External 5.25" Drive Bays

Pros: Really love iStarUSA products. This is my second case from them, my first was a 2U model that looks very similar to this one. I wanted a 3U one because I got tired of trying to find low-profile graphics cards for my 2U one - yet loved the case I had and how well it was constructed. This 3U fits my needs well. If you are shopping for a data center and doing custom builds, these will work well. For my home use, the SFF of this works perfectly. It is just slightly longer in depth than the 2U one. Like any micro atx case, things will fit snugly. I like the ability to connect up so many fans if needed. I went with 2x 60mm ones for my needs and that provides ample cooling. I'm replacing a Silverstone htpc case that had 2 120mm fans (was apprehensive at first, but the design of this case facilitates air movement). My PS vents towards the bottom (there is an air gap for me so it in turn vents out the back through the holes based on how I pull air in).

Cons: The blue LED on the front is very bright! Definitely lets you know its got power ;) Only thing I wish I could find in a case of this style (or the 2U variant) is front accessible 3.5 slots so you could use trays or in general, have more flexible mounting options. In mine I ended up filling the available external slots with a 5.25 bluray, ICY DOCK 6 bay 2.5 enclosure, and a media reader in the 3.5 slot. So even though I can fit everything nicely now, it would be better IMO to have more front-facing areas for mounting stuff (same for my 2U enclosure - I prefer externally accessible slots - you usually see these in ATX or EATX-based rack mount enclosures only though). Not enough to take away any eggs... I know what I was buying based on research and pictures here.

Overall Review: Looks great in my living room lol :) you don't need a server room to appreciate a good rack case and the higher degree of construction you get ;) Be sure to pay attention to the bag of parts you get in the box!!!!! I mounted my motherboard in (just like my iStarUSA 2U) and noticed things didn't look right - I then noticed in the bag there are "risers" I had to use to elevate my motherboard so it would be the right height. Struggled with this for a long time, even went to open up my 2U case since it was similar. The 2U one didn't need those risers, the 3U one does and it wasn't till after taking things apart for the second time (two different motherboards) I thought, hey... where is that bag of extra stuff I got with this thing.... duh, didn't feel so smart after that and when I used the risers, my MB fit beautifully.... maybe I can save someone else the frustration if they read this....

Pros: Uses standard power supply. Room for extra fans. Plenty of room for hard drive storage. 3U build allows for aftermarket CPU cooler and/or video card.

Cons: The front fan mount bracket was missing out of the box. Also, some of the screws that hold the rackmount brackets on the left side were loose and damaged. Tightening them stripped the threads. The threads were fixed by chasing them with 8-32 and using new screws. I called iStarUSA tech support and they sent me a fan mount bracket and I had it in a few days.

Overall Review: This is not the first iStarUSA case that I have bought and it will not be the last. I think the problems that I had were a fluke, since my previous cases never had any of these problems. I expect things to break, but a company that supports their products deserves my business. I appreciate the prompt support. I didn't take any eggs away due to the support and how easy the fix was.

Pros: Fits in 18" Short Rack on wall. Takes standard ATX power supply (but get short depth PS). Uses nice quiet 120mm case fan.

Cons: like all mATX cases, things are a little crowded.

Pros: Price. Bought 3 paid $52 each with free shipping. Solid construction. Rebuilt my NAS and PfSense firewall with more energy efficient hardware decided it was time to go with server chassis. Very happy with my purchase. Screws and standoffs came with the cases as did zip ties for cord management. Build went together pretty easily with no problems other than those listed in cons. Its a very "clean" solution as I had desktop cases before. Looking to potentially move my workstations into similar cases.

Cons: Not really a con but you will need a longer screwdriver as you will need to remove the HDD cage to install Hard drives. They are close together so makes it hard to screw/unscrew them onto the case. I had an 8" ratcheting screwdriver so it was not a big deal. One case came with a faulty power switch, would not depress to turn on the machine. I sent it back (on their dime) and got a working unit back in a few days.

Overall Review: I bought 3 of these, very happy with my purchase. All low energy systems so didn't need to add any fans, but there is definitely room. Knowing what I know now I would definitely make the same decision again. If I decide to move my workstations into similar cases iStarUSA will be the first place I look.

Pros: Steel Matx Standard psu

Cons: Design

Overall Review: Not fun to build in, but it gets the job done. As others have mentioned, you will need a long, narrow screwdriver to remove the hdd/5.25 cages. Also mentioned are the included "risers" (they're just standoffs) that allow different mobos to sit properly. I ended up having to use them, and had do several takes to install my mobo. Initial issue was the mobo was sitting on top of the rear expansion slot keys, which caused the mobo to not sit on top of standoffs toward rear. You need to remove the hdd cages, then the fan plate, to install the front fans. If utilizing hdds, they will press down on the psu power cable (dependent on where your power pin is on mobo). Included some pics since stock ones don't do justice for visual. Note the overhang of hdds to the mobo. There is no way you can fit 4 hdds in one cage. I used the top two, and left other cage out of build. If I could do it again, I would've spent the extra few bucks for a better chassis.

Pros: • Solid build quality • Enough room to fit essential components • Accommodates full-sized video cards • Includes bag of additional assorted screws and MB spacers (brass)

Cons: • No paperwork/instructions

Overall Review: This was my first time rack-mounting a workstation so I was surprised on how straight forward this process was. I wanted a 2u chassis but that required a different video card, a new CPU cooler and limited drive bays. The only additional components I had to buy were 2x 60mm fans - not listed as a Con since there was some freedom in selection. I'm using an older micro ATX MB with an i7 960 and was surprised that the cpu cooler fit. The cooler comes right to the top of the lid but still fits without any issues when mounting into my rack with surrounding components. Like other reviewers have mentioned, space is tight when fitting all of your components and be sure to use the brass risers/spacer for the motherboard.

Pros: 3U size is not too big to fit into my sound rack at church but big enough to put the AMD and stock wraith chiller with lots of head room and big enough for full card slots. I used it for a 6 output graphics card from Vision Tek to run Pro-Presenter to 4 different screens at church. Overall solid construction no sharp edges, easy to use nice look and finish, with plenty of fan placement. Fit my full size VisionTek Radeon 7750 SFF 2GB GDDR5 4k, 2GB 6DP outputs.

Cons: The bracket that holds the back end of the PSU was positioned a little low so could not be used as is. I had to cut off the top part to make it useful to hold the PSU in place. Easy to do with two pliers bend back and forth until it breaks off. See pics. The front panel is USB 2.0 not 3.0 so I purchased an insert for the 3.5 bay. (Note: I first purchased a 4 port 3.0 USB 3.5 bay insert which acts more like a USB Hub which requires power from the PSU) It worked but the power somehow also caused my CPU fan to run 24/7 when the computer was off, be it at a slower speed. I was not happy with that so replaced it with the 2 port model that does not require extra power)

Overall Review: Build specs: EVGA SuperNOVA 550 Ga, 80 Plus Gold 550W Micro ATX ASUS TUF Gaming B450M-PRO S AMD AM4 AMD Ryzen 5 3600 6-core, 3.6GHz base 4.2 max 1TB M.2 SAMSUNG 970 EVO Plus SSD 32GB RAM Corsair Vengeance LPX (2 X 16GB) DDR4 VisionTek Radeon 7750 SFF 2GB GDDR5 4k, 2GB 6DP DP adapters Active Mini DisplayPort to HDMI Fans 120mm, 80mm, (2) 60mm Front USB 3.0 2-Ports 3.5 inch Metal Front Panel

Pros: Overall good swap with my old micro ATX motherboard computer. A little tricky putting together but if it isnt your first rodeo, you should get through it OK. I was actually stuck on how to open up the case focusing on the 2 big screws on the back when its about four very small screws on the side that need to be taken out before you can lift the cover! After that, youre gonna most likely wanna take out the front metal plate you can attach your fans.

Cons: You absolutely NEED a long magnetic precision screwdriver!!!! Luckily I had the exact size I needed, you really cant put this case together unless you have one. The shelf that the hard drives go in cannot be taken out without it!

Overall Review: Great case, great looking in my rack exactly what I wanted