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CoolerMaster CM690 Case Review
Author: Dennis Garcia
Published: Monday, September 24, 2007
Introduction
Case designs have really changed a lot over the years; early on cases were functional in nature, designs were simple, often uni-colored and really with no regard for cooling. As computers got more powerful they started to require more in terms of airflow and cooling though mfgs were slow to react to this trend. Needing more for that perfect overclock or to stand out at the local Lan the enthusiasts took matters into their own hands and the next thing you know a revolution in case modification is born.
Casemodding quickly became a mainstream phenomenon and just about everyone was in on the action. Some Mfgs actually understood the problem and created some elegant and functional designs, while others took this as an opportunity to cash in on a marketing trend. Sadly these designs were often cheap in nature and were really nothing more than polished boxes made from cheap metal and glossy paint. Of course we can't ignore the guys in the middle that opted copy the elegant designs and then replace the good parts with cheap ones with the intent of underselling the original designers.
Thankfully we won't be reviewing any of those cases anytime soon.
In this review we will be looking at a new midtower case from CoolerMaster called the CM690. This case features several innovative things such as a completely tool less design, places for 8 cooling fans, 7 120mm and 1 80mm, and external media ports including audio, USB, Firewire, and eSATA. However the most amazing thing is the price, somehow CoolerMaster included all of these features and still made this case affordable.
Casemodding quickly became a mainstream phenomenon and just about everyone was in on the action. Some Mfgs actually understood the problem and created some elegant and functional designs, while others took this as an opportunity to cash in on a marketing trend. Sadly these designs were often cheap in nature and were really nothing more than polished boxes made from cheap metal and glossy paint. Of course we can't ignore the guys in the middle that opted copy the elegant designs and then replace the good parts with cheap ones with the intent of underselling the original designers.
Thankfully we won't be reviewing any of those cases anytime soon.
In this review we will be looking at a new midtower case from CoolerMaster called the CM690. This case features several innovative things such as a completely tool less design, places for 8 cooling fans, 7 120mm and 1 80mm, and external media ports including audio, USB, Firewire, and eSATA. However the most amazing thing is the price, somehow CoolerMaster included all of these features and still made this case affordable.
As with all of our case reviews we looking at the case from the perspective of the casemodder, so we'll look beyond if a motherboard will actually fit and focus on things like case construction, cooling, and airflow. We'll also look at possible ways this case could be modified to either enhance what we find lacking or to including thing that the designers might not have originally intended.
Lets get started shall we?
Lets get started shall we?
