[nextpage title=”Introduction”]

With a suggested price of only USD 60, the 3R System L-600 V.REX Jr. is a very affordable case, bringing features usually only found on more expensive models, such as USB 3.0 ports, air filters, and fan controllers. Let’s take a look at this new release.

In Figures 1 and 2, you have an overall look at the case.

Figure 1: 3R System L-600 V.REX Jr. case

Figure 2: 3R System L-600 V.REX Jr. case

You can install up to two 120 mm fans on the mesh available on the left panel.

The front panel of the L-600 can be seen in Figure 3. This case has three 5.25” bays and one external 3.5” bay. The 5.25” bay covers are meshed featuring air filters. At the bottom part of the front panel the L-600 comes with a 120 mm fan, which glows blue when turned on and also having an air filter. No technical details about this fan were provided.

Figure 3: Front panel

Figure 4: Front fan

[nextpage title=”Introduction (Cont’d)”]

Between the 5.25” and the 3.5” bay the L-600 has four USB 2.0 ports, one eSATA port, and the traditional audio jacks (see Figure 5). And on the plastic part attached to the top panel, the L-600 has two USB 3.0 ports and three fan controllers, for the front, rear, and top fans. Each controller has three positions: off, low, and high.

Figure 5: Buttons and connectors

Figure 6: USB 3.0 ports and fan controllers

[nextpage title=”The Top, Bottom and Rear Panels”]

The top panel of the L-600 can be seen in Figure 7. It features two 120 mm fans. No technical details about them were provided.

Figure 7: Top panel

The bottom panel, see in Figure 8, features two removable air filters, one for the power supply fan and one for the air intake available below the hard disk drive cage.

Figure 8: Bottom panel

In Figure 9, you can see the rear panel of the L-600. The two blue cables are connected to the USB 3.0 ports, and must be installed on the USB 3.0 ports available on the rear panel of the motherboard. Different from most cases, the L-600 comes with an 80 mm fan instead of a 120 mm model (no technical details about this fan were provided). The power supply is installed at the bottom of the case, and the rear panel and the interior of the case are painted black, features usually found only on more expensive products. The L-600 has seven expansion slots, and on five of them you will need to break and discard the cover that comes attached to them, as expected to be seen in low-cost cases. The case also features a tab for installing a pad lock or a warranty seal to prevent unauthorized people from opening the case.

Figure 9: Rear panel

Let’s now take a look inside the L-600 V.REX Jr.

[nextpage title=”Inside the L-600 V.REX Jr.”]

The left panel is attached to the chassis using black thumbscrews, but the right panel uses regular screws (at least they are black, matching the color used on the case). The motherboard tray has a huge hole around the area where the CPU is installed, so you can replace the backplate of the CPU cooler without the need to remove your motherboard. There is not enough space between the motherboard tray and the right panel, so you can’t route and hide cables behind the motherboard tray.

Figure 10: Overall look

Figure 11: A view behind the motherboard tray

The L-600 supports video cards up to 11.4” (290 mm) long.

Figure 12: Overall look

The case comes with a bracket installed on one of the expansion slots for you to install an 80- or 120-mm fan in the middle of the case, see Figure 13.

Figure 13: Fan bracket

In the L-600 you can install the power supply with its bottom fan facing up or facing down, so you will have to decide if you want the power supply to be pulling cool air from outside the case (fan facing down) or hot air from inside the case (fan facing up). The case comes with a removable air filter for the power supply fan on its bottom panel, as shown before.

Figure 14: Power supply compartment

[nextpage title=”The Disk Drive Bays”]

The L-600 comes with three 5.25” external bays, one external 3.5” bay, and three internal 3.5” bays. The external 3.5” bay can be used by a hard drive, so you can have up to four hard drives if you don’t have an external 3.5” device.

Figure 15: Disk drive bays

The case comes with a “multi bracket” adapter, which was hard to figure out its use, since the product doesn’t come with a manual and the manufacturer website doesn’t provide much information about it (even if it had, it is hard to understand the broken English used by 3R System). After a while figuring it out, we came to the conclusion that this adapter can be installed in the 5.25” bays for you to either install an extra 120 mm fan, a 3.5” or a 2.5” drive, such an SSD unit. However, since 3.5” hard drives are quite heavy, we don’t recommend using this bracket to install this kind of device.

Figure 16: Adapter

The hard disk drive bays feature a unique suspension mechanism, and the cage is removable, a feature usually only found on more expensive products.

Figure 17: Hard drive cage

[nextpage title=”Main Specifications”]

The main specs for the 3R System L-600 V.REX Jr. case include:

• Style: Mid-tower
• Application: ATX and smaller form factors derived from this one
• Power supply: Doesn’t come with the product
• Available colors: Black
• Material: Steel
• Side panel: Meshed
• Dimensions: 18 x 7.1 x 18.5 inches (458 x 180 x 470 mm) (H x W x D)
• Net weight: 12.5 lbs (5.8 kg)
• Gross weight: 14.5 lbs (6.6 kg)
• Bays: Three external 5.25” bays, one external 3.5” bay, three internal 3.5” bays, and one extra 3.5” or 2.5” space if the included adapter is used
• Expansion slots: Seven
• Maximum video card length: 11.4” (290 mm)
• Maximum CPU cooler height: NA
• Fans: One 120 mm fan on the front panel, two 120 mm fans on the top panel, and one 80 mm fan on the rear panel
• Optional fans: Two 120 mm fans on the left panel, one 80 mm or 120 mm fan on a expansion slot, and one 120 mm fan inside the 5.25” bays using the included adapter
• Extra features: Fan speed controllers for the top, rear and front fans
• More Information: https://www.3rsys.com
• MSRP: USD 60.00

[nextpage title=”Conclusions”]

The 3R System L-600 V.REX Jr. is clearly targeted to users on budget that want a nice-looking case with lots of options usually only seen on more expensive models. The L-600 is a no-brainer if you fall in this category – and can find it for sale in your country.

Strong Points

• Price
• Air filter for the front fan
• Air filter for the power supply
• Meshed 5.25” bay covers with air filters
• Supports 2.5” hard drives or SSDs (if the included bracket is used)
• A huge hole in the motherboard tray for accessing the backplate of the CPU cooler
• Two USB 3.0 ports
• eSATA port
• Individual speed controllers for the top, rear, and front fans
• Removable hard drive cage
• Suspension mechanism for the hard drives
• No sharp edges where you could cut yourself while building your computer

Weak Points

• No tool-less installation mechanisms for expansion cards or disk drives