Cooler Master HAF X Case Review

Introduction (Cont’d)

The connectors of HAF X are available on the top part of the front panel, while the power, reset and fan LED switches are available on the top panel, coming with a sliding lid to you to cover them and thus preventing from accidentally turning the computer off or resetting it.

Figure 5: Buttons and connectors.

HAF X comes with two USB 2.0 ports, two USB 3.0 ports (blue ones), one eSATA port, one FireWire port and the traditional audio jacks.

You may be wondering what is the difference between the USB 3.0 and the USB 2.0 ports. There are two differences. First, because it operates at a higher speed, their wires require a better shielding. Second, USB 3.0 ports are available on the rear panel of the motherboards that come with this feature and, therefore, the USB 3.0 ports of the front panel must use a regular USB A connector. So the two USB 3.0 ports are attached to standard USB connectors that must be routed to the outside of the case and connected to the motherboard external USB 3.0 ports.

On the top panel HAF X comes with a 200-mm fan identical to the one used on the left-side panel, and a space for installing a second 200-mm fan (as you can see, the manufacturer removed the storage compartment present on HAF 932). The case comes with air filters for both fans, which is a feature not usually found (since top fans blows air from inside the case to the outside, usually manufacturers don’t add air filters on the top panel).

Figure 6: Top panel.

Finally we have the rear panel in Figure 7, which was drastically improved over HAF 932. What immediately caught our eye was the presence of nine (yes, nine) expansion slots for video cards. This allows you to not only install motherboards that are wider than the standard ATX size, but also install dual-slot video cards on the left-most PCI Express x16 slot (on regular cases with seven slots you can install a dual-slot video card on the last PCI Express x16 slot). The slot covers are vented, which may improve airflow inside the case, and there is a mesh on the area above where the expansion cards are installed, for the same purpose.

Figure 7: Rear panel.

On the top part of the rear panel HAF X has three holes protected with rubber covers. Two of these holes are for passing hoses of liquid cooling solutions that have external components. The third hole is for you to pass the two cables from the front USB 3.0 ports, since they need to be connected to the motherboard rear connectors.

A 140 mm fan (1,200 rpm, 19 dBA) is present on the rear panel, also with a three-pin connector and coming with an adapter if you want to connect it directly on the power supply.

The rear panel and the interior of HAF X are painted black, giving a very professional looks to this case.

The reviewed case comes with a set of wheels that can be screwed to the bottom of the case if you want your computer to have more mobility.

Figure 8: Set of wheels.

Now let’s take a look inside Cooler Master HAF X.