NZXT Tempest EVO Case Review

[nextpage title=”Introduction”]

NZXT has just revamped their Tempest mid-tower case, adding some nice aesthetic details to it. Since we’ve already reviewed the original Tempest, we will be able to do a detailed comparison between the two models. Is it a good buy? Let’s see.

Tempest EVO follows the same basic design as the original Tempest. Externally the main differences are the use of a dark side window instead of a transparent one, meshed slot covers and the rear panel, which is now painted black and having four holes for hoses from liquid cooling solutions instead of only two. All other external features are the same.

Figure 1: NZXT Tempest EVO case.

Figure 2: NZXT Tempest EVO case.

The left side panel features a 120 mm fan, which uses a small three-pin connector, so it must be installed on the motherboard, allowing you to monitor its speed. This fan produces 42 cfm of airflow and 21 dBA noise level and glows blue when turned on.

In Figure 3, you can see the front panel from this case. It has nine 5.25” bays, with the top three available for 5.25” devices and the bottom six used by the two removable hard disk drive cages (more about this later). All slot covers are meshed featuring air filters. The edges from the front panel glow blue when the computer is turned on, with the bottom part from the left edge glowing in green when the computer is turned on (if you connect these LEDs to the power supply, of course).

Figure 3: Front panel.

The front panel features two 120 mm fans, which are identical to the one used on the side panel (42 cfm, 21 dBA, glowing blue) but also have the option for a standard peripheral power plug, allowing you to connect them directly to the power supply. These fans also have individual air filters. This way Tempest EVO presents two layers of protection against dust, since the bay covers also have air filters, as mentioned.

Figure 4: Case with plastic front panel removed.

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

The buttons and connectors from Tempest EVO are available on the top panel, and this case comes with two USB ports (too close to each other) and one eSATA port, plus the microphone input and headphones output.

Figure 5: Buttons and connectors.

On the top panel Tempest EVO has two 140 mm fans (no technical information about them was given).

Figure 6: Top panel.

On the bottom panel the reviewed case comes with an air filter matching the power supply air intake. This filter can be easily removed for cleaning.

Figure 7: Bottom panel.

Finally we have the rear panel in Figure 8. It has a 120 mm fan with the same specs as the others, meshed slot covers, which helps to increase the airflow (an improvement over the original Tempest), and four holes for hoses from liquid cooling solutions (instead of only two like on the original Tempest). The rear panel and the interior from Tempest EVO are now painted black, which gives this case a more professional looks. As you can see, the power supply is installed on the bottom part of the case.

Figure 8: Rear panel.

Now let’s take a look inside NZXT Tempest EVO.

[nextpage title=”Inside Tempest EVO”]

Both panels are fastened to the case using thumbscrews, which is excellent. In Figure 9 we have an overall look from inside Tempest EVO. The first thing that catches the eye is the new all-black interior, a drastic difference to the original Tempest. But the paint job is not the only difference between the two models. Tempest EVO comes with a big hole on the motherboard tray for you to have access to the backplate from the CPU cooler, allowing you to replace it without having to remove the motherboard, and the two holes available for routing cables behind the motherboard tray are now coming with a rubber protection.

Figure 9: Overall look.

Figure 10: A view from behind the motherboard tray.

The motherboard tray is big enough to hold Extended ATX (E-ATX) motherboards, also easily allowing the installation of video cards up to 11” (28 cm) long.

In Figure 11 you can have another overall look from inside Tempest EVO. The top panel comes with holes in order to allow you to install radiators from certain liquid cooling solutions. Daughter boards are fastened to the case using regular screws. It would be nice seeing at least thumbscrews here.

Figure 11: Overall look.

As you know, the power supply is installed on the bottom of the case and the case has an air filter matching the power supply fan (if you use a
power supply where the fan is located on its bottom part, of course). The power supply is installed on top of four rubber stands, as you can see in Figure 12.

Figure 12: Power supply compartment.

[nextpage title=”The Disk Drive Bays”]

The disk drive configuration from Tempest EVO is identical to the one from the original Tempest, except that all parts are now black.

On its default configuration, Tempest EVO has nine 5.25” bays with the three top bays coming with screwless mechanisms for holding 5.25” devices and the bottom six bays coming with two hard disk drive cages, each one supporting four hard disk drives each.

Figure 13: Disk drive bays.

Since the hard drive cages are removable, you can change the configuration, if you want to. For example, by removing one of the cages you gain three more 5.25” bays for a total of six, while still supporting four hard drives inside the remaining cage.

Figure 14: One of the hard drive cages.

Hard drives are installed using screwless mechanisms based on rulers.

Tempest EVO also comes with a 5.25”-to-3.5” adapter, allowing you to install a floppy disk drive, memory card reader or even one more hard drive (the holes match, we tried).

Figure 15: 5.25”-to-3.5” adapter.

[nextpage title=”Main Specifications”]

NZXT Tempest EVO case main specs include:

• Style: Mid-tower
• Application: E-ATX and smaller form factors derived from this one.
• Material: Zinc-coated steel (SECC), painted black inside.
• Power supply required: Doesn’t come with the product.
• Available colors: Black.
• Side panel: Dark transparent acrylic.
• Dimensions: 22 1/8” x 8 3/8” x 20 ½” (56.2 cm x 21.15 cm x 52.15 cm) (H x W x D).
• Net weight: 22.5 lbs (10.2 kg)
• Gross weight: 26.5 lbs (12 kg)
• Bays: Three external 5.25” bays and eight internal 3.5” bays in two removable cages.
• Expansion slots: Seven.
• Fans: One 120 mm on the rear (42 cfm, 21 dBA), one 120 mm on the left panel (42 cfm, 21 dBA), two 120 mm fans on the front panel (42 cfm, 21 dBA) and two 140 mm fans on the top panel.
• Optional fans: None.
• More Information: https://www.nzxt.com
• Average price in the US*: USD 110.00

* Researched at Newegg.com on the day we published this review.[nextpage title=”Conclusions”]

NZXT Tempest EVO is a terrific option for the user looking for an affordable mid-tower case full of nice features. It is definitely an improvement over the original Tempest and the best of all: it is better and comes with the same price tag.

Strong Points

• Meshed bay covers.
• Meshed slot covers.
• Air filters on the front panel.
• Air filters on the front fans.
• Air filter on the bottom panel.
• Rear panel and interior are painted black.
• Hole in the motherboard tray for accessing the backplate of the CPU cooler.
• Holes for routing cables on the motherboard tray with rubber covers.
• eSATA port.
• No sharp edges where you could cut yourself while building your PC.
• Impressive number of hard disk drive bays (eight or nine) that will please even the most demanding user.
• Screwless mechanisms for fastening drives.
• Comes with six fans.

Weak Points

• Could have come with thumbscrews for fastening daughterboards.
• No noise absorbing mechanisms for the hard disk drives.