A quick look at the Coolermaster CM690

[NickS]

If you haven't heard about this case yet, it's time to enlighten you. It's less than $100 shipped, it's a mid tower, and it has space for SEVEN 120MM fans OR FIVE 140MM fans and two 120mm's, whatever you choose.

Let's move on.



Big box, big case, makes sense



Slick, isnt it? The whole front is mesh (and has the appropriate filters installed to prevent dust bunnies from invading!). A part of the top where 2 120mm or 140mm fans mount is also mesh (and filtered.. sorta). You'll also see the power & reset buttons are on the side of the bezel as well as the power & hard drive activity lights. Some may hate it, but I love it, because the case sits on my desk to the left of me so it makes turning on my rig even easier



Theres a nice [blurry] picture of the side. The case comes with a 120mm cooler master side fan. IIRC, coolermaster rates it at 21db. Theres also the same fan in the rear, and a blue LED one in the front. On the side panel fan mounts, theres screw holes for 140mm fans and 120mm fans.



USB, Audio, Firewire AND ESATA up top. Nice Theres also the large vented portion for the top 120 or 140mm fans.



The back is pretty standard. Yet another case with the PSU at the bottom. This is becoming a popular trend [set by antec] and I like it . You'll also notice two watercooling tubing holes already there for you. I don't think you'll be fitting 7/16" through them though.



At the bottom we have a vent for the PSU fan, and another spot for a 120/140mm fan!



The inside is pretty roomy. It has room for 5 hdd's and 5x 5.25" devices (or one 3.5" with the included adapter).



Included is a manual, 3.5" cover, adhesive cable clamp and standoffs. Where are the screws?



Right there, on either side of the 5.25" bays! Sweet! No more lost screws



Backside is relatively plain. You'll notice 2 holes for running wires behind there (and theres lots of room) as well as a spot for an 80x15mm for some airflow behind the mobo.



Popping the top off was a bit of a chore but once you get the hang of it removing it is fine. Heres where you can mount two fans (and maybe a dual rad? )



Installed.



If you've ever owned a Cooler Master, you'll know the front bezel comes off easy. Just grab it from the bottom, brace yourself and give it a nice jerk. Pops right off . Getting it back on is kind of tricky but once its on its not going anywhere.



Oh yes. Coolermaster actually installed filters behind all the vented 5.25" covers. A VERY nice touch.



Installing optical drives is easy with their tool-less system.




Slide the blue lever to unlock, flip up, line up the holes, flip back down and lock



Fast forward and everythings in the case. As you can see, you have lots of room back there for cables (and yes, the side panel fit on fine )



Main view of the computer [and my foot ] installed Yeah, I was lazy, didn't use any zipties.



All set up and running, it looks great on my desk IMO. Surprisingly, it's VERY quiet and the HDD cages have made my HDD's dead silent.



Right..



Left...



Top USB in action

So there it is. The case, finished. My CPU temps are amazing, as to be expected when the freakin' heatsink is surrounded by THREE 120mm fans. This case would be awesome for an IFX-14 or Ultra 120 Xtreme, or even the HR-01 Plus running passive. The GPU runs very cool too, with the side fan blowing right across it. Note though, with tall coolers, you will NOT be able to install the top 120mm side fan as it'll hit your heatsink.

As I conclude this 5 minute writeup, I'd like to say that cooler master has done an astonishing job on this case and the quality is top notch for very little money. If anyone is looking for a case on a budget, or just a case with great airflow that keeps your PC quiet, this is it.

Watch out antec, this combines the cooling, features, and looks of the Antec 900, P182 and P190 into a smaller, lighter, cheaper package! Overall, this case is a great choice for the cooling junkie, the lan-partier, or someone set out to conquer the squad of dust bunny ninja's under his/her desk waiting for the right chance to get into their PC.

If you have any questions feel free to ask them. If you want a picture or closeup of something, I'll do that too. Just ask!

[breakfromyou]

Nice writeup.

Airflow to the hard drives...good?

I want this case because it looks great, and it's very inexpensive. But if it barely blows any air over my hard drives, forget about it.

Point is...do you have a hot running hard drive? If so, how are your temps in this case?

I gave my sister a Centurion 5 and her HDD temps went from the mid 40's to the low 30's. Just from going with no fan up front to one with a fan. I have a hard drive that runs in the mid 40's with a 92mm fan blowing air over it...need more airflow. or a new hard drive...hmmm

[CyberDruid]

Nice looking case--that really pushes the buy button--I like the design on the top--I only wish they had made more space between the mobo and top for a rad inside..however an external top mounted one would be okay looking.

Thanks!

[NickS]

Nice writeup.

Airflow to the hard drives...good?

I want this case because it looks great, and it's very inexpensive. But if it barely blows any air over my hard drives, forget about it.

Point is...do you have a hot running hard drive? If so, how are your temps in this case?

I gave my sister a Centurion 5 and her HDD temps went from the mid 40's to the low 30's. Just from going with no fan up front to one with a fan. I have a hard drive that runs in the mid 40's with a 92mm fan blowing air over it...need more airflow. or a new hard drive...hmmm

Theres actually a surprising amount of air getting passed the HDD's with the stock fan! I wasn't expecting to feel any air going through but theres definitely a decent amount. I have three HDD's, the temps are..

Top (160GB WD1600JS 8MB Cache, 7200RPM): 36ºC
Mid (40GB Seagate Barracuda Cache, 7200.4): 34ºC
Bottom (320GB Seagate Barracuda7200.10): 35ºC

Pretty impressive for a sandwich of hard drives

Nice looking case--that really pushes the buy button--I like the design on the top--I only wish they had made more space between the mobo and top for a rad inside..however an external top mounted one would be okay looking.

Thanks!

Thanks man. You might actually be able to fit a rad but it'll be close. You'd have to drill some new fan mount holes probably because the fans are spaced so far apart. Really easy though.

[LuckyNV]

ETA 9-11 days before Ebuyer (UK etailer) receives stock, when its in, its mine!

Nice set of pics, i wonder how effective a fan blowing on the back cpu area would be. test please?

[apexracing]

Nice review. This certainly doesn't look like a recipe for disaster, that case. Suddenly, the Antec 900 looks a bit damp, in comparison.

[GAR]

nice case, i was thinking of trading my armor in for this case, but i decided to hold off on it, went to my local FRY's and the plastic just feels too cheap for me, never the less the cooling on this case seems to be amazing, for $80 you cant go wrong.

[Jodiuh]

I did like those top USB ports. The power button's wack, but as long as you've got power on by keyboard/uguru clock, etc...it's all good. And for what...$50AR @ ZZF right now?! The only major mod I'd like to see on this case would be cutting out all the fan grills. They're too loud and restrictive IMO. Of course that may be dangerous depending on your living/LAN situation.

[NickS]

ETA 9-11 days before Ebuyer (UK etailer) receives stock, when its in, its mine!

Nice set of pics, i wonder how effective a fan blowing on the back cpu area would be. test please?

Thanks man. As for the rear fan, I'm mot sure, I don't have a 80x15mm fan laying around. I also noticed that my mobo's backplate is almost flush with the fan spot, so it would probably restrict all or most airflow.

Nice review. This certainly doesn't look like a recipe for disaster, that case. Suddenly, the Antec 900 looks a bit damp, in comparison.

Thanks It's definitely not disastrous. . Comparing it to the Antec 900 is like apples and oranges though. The 900 is purely designed with gamers in mind. I find this case sleeker and more "elegant." There are rumors of cooler master making an optional windowed panel for the case, though.

nice case, i was thinking of trading my armor in for this case, but i decided to hold off on it, went to my local FRY's and the plastic just feels too cheap for me, never the less the cooling on this case seems to be amazing, for $80 you cant go wrong.

I agree, the plastic does take away from the quality feel slightly. Comparing it to Thermaltake shouldn't make it feel cheap though. I've had Thermaltake's "high end" cases before (namely the Xaser III V2000a) and it was flimsy! Comparing it to my Lian Li's in the past, it does feel a bit cheap but hey, it's not meant to compete with that class of case. That's what the Cosmos is for. It definitely has the best cooling out of any case I've owned so far, and I'm extremely happy with it.

[tonschk]

Watch out antec, this combines the cooling, features, and looks of the Antec 900, P182 and P190 into a smaller, lighter, cheaper package!

Excellent review NickS .the only problem is the way in which the hard disk drive Rack is turned , Blocking the AirFlow from the front intake Fan

[NickS]

Watch out antec, this combines the cooling, features, and looks of the Antec 900, P182 and P190 into a smaller, lighter, cheaper package!

Excellent review NickS .the only problem is the way in which the hard disk drive Rack is turned , Blocking the AirFlow from the front intake Fan

Thanks tonschk. The way the HDD's are is fine IMO, theres still quite a bit of airflow surprisingly. I love the way they mount too. It's unbelievably easy.

[Jodiuh]

^ very true. But the grill in front restricts SO MUCH airflow and makes an annoying grating noise too. I wish they were removable like the some of the Stacker's. W/ a little bit of effort, could be a great case. Tho, the quiet racks finally motivated me to finally deal w/ my stacker's 4in1 noise cage. Never knew raptors could be so tame.

Also, it's kinda small compared to what I've been using (810). Like the Antec 900, I think a full tower version would be killer. 2 rear 120's, 2 top 120's, 2 front 120's, 2 side 120's...oh my!?

[Start]

I want to see someone fit a 240 rad on top. It just is screaming for a rad right there. I would get this case just do water cooling . For around $50 After Rebate, this case really cannot be beat.

[breakfromyou]

I want to see someone fit a 240 rad on top. It just is screaming for a rad right there. I would get this case just do water cooling . For around $50 After Rebate, this case really cannot be beat.

haha yeah, definitely. for the price, if you go a little too crazy with a dremel, don't worry about it. get another one lol.

[ownage]

Stupid case. Most radiators won't fit when mounting it in the top of the case.
If the case was only 2cm higher this would be a really nice watercooling case.

[Start]

Stupid case. Most radiators won't fit when mounting it in the top of the case.
If the case was only 2cm higher this would be a really nice watercooling case.

Well I don't expect to fit a PA in there, but maybe a MCR in there. Can someone take a picture at an angle so I can see how much clearance I have to mount the rad.

[NickS]

In a little while I'll see if i can

[Start]

In a little while I'll see if i can

If you can mount some 120x120x25mm fans as well that would be nice

[EvlUndrWareNome]

i think i found my new case for phenom.

[vaio]

Nice......runs off to check U.K pricing

Edit: £59....not too bad.

[LuckyNV]

Nice......runs off to check U.K pricing

Edit: £59....not too bad.

http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/131551

I'm getting it as soon as its in stock there

[mike8913]

How much clearance is there underneath the top bezel? I ask because I wonder if you could fit 2 fans on top between the case and the removal top instead of inside. If that were possible you mgiht even be able to pull off a PA120.2, which would be amazing

[CyberDruid]

That's a nice case--probably takes the top honors for best designed inexpensive case. Since you posted your review I have looked around and been able to find the case at really low prices. Might just have to get one to hack on.

Thanks

[Miwo]

Very nice review,

This might be my next case, as I was looking for something with lots of room for air cooling. The top exhausts will be perfect for making my room warmer in the wintertime too :p

[Fetou]

Friend wants to know if theres enough room to use the top case fans when you have a Thermalright ultra 120 extreme installed.