Compucase 6C28B ATX Case Black 4X5.25 2X3.5 4X.3.5INT W/ Front USB & Audio No PS

Comment:
A basic case with no frills. Lightweight construction. Most exposed edges are bevelled or rolled so as to not leave sharp edges. However there are still some areas requiring caution and it had a big tendency to catch the buttons on my sleeve when working on it. Only two mobo standoffs are suppled with the rest being provided by raised dimples on the backplate. There is one standoff installed that just has a metal post sticking up, the purpose of which is to help hold your mobo in place when you screw it down. Still there is one screw hole in the mobo that there is no 'dimple' or place to put in a standoff. Leaves the inner 1.5 inches unsupported.The drive bays are designed so that when an optical drive/card reader is installed, it's recessed about 3/4 inches from the front of the bezel. Not an issue with a burner, but it means a card reader is back sufficiently far that you cannot easily see the slots.The cable for the front audio just barely reaches the back of the case/mobo. Another inch or two would have been nice.Not a bad case for the price and a nice glossy finish on the bezel but there are a few little things that could have made it better.

Comment:
I got this on sale with shipping deal and it looks way better than I expected. It is a low end case, so don't compare with the high end stuff. It has plenty of room and not bad cooling. A bit flimsy when the panels are off, but solid enough when all put together. The thumbscrews are nice and overall I am very happy.

Comment:
This case was bought for a new build that I was doing. When I first got it, I was surprised that it was very light even with the box on. I was expecting something heavier but what you pay is what you get. When I was installing the mb, I noticed that there was a piece of metal that looked like a screw sticking out. I had to remove it considering that i couldn't install my mb. One thing that I hated about this case was the fact that there weren't any labels for the front panel cables. I had to ask for help to complete this build. Considering that this is my first even build, it was expected.

Comment:
I purchased this case for a budget build. The design of the front panel is elegant and has a highly glossed finish. The structure of the case is made of thin metal and is a little flimsy. Side panels are both easily removeable. Hard drive and optical drive bays have cutouts for tool less features which have been omitted in this model. The hardware bag had a variety of screws and only 2 standoffs for the motherboard. Luckily, I have a few extras in my parts box, but I guess this says something about the manufacturer's quality assurance. Other than this lack of essential hardware, this case is a fine example of "you get what you pay for". It's functional with absolutly no frills. This review was modfied by poster @ 02-09-10 07:06 AM

Comment:
I bought one of these cases with price matching at a substantial savings for a little project I was undertaking where I didn't want to spend a lot of money. I actually had previously purchased the white and black model (6C28) and was reasonably satisfied with it for the price. There are a couple of differences between the two, most noticeably the lack of spring-loaded 5.25" drive bay covers on this model, which the 6C28 has.The case itself is relatively nice looking, with a very shiny black front bezel. It is a very lightweight case, especially for a steel case of this size, and a little on the flimsy side.The two side panels are removable, held on with a couple of standard hexhead case screws apiece. However, the parts bag had four thumbscrews included that will fit if preferred (or they could be used to secure hard drives, for which I believe they are intended).The company produces a number of variants of this case referred to as the 6C product line and this is a basic one. Other models offer more features, as evident in the enclosed exploded view of the case and parts. Various options such as screwless drive mounting mechanisms, screwless expansion slot mechanisms and screwless side panel latches are available in other models, but are not included in this one.A bag of accessories, including the requisite mounting screws is included as is usual. However, only 2 motherboard stand-offs were included, in addition to one pre-mounted central peg on the motherboard tray. A full size ATX mainboard usually requires 9, so that leaves us six short. Luckily, I usually have lots of such things around, but others may not and would need to go shopping or mount the mainboard with only three points of support - not something I would recommend.The rear fan grill uses a honeycombed pattern and an 80 mm exhaust fan is pre-installed. However, screw holes are provided to accommodate 90 or 120 mm fans as well. A second honeycombed grill at the front, between the 3.5 inch drive bays and the bezel is pre-drilled to accommodate either a 80, 90 or 120 mm fan.Contrary to modern practice, this model does come with a case piezo speaker.The seven expansion card slots all have stamped break-away covers that must be removed before installing expansion cards. Some thought to where you are installing the cards should be given in advance, as only a single slot cover is provided to fill in any empty openings. No I/O shield is provided, although my experience has generally been that these are replaced with the one that comes with the motherboard anyway.Of the four 5.25" drive bays, the breakaway front covers have been removed from the topmost bay only.The 3.5" drive cage can accommodate six drives, but the mounting screw locations on the uppermost 2 drive bays correspond to floppy or similar drives. Only the lower four are specifically designed for hard drives. One of the two externally-accessible 3.5" bays also has the cover plate removed to accommodate a floppy. A curved plastic cover pops off of the front bezel to reveal a recessed opening to allow floppy drive access. The second floppy-style bay is something of a mystery, in that even though an externally-accessible drive could be mounted here, doing so would require the removal of the front USB/Audio panel (which is removable, BTW) which occupies this position on the front bezel. In my opinion an additional hard drive bay here would seem more logical.None of the drive bay cages are removable. Fitting drives in the drive bays (both 3.5 and 5.25 inch) is a bit of a squeeze owing to the fact that they obviously have some provisions for screwless mounting options. Without the screwless option the design of the drive bays is something of a nuisance.Removal of the front bezel is not particularly straightforward. There are eight plastic clips that secure it, four to a side. The lower three on each side are relatively accessible and come away quite readily. However, the upper two are difficult to reach near the top of the case and do not release easily. I would not recommend prying outwards from the bottom of the bezel to release these last two for fear of breaking them off. I finally released them by prying very gently outwards with a slot screwdriver between the bezel and the case. Fortunately, removing the bezel is not something most people will need to do often, however it is required to mount the optical drive(s) and floppy drive.The front panel includes connectors for two USB ports, plus two audio ports (there is also provision for another port, presumably for firewire if you have the need). A second pop-out opening is also available near the bottom of the bezel which presumably is for potential additional ports, but I’m guessing at that.Some effort has been made to roll edges and eliminate sharp ones, but there are some unfinished edges here and there, so have a care working inside.This is obviously a very inexpensive case and therefore any criticisms must take that into account, to be reasonable. However, if considering this case at it's list price, there are better alternatives available for not a lot more when found on sale or price-matched that one might wish to consider.Overall, I’m not unhappy with the case for what I paid, but expectations should take into account that this is a very basic case.