APEVIA Black / Silver X-MASTER-AL/500 ATX Media Center / HTPC Case

Comment:
its decently constructed weasy access and this case utilizes a common sized powersupply, cant really complain. the powersupply it comes with died within a month and the fans in the back are worthless. with full length cards cant get actual massive powersupply upgrades. you will will need to buy much better fans for the back cos with the high finish video cards youll have overheating difficulties. overall its a great case but to resolve the overheating difficulties i bought two 3000 rpm 80mm fans for the back and bought 2 120mm 2000 rpm for the sides now the technique stays below 50c ahead of it was additional liek 100c Manufacturer Response:You can do an RMA via us for the power provide to get an exchange on the PSU if you are nevertheless under our warranty period. You can get in touch with Apevia's buyer service at service@apevia.com or get in touch with at 鿍) 718-0789. We attempt to reply to all calls and e-mails as soon as we can.

Comment:
Value (with rebate), innovative design and style, seemingly high quality components. Instructions on front panel removal resulted in snapping off two plastic supports (see other thoughts for information). Thin sharp metal can cut your fingers. Not that I usually read instructions, but I wanted to be secure. They say to eliminate the front panel by getting... "a solid grip on the vent at the bottom of the panel and pull firmly". Wrong - that snaps the plastic supports on the other end. They really should have advise slipping a flat screwdriver into the four modest slots and working the cover off. Maybe I'll ask them to send me just a new front cover, but I'm guessing they'd require a full RMA and at this point I can't deal with dismantling shipping and rebuilding this computer system. Hope other folks discover from my negative encounter.

Comment:
Incredibly nicely laid out case. I could match a full size ATX motherboard without having any difficulty. Some folks had complained about the power provide, even so, it seemed to perform good suitable out of the box and had a ton of connections with a good heavy duty cover over every wiring set. I had bought a spare 480W energy provide because some other individuals had recommended, but comparing the two, the Apevia energy supply looked beefier and so am staying with it, with a backup 480W in the closet. The front of the box is effectively laid out with a blue power light, red challenging disk light, power & reset buttons along with audio, USB & Firewire. As some other folks had mentioned, the black paint on the case may scratch effortless. I was conscious of this and so only ended up with one particular 1" scratch along the side on prime exactly where you slide the prime to the case. I did on the other hand buff up the complete case for 30 seconds, so the front and prime appear like a shiny new vehicle. I constructed my HTPC with the following:> Biostar TForce TA790GX HDMI motherboard> Apevia black/silver case per this evaluation> Gigabyte GV-R435OC-512I 512MB video card> AMD X2 6000 CPU (bundled savings with Biostar)> Rosewill RCX-Z1 ball bearing CPU cooler> Corsair XMS2 4GB DDR2-800> ƒ) Rosewill RFA-120-K 120MM fans for the sides of the case.> Sony internal Blue-ray 16X DVD # BDU-X10S> 750GB Sata II WD internal tough drive.> Hauppauge HVR-1800 PCI-E Tv Tuner with MCE receiver & remote> 3-1ǘ" Internal card reader with USB, SD, CF cards and so forth.> Broadcom WIFI 802.11G 108mbps PCI internal cardand running Windows 7 Construct 7260 (latest).With the $ 60 rebate due, my cost is about $ 450 ~ $ 475 ; I have this connected to a 46" Sony LCD HDTV 1080p by way of HDMI of the Gigabyte video card. Proper soon after I built the Computer, I crossed my fingers, and turned it on, it fired up proper away and loaded the Win 7 Beta disk ; in 40 min or so, every thing was up & running.THANK YOU NEWEGG

Comment:
Extremely very good media center case. Strong power supply. Good internal connections for front panel. Appears Wonderful in an entertainment center. Case is glossy black. I like the tool-less rails for the optical drive. I dont like how you have to pull on the front panel to take away it. Front cover for optical drive(that flips down when button pressed) is kinda flimsy. Position of tough drive could be in much better spot to get far more air flow.

Comment:
case size supplies appearance is fantastic, led also bright power supply 500w is a joke, operating a minimal system 65w amd, biostar mATX, ati 4350 one HD no optical drive and ps failed immediately after about 4 hours of total use with a pop, crackle and took down motherboard as properly. not pleased Manufacturer Response:You can do an RMA through us for the power provide to get an exchange on the PSU if you are nonetheless under our warranty period. You can speak to Apevia's buyer service at service@apevia.com or call at 鿍) 718-0789. We attempt to reply to all calls and e-mails as soon as we can.

Comment:
Incredibly great situation for the money. As well big for a HTPC situation. Received damaged, but was such a good deal that it was not worth the hassle of returning it.

Comment:
This is a great hunting case that can fit a variety of motherboards like ATX or mATX. Has a excellent quantity of space and decent amount of vents. It isn't heavy on attributes, but it does what it does properly adequate. Plus the low price makes this a very good option for a spending budget make. The case is also relatively quiet, perfect for a case of this sort. Energy provide gets the job done. There is no drive cover for the second DVD drive; Only two 80mm fans but has space for two 120mm fans. It is undoubtedly not a high price range case since of lack of attributes (low energy supply, no detachable motherboard tray), but it suits properly for its price tag. Low good quality packaging and manuals reflect the price range cost. I applied this case to replace a proprietary Sony VAIO desktop of 6 years. I bought case primarily for the energy supply considering that the specific design of VAIO cases do not allow common mATX or ATX power supplies. My desktop is now alive once again thanks to this case, but I only somewhat advise it for a new create. There might be other instances with a lot more features, but this a single gets the job carried out.

Comment:
Optical drives fit perfectly, function with the front door and rear cables are quickly acceptable.One hard drive on the side is simple to mount. The second is under the optical drives and hard to access. I believe it would be greater to make your personal bracket for 2nd HD and mount to the side of the case. I mounted a micro-ATX and have plenty of room inside the case. Fans are extremely quiet. Power supply is for a dual core, 2x2 header. The ATX was a 2x10 plus a 2x2 to make a total 2x12 connector. The power supply supports SATA and IDE energy. Hardware kit was brief a couple of standoffs and screws. As with all HTPC instances with front mounted power supplies, the 'hard' energy button in under the front cover. This is only an challenge in the course of set up. I truly like this case and am glad I purchased it. Good deal when on sale with free ship.

Comment:
Looks great. Shiny and vivid You have to take away the front face plate to set up CD/DVD ROM and hard drive. Third time I took it off to adjust the DVD drive one particular of the plastic knobs broke off( and yes I was cautious). Would likely not obtain again

Comment:
great box pleanty of space for a micro atx even for an atx i would say can hold two challenging drives two dvd players energy suply is prety desent from the looks of it wires and sleved 2 low speed 80 mm fans in rear can be romoved as 1 pice none has a rebate lets see if it get paid but even if it dosent for the value its excellent to instal io shild you require to remove the 80mm fans no bigeget rid of front plate make shure energy suply switch is 1 mine was offmake shure you pluge the 4 pin conector to the mother bord and not the eight pin. eight pin will not start the comp 4 pin will

Comment:
Effortless to function in, not undesirable searching. Operates great for what I purchased it for. Rebate....don't count on obtaining it. I have not contacted Newegg regarding it but but I am going to. Newegg is Great with these concerns though.

Comment:
This is the household for my high end custom Pc elements. It has fit all of them and they are working fast & cool. - Enough space for most components.- Cable management is doable with a tiny fore-thought.- Fairly a handful of fan arangements- 80mm fans supplied are silent.- two HDD slots is fine for me as I'm utilizing intel X25-M's that can be mounted anywhere there's room. 2 far more slots convirtable if you want to block the fan mounts (not a excellent concept if something produces heat).- Nice and rapid slide racks for 5.25" bays.- It's affordable and I've moded it to my demands. It kept my total develop cost down and looks good in my entertainment center. - CPU heat sink and fan requires to be short (Scythe ShurikenN rev. b worked excellent for me). - Blue LED on front facing is far to vivid. - I did not trust the PSU and purchased another.- Not adequate standoffs supplied for ATX motherboard.- As well deep, it could have been wider.- PSU is in the way of the graphics cards. As it is I had to bend the GPU's energy cord 90 deg. to get it in; just barely. - To bring much more cool air in I cut a hole in the pannel aboave the CPU to mount a 120mm fan. I utilized a jig saw; the alluminum is soft adequate. Plenty cool now. If you do this tape the entire pannel. Something metal will scratch the paint off with tiny work.- I utilized a hole punch to make a paper circle that I colored Dark blue and taped more than the hole. I applied black electrical tape to match the front. It is the best brightness now and you can't inform it's been moded)- Cable management take fairly awhile and can be frustrating. Take deep breaths. If you really feel like throwing it, don't. Step out for a bit, get some water, and come back when you cool down. Double joints may possibly assist to.This is a good looking case and fits good with the other elements of my entertainment center. When I got it all together and configured for thermal effiency it's been uncomplicated adequate to work with. I sucessfully crammed a lot of stuff in this case, and plan to cram much more. The space is there if your inventive.

Comment:
Affordable and fits a complete size ATX MB. Even even though you have the choice of mounting additional tricky drives more than the fan ports (and shed alot of cooling chance in the procedure), the SATA power connectors are all on a single cable. This indicates you will have to use molex to SATA power adapters (not included) if you want to reach your additional tough drives. Insufficient quantity of screws and stand-offs. No expansion slot covers are included, so be sure of which ones you are popping out. My wife noted it looks like a stereo receiver from the 70's....dashing my hopes of a sleek modern day media center.

Comment:
It's got a nice look for an HTPC and it can repair an ATX motherboard. PSU was dead on arrival. If I have to go by way of the hassle of switching out the PSU soon after I've already place every little thing in there, I'm going to make sure I'm receiving a quality PSU. Not that it really should be surprising to any person that a PSU that comes with a motherboard is a dud...Regardless, it's a hassle.Even so, I knew that going in, which is why I'm still not disappointed in the buy. Manufacturer Response:You can do an RMA by means of us for the energy provide to get an exchange on the PSU if you are still under our warranty period. You can speak to Apevia's consumer service at service@apevia.com or contact at 鿍) 718-0789. We attempt to reply to all calls and e-mails as soon as we can.

Comment:
Great size for HTC. Absolutely nothing wrong with the PS, but I planned to switch it out anyway. This situation is good looking and definitely worth the $ immediately after rebate. I bought the all black for ษ 2 months ago and am getting the silver/black now. I don't comprehend all the unfavorable feedback. Shiny black scratches and smudges simple.

Comment:
Modest, good hunting, uncomplicated access. For a buget situation you seriously can't do substantially better. Cables were long sufficient to reach all headers and wel labled. PS was easily adequate fro buget perfomance system. MB slipped in nicely and reaer perpheral access cover from MB package fit properly. Oversized energy button leaves no ambiguity about which button is the energy and which is the reset. Front access USB and audio jacks are nicely placed on the side of the front bezel on the decrease third of the case. Makes for handy access, non obtrusive so as to avoide marring the aesthetics of the front of the situation, however generating it obviouse when one thing is plugged in so you can not forget about it.I really like the tube assembly that is mounted to the side vent (on the case cover) to guide outside airfloy Straight to the CPU. No complaints right here. None I would have preferred a matte, rather than glossy, situation because smuges are effortless to see. Even though pretty quiet for such low price, if you want really silent method you'll want to replace the PS and integrated fans. Airflow seems fine, but if you run reallu highperformance, hot components you'll certainly want to add another fan in front and possibly get some guides to make certain the air goes exactly where you want. The HDD activity light is a bit dim, but who appear at those anymore unless you're wofried afbout nefarious SW and seeking for inordinate activity. I replaced the stock case screws with black thumb screws. All-in-all I have no legitimate complaints.

Comment:
none Ok, lost two a lot more eggs.In my earlier review, I had hinted at the poor cooling that might outcome from mounting the challenging drives more than the fan slots (per the manufacturer). two days running and I had a 500g HD fail although mounted subsequent to the processor. This was a drive that was much less than 6 mo old and had no difficulties until I moved it to this case. I plan on replacing the PSU just in situation it was triggered by the poor quality energy supply. One more thing I left out on the original critique...Apparently they ran out of jumpers labeled for the reset swich mainly because both the power switch and reset switch connector was labeled "pwr sw". I had to trace the cables prior to connecting.

Comment:
Situation is laid out for gear mounting horizontally, such as a A/V receiver. High gloss piano black finished case is incredibly classy... Energy provide switch not accessible devoid of taking off fragile front fascia. High gloss "Piano Black" situation is very effortless to scratch Right after rebates, this situation and PS will cost me ำ.00

Comment:
lots of area for mobo, energy provide has lots of connections for every little thing I required, front facing USB, included situation fans in back, quiet fans and PSU a lot larger than it looks in the pictures, my entertainment center is not deep enough. The interior of this case is large. I had no issue fitting all my gear in it. The only issues I had were after installing my mobo (with side facing SATA connectors) It was tough to plug in SATA cables. It also sticks out about 5 inches from my entertainment center, glad I am a carpenter, I can modify the cabinet (cut a hole in the back) to permit for the case to fit.

Comment:
Great seeking. PSU operates, even though it's not 80+. This situation and PSU perform properly for its goal as a plain vanilla media situation. Took out 1 commence due to the fact of the PSU position. It's not as well built as Antec situations. Nonetheless have some sharp edges. On the other hand, it's not like inexpensive, razor thin like other low cost situations either. Good for its objective as dedicated media machine, but don't strategy on opening the case each and every other day. PSU is in the front, sucking air from the side and blowing out the front --> fewer selections for third celebration PSU. My Antec 380 Earthwatt 4 pin CPU wire couldn't reach far enough. Constructed in PSU had no difficulty. two HHD bays, 1 less complicated access than other. 1 optical drive slot. Producer Response:The X-Master case has room for two five.25" drives, one particular external three.5" drive, and up to three internal 3.5" drives. You can mount drives on the two side "grills" if you do not wish to set up fans there.

Comment:
Well very first off when i opened the box i was impressed with the look of the case. It looks greater than the photographs. The paint is glossy and the front panel is brushed aluminum. overall i was pleased. For little income you get a great HTPC situation that fits a normal ATX motherboard and comes with with a power supply. I read a comment that stated that they must have created the width of the case the typical stereo/dvd component size but if they did that i would not have place it in my entertainment center because you need to have space for airflow. Because its not as wide there is room in there for sufficient airflow through the side vents. The placement of the power provide. The energy provide cables come out the back of the power provide parallel to the video card and i could not use my nvidia 6800 GTO video card because the energy connector sticks out of on the back of the video card and the cables coming off of the energy supply where in the identical place(i forced it but decided that was not a very good thought and pulled it out). So then i attempted a ATI 2600HD Pro that is a fan much less model it has heat pipes bent more than to a heatsink on the prime of the card. That card cleared the power supply with no challenge but the had to force the situation closed mainly because the heat pipes. I decided just to order a unique video card a MSI ATI 3650HD so all is well now. Also people complain about the LED's on the front of the case the red HD LED is way to bright i unplugged it So Overall its a excellent HTPC situation for little cash with a energy provide. I have bought other HTPC circumstances and most pack anything in a tiny package, will not fit a ATX motherboard, and have only have one particular optical drive bay. So if you are searching for a inexpensive HTPC case that you can use a normal ATX motherboard and has two optical drives I do recommend this 1 just make certain that you get a video card that fits.

Comment:
None The box came with dead P/S, contacted the manufacturer, they wanted me to spend for shipping, talked my way out of it.the second 1 came two weeks later ans Dead yet again.Buyer service is non existent, all parts in the Box are flimsyeven screws e are incorrect size.there is a four pin CPU Fan connector as an alternative of 8.Steer clear of at all costs. This isn't the corporation you want to deal with. This isn't worth any funds, isn't worth the work, the second P/S I was testing just before putting in to the program, and got lucky simply because it went in flames with the spark and smoke, would of fried my MOBO.If I could I would give - rating but it isn't possible.

Comment:
Good case! Quite uncomplicated to install your buyer MCE in with all needed coming with case. All cables from PWR, LED, RESET, and so forth quite nicely marked. Tough situation with 500 WATT supply built in!!! Wish it came with fans for back and left side. Not a big deal given that you can get a nice set cheap.

Comment:
I loved the style, I was utilizing it for a HTPC to sit on my stereo rack. The fans are quiet. Just like other individuals that complained, the PS on initial start out up failed, the 5 and 12 volts had been each low and it sounded like a piece of paper was in the blades(they had been clear). Following other reviewers technique of abandoning a low-cost, junky PS, I replaced it with a Corsair 550w which performed perfectly. When I turned off the case, the power button punched out the back of the connector (oh my, I'd read about that!). A tie wrap cinched around the holder resolved that dilemma. I went snow blind from the blue power light(Hmmm.. Now I see what every person was complaining about) so I utilized scotch tape and Sharpie to dim it. I guess an inline resistor would have been a lot more elegant but my way was swift. But for cheap design this situation would get a five star rating.To resolve breaking the plastic tabs that hold the front panel on(the only screw-up I missed), I suggest using a thin dull knife among it and the situation and gently prying the front panel off. I did that no much less than 9 times and in no way had an issue.I employed the poor power supply fan for a situation fan so I suppose all was not lost.

Comment:
The case is great for the value I picked it up for - ษish if I get the rebate. Sufficient room for a complete height video card and common PSU.It didn't burn my residence down or fry my mobo when the PSU died.Space for extra 120 MM fan. PSU died after about a week.Sharp metal edges inside case likes to cut hands. Pretend the PSU isn't included. Pull it out when you get the case and set it aside as an emergency backup or throw it at someone you don't like. Manufacturer Response:You can do an RMA by way of us for the power provide to get an exchange on the PSU if you are nonetheless under our warranty period. You can make contact with Apevia's client service at service@apevia.com or call at 鿍) 718-0789. We attempt to reply to all calls and e-mails as soon as we can.