Thermaltake's Xaser III Skull Series - A Case For the Tough Guy
by Purav Sanghani on March 11, 2004 4:20 PM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
Final Thought
The benchmarks prove that Thermaltake's Xaser III VM3000A is not the cream of the crop. It had a higher noise level compared to a handful of cases that we have reviewed in the past as well as a high degree of complexity in wiring. The Kingwin KT-424, which we reviewed back in August of last year, had a detachable lead bundle, which came off along with the motherboard when the tray was removed. Another overlooked featured, which was also included in the KT-424 and the KT-436, but not in the VM3000A, was the removable tray including the back panel of the chassis. In this case, we had to remove all add-in cards and all wiring in order to remove only the motherboard.On the other hand, the VM3000A has many strengths. Its well constructed screw-less design makes for effortless installations and even easier replacements using mounting rails, add-on card fasteners, and metal spacers (motherboard). The Hardcano itself is feature-packed with fan controls, USB and firewire ports, and a temperature alarm that keeps you well informed of potentially dangerous conditions.
While the few shortcomings, like sharp edges of the case's chassis, slightly complicated wiring, and a somewhat high price tag, may lower the VM3000A's overall attractiveness, its bold look and great features (like the Hardcano module and the standard 4 fan design along with the low noise levels) bring this Xaser III back in line with its counterparts.
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JKing76 - Friday, March 12, 2004 - link
Cheese. 100% cheese.Orchid1 - Friday, March 12, 2004 - link
Looks terrible, pc case design has come a long way since the beige box, but in this case I'd rather have a beige box any day.Skulls? is his being marketed at 15 year old Goth Rock fans?
nastyemu25 - Friday, March 12, 2004 - link
guess i wasn't the only one who thought this thing was incredibly uglyaraczynski - Friday, March 12, 2004 - link
that has got to be the single most butch ugly implementation of a side window in a case i've ever seen, obviously a last second throw in with no thought or planning. disgusting.CtK - Friday, March 12, 2004 - link
why dont you show pics with the case fully installed with parts??BenSkywalker - Friday, March 12, 2004 - link
Reading through everything in the review it seems like this is a lower end case then the original XIII line, was that your impression Purav?Less fans, less space and sharp edges- sounds like a step back for TT here.
diehlr - Friday, March 12, 2004 - link
This case is the most hideous thing I have seen in a long time. What is the deal with PC case designs? Nearly every one of them is tacky and looks flat out cheap.clarkmo - Thursday, March 11, 2004 - link
This is the same as the Enermax Titanium case. I don't know who the oem is. Mobo attaches with studs vey easily. Hopefully a new trend.Just pop it right in. It's only noisy if you have noisy fans. I have a 120 mm in the lower area. The psu is very tight buy my slk900a on my 8rda manages to fit. http://www.case-mod.com/store/product_info.php?pro...Adul - Thursday, March 11, 2004 - link
congrats Purv :)mostlyprudent - Thursday, March 11, 2004 - link
You mention the inconvenience of having to remove add in cards to remove the motherboard tray, but why bother completely removing the tray unless I'm replacing the motherboard - hence removing the cards anyway? Of course, I've never had a removable tray that was easy enough to remove to justify taking it out for memory or even CPU changes.