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Product:
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Chenming Silver 301KE Mid-Tower Case |
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Price:
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$96 (CAN) / $69.95 (U.S)
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Supplied By:
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VoyeurMods
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Author:
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Shennon
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Date:
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May 26th, 2003
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Rating:
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Click image for larger view
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Click image for larger view
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The upper portion of the front chassis has four 5.25" knockout plates to aid in blocking electromagnetic
interference, with purple drive rails attached to the front, as well as two 3.5" below. In order to use
the drive rails, one must be secured to the right side of the device for balance and to compensate for
the lack of access on that side. The left hand side is secured using standing 6-32 mounting screws. Once
the unit, in this case a Ricoh DVD/CD-RW combo drive, is pushed in, the purple rail will lock into a
small hole in the drive cage. If the unit has to be removed, simply press the exposed end of the rail
to unlock.
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Chenming 301KE motherboard headers
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Chenming 301KE USB and Firewire headers
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The connectors for the motherboard are presented as a ribbon cable, with all ends clearly labeled. The
front port wires, each in a separate sleeve, connect to the motherboard internally as opposed to passing
through the interior and exiting via one PCI slot to the rear ports. Consumers are advised to consult
the manual for their particular motherboard in order to identify the location of these headers.
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Click image for larger view
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Moving everything out of my blue generic case and into the 301KE almost felt like a down-sizing as the
301KE is a slightly smaller case than the generic mid-size tower. However, the Chenming 301KE is more
about ease of transport and it can rest comfortably under one’s arm if there is no carrying strap
available. The hardware that I moved consisted of an Asus CUV4X-C motherboard with a Pentium 3 800 MHz
processor, 256 Megs of memory and a Nvidia GeForce2 video card. The machine is mainly a secondary gaming
machine for Unreal Tournament, Counter Strike, Serious Sam and another Folding machine. I have no plans
for using this machine at any LAN event and replaced the rear panel screws for thumb screws to make
access easier.
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Conclusion:
If you have read Hi-TEK’s review of the TurboCase X-Sonic Mid-Tower Case,
or have seen the Antec LANBoy, you would recognize many of the same features the Chenming Silver 301KE has
as these are all based on the same chassis design. It is a tried and true design and offers a few
features that are not normally found on other cases. The aluminum construction allows the case to be
light weight and once loaded with gear, should make taking it to a LAN party or for service easier.
The inclusion of the steel bracing provides enough strength on the chassis to keep it from buckling or
flexing. One of the major downsides to the 301KE is the upper and right side panel that is rivetted to
the chassis. While I can understand this decision to keep the case as secure as possible, as well as
within a certain budget for the consumer, I would have liked to been able to access behind the
motherboard tray to hide as much wiring as possible. The case is currently selling for about $70.00 to
$80.00 USD, which would put the Chenming 301KE into the mid-range budgets of the consumer. Aside from
a few minor issues, the Chenming Silver 301KE Mid-Tower Case is a great bargain and I am awarding a
final rating of 8 out of 10. I would recommend
this case for any individual looking for a nice alternative system that is priced right and looks very
stylish. If you have any questions regarding this review be sure to visit the
VoyeurMods website for more information or
discuss them in our forums.
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Pros:
- Aesthetically pleasing design
- Removable drive cage for easy installation of HD's.
- Price
- Pre-modded side panel window
- Dual front USB 2.0 and Firewire ports
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Cons:
- Right side panel is not accessible
- No removable motherboard tray
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