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#869 - NZXT Lexa Blackline Case |
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Written by Rodney Reynolds
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Monday, 10 September 2007 |
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Page 3 of 4
Case Layout and Specifications:
The NZXT Lexa Blackline Case is mostly steel
with a plastic front and back. The plastic is very shinny,
which looks nice, but it picks up every finger print and speck of dust. The case dimensions are:
54cm (L) x
2.5cm (W) x 52.3cm (H), and it weights in at
8.2 kilograms.
This
case is currently only available in a black color.
The overall look of the case is good, but
will probably not appeal to a wide audience. I know I'm not that fussy about the
styling. What I don't like is the top areas that stick up like peeks on the
front and back. To me it makes the case look cheap. That being said, let's
continue.
At top front of this case is a display which shows 3 temperatures. The thermal
probes for these are inside the case and can be attached to CPU, HDD, System, or whatever you like using the included tape. Since I could
get the display to power on, I don't have a picture of it. I contacted NZXT
about this and I'll update the review when I have a working display. The power
button is located in this area as well which is a very convenient location if
the case is positioned on the floor. I don't know if it's just this particular
case, but the power button would sometimes stay in when pressed. The power
button seems a little large for the hole so it's getting stuck (get your mind
out of the gutter).
This case comes with a door which swings open to the right
and has couple of LEDs. There's a long red vertical LED which is always on and a
small LED below that which shows HDD activity.
 
Generally, I find doors to be a
nuisance because it hinders access to drives and can block
air flow. At the front there are 4 x 5.25" drive bays and 2
x 3.5" external drive bays. Installation on drives in all the drive bays in this
case is a tooless operation using the included drive bay rails. The reset button
in located just below the external 3.5" drive bays at the right.
 
At the bottom right is
a Firewire port, microphone jack, headphone jack and two USB ports. The location
of these ports is great if you have the case on your desk, but not so good if
your case is on the floor. This is common for many cases though. I personally
prefer they at the top because I have my case on the floor, so it's really a
personal preference.
Just inside the case at the front bottom in an included 120mm fan
with a removable filter. This fan intakes cool air inside the case, providing excellent
direct HDD cooling. BTW: The front panel gets removed by pulling at the bottom
front. A quick tug and it will separate from the case so drives can be installed
and the filter can be cleaned.
Both side panels can be taken off by first
removing the four (2 on each) screws at the back.
The left panel comes with
a few ventilation holes and a 120mm red LED fan. This intake fan provides
direct cooling to main computer components which is excellent. Also on the
left side panel is a latch and it can be locked.
 
At the top of the case is a single 80mm exhaust fan. I believe the reason an
80mm fan was used is to accommodate full length high wattage power supplies.
At the back of the case at the very top is where a standard ATX Power Supply
would get installed. They
also include a 120mm exhaust fan, a place to install the
motherboard's IO shield plate, and at the bottom
back there are 7 expansion slots. This case also include two
holes for a water cooling tubes to pass through. Cable organization is possible
via the rear cage, although I think this will hinder access to the back of the
case.
This is a mid-tower case so there isn't a lot
of room to work on the inside and unfortunately the
motherboard tray isn't removable. The form factor of this
case is ATX, however, there's no support for BTX. As mentioned previously, there
are 4 x 5.25" and 2 x 3.5" external drive bays. Well, there
are an additional five internal 3.5" drive bays.
Oh, almost forgot, this case is nVIDIA 8800GTX compatible.
 
 
Installation of Hard Drives drives is a tool-less operation using the included
drive rails which get mounted on each side of the drive.
Installation
of cards in the expansion slots is also a tool-less operation. To install a
card, just swing the bar up, install the card and than lock it back into place.
At the bottom of the case are four rubber feet. These rubber
feet over great anti-vibration properties and won't scratch the surface. Also at
the bottom is a 80mm
dust filter, but no 80mm fan. An optional 80mm fan can be installed if
preferred.
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