INTRODUCTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   Thanks to the introduction of tempered glass panels and RGB lighting these past few years’ computer cases are no longer considered "dull" and in some rare cases one could even call them mini works of art. To many people however (ourselves included) exterior design and looks in general are not placed above available features and interior space and finding all of the above in a PC case may prove to be a somewhat difficult task especially if you have space restrictions where you plan on placing it. Over the years our friends over at CORSAIR has done their best to resolve this issue with their compact dual-chamber PC cases but to date these only included micro-ATX / mini-ITX form factor sized models which obviously weren't ideal for every consumer out there. Today CORSAIR changes that with their latest CRYSTAL Series 680X RGB ATX Smart Case so we decided to take a closer look and see what you can expect from it.

   Founded in 1994, CORSAIR supplies high-performance products purchased primarily by PC gaming enthusiasts who build their own PCs or buy pre-assembled customized systems. The company's award-winning products include DDR3 and DDR4 memory upgrades, computer cases, PC cooling products, gaming headsets, gaming keyboards, gaming mice, power supply units, USB flash drives, solid-state drives and system monitoring and control devices.

   Just like its smaller brother the CRYSTAL 280X RGB micro-ATX case the main selling points of the brand new CRYSTAL 680X RGB ATX Smart Case (available in black and white and compatible with micro-ATX, mini-ITX, ATX and E-ATX sized mainboards) are its three tempered glass panels, RGB lighting (three LL120 RGB fans with iCUE software control - a standard 120mm fan is also located at the rear of the case) and the innovative dual-chamber internal layout. Still thanks to its dual-chamber design the CRYSTAL 680X RGB has plenty of interior space for anything you may want to place inside including room for up to eight 120mm cooling fans (or seven 140mm ones) and/or three 240/280/360mm radiators (roof/floor/front), four 2.5" and three 3.5" drives (or seven 2.5" drives / all in tool-free drive trays), 330mm long graphics cards, 180mm tall CPU coolers and 225mm long power supply units. That's far from it however since the CRYSTAL 680X RGB also features a hinged left tempered glass door, total of 10 PCI expansion slots (8 horizontal and 2 vertical ones - optional vertical GPU bracket), removable air-filters (front/floor/roof/right panel) and fan/radiator mounting brackets (front/roof), fan hub for up to six fans, lighting node PRO RGB hub and even a USB 3.1 Gen-2 type-C port. The list is long so let's move forward with our review to see exactly what the CRYSTAL 680X RGB is really capable off.

 

 

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CORSAIR packs the CRYSTAL 680X RGB inside a plain cardboard box that has a product drawing at the front right over the product name and next to their logo.

 

 

The specifications table and included color are both printed on both sides of the box.

 

 

A drawing showcasing all the parts of the 680X RGB is printed at the rear of the box.

 

 

As with most tempered glass PC cases the CRYSTAL 680X RGB is wrapped inside a cloth cover and placed between two thick foam spacers.

 

 

The bundle of the CRYSTAL 680X RGB includes a magnetic air-filter, 12 cable ties, 5 small plastic bags with screws and spacers, a single standoff and the user manual.

 

 

THE CRYSTAL 680X RGB EXTERIOR

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Measuring 423mm in length, 344 in width and 505mm in height the CRYSTAL 680X RGB is certainly compact.

 

 

On the left side we find a hinged tempered glass door.

 

 

The fascia has two parts a tempered glass panel and a plastic panel.

 

 

You can remove the plastic panel the same way you would any fascia but to remove the tempered glass panel you need to first remove several screws located both beneath the plastic panel and on the interior of the case.

 

 

Here we see the three LL120 RGB fans each of which has a total of 48 customizable RGB LEDs.

 

 

The I/O is located just over the plastic section of the fascia and it includes the on/off power button, reset button, headphones/microphone port, two USB 3.0 ports and a USB 3.1 Gen-2 Type-C port.

 

 

The top tempered glass panel is held in place with thumbscrews and beneath it there's room either for two 120mm/140mm fans or a single 240/280mm radiator.

 

 

Moving at the rear of the case we find a regular (non LED) 120mm exhaust fan, 10 PCI expansion slots, perforated section (for the drives inside) and the PSU area.

 

 

The right side panel is made out of steel and features a large perforated area with a magnetic air-filter (fans can't be mounted here).

 

 

A large slide-in/out air-filter is placed at the base of the CRYSTAL 680X.

 

 

THE CRYSTAL 680X RGB INTERIOR

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks to its hinges the left tempered glass door opens with ease to fully reveal a rather spacious interior (you can detach the door by removing a screw placed on the top hinge and then pulling upwards).

 

 

The three 120mm LL120 RGB fans are mounted on a removable bracket which can also be used with three 140mm fans and/or a single 240/280/360mm radiator.

 

 

The bracket is held in place via two thumbscrews.

 

 

As mentioned in the introduction page the CRYSTAL 680X RGB is compatible with micro-ATX, mini-ITX, ATX and E-ATX mainboards (the mainboard tray has 9 rubber grommets on it).

 

 

All 10 PCI expansion slots are held in place with regular thumbscrews.

 

 

CORSAIR also made it possible for users to add either two 120/140mm or a single 240/280mm radiator at the base of the case.

 

 

Here we see the top fan/radiator mounting area which also features a removable mounting bracket.

 

 

Turning the case around we see four tool-free 2.5" drive trays (just pull them upwards to detach), three 3.5" drive trays (keep in mind that in order to install your mainboard you may have to remove these drive cages since they do take part of the CPU cut out area), the 6 port fan hub, node PRO RGB hub and the adjustable PSU stand (there's also plenty of space for cable management here).

 

 

Both drive trays are made out of plastic.

 

 

BUILDING THE SYSTEM

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As always, the purpose of this section is not to build a functional system but rather to showcase what you can expect from the case at hand in terms of interior space.

In terms of PSU area, the CRYSTAL 680X does extremely well since even a 800W model leaves plenty of room on the adjustable stand.

 

 

You can indeed use up to E-ATX sized mainboards (we used a regular ATX sized one) but by doing that you may not be able to install a complete radiator with fans at the bottom.

 

 

With enough room for 180mm tall CPU air coolers you should be able to use any model in the market currently.

 

 

Unless you plan on using a very long graphics card you can even mount a thick 360mm radiator at the front area (we used a 56mm thick one for this review - still that leaves less than 270mm for a graphics card).

 

 

Of course, you can always use three 240/280mm radiators at the front/top/base of the case simultaneously (we used a 280mm one at the top).

 

 

The CRYSTAL 680X has room for up to 330mm long graphics cards (unless you decide to mount a radiator at the front) so the 280mm one we use leaves plenty of room.

 

 

NOISE LEVEL TEST

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After giving it much thought we decided on performing noise tests with each PC Case we receive by placing our ExTech HD600 vertically on top of each case to measure the noise levels emanating from the pre-installed fans at both 50% and 100% with the help of a fan controller (if the case doesn't have one, we use our own).

 

 

CONCLUSION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   When CORSAIR launched the CRYSTAL 280X RGB case back in June last year the only thing that we didn't like much was its compatibility with micro-ATX and mini-ATX mainboards so we were hoping they would release something similar with enough interior space for ATX mainboards so we could check it out sufficiently. Luckily it seems that CORSAIR always had that in mind so just over half a year later the new CRYSTAL 680X RGB Smart Case is now a reality. In terms of aesthetics the case is very pretty not only thanks to its 3 LL120 RGB fans which you can control from CORSAIR’s iCUE software but also thanks to its three tempered glass panels. Interior space may not be as much as we see from full towers (and super towers of course) but still being able to mount even E-ATX sized mainboards, 8 fans (120/140mm) and/or 3 radiators (240/280/360), 7 drives (2.5”/3.5”), 330mm long graphics cards, 180mm tall CPU air coolers and 225mm long power supply units is not something we’ve seen with similarly sized cases. The removable fan/radiator mounts for the front and top areas is also a nice touch and simplifies installation whereas the hinged left side tempered glass door works very well (although it doesn’t swing 180 degrees like others we’ve seen to date). As for the dual chamber design although we do think CORSAIR could had placed more drive trays than 7 it does keep extra heat away from your CPU and graphics card (while at the same time providing better airflow levels) so it does work as advertised.

   The CRYSTAL 680X RGB Smart Case was officially launched less than an hour ago and it currently retails for USD278.93 inside the USA (Newegg.com) and for 255Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk) a price tag which as expected is slightly higher than that of the smaller 280X model. Overall, we have no complaints from the CRYSTAL 680X RGB Smart Case since it has the looks, interior space and features to compete with much larger models and that’s also why it gets our Golden Award.

PROS

- Build Quality
- Looks (Tempered Glass Side, Top & Front Panels / 3 RGB LL120 Fans)
- Removable Fan / Radiator Mounts
- Support For Up To 8 Fans
- Radiator Space (Top, Bottom & Front 240/280/360mm)
- Room For 3x3.5" & 4x2.5" Drives
- Space For 180mm Tall CPU Coolers, 225mm Long PSUs and 330mm Long Graphics Cards
- Optional Vertical GPU Mount
- Air Filters (Top/Bottom/Front/Left)
- Node PRO RGB Controller

CONS

- Price (For Some)
- “Plain” Rear Fan