NZXT Hades Crafted Series Mid-Tower

Rob Williams · 02-23-2010, 01:25 AM

You might know Hades as being the God of the Underworld, but after taking a look at this chassis, you might begin to think he was the God of the "Meshworld". Yes, there's a lot of mesh used here, along with stark angles, creative lighting and a smart design that delivers fantastic cooling performance. But, can it unseat CM's 690 II?

You can read Bill's review here and discuss it here!

Doomsday · 02-23-2010, 05:03 AM

lol@ God of the "Meshworld"!

man, it just missed the 9/10 mark with those 2, very silly i must say, cons! do these guys not check their stuff before finalizing it!? soo weird!

crowTrobot · 02-23-2010, 06:48 AM

Yeah NZXT cases tend to have the motherboard sit a little to high. I built a system for somebody that used the tempest evo iirc and it was the same problem.

Awesome cases for their price though. I love that cable routing thing that the Hades has ala Corsair 800D.

Rob Williams · 02-25-2010, 04:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doomdsay

very silly i must say, cons! do these guys not check their stuff before finalizing it!? soo weird!

I think they do check, but sometimes they may sacrifice a detail like that in order to just make things work. It might not always be the best way. NZXT pretty much has one single designer, so I'm sure it's freaking difficult to make sure everything is perfect, especially when he's dealing with more than one model at a time.

Doomsday · 02-25-2010, 06:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rob Williams

I think they do check, but sometimes they may sacrifice a detail like that in order to just make things work. It might not always be the best way. NZXT pretty much has one single designer, so I'm sure it's freaking difficult to make sure everything is perfect, especially when he's dealing with more than one model at a time.

Hmm.. that be understandable!

b1lk1 · 02-27-2010, 09:59 AM

Understandable, yes. BUT, this chassis has the closest possible placement of the motherboard to the top fans I have yet come across. This, in my mind, is something that needs to be addressed as it causes alot of issues with heatsinks. Same goes with that side panel fan. All they really need to do is move it down a few inches for it to not interfere with the CPU heatsinks. I know they prefer symmetry over function, but it really hampers the ability of what can be installed inside this chassis and would prevent me from suggesting it to anyone with the need for a large heatsink. It's too bad really, the case has AWESOME airflow and potential.

Rob Williams · 02-27-2010, 02:18 PM

Yes, it's unfortunate that it's just these couple of things that cause issues. Since the CM 690 II doesn't have these issues, it's kind of important to note. I'll mention this to the designer at NZXT and see what he thinks. It's too bad, because I know just how dedicated he is to creating stellar cases, and I'm sure he doesn't want it to be CM that keeps beating him at each design. CM is rather unstoppable where cases are concerned.

b1lk1 · 02-27-2010, 09:37 PM

It's a fine line between style and function. Also, I feel it is easier for companies lime Cooler Master to sell their cases at a lower cost since they are a larger company and they know they will get more sales. Again, I am a very big fan of NZXT's work. They have released the best budget cases to cross my path. They only fault of the Hades is that at the price point there are some simply stellar and underpriced rivals. I should be more careful with my words and opinions because I would still recommend this chassis to quite a large audience, but with some minor tweaking I would have no issue suggesting it universally to any user.

06-21-2010, 09:01 PM

"I was lucky in that the Cooler Master V8 cooler I was using was able to be "adjusted" so that I could fit the panel in place."

I'm looking for a new case, and I have my eye on this one. My Coolermaster V8's been sticking out of my old case for a while now.
When you say you were able to 'adjust' it, what do you mean?

Cooler space is the only thing holding me back from throwing money at this case.

b1lk1 · 06-22-2010, 08:55 PM

I had to bend one of the extra heatpipe sections down a touch to clear the side panel fan. Didn't require much force at all and it fit nice and snug.

02-23-2010, 01:25 AM	#1
Rob Williams Editor-in-Chief Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Atlantic Canada Posts: 13,231	NZXT Hades Crafted Series Mid-Tower You might know Hades as being the God of the Underworld, but after taking a look at this chassis, you might begin to think he was the God of the "Meshworld". Yes, there's a lot of mesh used here, along with stark angles, creative lighting and a smart design that delivers fantastic cooling performance. But, can it unseat CM's 690 II? You can read Bill's review here and discuss it here! __________________ Intel Core i7-990X EE @ 3.43GHz, GIGABYTE X58A-UD5, Kingston 12GB DDR3-1333, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 2GB Kingston HyperX 3K 240GB SSD, WD VR 1TB, WD 2TB, Seagate 2TB, LG BD-ROM, ASUS DVD-RW, Corsair 1000HX, Corsair H60 Cooler Corsair 800D, Dell 2408WFP 24", ASUS Xonar Essence STX, Gentoo (KDE 4.10, 3.7 Kernel) "Take care to get what you like, or you will be forced to like what you get!" - H.P. Baxxter <Toad772> I don't always drink alcohol, but when I do, I take it too far.

02-23-2010, 05:03 AM	#2
Doomsday Tech Junkie Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: KHI, PAK Posts: 1,539	lol@ God of the "Meshworld"! man, it just missed the 9/10 mark with those 2, very silly i must say, cons! do these guys not check their stuff before finalizing it!? soo weird! __________________ PSU: Corsair AX850 - Case: Cooler Master HAF X - CPU:Core i7-2600k - Cooler: Cooler Master V6 GT - Motherboard: Asus Z68 Maximus IV Extreme Z - Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8 GB-1600Mhz - GPU: AMD MSI R6970 Lightning - HDD: WD Caviar Black 1TB, Seagate 2TB Barracuda Green - SSD: Intel 520 Series 120GB - K/B: Razer Lycosa Mirror - Mouse: Logitech G700 - MouseMat: Steel Series 4HD - LCD: Samsung 2333SW 23" - Speakers: Creative Inspire M4500 4.1 - Headset: Logitech G35 7.1 "Do not look at a man's prayers nor his fasts, rather, measure him by how well he deals with others, the compassion he shows his fellow man, his wisdom and his integrity" - Umar Ibn Al-Khattab

02-27-2010, 09:59 AM	#6
b1lk1 Tech Monkey Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Ontario Posts: 821	Understandable, yes. BUT, this chassis has the closest possible placement of the motherboard to the top fans I have yet come across. This, in my mind, is something that needs to be addressed as it causes alot of issues with heatsinks. Same goes with that side panel fan. All they really need to do is move it down a few inches for it to not interfere with the CPU heatsinks. I know they prefer symmetry over function, but it really hampers the ability of what can be installed inside this chassis and would prevent me from suggesting it to anyone with the need for a large heatsink. It's too bad really, the case has AWESOME airflow and potential. __________________ Oldschool PC: Intel E6300/Nouctua NH-9U w/dual 92mm Panaflos XFX 680i LT Patriot PC2-6400 2X2GB LL 2 X BFG 8800GTX in SLI Enermax Revolution 620W PSU ASUS 24X DVD/Seagate 250GB SATA 2/THermaltake A90/Windows 7 Ultimate 64

02-27-2010, 02:18 PM	#7
Rob Williams Editor-in-Chief Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Atlantic Canada Posts: 13,231	Yes, it's unfortunate that it's just these couple of things that cause issues. Since the CM 690 II doesn't have these issues, it's kind of important to note. I'll mention this to the designer at NZXT and see what he thinks. It's too bad, because I know just how dedicated he is to creating stellar cases, and I'm sure he doesn't want it to be CM that keeps beating him at each design. CM is rather unstoppable where cases are concerned. __________________ Intel Core i7-990X EE @ 3.43GHz, GIGABYTE X58A-UD5, Kingston 12GB DDR3-1333, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 2GB Kingston HyperX 3K 240GB SSD, WD VR 1TB, WD 2TB, Seagate 2TB, LG BD-ROM, ASUS DVD-RW, Corsair 1000HX, Corsair H60 Cooler Corsair 800D, Dell 2408WFP 24", ASUS Xonar Essence STX, Gentoo (KDE 4.10, 3.7 Kernel) "Take care to get what you like, or you will be forced to like what you get!" - H.P. Baxxter <Toad772> I don't always drink alcohol, but when I do, I take it too far.

02-27-2010, 09:37 PM	#8
b1lk1 Tech Monkey Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Ontario Posts: 821	It's a fine line between style and function. Also, I feel it is easier for companies lime Cooler Master to sell their cases at a lower cost since they are a larger company and they know they will get more sales. Again, I am a very big fan of NZXT's work. They have released the best budget cases to cross my path. They only fault of the Hades is that at the price point there are some simply stellar and underpriced rivals. I should be more careful with my words and opinions because I would still recommend this chassis to quite a large audience, but with some minor tweaking I would have no issue suggesting it universally to any user. __________________ Oldschool PC: Intel E6300/Nouctua NH-9U w/dual 92mm Panaflos XFX 680i LT Patriot PC2-6400 2X2GB LL 2 X BFG 8800GTX in SLI Enermax Revolution 620W PSU ASUS 24X DVD/Seagate 250GB SATA 2/THermaltake A90/Windows 7 Ultimate 64

02-23-2010, 06:48 AM	#3
crowTrobot E.M.I. Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Toronto, ON, Canada Posts: 99	Yeah NZXT cases tend to have the motherboard sit a little to high. I built a system for somebody that used the tempest evo iirc and it was the same problem. Awesome cases for their price though. I love that cable routing thing that the Hades has ala Corsair 800D.

06-21-2010, 09:01 PM	#9
Mindless Guest Poster Posts: n/a	V8 Coolermaster "I was lucky in that the Cooler Master V8 cooler I was using was able to be "adjusted" so that I could fit the panel in place." I'm looking for a new case, and I have my eye on this one. My Coolermaster V8's been sticking out of my old case for a while now. When you say you were able to 'adjust' it, what do you mean? Cooler space is the only thing holding me back from throwing money at this case.

06-22-2010, 08:55 PM	#10
b1lk1 Tech Monkey Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Ontario Posts: 821	I had to bend one of the extra heatpipe sections down a touch to clear the side panel fan. Didn't require much force at all and it fit nice and snug. __________________ Oldschool PC: Intel E6300/Nouctua NH-9U w/dual 92mm Panaflos XFX 680i LT Patriot PC2-6400 2X2GB LL 2 X BFG 8800GTX in SLI Enermax Revolution 620W PSU ASUS 24X DVD/Seagate 250GB SATA 2/THermaltake A90/Windows 7 Ultimate 64

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