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Quirks Details

For the most part the case is designed for ease of use and installation. This is in evidence when you look at the side panel with it's easy to open latching system, the drive rails and the emphasis on tooless access to fans and hard drive cages. However, there are a few quirks that make it less than a perfect tinkerer's paradise.

The good news is that all of the requisite edge rounding has been done, and done properly, but we were dismayed that some sharp edges remained in the least likely places, including the drive bay cover. As we mentioned, the swing-out drive cover is made entirely of aluminum, which gives the case a high quality feel, but the top edge and the corners of this swing out door are fairly sharp. Two of us cut ourselves while working around the case with the drive door open, and we were cut just by moving our arms and scraping accidentally against the door edges. We would hate to imagine a more forceful contact with the open drive cover.

Like all cases derived from the Chenming design, the case has no slide out motherboard tray. This didn't pose a big problem for us, since we could remove the HD cages and we had ample room to work in the case. Installation of the motherboard was not the biggest hassle, it turned out that changing I/O backings was the more delicate of task. The included I/O was a hassle to remove - we think that owners should be careful when removing this panel if they don't want to damage the case. This is because the I/O panel is snapped into place with small rounded bumps that tear and grip into the surrounding metal when you try to push it out. We found we had to use pliers to gently pry the trouble spots of the I/O panel so as to not damage the rest of the back panel.

The front bevel is also another tricky spot. The front panel is held in place by plastic snap tabs that need to be accessed in order to get the bevel off. We had to remove both side panels to get at these plastic tabs. Be careful when working with the front bevel: ColdConcept warned us that users have broken the tabs before by trying to force the bevel off.

The instructions are not very well written, especially for describing how to use the Firewire and the fan speed control. This is a sore point for us, as we were hoping for some more description or ideas that a user might find useful, for instance, detailed instructions on how to use the thermal sensor, or specs details on the sensitivity and error in the temperature readings.

Conclusion

This is a quality case based on a proven design and adding features that make it all the more appealing to computer enthusiasts. By packaging the case with 5 silent case fans, the LCD temperature display and front USB/Firewire ports, and offering the option of a premodded window to customers, ThermalTake has created a complete aftermarket case with plenty of "out of the box" frills that an enthusiast used to have to obtain separately on their own. The 6000A's window design may not appeal to some users, especially those with their own modding experience, but that's why Thermaltake also offers the 6000 with its side panel intact (by the way, I myself, find the 6000 model's side panel to be very stylish).

These are great cases, and Thermaltake has told us that they are committed enough to the Xaser line to be introducing some new designs in 2003 - we are eagerly anticipating these new designs, which we will review here too. In the interim, these cases have got us, and plenty of other people pretty excited.

Overall Score: 87%

Our sponsor, ColdConcept has reminded us that their Xaser cases all come with a free 465W SH power supplies. While not officially part of the review, the SH power supply that ColdConcept provided as a sample was actually pretty cool. It features dual clear plastic fans and a mesh wrapped main power cable - just like the Pure Power supply that comes with the Antec 880 Performance Plus we reviewed earlier.