Corsair Carbide Series 678C CC-9011167-WW Black Steel / Plastic / Tempered Glass ATX Mid Tower Low Noise Tempered Glass ATX Case

Pros: Upon first impression the case was very well built and the attention to detail was obvious. The magnetic latches for the filter on the top, the tempered glass side panel, and the front door are well thought out and functional as opposed to push style latches which have a tendency to break. It took me about 45 minutes to install all my hardware into this case. It is large enough without being huge but that makes installing hardware into the case quite easy. It even came with larger head screws that work with corsair’s closed loop cpu cooler fan mounts for the top of the case. Feature wise it has a dedicated compartment for the power supply with ample grommeted holes going through the case for cable management. It has an integrated fan hub so all 3 fans that come with it connect to a sata power cable and one pwm fan header on the motherboard. The top of the case has two usb 3 ports and a usb c 3.1 port. Unfortunately I was unable to test the c port as my motherboard does not have the header for that connection. There are ample spots for 3.5 hard drives and a tray on the back of the motherboard for 3 ssds. They also include one spot for a dvd/blu ray drive. The power and hard drive led’s are muted which is a nice change from some other cases where they can be blindingly bright. Fan noise wise there was a considerable decrease in ambient noise over m previous budget corsair case when just using my computer for smaller tasks, and a huge decrease in noise level when under sustained load like playing video games.

Cons: The case is heavy, that was to be expected with the tempered glass but it can be a bit cumbersome when you install all your components so just be aware of that. Not really a negative given the case size.

Overall Review: Overall this case is made with quality in mind. It’s easy to build in and everything is spread out a bit for better air flow. Part of buying a case is always going to be subjective to aesthetics. I used to do case mods, and put in lights, I individually sleeved all of my cables on a power supply, but at this point in my life I tend to prefer something that blends in more furniture wise and this case does just that. If you’re looking for a quiet and sleek computer case with plenty of room for the larger gaming hardware and closed loop liquid cooling systems then this case would perfect for you. I honestly don’t see myself replacing this case any time soon. I know the hardware inside will be replaced many times over before the case.

Pros: - Sound dampened panels for reduced ambient noise - Air intake filters on every port - Easy to install SSD/HDD/Optical bays - PWM fans included

Cons: - Top lid is only secured by magnets and does not have a hinge. Only a problem if you have cats or other explorative creatures. - Buttons are not an actual switch just a momentary button (personal preference) with no guard to protect accidental pushes.

Overall Review: I was very impressed with the build quality and sound reduction of this particular case from Corsair. After unboxing I installed my E-ATX Motherboard/i7/1080ti and chose to not use any extra fans to test the ambient noise difference compared to my old full ATX monster case with bi ol' fans. Decibel meters are not available at my house but to the ear you could noticeably tell a difference at idle, while running full tilt however the GPU fans will still be heard spinning past say ~60% no matter how much sound deadening material is in the case. All air intakes are filtered and the top, side, and front cover are held closed by magnets. This is fine on the side and front panels as the magnets are pretty big and strong. However the top panel isn't as heavy and inquisitive creatures that like to jump on everything (say felines) will knock the top panel loose when exploring on your gear. So if you are looking for a stylish and quiet place to put your new hardware with easy open panels and easily installed drives look no farther than the Carbide 678c from Corsair.

Pros: Very solid and good looking case. Dead quiet. There are rubber sound dampening sheets on the front and side, and the hard drive holders all have rubber mounting grommets. No sharp edges, but there are some unnecessary tabs with sharp corners all around the disk bays. There is a bracket behind the motherboard for securing up to 3 SSDs that are up to 10mm thick. Lots of tie-downs for cable management. There is a fan “multiplexer” which allows 1 motherboard connection to control up to 6 4-pin fans. A supplemental SATA power connector is also provided to power the extra fans. Movable hard drive holders to dodge large video cards, although there is about 3 inches from the edge of the motherboard and the hard drive holders so there should be no interference. Each hard drive holder is cleverly drilled to hold 2 SSDs simultaneously instead of a mechanical hard drive. Tons of fan options: Front: 3x120mm, 2x140mm (1x140mm included) Top: 2x120mm, 2x140mm, water-cooling radiator (1x140mm included), a 3rd fan can be added if the 5.25” drive bay is removed. Back: 1x120mm, 1x140mm (1x140mm included) Bottom: 2x120mm, 2x140mm, water-cooling radiator (nothing included, and at least 1 drive holder must be removed to use this location) Easy to remove dust screens: Top and front are magnetic, bottom is a slide-out. Easy to remove glass side door (open the door about half way and lift up). A solid top cover, with a sound dampening layer, is provided if you don't want to use fans in this location (don't forget to remove the pre-installed fan that's in this location!). Power supply can be mounted upside down to direct airflow how you wish.

Cons: Terrible airflow design. The front door is solid, so all the air that is sucked into the front of the case must come through a small opening (6” x 0.5”) at the bottom of the front door. If you have a solid floor, this means your case is vacuuming all of the dust from the floor and loading the dust screen. If you have carpet, this means you must put something large under the feet so that airflow is possible, and even then, there simply isn't a large enough opening to sufficiently feed 2-3 fans. The feet are too short or the front and side doors go down too far. The front door actually extends slightly below the bottom of the case. If placed on carpet, the doors cannot be opened without a bit of effort. Of course, as discussed above, you will get no airflow if the case is put on carpet unless you get really creative with the fans and opt for no hard drives. The large divider at the bottom of the case cannot be removed. There are 2 hard drive holders in this space, but I suspect cooling in this area will be problematic, so it's just wasted space. There is nothing to grab on this case if you're trying to move it. The front and side are doors which could be damaged if you hold under them. Even if you open the front door, the only grab point (below the 5.25” bay) is beveled, so you can't get a grip, unless you also remove the dust screen and stick your fingers in the top fan. There are 8 available locations for hard drive holders, however only 6 holders are provided. Perhaps they will be available for purchase separately down the road, but not including them with such an expensive case just comes off as cheap. Hard drive holders do not have quick release mounting hardware, which means that when it's time to add, remove, or replace a drive, you're looking at major surgery because the whole holder will have to be removed from the back - right where the cables are for all of your other drives - before you can access the hard drive mounting screws.

Overall Review: This is not just the largest case I have ever seen, it is the most unnecessarily large case with the most wasted space I have ever seen. At 9.5” wide, it is at least 2” wider than it needs to be. Add to that the fact that you need another 0.5” on the right side in order to open the front door and you're looking at a big chunk of your under-desk space gone, and trust me when I tell you the top corners of this case are not knee friendly. With it's nearly 24 inches of depth, it's barely going to fit under a normal computer desk let alone a desk with side drawers and a brace along the the back. The power and reset buttons as well as USB and audio connections are on the top of the case, which may make their use difficult. There is an external 3.5mm 4-pin audio connector that combines both the headphones and microphone which, depending on your situation, might require an adapter to use. The front door must be opened completely to access the 5.25” drive bay, so don't forget to leave an extra half inch of clearance on the right side. Final thoughts: It really looks like Corsair was more interested in creating a piece of art than an efficient or even functional case with this model. Cooling and/or dust is going to be a major problem with this case, as is finding a place to put it or even move it. It does look beautiful, it's well built, and it has a lot of nice features, but nothing revolutionary, and nothing that you can't find in many sub-$100 cases. If you have a lot of space and want a huge luxurious white case with a glass door, by all means, pick this up. On the other hand, if you're looking for a more efficient case with better airflow and a price tag that isn't in the stratosphere, keep looking.

Pros: • USB 3.1 Type-C connector; 2x USB 3.0 connections & 3.5mm audio located on the top-right edge • 3x 140mm high-quality chassis fans included. (Appear to be model AF140 with 4-pin connectors.) • Sound dampening material located on the back panel and front door. A Removable magnetic sound panel clings onto the top. • Easily removable dust filters on the bottom, top, and front of the chassis, which are magnetized • Wire-tie anchor points are everywhere on the back side of the chassis. It’s super easy to secure your cables out of sight in this case! • Each 3.5” floating style HDD cage is independent of the rest. You can add/remove however you wish. Also, the cages utilize rubber bushings to secure the drives in place, which further reduces noise • Accommodates full length graphics cards, but you may need to remove HDD cages • Fan hub capable of providing sufficient power to six 4-pin PWM fans via a SATA power connector directly from the power supply unit • High quality white powdercoat covers 100% of the steel structure, inside and out • Large tempered glass side door, which is lightly tented. Can be easily removed by lifting and sliding off the rear hinges • Smooth plastic front panel door is a perfect canvas for decals or custom paint • A vertical GPU slot fits 3x wide cards to show it off, but no riser cable included

Cons: • Two fewer 3.5” HDD cages were included than can be mounted in the chassis. I wish I had two more so I could expand my RAID capacity • I wish there was more clearance between the back panel and the motherboard tray. It can get tight trying to get the panel back on if you have a fully loaded rig • The front panel significant restricts airflow of the front fans. There is only ½” of clearance when the door is closed; no airflow except at the bottom edge because sides and top seal flush with the door • The top sound panel blocks all airflow to the top mounted fans. It must be removed if you want any airflow • Non-LED fans are included. A set of Corsair 140mm white LED fans would have complimented things nicely

Overall Review: I’m using this case to house a personal VMware ESXi server, which is hosting several machines including a linux-based NAS system (OMV) and IP security camera NVR (Blue Iris). I currently have six 500GB 10K RPM VelociRaptor drives configured in RAID-5 installed. If you have ever used one of these drives, you know they can be noisy. The mechanical whines, clicks, bumps, and taps can drive a person insane if their workstation is located on top of their desk. Multiply that by six, and things get ridiculous. However, the sound dampening engineering that went into the Corsair Carbide 678C works magic against the worst of the worst offenders! I am able to focus on whatever task on my desktop, even with the PC located adjacent to my monitor. All the while, it looks sexy, sleek, and edgy. I think Corsair nailed it with this case, and despite the cons that I’ve mentioned in this review, I do highly recommend the Carbide 678C! Thanks to Newegg.com and Corsair for providing the review sample! If you found my product review helpful in your search, please check Yes below. Thanks!

Pros: Nice fit and finish, good quality control, quiet with several fans. Has a header for multiple liquid cooling devices. Has a DVD drive bay. Good cable management. Nice side display panel that is removable.

Cons: Really heavy, poor airflow. The HDD bays have a issue where the SATA cables are blocked by a retainer pin. Was able to overcome this though.

Overall Review: Optimized for liquid cooling, but I'm just using air (except the CPU liquid cooler). I bought it mainly because it had a DVD drive bay, but now I'm questioning why I still care about DVD drives. Looks really good but super heavy. The airflow isn't to be boasted about, but it's adequate.