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As is the case with every Obsidian series chassis, the 350D is built with watercooling flexibility as one of its main features. We managed to mount a H60 radiator and fan in the 350D's front area, and the brushed aluminium panel could still be fastened (although the dust filter could not be attached).
With some shorter screws or further tightening, we could have also retained operation of the 2.5″ bay, as well as the 3.5″ mounts.
This method left the H60's fan with very little room from which to gather air; it was tucked up against the solid front panel. And seeing as the majority of the front panel is formed of plastic, not brushed aluminium or steel, it can't be used as a heat dissipation surface.
If you are willing to sacrifice the 2.5″ or 3.5″ drive bay, a thick radiator and fan(s) configuration can be installed in the front area of Corsair's 350D. There is plenty of room to mount dual-fan 120 and 140mm units, but 240/280 mm versions will require the removal of both the 2.5″ and 3.5″ drive bays.
We wouldn't be surprised to see watercooling enthusiasts pack the 350D's front area with a large push-pull 240 or 280mm radiator configuration and then simply fasten an SSD in any available piece of space. A 3.5″ hard drive could then be mounted in the 5.25″ bay, meaning that very little, if any, functionality is actually lost.
The brushed aluminium front bezel is far wider than a standard 5.25″ drive bay. When using a 5.25″ device, the cover has to be unclipped from the bezel itself.
Removing the drive bay cover reveals that a 5.25″ device will not be flush with the rest of the bezel; it is subdued by 4mm. This is very disappointing and has a negative impact on the system's appearance when an optical drive is used.
The fact that the recessed material is plastic, not brushed aluminium, is bad enough, but not making it flush with the rest of the bezel was a very poor decision by Corsair.
Removing the bezel requires users to push against four plastic clips before pulling the section away from the case. Unfortunately, the plastic clips aren't strong. We applied a small excess of force and one of the clips snapped. Thankfully, the bezel itself still managed to clip into place.
Up to three 2.5″ drives can slide into the tool-less plastic bay. They are held in position by the tight dimensions of the bay itself and a flexible plastic lever on the left side.
Four plastic ‘teeth' hold the bay securely in its location and make removing it a tool-less operation.
Corsair has improved the rigidity of its drive trays since this editor's previous experience with one of the company's cases. Four rubber-surrounded pins fasten a 3.5″ drive to the tray. 2.5″ devices need to be fastened from beneath with four screws when they are mounted in a 3.5″ tray and one of the tool-less pins also has to be removed.
Even with a very large power supply, Corsair's 350D is very easy to work with. Despite the micro-ATX form factor, some intelligent cable routing and a little extra time can reap the rewards of a clean, obstruction-free system.
Towards the motherboard's busy connection area, the build starts to get a little less neat and tidy, but Corsair's 350D still does a good job of hiding and routing as many cables as its m-ATX form factor will allow.
Corsair equips the 350D with an appropriate number of cable tie-down points, helping to make cable management an easier task. 23 millimetres of clearance behind the tray was right on the limit of acceptable for our build, but the additional clearance behind the drive areas was very convenient when routing and storing cables.
Large CPU coolers such as Phanteks' PH-TC12DX can be housed in the 350D without problems. We measured the maximum clearance as 165mm, meaning that the market's highest performance air coolers in the Noctua NH-D14 and Phanteks PH-TC14PE can fit inside the 350D without interference.
Two large grommets positioned above the motherboard tray are convenient for routing fan cables and the 8-pin power connector.
Clearance above the motherboard's upper-edge is around 55mm, giving the 350D just enough room to house common 240mm AIO units such as the Corsair H100i without interfering with tall RAM and VRM heatsinks.
Corsair's 350D houses Seasonic's large Platinum 1000W power supply unit without problems. Connecting the modular cables can be a little tricky, but the task is by no means impossible.
With an ability to accept graphics cards of up to 360mm in length, our Sapphire HD 7850 Dual-X had no problems fitting inside the 350D. It is easy to see that dual card configurations aren't going to cause the 350D problems, despite its m-ATX form factor.
Using an optical drive has an undeniably negative impact on the aesthetic appearance of a Corsair 350D build. It would seem that Corsair is trying to accelerate the death of optical drives among users who buy the company's cases.
A simple bezel or drive tray cover would have been a worthwhile addition to the 350D which would have concealed the faceplate of an optical drive. And it wouldn't have increased costs by a noticeable margin, either.
The recessed expansion slots make it easy to connect a large DVI or VGA cable without it interfering with a nearby wall or surface.
A sizeable portion of the system is visible through the plastic side panel window. When not using a watercooling configuration in the 350D's front area, the window is oversized as it shows the less-flattering drive areas. But when considering the fact that a large radiator, fans, reservoir, and tubing could be mounted towards the front, it is easy to see why Corsair was adamant on extending the window as far forward as possible.
We think that it would be a good idea for Corsair to release a tweaked version of the Obsidian 350D Windowed case that ships with the company's eye-catching braided cables and some integrated LED lighting. Then the window would be put to full use.
