Cooler Master N200 Mini-Tower Case Review

1. Introduction2. Cooler Master N200: Packaging and Bundle3. Cooler Master N200: Exterior4. Cooler Master N200: Interior and Installation5. Testing Methodology and Performance6. Closing Thoughts7. View All Pages

Today we are going to look at the Cooler Master N200 case which is a mainstream model designed with water cooling in mind.  It occupies a compact mid-tower form factor and can accommodate a micro-ATX motherboard as well as an array of high-end components. Being a budget model, the N200 seems like an ideal option for those who have a restricted budget and wan't to concentrate their efforts on gaining the most performance, rather than a top-notch case.

Cooler Master are one of the longest established companies in the PC Case market and has a very wide range of cases available, from ultra-value to ultra high-end.  Their cases are favoured by many as they usually offer good build quality and features at a reasonable price.

Over the past couple of years, the PC chassis market has become increasingly competitive, forcing Cooler Master to release new models to stay in the game.

Features

• Edgy asymmetrical design with full mesh on the front panel.
• Mini tower with great expandability that supports up to three 3.5″ HDD and four 2.5″ SSD.
• Supports a 240mm liquid cooling radiator in the front.
• Supports high-end graphics cards with a length of up to 355mm/14inch.
• Supports air CPU cooler heights up to 160mm/6.3inch.
• Supports SuperSpeed USB 3.0.
• Removable dust filter under the PSU for easy maintenance.

The N200 is supplied in a brown cardboard box which is decorated in a simple black livery.  The front of the box features a large image of the front of the case alongside a list of the basic features of the case.

Turning the box around reveals a more detailed diagram which illustrates various features of the case.  There is also a more detailed list of specifications which is repeated in various different languages.  The case is suspended between two polystyrene slabs inside the box to provide a layer of protection.

The included bundle is fairly limited and consists only of a user guide and screws required for installation.  We wouldn't expect much more from a budget case, though.

The aesthetic design of the Cooler Master N200 is simple but attractive.  The front panel of the case is finished in black plastic mesh which allows air to flow freely into the case.  The entire panel features basic dust proofing behind the mesh, which is a nice touch.  The rest of the case is constructed from SECC steel which has been powder coated black.  It's not the thickest steel but it doesn't feel too flimsy.

There is a solid black strip running down the front panel of the case which features the power and reset buttons as well as the front panel connections.  From top to bottom we find headphone and microphone connectors, two USB2.0 connectors and a single USB3.0 connectors.

Moving up to the top of the case, there is a dust filtered air vent cut into the roof of the case which isn't populated by a fan.  It supports both 120 mm and 140 mm units should you want to add extra ventilation.  The 120 mm mountings are offset towards the left side of the case which allows more clearance for a 120 mm water cooling radiator.

Looking at the rear of the case, we can see that there is a 120 mm exhaust vent which is populated with a fan.  There are four expansion slots in total, matching the specification for Micro-ATX motherboards.  The power supply mountings are located at the bottom.

Removing the left side panel reveals the black painted interior of the case.  This should compliment most component choices aesthetically.  There is a fairly generous amount of room to work with inside the case.

As we mentioned previously, the N200 is designed with water cooling in mind.  There are twin 120 mm vents in the front which support a 240 mm radiator as well as 140 and 120 mm mounts in the roof and a 120 mm vent in the rear of the case.  We had to move the rear exhaust fan into the roof as our Corsair H60 fouled the memory slots on our ITX motherboard with the cooler attached to the roof of the case.  This is unlikely to be the case with a Micro-ATX motherboard, though.

On the right hand side of the case there is a single 5.25″ bay alongside a further 3.5″ (external) bay at the top.  Moving down to the bottom of the case, there is room for two 3.5″ hard drives or four 2.5″ drives.

Before installing the motherboard we first had to attach the appropriate stand-offs.  This was a little troublesome as there isn't a tool for tightening them down supplied and the threads are poorly cut into the motherboard tray.  There is a large cut out section in the motherboard tray which facilitates CPU cooler backplate installation.

There is plenty of room for large power supplies, which is surprising considering this is a value-orientated case.  Our Seasonic Platinum 1000W fitted with plenty of room to spare for the cables.  Even though there isn't much room behind the motherboard tray for cable routing, the side panel has a bulging section which makes some room.

Installing a graphics card is fairly simple although a screwdriver is required as thumbscrews aren't provided for the expansion slots.  There is plenty of room for long graphics cards, and every model currently available will fit.

For our tests we will be using a Corsair H60 (2013 Edition) to cool the Intel Core i7 3770K CPU in the Cooler Master N200. Our test system also features an AMD Radeon HD 7950 graphics card. We overclocked the system to 4.7 GHZ for our tests using a voltage of 1.30V.

Test System:

• Processor: Intel Core i7 3770K.
• Motherboard: ASRock Z77E-ITX.
• Cooler: Corsair H60 (2013 Edition).
• Thermal Paste: Arctic Cooling MX-2.
• Memory: 4GB (2x 2GB) Mushkin Blackline 1600 MHz
• Graphics Card: AMD Radeon HD 7950.
• Power Supply: Seasonic Platinum 1000W
• System Drive: Corsair Force GT 120 GB
• Monitor: Viewsonic VX2260WM.

Software:

• Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit).
• CPUID Hardware Monitor.
• Prime95 64-bit.
• Furmark V1.10.6

To test the thermal performance of the Cooler Master N200 we loaded our test system for 15 minutes using Prime95 and Furmark and recorded the maximum temperatures reached using CPUID Hardware Monitor. We then restarted the system and left it for 15 minutes before recording idle temperatures.

Room temperature was maintained at 18 degrees C for the duration of our tests.

These temperatures reflect what we would expect from the system as configured.

To conduct our noise level tests, we replaced the graphics card in our system with a AMD Radeon HD 5550 Silence which was passively cooled. We also momentarily disconnected the fans on the CPU cooler so we were only taking into account the noise generated by the fans in the case.

The N200 is a little noisy but not deafeningly so.  We would certainly recommend swapping out the included fans if you have room in your budget.

Overall we are impressed with what the Cooler Master N200 has to offer.  Despite the value nature of this particular model, Cooler Master has clearly thought through the design, finding ways to reduce the cost while not sacrificing on functionality.

The build quality of the case is as good as can be expected at the price point and the aesthetics are pleasant.  This case is specifically designed to house 120 mm, 140 mm and 240 mm radiators may entice those enthusiasts on a budget.  After all, the most budget restricted users often want to spend most of their money on the internal components rather than the case.

We found the cooling performance of the N200 to be perfectly acceptable but the included fans are a little noisy.  We can't really expect Noctua grade silence at this price, though, and the fans aren't as loud as those on some other similarly priced cases.

The N200 isn't yet listed at any of the UK etailers but is available in the US for USD49 (from NewEgg).  We expect that this will translate into a UK price of somewhere around the £40-£45 mark which means it offers great value for money.

Pros:

• Minimalist design.
• Solid build quality.
• Great value.
• Basic watercooling support.

Cons:

• Loud fans.

KitGuru says: Need a cheep and cheerful case that can handle a few radiators?  Cooler Master has got you covered…

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