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Today we are taking a look at Aerocool's Strike-X Xtreme Black Edition case. This mid-tower case aims to deliver high-end performance at a competitive price point. To help the Strike-X Xtreme Black Edition deliver on this promise it ships with three fans pre-installed, pre-drilled cable routing holes and even offers support for water cooling set-ups. With a retail price of £64.99 inc vat., can the Strike-X Xtreme Black Edition hit the sweet spot?
Aerocool have been building up their range of Strike-X cases, fan controllers and even power supplies. Joining the Strike-X family are three different versions: Black Edition, White Edition and Devil Red Edition.
Specifications:
- Mid-tower case.
- Motherboard support: Micro-ATX, ATX.
- Expansion slots: 7.
- Drive bays: 4 x 5.25″ / 6 x 3.5″ HDD or 2.5″ HDD.
- Maximum GPU length: 293 mm.
- Maximum CPU cooler height: 172 mm.
- Front panel I/O: 2 x USB 3.0 + HD Audio and Mic jacks.
- Total number of fans supported: 5.
- Fans included: 1 x 120 mm rear exhaust, 1 x 180 mm front in-take and 1 x 140 mm top exhaust.
The Strike-X Xtreme Black Edition ships in a large, brightly colored box. Inside, the case is protected by layers of Styrofoam.
Included in the box are manuals, cable ties and enough screws to mount additional fans and to secure components.
Also included is a 3.5″ drive adapter which can be used to install a 6th hard drive in one of the 5.25″ drive bays.
Aerocool's line of Strike-X cases have a distinctive aggressive design and the Strike-X Xtreme Black Edition is no exception.
Behind the 5.25″ drive cage face plates are soft pads. Under very bright lighting conditions these seem to sparkle, though this is not something that would be noticed under normal operating conditions. Along the front are two plastic red covers, both of which light up once the system is turned on.
A large mesh cut-out, in the shape of an X is clearly visible on the side panel, as is a similar mesh on top.
The front of the case features the only visible Aerocool branding on the case.
The large Power and Reset buttons have been positioned on both sides of the two USB 3.0 ports and Audio & Mic jacks. Positioned directly to the right of the Reset button are LEDs, indicating HDD activity and whether the system is on.
Zooming out a little shows how the top cover rises towards the middle.
Around the back we can see the rear exhaust 120 mm fan. This fan is rated to provide 36.40 CFM of airflow at 1,200 RPM with a maximum noise level of 26.5 dbA.
Directly above the fan are also two rubber grommets to support reservoirs placed outside the case.
The seven expansion slots have a cover, which is held in place with a clip that is accessed from within the case, to let users secure expansion cards from outside the case.
At the top we can also see Aerocool has chosen to provide additional openings to assist the top exhaust fan.
Finally, flipping the case on its side shows a dust filter under the PSU. There are also large plastic feet to provide ample clearance.
Removing the front panel reveals the 180 mm front in-take red LED fan. This fan is rated to provide 23.20 CFM of airflow at 700 RPM with a maximum noise level of 25.5 dbA.
The cable leading to the LEDs in the front panel is tied up with the other front panel connectors so users may want to loosen the cable before taking it off.
Aerocool have chosen to use snap-off face plates for the 5.25″ drive bays. A layer of padding acts as a dust filter across the entire front panel.
Lifting up the top panel shows the front panel connectors are routed neatly through a grommet. Again, we would recommend loosening the cables before removing the front and top panels completely.
Towards the back we get a glimpse of the included 140 mm top exhaust red LED fan, protected by a metal mesh. This fan is rated to provide 39.40 CFM of airflow at 1,200 RPM with a maximum noise level of 29.5 dbA.
Starting at the bottom we can see the dust filter underneath the power supply.
The lowest rubber grommet is curved, which gives it a rather unusual look.
On the right side are the five 3.5″ drive bays, each of which has a cover with the Aerocool brand on it. Directly next to to that is the 180 mm front in-take fan.
The front panel connectors are tied up neatly, routed through one of the three rubber grommets in the centre of the case. In the top left we can see the red rear exhaust fan and a modest CPU cut-out.
Aerocool uses a locking mechanism to hold 5.25″ drives in place. Rotating the lock lets users remove it completely. Simply lining the pins up with the drives' mounting holes and returning the lock to its original position firmly secures the drive.
The rear exhaust fan has received a bright red coating and Aerocool branding. Its 3-pin connector has not received a braided finish, though it is worth pointing out that none of the cables will be visible as there is no windowed side panel.
Moving down we can see the clip holding the expansion slot cover in place. Like the front panel, these covers snap off.
We can also see the blue USB 3.0 connector. In an effort to reduce cable clutter Aerocool have included the USB 2.0 connector as an extension cable.
The 140 mm top exhaust fan has a transparent red color and a very smooth coating. Users who do not have enough available fan headers for its 3-pin connector can make use of the molex extension.
Directly next to the top exhaust fan we can see the four mounting holes for an additional 120 mm or 140 mm top exhaust fan. The raised profile of the roof's mesh ensures a 5.25″ drive will not be blocked.
Rather than use one of the available rubber grommets, the front panel connectors run through an additional cable routing hole in the very top of the case.
This view of the case gives us a better look at the curved rubber grommet in the bottom of the case.
The bottom 5.25″ drive bay houses an adapter to mount a 6th hard drive.
Included in the bundle of front panel connectors are two molex connectors. One serves to power the front in-take fan and comes with a 3-pin extension whilst the other is used for the LEDs in the front panel.
Moving to the back of the case we can get another look at the curved rubber grommet.
Cables can be tied down to the right of the CPU cut-out, below the CPU cut-out and above the bottom rubber grommet. Holes between the rubber grommets can be used to tie down cables on either side of the case.
The caddies hold 3.5″ drives in place with screws on both sides of the drive.
Like 3.5″ drives, solid state drives are mounted with screws.
We were unable to route our 24-pin ATX connector through one of the rubber grommets, regardless of the angle we attempted. Even after we removed the rubber grommet we would have required just under a millimeter of additional clearance to route the cable without damaging the case or connector.
Our large Gamer Storm Lucifer cooler fits easily, though it does eliminate the possibility of using a side in-take fan due to its height.
Around the back we did not have many cables to tie down, though an additional cable tie for the CPU Power cable would have allowed us to keep the CPU cut-out clear.
A final look at the lighting before we move on to our tests. Under very low lighting conditions the effects appear brighter on camera than they are. In our opinion, the lighting is complimentary to the design.
We are using the Gamer Storm Lucifer cooler to keep our Intel Core i7 3770k cool and perform our tests with the CPU at its default clock speed before then overclocking it to 4.6GHz with the voltage set to 1.3v.
Test System:
- Processor: Intel Core i7 3770k
- Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LX2
- Memory: 16GB G.Skill Ares Blue
- Graphics Card: Sapphire HD 7790 2GB GDDR5 OC
- Power Supply: Seasonic G-Series 650W
- Chassis: Aerocool Strike-X Xtreme Black Edition
- Monitor: Acer X243HQ
- Boot Drive: Intel SSD 510
- Storage Drive: 2TB Seagate Barracuda
System validation can be found here.
Software:
- CPUID HW Monitor 1.23
- CPUID CPU-Z 1.65
- Prime95 v27.1
- Furmark 1.11.0
We are testing the Aerocool Strike-X Xtreme Black Edition's performance as follows:
- Room temperature is kept at 22° throughout our tests.
- The CPU Fan is set to 100% to eliminate inconsistencies as a result of PWM control.
- Idle temperatures are obtained after booting the PC and idling on the desktop for 30 minutes.
- CPU load temperatures are obtained after running Prime95′s Small FTTs test for 15 minutes.
- GPU load temperatures are obtained after running Furmark’s Burn-In Test for 15 minutes.
- To measure noise levels we disable the CPU fans and GPU fan.
We tied up the cables in the bottom of the case to ensure nothing obstructs the path of airflow to our components.
The Strike-X Xtreme Black Edition offered excellent cooling performance, on par with cases that can cost nearly twice as much.
We measure from a distance of around 1 meter from the closed chassis and 4 foot from the ground to mirror a real world situation. Ambient noise in the room measures close to the limits of our sound meter at 30dBa.
The minimum readings for our acoustics tests are obtained with the fans running at 5V. For our maximum readings the fans were left running at 12V. The CPU and GPU fans are manually disconnected to eliminate unwanted noise.
KitGuru noise guide
10dBA – Normal Breathing/Rustling Leaves
20-25dBA – Whisper
30dBA – High Quality Computer fan
40dBA – A Bubbling Brook, or a Refridgerator
50dBA – Normal Conversation
60dBA – Laughter
70dBA – Vacuum Cleaner or Hairdryer
80dBA – City Traffic or a Garbage Disposal
90dBA – Motorcycle or Lawnmower
100dBA – MP3 player at maximum output
110dBA – Orchestra
120dBA – Front row rock concert/Jet Engine
130dBA – Threshold of Pain
140dBA – Military Jet takeoff/Gunshot (close range)
160dBA – Instant Perforation of eardrum
Running at 5v the case fans are very quiet. As we expected, the large front in-take fan is virtually inaudible, at both 5v and 12v.
Running the fans at 12v raised overall noise levels by just under 6 dBA, though the noise was never that intrusive.
Overall, our experience with the Aerocool Strike-X Xtreme Black Edition was a pleasant one.
The build quality is above average and feels like it can withstand a fair amount of abuse. That said, we do have some concerns about the use of snap-off covers for the expansion slots and 5.25″ drive bays. Users who sell their case after an upgrade, or to finance an upgrade, may find that the resale value of the case decreases quickly.
We would have liked to see the use of larger grommets to route cables. Having seen a number of builds where the ATX power connector fit through the grommet leads us to believe this was an isolated issue with our cable. However, in our opinion it is better to play it safe and provide larger grommets to facilitate the routing of multiple cables.
The design of the Strike-X Xtreme is bound to split opinion. We feel gamers will like the aggressive panel design, but some people may want something a little more sedate.
In terms of cooling performance the Strike-X Xtreme Black Edition is able to keep up with high-end models from competitors. The potential to replace the fans with models that produce higher airflow makes the Strike-X Xtreme Black Edition very appealing to those on a tight budget.
It was a wise design for Aerocool to include a 180 mm front in-take fan, rather than a single 140 mm fan as this helps to reduce overall noise emissions.
Retailing for £64.99 inc vat. the Strike-X Xtreme Black Edition is up against some stiff competition. However, the strong cooling and acoustics performance help it secure our Worth Buying award.
Pros:
- Strong cooling performance.
- Good acoustics performance.
- Three models to suit a variety of builds.
- Clever method of securing expansion cards from outside the case.
- Lighting effects add to, rather than distract from the design.
Cons:
- Larger grommets would make cable management more user friendly.
- Snap-off covers.
KitGuru says: The Aerocool Strike-X Xtreme Black Edition leaves it mark with strong performance and a unique design.
Doesnt look bad, but its a bit plasticky still. Never seen their cases in the flesh, would like a hands on before considering.
for me its a great case i fit nearly all cables easily just 24pin connector was little hard to put through rubber groumet cable management was ok only 2 cons for me is: 1. i wish front and top covers are metal 2. plastic pci-e cover makes noise so i take it out
This is a nice cheap mid tower case. My only problem with this is the lack of space for cable management, especially if you have a non-modular PSU, and the HDD drive tray is unremovable so it won’t fit a really large graphics card such as a Gigabyte GTX 970 which is around 300mm. If only the upper half of the HDD drive tray can be removed, then this would fit in any graphics card.