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Product Review
Corsair Obsidian Series® 350D mATX Case
Corsair Obsidian Series® 350D mATX Case
Introduction
With a wide variety of new and exciting tech coming out, Corsair brings us a new innovation to compact power computing with the Obsidian Series® 350D mATX case. Designed to deliver high-end performance and cooling potential, the 350D sports a line of new features that may change your mind about mATX setups when looking to build high-end gaming rigs or workstations. But what makes this case different from other noteworthy rivals, such as the Fractal Design Arc Mini? Let’s dive in and see…
First Impressions
I recently purchased this case to begin my personal system overhaul. I’m quite partial to mATX setups and have always been a fan of Corsair quality and design, so this case caught my attention immediately. My initial impression was that the case looked smaller than it actually was from the product listing on Newegg. Once I had it unboxed, it was obvious I was wrong. The work-space, while holding some restrictions (which I will cover later in this review), is quite desirable for a mATX case and gives builders plenty of room to get creative.
Cooling should not be a problem for many, especially those planning to use an H100i or a similar AIO CPU water-cooler. Additionally, with the ability to mount dual 240mm radiators (top and front), this case allows for more diverse custom water-cooling setups to cool those hot components. However, I do have some concerns with water-cooling on certain hardware configurations which will also be covered later in this review.
So far, I am pleased with what I have experienced with this product. However I haven’t had the opportunity to do any extensive hardware configuration or custom loop testing so some of the following details will be speculation based on observation. Anyway, let’s move on and take a closer look at the design.
Quality and Design
The sturdy construction of this case, while not quite as sturdy as its big brothers, is pretty much what you would expect from an Obsidian, even though it is considered a budget case. However, in my opinion, this case speaks high-performance more than budget.
Side Panels
The side panels are quite strong and well thought-out. I particularly like the mounting style Corsair used on this, especially for the right-side panel where cable management can, at times, cause the side to bow out slightly.
Basically, the panels are mounted by a forward lip standoff with 2 support rails at the top and bottom of both panels and are secured with 2 thumbscrews at the rear of the case. Seems like Corsair expected some setups to have thick bundles of wire so they gave the panel room to stretch. It would have been nice for Corsair to include the traditional locking clamps that we normally see with other Obsidian models, but for a budget case it is understandable that they excluded them.
I would also note that the panels are reversible so if you go with the non-windowed version, as I did, and you have the case tucked away somewhere with only one side showing, you can reverse the panels if you happen to scratch or damage one side and hide it. Of course, you could do the same with the windowed version, but I can’t imagine anyone would.
Front Panel
The front panel design is another favorite of mine. I’m very fond of professional aesthetics and this case gave me just that without all the unneeded contours and space consuming designs that limit some cases.
As you would expect from a new release, it does come with two front panel USB 3.0 ports and HD audio jacks. Honestly, I would have preferred more USB 3.0 ports but I suppose you can’t have it all at stock value.
The 5.25” drive bay covers were simple enough to remove so I don’t foresee a problem here as they are also quite sturdy in comparison to other competitors. I really like the brushed aluminum finish they used for the bay and front fan filter covers. I have come to enjoy this look from other Obsidian models and it’s nice to see that Corsair was able to give us this look on a budget case, even if it is only the front panel.
My only concern, while minimal, would be the front fan filter and cover. I have noticed that it doesn’t take much pressure to release the locks to the cover panel so I would advise builders to remove it and set it aside when moving the case around or working with it as I did find it quite annoying. The front fan filter is a good design, however it can be a little difficult to reattach sometimes. I kind of wish they had put a little more effort into the mounting for this, but considering the convenience of having an easily detachable front fan filter, I’m sure I can live with it.
Rear Panel
The rear panel is fairly well thought-out. I particularly like how Corsair inset the rear to .5” for the 120mm fan, I/O panel, and expansion slots. In all honesty, I’m not sure what the purpose of this is, but it does add a nice appeal at first glance.
As expected with an Obsidian, there is a bottom mounted PSU fan filter which is very durable and simple to remove and replace. Shouldn’t be difficult to keep your PSU clean with this little feature.
Tool-Free Design
Everyone loves less hassle when it comes to mounting, myself included. The Obsidian 350D’s tool-free design is pretty much what you would expect to find in most cases today, nothing real extravagant about it. You have the same flexible 3.5” mounting brackets which don’t give any issue. The 5.25” drive locking mechanism is a pretty straight forward clamp-locking system, however I will say that I had quite a difficult time getting the locks to clamp down. Seems to me that the bracket standoffs for securing drives may be a little too thick, but with some effort you can get them to lock down.
The 2.5” SSD bays are simple to use as well, just rather difficult to separate without some kind of tool. I used needle-nose pliers to release the locks but I’m sure with some effort, you won’t need to use a tool, I just used the pliers to avoid damaging anything. Additionally, product listings show that the case has only two 2.5" SSD bays, but it actually comes with three.
It has a simple slide and lock setup below the 5.25” bays which isn’t difficult to detach and reattach. I do like how they designed this feature and should prove to be a real space-saver when needed, I just wish they were easier to separate.
The expansion slots are secured with thumbscrews which is a very nice feature as well. However, I do not like how they slap the rear 120mm fan mount inset and the first expansion slot mount right up against one another. Makes it rather difficult to put the thumbscrew back once removed so be ready for this. I ended up getting tired of trying to put it back by hand and simply used a pivoting Philips-head screwdriver. Basically, I guess you could say that while this case is intended to be tool-free, you might find it easier in some areas to use a tool.
Product Highlights
Graphics Expandability
Builders should expect to be able to mount long graphics cards in this case without problems. I’m currently running a 9.5” single slot BFG Tech nVidia GeForce 9600GT with a good 5.5” of space from the front fan mounts. Of course, as previously stated, if you use the first expansion slot for your GPU, you might have a difficult time securing it down with the thumbscrew, but this would be a minimal concern.
Additionally, if you plan to use an SLI or CFX configuration with GPUs measuring 10.5” or greater, you will end up covering the bottom cable routing grommet above the HDD bays, so be sure to have all your cables pre-routed and your front panel connectors secured to the motherboard before installing your GPUs or you will probably end up having to pull them back out.
Cooling Options
Unfortunately, I haven’t had the chance to test the cooling potential of this case yet, however from my personal observation and obvious research, I would say that the cooling potential for this case is where the Obsidian 350D excels over the rest.
With a wide array of possible fan configurations, coupled with the ability to use CPU air coolers up to 160mm in height, air-cooling enthusiasts can expect to fit their favorite products, such as the Noctua NH-D14, in without a hitch.
As for water-cooling, It’s obvious to me that this case has the potential for some serious custom loops among other things. Personally, I believe being able to mount dual 240mm radiators to the top and front of this beauty and still having enough room for routing tubing without a lot of hassle is going to produce some pretty awesome results for a mATX setup. I am anxious to see what some builders can manage with this, myself included.
If you prefer to use an AIO CPU water-cooler, such as the H100i or H110, this case can support 240mm and 280mm radiators. The only draw-back I can see from using a water-cooled configuration would be that the top radiator mount sits inside the top 5.25” bay, preventing builders from using optical drives here, however you can still mount certain controller panels, such as the BitFenix Recon Fan Controller, as you still have around 5” of space (~4” with a 280mm) between the radiator and the front of the case.
Cable Management
This is another feature I am considerably excited about with this case. Initially, I was a little worried about how difficult it would be to route the cables from my non-modular Thermaltake TR2 430w PSU along with the rest of the system wiring and still keep it tidy. Granted, I didn’t spend as much time on the tie-downs as many would prefer, but I do plan to upgrade to a fully modular PSU very soon. Basically, I didn’t see a point spending the extra time and cable ties for a PSU I plan to replace immediately.
Another great cable management feature that caught my attention is the dual routing grommets for PSU cables at the bottom of the case. Normally, I wouldn’t be overly excited about something like this from a mid-tower case, but to have them in a mATX setup is very handy. No longer will I have to shove all PSU cables through one grommet, making it easier to keep the system tidy.
And, as if everything else wasn’t enough, Corsair added a few CPU power cable tie-down points which I am thoroughly pleased to see.
All in all, with ~1” of space behind the motherboard tray, managing cables and keeping everything neat should prove to be an easy task.
Final Thoughts and Pricing
With Intel’s recent release of the Haswell architecture along with a wide variety of high-performance mATX z87 motherboards available through multiple distributors, this case has the potential to become a pint-sized powerhouse. Also, being competitively priced with other high-performance mATX models at $110 for the windowed model and $90 for the non-windowed model (Newegg), this case won’t break the bank and is well worth the price tag.
While I do have some complaints with the product, they are trivial in comparison to the quality and innovation I have experienced with this case. Once again, Corsair delivers quality, reliability, and expandability at a bargain. I could not ask for more out of a mATX case.
Technical Specifications
- Dimensions - 17.7" x 8.3" x 17.3"
- MB Support - Micro ATX, Mini ITX
- Expansion Slots - 5
- Form Factor - Mid-tower
- Material - Brushed Aluminum and Steel
- Drive Bays - Three 2.5", Two 3.5", and Two 5.25" tool-free drive bays
- Cooling - Front 140mm and rear 120mm cooling fans. Room for up to five fans total.
- Front I/O - Dual USB 3.0 Ports
Please excuse the quality of the images as I can't seem to find my tripod so I took them by hand. Also, ignore the white lines on the walls and what not. In the middle of doing a little remodeling and repainting and haven't gotten to this room yet.
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