So, what of the case overall?
Well, there's clearly no difference in performance or substantial difference spec between the Centurion 530 and the 531 - both are laid out well internally and sport enough bays and features to keep the vast majority of enthusiasts happy.
The 531 has the total tool-less drive bays, and that's one thing to consider. On the flipside, the 530 has the meshed front panel and the built-in-stealthing.
Which you pick out of the two will ultimately come down to the styling you prefer. Personally, I'm a big fan of the black, which is currently my desktop chassis of choice, housing the Haz-Rig™ with style and the minimum of hassle.
Are there better cases out there? Sure. I would love to see both these models rendered in full aluminium, cutting down on the weight. However, alu adds cost, and these are cost-efficient models.
They're amazingly cost-efficient, in fact. They are available in the UK for a little over 40 UK quid or a little under 70 US bucks Stateside, which is a fantastic price for a case that's so well specified.
The dual 120mm fans are simply an overclocker's dream. It's possible to have amazing cooling performance, but the noise is far more manageable. Put two of these babies on a fanbus controller for optimum performance - a trick we've seen done elsewhere with this case.
For the money, you just can't go wrong. Nu-skool-styling it may be, but old-skool-awesomeness it certainly is. The Centurion 530 is the budget case to beat.
Coolermaster Centurion 530
Well, there's clearly no difference in performance or substantial difference spec between the Centurion 530 and the 531 - both are laid out well internally and sport enough bays and features to keep the vast majority of enthusiasts happy.
The 531 has the total tool-less drive bays, and that's one thing to consider. On the flipside, the 530 has the meshed front panel and the built-in-stealthing.
Which you pick out of the two will ultimately come down to the styling you prefer. Personally, I'm a big fan of the black, which is currently my desktop chassis of choice, housing the Haz-Rig™ with style and the minimum of hassle.
Are there better cases out there? Sure. I would love to see both these models rendered in full aluminium, cutting down on the weight. However, alu adds cost, and these are cost-efficient models.
They're amazingly cost-efficient, in fact. They are available in the UK for a little over 40 UK quid or a little under 70 US bucks Stateside, which is a fantastic price for a case that's so well specified.
The dual 120mm fans are simply an overclocker's dream. It's possible to have amazing cooling performance, but the noise is far more manageable. Put two of these babies on a fanbus controller for optimum performance - a trick we've seen done elsewhere with this case.
For the money, you just can't go wrong. Nu-skool-styling it may be, but old-skool-awesomeness it certainly is. The Centurion 530 is the budget case to beat.
Coolermaster Centurion 530
MSI MPG Velox 100R Chassis Review
October 14 2021 | 15:04
Want to comment? Please log in.