Gadgetory

this video is brought to you by NCI XCOM great technology selection and service hello everyone I'm twin tree with hurricane accent so far 2015 looks like an excellent year with unique introductions into the case market we're finally seeing brands thinking outside the box thinking of ways to be different from the competition and most importantly hitting that right spot for functional features and ease of assembly I'm happy to say the new BitFenix Aegis micro ITX chassis satisfies that criteria but at a questionable price point at over $100 competing with the likes of the define r5 and the aged 440 the various color options are always fun tow our red Aegis will serve as a perfect vessel for our upcoming AMD build make sure to subscribe to see that but there is something about that glossy plastic that doesn't sit well with me I kind of wish the surface was mat but the red definitely stands out so let us know what you think of this design direction the frame is somewhat futuristic with this large slightly curved front panel with the reflective film that catches fingerprints and dust easily and check out the beat Phenix icon installed at the front you can also get the core version of the chassis without the display and display is 2.8 inches 240 by 320 P it can showcase whatever jpeg to customize the front face of the case it's not very bright and viewing angles are pretty bad but they've opened up the source code for developers so it may display useful info about your PC sometime in the future when developers get to that and not just an image so that's pretty cool the ventilation on each side allows front fans to breathe and the layer of dense mesh is installed as an added dust proof element as behind the panel we find a really weak magnetic dust filter that doesn't want to stay attached and there are no clips at the bottom to prevent it from just sliding down the case supports triple 120 or dual 140 member of fans for intake with 360 millimeter radiator support at the front mounted on strips for extra flexibility but at this price I was surprised to not see included fans here aside from the single 120ml exhaust fan at the rear you can install fans on the outside of the frame for push-pull but this way you lose out on that dust filter but luckily the side ports are dust proof but because of the icon display cable it would interfere with the fan blades so you either have to disconnect that cable or use the bottom fan slots if you're after this type of configuration the top panel is angled I think it complements the design nicely with two USB 3 ports audio Jack's activity led a large power and the recent buttons and a three speed fan controller for for fans powered via a molex connector unfortunately not a PWM header furthermore there is a removable mesh I'm liking the full dust proof approach underneath which we find dual 120 or 140 mm or fan mounts again on mounting strips for extra maneuverability radiators up to 280 millimeters will fit here and this case is turning out to have outstanding water cooling support I just wish the top panel wouldn't cover that much of the fans and instead get rid of all that plastic frame to allow top airflow to actually do its job as half of the air is sent back into the case with that rear fan its side panel time it's large and it's clear I wouldn't want it any other way our fingernail scratch test came out worse than expected and just to be clear I do these to replicate the potential contact the panel might have with a hard surface obviously you wouldn't want to scratch the thing on purpose but be really careful with this one in particular at the bottom we find another magnetic dust filter spanning the entire floor with quality case feet installed at the back there are five PCI slots allowing extra breathing room for dual GPU systems and the 120 mil exhaust mount with two positions that is convenient if you require extra clearance internally for a top radiator and finally moving inside I'm quite happy with a feature packed Aegis like this removable shroud for a stealthy power supply modularity for all the drive cages like the bottom cage for two three and a half inch drives can be moved closer to the front panel and in its default position to allow extra clearance for power supply furthermore we have removable three and a half inch cage for two more units that sits on the single clip and so unfortunately there is no way to secure it for shipping and I find that whirring above it is a dedicated two and a half inch drive cage for two SSDs both of which utilize two less clips that attach on each side for the drive and just slide into the cage now then the problem becomes with alignment of SATA ports at the back as the SSD bracket is way too forward making this entire drive cage system a bit more of a hassle for wiring both of them toll can be removed if extra clearance is required for either a front or top radiator now below those two cages is another spot for an SSD it does not interfere with any hardware but it turned out to be challenging for cable routing as again the position of the drive is not comfortable for static connections and it's something that big phoenix has acknowledged and has promised to fix and in my build I've removed the top cages so I can install a 240 Miller radiator at the front and this is where I question why not just include standard drive CAD is compatible with two and a half inch drives to be placed inside the bottom cage that would be more comfortable for cable management and I don't have to utilize those uncomfortable SSD slots and lastly there is a stashed away SSD bracket on the other side of the power supply that is convenient but I prefer to use this area to actually stash away all the cables and here's the finish system I do appreciate the extra height clearance even though it makes this micro ATX chassis kind of in line size-wise with other ATX cases I install dual 140 ml fans for exhaust to the top and that 240 millimeter all-in-one Brad at the front and I really like all the grommeted cutouts around the motherboard like the three above to help with clean wiring although the eight pin cutout should have been larger and the same goes for the side grommet that is tiny and passing anything other than SATA cables and smaller cables would be challenging and I appreciate the extra opening below the motherboard throughout your audio and USB cables with this setup GPUs up to 12 and a half inches will fit until you hit our radiator and more space of course can be made available if you mount the front fans at the front of the frame I don't mind how the power supply looks with these cables but mounting the shroud back on and the build now looks even cleaner and I can say the interior is very well optimized for water cooling especially since BitFenix includes a rubberized pump bracket with all types of mounting holes for compatibility that can be installed on top of the drive cage when its offset closer to the front and the bracket can also be installed on the floor with various mounting locations furthermore this unique reservoir bracket is included that is mounted onto the 240 million radiator and you will install a tube reservoir on there it's a unique spacing bracket finally cable management with our low profile cables was a total breeze there are cable tie hubs in all the right places and if only you can live with that large opening in the top left route the cables around it for a cleaner look but most of the cables are concentrated at the bottom because there's plenty of space there and that's really good to see so the beach Phoenix Aegis hits all the right notes for modularity and cable management and appropriately prep for water cooling and a micro ATX system the looks aside this could become the beat spinning signature micro ATX frame in my opinion but only if they polish up on the drive mounting better dust filters open up that top frame include more fans and chop that price because hovering around the $120 mark seems uncompetitive but let us know how you feel about the beat Phoenix Aegis and what do you guys think of this style and the frame design as always make sure to leave your comments down below don't forget to subscribe for more similar content give us a like if you found this to be helpful and we'll see you in the next one