Page 4 - Installation and Conclusion
The best part of working with a case is the point where the installation finally occurs. So, to begin my build, I installed the motherboard, in this instance, the Gigabyte GA-Z170 HD3P. However, at the time pictures were taken, no RAM had been installed. The screws fit perfectly and were easy to attach, and when tested, fit with multiple motherboards. As it will be seen in a later picture, a CPU cooler is also installed in this build, the Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO, which is a bit of a smaller cooler, especially given the fact this case can hold coolers up to 167mm in height.
Next, I installed my hard drive into the case, which, with the new easy drawer system, made this part a breeze. As seen in the picture, the 2.5” SSD is already installed in the special mount on top of the dual drive bay. The 3.5” drive used in this build was a Seagate FireCuda 2TB, and as shown in the picture, is firmly mounted in the easy installation slide for the drive bay. The process was nearly tool free, but one small drawback occurs at the end of the process, where I was left with two free rubber screws that should normally fit in. However, a small reversal in how the drive is installed makes one of either side of the screws unable to be placed back in properly. This does not affect the actual installation of the drive, but it does leave extra pieces at the end of the build. All the connectors hook into the back of the dual drive bay, but the order in which the drives are arranged will affect the build itself. If you plan to install any SSDs in the drawers themselves, they should be situated near the bottom to avoid annoyances involved with having to arrange cords, which I personally found to be a hassle.
Installing the graphics card, RAM, and fans occurred last in the build, and was fairly straightforward. Due to the ample room provided by the Cooler Master MasterBox 5t, cord management in the back of the case was near flawless. The 35mm gap behind the motherboard tray was more than enough to rearrange the cords to allow for whatever preference the consumer has. This space does have one small drawback when installing other parts of the build. The fans I chose to install, the Thermaltake Riings, needed extra room, and the space that was given to cord management took away from the space I needed to install fans. So, while overall the extra space helped when I was plugging in my motherboard, graphics card, CPU, and hard drive, when I needed to install my fans, I often found my hands cramping and taking longer than it should have in most circumstances to complete the task. The graphics card pictured here is an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970, which fits this case with plenty of room to spare -- enough to add another drive bay -- but can easily fit graphics cards up to 410mm if the drive bay is removed or moved elsewhere within the case.
The power supply was simple to install in this build, and also the reason why I chose to do this operation last. The power supply cover was unscrewed and removed quickly. I then mounted my Corsair CX600 in three easy steps. The cover was then replaced for a super clean and tidy feel, while at the same time hiding all the cords coming from the fan controller, LEDs, and power supply.
After completing the build and each of the panels were secured, my computer was plugged in, and the system came to life. The case itself has a nice front LED bar at the bottom designed to enhance the red accents of the system even further. The angle of the bar allows it to be reflected off a variety of surfaces, further drawing attention to the majesty of this tower. As can be seen in the photo, three red fans were installed at the front of the case to further highlight the Cooler Master MasterBox 5t’s overall aesthetic appeal. Despite the case having four fans installed, along with a CPU cooler, the noise emitted from the case was not that much. The case, as stated earlier, has no built-in sound dampening, but is still pretty quiet. In my personal opinion, on a scale from 0 to 10, with 0 being the computer not running, I would easily give it a 4.0.
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There are many ways people choose to spend the holidays, and a variety of family traditions are often observed during this special time. In my family, we go to church in the evening with my grandma, order Chinese food for supper, and then open all the gifts on Christmas Eve. Then, after things have quieted down in our home, we put on a comedic Christmas movie, and I spend the rest of every Christmas Eve building a new Lego set which I receive each year from my family. Now, many people may think what I have described is a very strange way to celebrate the season, but these traditions are exactly what I look forward to in each December. Cooler Master has introduced me to a new and yet somehow familiar tradition of building it and “Making it Mine”. Just like a more complex Lego set, the Cooler Master MasterBox 5t has got me building in December, just as I have done in years past. For about $90 at press time, this case is more than reasonably priced, and offers versatility and opportunities for creativity and customization on the part of the owner. The case itself is amazing; the color scheme is on point, and has a new flare not seen in previous MasterBox variants. The transportability of the case allows it to be easily carried, and is an excellent choice for those who move spaces a lot. The Cooler Master MasterBox 5t and its relatively quiet operation makes it a good choice for smaller spaces or places where silence is appreciated. The small drawbacks in terms of cable management issues, and not having as clean of a look without rubber grommets on the inside of the case does come down personal preference, and should be taken into account when considering this product. The choice of a red color scheme some may consider a detriment, as it does limit the use of other colors inside the case. Personally, I love using LEDs fans, so my color choice was somewhat predetermined as red prior to the Cooler Master case build. Overall, I think Cooler Master has done a superb job in making a case that stands out not only from others in the series, but also among other cases available on the market. The Cooler Master MasterBox 5t is a definite triumph in my books. Just remember, in order to truly make it yours, sometimes small compromises are worth making.
Cooler Master provided this product to APH Networks for the purpose of evaluation.
APH Review Focus Summary:
8/10 means Definitely a very good product with drawbacks that are not likely going to matter to the end user.
7/10 means Great product with many advantages and certain insignificant drawbacks; but should be considered before purchasing.
-- Final APH Numeric Rating is 7.8/10
Please note that the APH Numeric Rating system is based off our proprietary guidelines in the Review Focus, and should not be compared to other sites.
The Cooler Master MasterBox 5t is a solid case with a new flare that allows you to truly "Make it Yours" in as many ways as you choose.
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Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Outside
3. Physical Look - Inside
4. Installation and Conclusion
