Page 4 - Installation and Conclusion
The computer building process was extremely enjoyable with the FSP CMT340. It was really easy to work with, since everything was laid out in pretty standard manner. I first installed the power supply into the PSU chamber. The power supply used for this computer was the SilverStone Essential Gold ET750-HG 750W. Thanks to the grille and the ventilation holes, there is a reduced chance of overheating components. A Reeven Ouranos RC-1401 was mounted on my Gigabyte GA-H170-D3HP motherboard. The position of the motherboard tray opening of the FSP CMT340 matches perfectly for the CPU position, therefore the heatsink can be installed without any trouble. If you like water coolers such as the Cooler Master MasterLiquid ML240R RGB, the radiator can be mounted behind the top panel.
Installation of the SSD was fairly easy. First, I unscrewed the SSD tray to get it detached from the back of the motherboard tray. Then, the OCZ Trion 150 480GB was screwed onto the tray. As the final step, putting the SSD tray back in was very easy. The screw could easily secure it into position. The rest of the installation process was really smooth. The cable management has to consider the RGB fan controlling board. All the cables were easily fitted into the space between the motherboard tray and the back panel of this case. The FSP CMT340 is quite friendly to users that may not have a ton of experience in computer building, even with the RGB fan controlling board taken into account.
After everything has been installed properly, it is time to press the power switch. As you can see from the above photo, the included RGB LED fans work in a perfectly synchronized manner. To change the color or effects of those LEDs, you just need to press the LED control button as aforementioned. According to the FSP official website of this product, all the four preinstalled RGB fans are addressable, which means it is possible to control each one of them individually when you connect the controller to compatible ASUS, MSI, and Gigabyte motherboards. Since the CMT340 has a tempered glass side panel, it will be a good idea to use some interior lighting inside. You can buy additional LED strips as well.
I am the kind of person who really cares about the noise level of the computer. In this build, I had three fans running in the case. As it turned out, my computer was really quiet, thanks in part to the 4mm tempered glass panel and the high quality case fans. On the scale of 0 to 10, where 0 is totally silent and 10 is a jet taking off, I would rate my system at 2.0/10 regarding noise emissions.
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In the introduction, I mentioned for the FSP CMT340, the purpose of owning one is to build a computer with stunning RGB lighting effects without the trouble of finding matching RGB fans, LED strips, and the corresponding controller. After using this computer case, this claim still stands. Think about this, to achieve the same level of RGB fanciness, how much time do you need to spend if you just have a barebone chassis? You need to buy at least a few RGB fans, LED strips, and a controller box. Those things will cost you at least $50 out of your pocket. In this deal, you can get a decent RGB enhanced case out of box. The good news does not just end here. The FSP CMT340 has really good build quality. I did not notice any deficiency in terms of the paint and assembly. The two tempered glass panels are 4mm thick, which provides great sound dampening performance. The building procedure went on smoothly as well. Generally speaking, the layout of the case is standard, which is great for inexperienced computer builders. A few things I propose to improve this case is to provide a PSU filter with a reinforced structure and better clips, put in a front intake dust filter, include rubber grommets for the openings, and eliminate the use of proprietary fan connectors. The retail price for this product is $100 USD at press time. It is very reasonably priced considering it conveys a complete solution for your RGB lighting in addition to being a well-built case.
FSP 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 7.2/10
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 FSP CMT340 is a well-built computer case that provides a complete and fancy RGB lighting solution at a reasonable price.
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Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Outside
3. Physical Look - Inside
4. Installation and Conclusion
