Corsair Carbide Series AIR 240 Compact PC Case Review @ [H]

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FrgMstr

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Corsair Carbide Series AIR 240 Compact PC Case Review - Are you in the market of a case for that new Mini-ITX or MicroATX PC build? Corsair today shows off its Carbide Series® Air 240 High Airflow MicroATX and Mini-ITX PC Case. It's big, it's black, and it will remind you the the Borg. OK, maybe it is not that big, but big enough to allow mATX fans plenty of room for cooling and hot dual GPUs.
 
Totally digging the AIO compatibility page i see in all the case reviews [H] does these days, especially on the more constraining form factors. Very, very relevant to the AiO crowd.

Thanks fellers.
 
I have this case, and the biggest drawback is that many of the best GPU's physically cannot fit in it because they are too tall (like the Strix) or too long (G1). If the case was maybe half an inch larger in each direction, this wouldn't be an issue. It really makes GPU shopping hard since everyone is building the cards so big now and going beyond reference size.
 
atp1916 said:
Totally digging the AIO compatibility page i see in all the case reviews [H] does these days, especially on the more constraining form factors. Very, very relevant to the AiO crowd.

Thanks fellers.
Click to expand...

Thank you sir, we sincerely appreciate the kind words.

We try our best to make sure that, by the end of the review, you know which coolers will fit, which all-in-one coolers will fit (and where) and how the case performs when outfitted with enthusiast configurations that are representative of what YOU guys use. Nothing sucks more than getting to the end of a review only to have MORE questions about the product than when you started reading.

Again, much thanks!


tikicult said:
I have this case, and the biggest drawback is that many of the best GPU's physically cannot fit in it because they are too tall (like the Strix) or too long (G1).
Click to expand...

The maximum GPU length is 290mm, you can actually install cards like the Radeon HD 6990 - 7990 dual GPU (x2) cards in this case.
 
This is going to be my Skylake build this summer for sure.

Regarding the GPUs, the biggest issues I've read have to do with the width of the card, whereas length seems to not be an issue at all (Over 12" available in length even with an AIO in the front).

Making sure that your GPU isn't significantly wider than the bracket length is key.
 
Built my new X99 system with this case and I love it! I ended up picking up another Air240 to redo my daughters overheating SFF LianLi box. I really dig this case.
 
tikicult said:
I have this case, and the biggest drawback is that many of the best GPU's physically cannot fit in it because they are too tall (like the Strix) or too long (G1). If the case was maybe half an inch larger in each direction, this wouldn't be an issue. It really makes GPU shopping hard since everyone is building the cards so big now and going beyond reference size.
Click to expand...

I fit dual gpus and a full water cooling system in mine.

Clicky
 
I have this case as well. Have a H105 running as pull-intake at the front. Might change this up, not sure yet.
 
I love this case. However, the "I/O card retention bracket" is very nearly a deal breaker. I've got two GTX 970's with reference coolers. If I set this case vertically, as it's pictured in every review, the cards sag so much that I'm worried it will damage the video cards and motherboard. And that also completely eliminates airflow between the cards, causing GPU 1 to go into thermal shutdown while gaming. There is no way to prevent the cards from sagging, short of using epoxy / super glue, while the case is vertical.

That retention bracket is freaking horrible, but everything else is excellent. I hope the engineer who proposed this solution steps on a lego brick.
 
Still thinking im going to move my system from my SG10 to this 240. At only approximately 1 1/2" bigger it makes sense to do so, and I can go to a H105!
 
Corsair makes some great cases, so far i am loving my C70 army green. maybe for a lan box.
 
A lovely review of a lovely case. Thank you.

With so many drive bays, I would have liked to see you also look at the case as a server platform.

This case is ~10cm too big for a project I have in mind; I'm looking forward to seeing Corsair's ITX version.
 
tikicult said:
I have this case, and the biggest drawback is that many of the best GPU's physically cannot fit in it because they are too tall (like the Strix) or too long (G1). If the case was maybe half an inch larger in each direction, this wouldn't be an issue. It really makes GPU shopping hard since everyone is building the cards so big now and going beyond reference size.
Click to expand...

The 380T works for this. I have put a PowerColor custom 7990 WITH water cooling block in it, as well as the GTX 780 Classified Hydro edition without issue.

Steve said:
The maximum GPU length is 290mm, you can actually install cards like the Radeon HD 6990 - 7990 dual GPU (x2) cards in this case.
Click to expand...

Hey Steve, great review. You did cover everything, and the kitchen sink from my POV.

He means physical height not PCB length from PCI-E Bracket to end of PCB. For example an Asus Poseidon won't fit due to the water ports up top that hit the window, or an MSI lightning, Asus Strix, those new weird Zotac Amp Omega/Extreme editions.

Even normal height water cooled cards' top ports can end up scratching the window, which is what happened to me. I also own the white version and it just needs that 5mm or so of extra width and screw in PCI-E brackets to be 100% perfect.
 
i confirm the GPU height issue, my friend has this case with an MSI 970, the termination of the heat pipes are pressing into the plexiglass, so there is a little bulge on the top cover. the cover closes none the less.
 
MADNOD said:
i confirm the GPU height issue, my friend has this case with an MSI 970, the termination of the heat pipes are pressing into the plexiglass, so there is a little bulge on the top cover. the cover closes none the less.
Click to expand...

The water blocks on my GPUs are also touching the plexiglass, with a tiny bulging on the panel. Its not very noticeable and hasn't scratched yet. On the other hand when I got the case the window was already scratched on the inside.
 
10e said:
The 380T works for this. I have put a PowerColor custom 7990 WITH water cooling block in it, as well as the GTX 780 Classified Hydro edition without issue.



Hey Steve, great review. You did cover everything, and the kitchen sink from my POV.

He means physical height not PCB length from PCI-E Bracket to end of PCB. For example an Asus Poseidon won't fit due to the water ports up top that hit the window, or an MSI lightning, Asus Strix, those new weird Zotac Amp Omega/Extreme editions.

Even normal height water cooled cards' top ports can end up scratching the window, which is what happened to me. I also own the white version and it just needs that 5mm or so of extra width and screw in PCI-E brackets to be 100% perfect.
Click to expand...

Yep.. Wish I had read this before purchasing this case. I bought this case along with the ASUS Strix 970 GTX, and the card is just a smidge too large. The part of the PCB where the SLI Bridge goes just (and I mean JUST) scrapped its way into the case. Another couple of mm clearance would have been nice. The Vapor tube though is too high off the card, and smacks into the window. Again, missing by just mm's.

Overall I loved the case though. Assembly was a breeze, and it's nice and silent most of the time.
 
IRSmurf said:
That retention bracket is freaking horrible, but everything else is excellent. I hope the engineer who proposed this solution steps on a lego brick.
Click to expand...

Is this a pretty common problem? I've noticed that myself with these kinda brackets trying to hold up heavy GPUs... Is it possible to mod this portion of the case at all?

I'm really looking forward to using the 240 in my next air-cooled build.

Nice review as always [H]!!
 
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