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An Alternative to Coolermaster?

Spirit_Retro

Spirit_Retro

Gawd
Joined
Apr 1, 2010
Messages
525
Hi guys...

Recently I picked up a Coolermaster CM690 II case since, while juggling machines, I needed something really well cooled for a GTX 295 SLI setup.

The upshot is that there were a number of problems with the case.

The first problem was that the motherboard tray holes for the standoffs were not tapped. Which I figured wasn't that big of a deal, so I tapped them myself.

The second, and rather serious issue has to do with grounding. This case has ground issues. Anytime any static charge is applied to the case, the computer restarts or freezes. Coolermaster support said it was a faulty USB panel in the top of the case and sent a new one. That did not solve the problem. In fact the new part was electronically and physically identical to the old one.

The case is steel, but it's coated inside and out with a black non conductive coating, and the issue seems to be that any static discharge goes through the path of least resistance (the motherboard standoffs) because of the non-conductive coating on the case.

Anyone else seen these kinda of quality issues with Coolermaster?

I just retired my Thermaltake Xaser II which I've had since it's intro. And it looks like I'm going to eat the cost of this Coolermaster case- they haven't responded in 72 hours. I'm just tired of dealing with it.

So what do you think of the following alternatives:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129043

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129058

Suggestions?
 
static? if it is issue just scrap off some paint where the psu makes contact with the case. So that case is grounded directly to the outlet.
 
lt_shiro said:
static? if it is issue just scrap off some paint where the psu makes contact with the case. So that case is grounded directly to the outlet.
Click to expand...

I wish it was that simple, but really, the amount of scraping that would have to be done would include dealing with rivets that hold the case together. The problem is not the PSU contact with the case... it's the case itself.
 
No grounding issue with my 690 II advanced. The only annoying thing is how they left the top dust filter loose in the back. It tends to rattle quite a bit if you have 120mm fans on the top rack. I am working on a fix but it has not been a major issue so I haven't dedicated any time to fixing it.
 
Some Cooler Master cases have grounding issues i.e. Cosmos and Stacker.
Some times you have to tweak the I/O panel yourself, that's what I did when my Cosmos S was giving me problems. Sent for two replacement before I found loose/exposed wires in the I/O panels.

I recommend the Silverstone Raven RV02 from Amazon.com. Better quality than Antec and Cooler Master.
 
Spirit_Retro said:
I wish it was that simple, but really, the amount of scraping that would have to be done would include dealing with rivets that hold the case together. The problem is not the PSU contact with the case... it's the case itself.
Click to expand...

really it is that simple... sigh
 
Spirit_Retro said:
The first problem was that the motherboard tray holes for the standoffs were not tapped. Which I figured wasn't that big of a deal, so I tapped them myself.
Click to expand...

Stop right there....I'd take that thing back and buy something else. That's BS.
That IS a big deal; you shouldn't have to do that yourself. That's a deal breaker. I don't care where you bought it or what they said...I'd take it back/send it back immediately.

If you want another low priced case, pick up an Antec Three Hundred.

If you would be willing to pay more for much better cooling and build quality, pick up the RV02 as WE suggested.
 
lt_shiro said:
new budget king case is nzxt m59. antec 300 has lost favor with me now.
Click to expand...

Case beauty is in the eye of the beholder. ;)
Me personally - I think that M59 is ugly as hell. :D But eh if you like it, more power to you. :)
 
I did a build for a friend of mine. He choose the RC 690 II advanced even though I didn't reccomend it. I do have to say I was surprised at how nice it was. I didn't have any problems with it except for tight quarters with a True in push/pull.
 
zero2dash said:
Case beauty is in the eye of the beholder. ;)
Me personally - I think that M59 is ugly as hell. :D But eh if you like it, more power to you. :)
Click to expand...

i am not talking about looks, more of good room, good cable management and better fan layout.
 
Well, here's the outcome of the great Coolermaster scandal in my life.

Before I get into it, I want to state that as a systems engineer with 20 years experience, I do know how to test for proper ground, and have verified a measurable resistance through the case itself, and no measurable resistance when the motherboard is installed.

I would have assumed that Coolermaster at this point would be trying to save their customer.

That being said, here is the outcome- their response is first:

Dear Customer,

I sincerely hope the problem doesn't follow you to any other cases from any
manufacturer that you buy.

Respectfully,


Customer Support
Cooler Master RPBU
4820 Schaefer Ave.
Chino CA, 91710
Live Chat


-----Original Message-----
From: Michael None [mailto:none@noneconsulting.com]
Sent: Monday, March 29, 2010 9:50 PM
To: customersupport@coolermaster.com
Subject: Problems...


Dear Coolermaster Customer Support,

I'm officially done owning or recommending Coolermaster products.

USRMA0008460
Serial no. : RC692KKN21100201318

Model: RC-692-KKN2

The first issue with this case was that the motherboard tray left
your factory without the holes for the mother board standoffs being
tapped. I assumed this was a minor defect and created the threads with a
suitable tap.

The second issue is grounding. Anytime any static discharge happens
to the case the machine freezes up or reboots. These same components
work fine in an older Thermaltake case. I also verified functional
ground on the PSU and other components.

Your company then replaced the top panel connectors, which took
several days to ship, which I dutifully installed. After rebuilding the
machine (which had been disassembled to test ground) the same problem
exists.

I have in the past both purchased and recommended Coolermaster
products to my clients. That recommendation is at an end.

There were many hours of my time lost over a simple piece of
technology, a computer case. No tracking number ever was assigned to the
online RMA, and several e-mails were sent (along with one chat session)
inquiring as to where the part was. Today- the part simply "arrived".
The part did not solve the problem. The problem is in the case, or the
replacement part (which is physically and electronically identical to
the supposedly "bad" part which was removed).

In closing, since this has dragged out past the point where I can
return the case to Digilink, I will be replacing it tomorrow with a
different brand of case- and taking the loss on my purchase.

I truly expected better of Coolermaster.

Best Regards,

--
Michael None
None@Noneconsulting.com
517-000-0000
 
I have a friend with the 902 and he loves it, and its really nice, i recommend it if you want to stay away from coolermaster. I was actually thinking about getting it myself but stuck it through with my 690
 
I didn't read the whole thread, but anyone looking at the Antec 900 or 902 ought to check out the NZXT Tempest Evo and Lian Li pc-k62. They're just flat out better cases in most respects except that the Antec does have nice fan controls and pretty decent dust filters. Meanwhile, the Tempest Evo is cheaper and has more room behind the mobo for cabling. The Lian Li pc-k62 (video is over the similar pc-k60, thus no black interior or window) on the other hand is freakin' loaded and is usually on sale somewhere for ~$89-99.

The Antec 900 and 902 aren't bad cases, they're great. It's just that they've been outdone in most respects by these two cases (and probably the Haf 922 as well) while costing ~$20-30 less than the 902. The ratio of 4 and 5 star ratings at newegg seem to indicate this as well.
 
Spirit Retro, you might want to use the phone if you are dealing with these kind of things. The worst customer support always comes from e-mails, and it also wastes your time of waiting for reply.

Try it on phone first, yell at them. Whether you like it or not, you should demand for a replacement case or a refund; this is their fault, not yours. You shouldn't be wasting your own money buying a defect case.
 
If you're going to change case manufacturers, switch Lian Li and get the best.
 
I own two Cooler Master cases. I'm using the Centurian 590 for my WHS box (need the 9 5.25 bays) and while it has some minor flaws, it was cheap. My main box is in a Storm Scout and I absolutely love this case. Sure there are nicer out there, but IMO not at ~$99.

Sorry to hear you had such issues with CM...
 
I wonder if the grounding issue you're talking about is the reason that my headphones are constantly shocking the shit out of my ears nowadays lol. I figured it was because I was shifting my giant rump on my cloth chair... hmm! Thankfully it doesn't lock my system up, just gives me a little wake-up jolt when I start falling asleep. :)
 
Lian Li is another good option besides antec, especially if you want that "stylish" feel to your case. just depends on what you like of course
 
Just to close the story....

My local retailer got pretty pissed off when presented with the events in my Coolermaster drama. I've spent thousands of dollars with them, so they treat me pretty well. They are handling the problem with Coolermaster from here on out. And I don't have to deal with it anymore.

My local retailer has proven themselves again and again. I usually pay little more buying from them. But I have to say... it's proven worth it.

My rig is now sitting in a CM Sniper full tower... all tested and working great. I hate giving Coolermaster the money after not being able to run the box for weeks- but to be honest I really liked the case. I also needed the machine running *today* for some projects I'm working on.

End of story. I'll probably get a credit for the case.
 
To be honest, I think you just had a bit of bad luck. It happens. I've owned/built about 6 CM cases, and never had an issue with any of them. My buddy picked one up on my recommendation-no issues there either. CM makes good cases, and if you look around the industry, they get copied quite a bit.

Also, your email ended the situation right off the bat-you told them you weren't going to buy their merchandise anymore. I would have just stated the issues I was having. Plus, yeah, you might know what you are doing, but imagine all of the support calls/emails they get from people bolting the board directly to the case? I would have had a little more patience there.
 
ClariorHincHonos said:
To be honest, I think you just had a bit of bad luck. It happens. I've owned/built about 6 CM cases, and never had an issue with any of them. My buddy picked one up on my recommendation-no issues there either. CM makes good cases, and if you look around the industry, they get copied quite a bit.

Also, your email ended the situation right off the bat-you told them you weren't going to buy their merchandise anymore. I would have just stated the issues I was having. Plus, yeah, you might know what you are doing, but imagine all of the support calls/emails they get from people bolting the board directly to the case? I would have had a little more patience there.
Click to expand...

I hear ya.

There's a frustration on the other side too, 10 or 15 years ago a basic problem like case ground would have never happened. That was the frustrating thing for me. I guess I'm getting a bit old. The market, and geek culture have certainly changed since I was first on the net in the late 1980s.

Some times you just expect professional quality from a company. And that is a bit of a contradiction since many of the "Enthusiast" cases have better cooling properties than commercial server cases. If you want a workstation these days... you'll have to buy enthusiast parts. Or by a "workstation" from Dell.

But as an older geek- I still buy my appliances from Sears because when they sell the extended warranty- they actually fix it when it breaks.

I kinda wish Coolermaster would sell some of their cases without the paint and lights. Ok.. well I do kinda dig the lights.... ok.. I like the paint too.

Let me put it this way- I've been locked in a datacenter for 20 years. I'm pale, women don't like me, and kids are scared of me. It wouldn't even occur to me that someone would bolt a board to the chassis without standoffs. I suppose those support guys deal with a lot of that.

Allow me to denigrate myself further:

Most guys when they hit midlife crisis buy a sports car and date 20 year olds.

In my case I built a quad SLI machine and bought a lifetime membership to STO.

Ok... time to go program...
 
glad to hear you got taken care of (the right way). this is another reason why i dont buy my stuff online and prefer to "make friends" at local pc shops.
 
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I have a Cooler Master 690 II Adv and have no issues with it. I like the case but still prefer my Antec P180b that I di have for over 3 years. I am in the process of getting an Antec P182se for better wire management then the P180b and the cooler looking exterior.
 
Spirit_Retro said:
Just to close the story....

My local retailer got pretty pissed off when presented with the events in my Coolermaster drama. I've spent thousands of dollars with them, so they treat me pretty well. They are handling the problem with Coolermaster from here on out. And I don't have to deal with it anymore.

My local retailer has proven themselves again and again. I usually pay little more buying from them. But I have to say... it's proven worth it.

My rig is now sitting in a CM Sniper full tower... all tested and working great. I hate giving Coolermaster the money after not being able to run the box for weeks- but to be honest I really liked the case. I also needed the machine running *today* for some projects I'm working on.

End of story. I'll probably get a credit for the case.
Click to expand...

The Sniper is a much better case anyway. I have both and the Sniper was my favorite until I got the Corsair 800D. I still have systems in the 690 and the Sniper and much prefer the Sniper.
 
That's unfortunate...

Your posts suggested that the case's paint/coating interfered with the ground path, such that each panel was separated on its own. The only solution would have been to sand off the paint at ALL the Mobo's contact points, and then make sure each panel was grounded either by further sanding near the joints and connecting with metal or wires, or simply running wires down to the PSU area.

That's a PITA, if true.

I've never experienced this, but then again, all of my cases have been quite bare and plain (ugly - the way I like them).

It's a shame, because the CM 690 series is quite good otherwise.

I almost considered getting one until I started some strange quiet-PC quest... decided my aging P180 is already a good platform.

* And if you got some sunlight, abating your ghostly pallor, then perhaps children wouldn't be afraid of you... and you could get the women AND play STO. You could get a dog to lure them in... using dog walks as a pretext for catching some sun and interacting on a common basis. Doesn't even have to be YOUR dog... just become a neighborhood dog-walker, and choose the "adorable" ones. [Credit: old college roommates who seemingly got tons of action while I befriended Casper]
 
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Rogue71 said:
glad to hear you got taken care of (the right way). this is another reason why i dont buy my stuff online and prefer to "make friends" at local pc shops.
Click to expand...

Lucky you. If only we had a computer store anywhere near where I live. By computer store I do not mean Best Buy.
 
Glad to hear you have a case that works for you, however I'm also really disgusted at CM's reply to you. Since selling my HAF 922 a few months back I haven't had a CM case around, but after reading this (and their lackadaisical reply to you), I won't be buying another one of their cases in the future.
 
zero2dash said:
Glad to hear you have a case that works for you, however I'm also really disgusted at CM's reply to you. Since selling my HAF 922 a few months back I haven't had a CM case around, but after reading this (and their lackadaisical reply to you), I won't be buying another one of their cases in the future.
Click to expand...

+1 from me too...... Their customer service on the phone and live chat is shite too, i won't be buying another CM case either.

An alternative would be to look at the SIlverstone / Lian-Li collections, i won't use anything else for a PC case (unless im watercooling then Danger Den is what i usually get)
 
Here it is Nov 2011 and this case is still being sold with all the parts painted in nonconductive black paint. My system also crashes when touching the silver ring around the case.

I was wondering if this would be a problem when I assembled it, seeing all the parts are painted- no good grounds.

I have been an electrical engineer for 20 years and have worked with EMI susceptibility in electronic products so I know very well that this case screams for static discharge problems.

I'm returning the case tomorrow. To bad, I liked the design otherwise. I have used the original CM690 on a number of builds with no problems.
 
interesting about the coolermaster static issues. i have the storm sniper and really like it however i have read reviews complaining that the fan controller at the top can short causing system reboots. i have never had that happen but i have shocked myself while turning the fan controller causing the case fans to stop until i power cycle the computer.
 
It's not just a Cooler Master issue. I have an Antec 200 that does the same thing. You plug a USB device in one of the front ports and 6 times out of 10, the PC will reboot.
 
SkuLLy|RT said:
I wonder if the grounding issue you're talking about is the reason that my headphones are constantly shocking the shit out of my ears nowadays lol. I figured it was because I was shifting my giant rump on my cloth chair... hmm! Thankfully it doesn't lock my system up, just gives me a little wake-up jolt when I start falling asleep. :)
Click to expand...

I'll add to this forum entry that i also had tingling feedback from my headphones using the silverstone raven rv01 case. I think i might have a similar problem. Too bad there doesn't seem to a conclusive lead here for others who encounter this disgusting problem.

The front io ports, which connect to the mobo, are worse for connection, I hear all kinds of noises with that connection, so it might be better to avoid that one, and remove unnecessarily case system front panel connections.

Secondly I'd like to add that I find that coolermasters response poor. Everyone can make mistakes, it's how mistakes are handled that can make a difference.
 
I was about to respond to this thread with tons of great insight, despite my misgivings about a "new" GTX295 SLI setup. Cheers to the new guy for filling in for Dr. Frankenstein:dead:
 
spugm1r3 said:
I was about to respond to this thread with tons of great insight, despite my misgivings about a "new" GTX295 SLI setup. Cheers to the new guy for filling in for Dr. Frankenstein:dead:
Click to expand...

I'm not new. I'm the original poster. :)

I'm not very talkative.
 
Spirit_Retro said:
I'm not new. I'm the original poster. :)

I'm not very talkative.
Click to expand...

No, not you. The gent who revived this thread back in January :) And I hear you about not being very talkative... I think I was on the forums for 2-3 years before I started actually contributing. It's a good place to lurk :sneaky::ninja:
 
spugm1r3 said:
No, not you. The gent who revived this thread back in January :) And I hear you about not being very talkative... I think I was on the forums for 2-3 years before I started actually contributing. It's a good place to lurk :sneaky::ninja:
Click to expand...

:)

I have a "lost account" where the e-mail address is unrecoverable going back to the beginning :p

But even then I did not post much.
 
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