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NZXT Zero

R

RavenX

Limp Gawd
Joined
Oct 27, 2006
Messages
320
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146029

I'm looking at buying this case but I'd like to know for those who have purchased this case, how do you like it? How loud is the case with 8 fans running? Also with the 4 fans on the side how well does the case cool your system? I've alway thought that having a closed system with no side openings, would create a better draft from front to back which would get the warm air out faster, but with the side opening, it would seem like the warm air would stick around longer??
 
I don't own the case but one thing that strikes me as weird is the fact that they have 7 120mm fans in the case, but they choose to make the top exhaust an 80mm? It is one of the better looking of the NZXT cases, but really that's not saying much.
 
I've seen one in real life, its very... Cheap feeling and looking, but its better than most "cheap" cases out there.
 
I just built my new system in my Zero.

So far my only complaint is that the four side fan grills tend to get pretty dusty. The grill itself is nice, but after just a few days of gaming/computing it's visibly dusty, though not enough to really cause any problems afaik.

If people are saying this case feels cheap, well I can't even begin to imagine a
quality case then. I'm really impressed with this case, coming from the earlier, much much crappier NZXT Guardian. The front door is nice and magnetic and closes shut securely, but opens just as easily, and does not swing back once let go of.

As for the top exhaust, I personally had a nice Tt 80mm that pushes A LOT of air, so I replace the top fan with that and I have it on medium-high with a manual fan controller.

I haven't done any OCing yet with any of my parts (though I plan too), but according to RMClock my CPU idles anywhere between low 30s - high 30s. I haven't done any testing under load yet however. Speedfan reports even lower temps, but I believe they're wrong. I remember hearing about a bug in the latest version so I just use it to check my other temps.

The noise level of this case is ridiculously low for the amount of air it pushes. 120mm fans don't need to run at as high RPMs as 80s do because they're 33% bigger. Honestly, my Tt exhaust fan can drown out my entire room if I set it to max power, but on average I'd say my PC makes no more than a mild humming sound.


IMO, if you're looking for a nice looking, not so flashy, COOL, roomy case, go for it.
 
I've built two systems for friends with the NZXT Zero case and I've noticed the following plusses and minuses:

Pros:
  • Very slick looking, mostly aluminum
  • Front door is secure, closes nicely with two magnets on the top and bottom yet still very easy to open
  • Good amount of fans, noise is moderate but nothing too bad. Your GPU / NB Heatsink on a 680i are going to stand out way more
  • Good amount of room to work with, no sharp edges
  • The slide in mounting for the hardrive bay, floppy and the 5inch bay work very nicely and are very easy to remove with a simple screwdriver of some sort. Insert into grip hole and lever. Done deal.
  • Back panel comes off easily and there are a decent amount of holes to fit fan cables through
  • Light with nothing in it, I'd estimate about 10-15 pounds

Cons:
  • A 8800GTX WILL NOT FIT WITHOUT HEAVY, MODDING TO THE HARDDRIVE BAY. IT IS NOT EASILY REMOVED. The harddrive bay is held in by screws that are unable to be taken out without a drill. It took an extra 45 minutes just to get the harddrive bay out and I wouldn't have been able to do it if my friend's Dad wasn't a mechanic because he had to use a lot of awkward angeled drills to get the bay out. The bay was completely worthless afterwards and I was forced to put the HD into the Floppy disk tray with rubber feet to avoid contact with the metal right below it. Some users on Egg said they had to turn the card sideways to install it, or had very little room for clearance but I found no way to install the GTX and I tried for a good 5 minutes.
  • The top fan (80mm) has to be removed to install any recent power supply. Both times I installed a Corsair PSU, one 450W another 620W and it had to be removed for both installs. It is replaceable afterwards however so it is not too terrible.
  • If you are installing a Thermalright 120 Ultra to your CPU you will have to remove the TOP TWO 120mm door fans in order to be able to close the door properly. If the Thermalright was 1 inch shorter it would fit perfectly and the cooling to that processor would be outright astounding. However, that is not the case.
  • Every single stock fan is very weak. Especially the ones on the front and door.
  • The PCI Clamp is worthless if you're installing any high-end video card. In both my 8800GTS and 8800GTX installs, the clamp was nowhere near suffcient enough to hold down either card. Now on the GTS if I remember right it barely came down flush, but I'm positive on the GTX it wasn't even possible to push it flush and ended up just staying open.

Concerns from NewEgg that need disproving:
  • Main one is the removeable 5.25" and 3" drive bays. There were a few complaints I remember reading about how you could "cut yourself" on the metal removable plating behind the plastic covering. Both times were extremely easy and I have come to the conclusion that the only way one could cut themselves on that metal is if they were 75 years old and suffering through many neurological diseases such as parkinsons. A simple flathead or phillips screwdriver to push it back and pull, done deal.
  • Front door is made with "cheap plastic". I'm sorry, but that front door is very slick and I would go so far to say that it's "high-quality plastic"... considering that most of it feels metallic. Also, the magnet closing is very, very nice.

That's it really. It looks very nice, easy to install minus the GTX problem and the slidable bay installations are always great. :)

My suggestion is if you're planning on buying a 8800GTX, find a new case. It's not worth the pain when there are much better cases out there.
 
I can provide witness as to the build quality.

I have a Lexa and couldn't be happier.

Their cases are solid. I think people have a bias towards them because they might not look as boring as their "super duper quality cases." My case is built like a tank.
 
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