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NZXT Panzerbox Aluminum Mid-Tower Chassis


Date
: 10/19/09 – 12:37:11 AM

Author
:

Category
: Cases

Page 1 : Index

Manufacturer
NZXT

We have yet another NZXT review for you today. In my experience, NZXT products, such as their cases and accessories, have a certain appeal that hardware enthusiasts and gamers will like. Their products are both functional and stylish and have not let me down yet.

In this review, we'll be looking at the
NZXT Panzerbox
from the Classic Series, a mid-sized ATX case with welded aluminum construction.

Page 2 : Package & Contents

The NZXT Panzerbox comes in an eye-catching package. It shows actual pictures of the case so you know what it looks like. The front lists off some of the major features of the case.

On the opposite side, a few more features are listed and descriptions are given.

Specifications can be found on the other sides.

Opening up the package, we can see the case cradled by styrofoam blocks and protected by a plastic cover.

Let's look at the features and specifications in detail before moving on.

Page 3 : Features & Specifications

I went to NZXT's webpage for the Panzerbox to gather the features and specifications.

Here's their description:
Panzerbox features the best airflow in its class, boasting two 190mm and one 120mm fans that churn out a combined 300 CFM. The Panzerbox's pure aluminum design makes it a light and luxurious option for travel and LAN parties and the welded chassis enhances strength and support. Dual radiator support and full expandability with room for high performance 10.5′ cards, 4 hard drives, 3 5.25′ drive bays, and oversized heatsinks offer gamers and enthusiasts even more options to increase performance while a removable motherboard tray makes upgrades easy and painless.

The features:
* Mid Sized, Extreme Performance : Fitted with dual high performance 150CFM controllable 190cm fans and a dual radiator bracket to provide the best performance, the Panzerbox offers high performance for a midsized case due to its unique layout.
* Removable Motherboard Tray: A removable motherboard tray makes upgrading easy and painless.
* Pure Aluminum: Build in all aluminum, the Panzerbox is light and luxurious, perfect for traveling and showing off at LAN parties. Compared to similar products with high airflow and ATX expandability, the Panzerbox is almost 25% smaller and 50% lighter.
* Full Expandability: Room for high performance 10.5′ cards, over sized heatsinks, even larger dual radiator solutions.
* Top mounted USB/Audio/ESATA Ports

Specifications:

You can also find the user's manual here.

The Panzerbox is different from most cases in its design and shape. With an emphasis on cooling with its two large 190mm fans, the Panzerbox seems suited to high performance systems that put out a lot of heat.

Now that we know all about the case, let's move on to actually looking at the case.

Page 4 : Exterior

The first thing I noticed about the case is that almost the entire case is covered with perforated metal. The front 190mm fan peeks out from underneath the mesh. There are three external 5.25′ bays next to understated power and reset buttons.

The top is also made of perforated metal. Another 190mm fan can be found here. I/O ports include two USB ports, mic and headphone jacks, and an e-SATA port.

Looking at the sides of the case, all we find are two vents.

At the back, we have two rubber grommets to facilitate water cooling. Below them is a 120mm fan. There is room for seven expansion slots and the power supply is unconventionally mounted at the bottom.

Four rubber feet on the bottom aim to reduce noise and keep the case firmly planted.

Time to look inside the case.

Page 5 : Interior

Removing a few thumbscrews allows you to access the Panzerbox's cavernous interior. I was surprised by how much room there is. All cables are neatly wrapped.

Removing the other side panel, we see that there is some space on the other side as well – perhaps for cable management.

The front panel connectors include the usual suspects.

All mounting hardware is included and neatly labeled in individual bags. A user's manual is also provided.

There is room for three 5.25′ drives and four 3.5′ drives. Almost everything has thumbscrews for easy removal.

The motherboard tray is removable, which is a great feature. The 120mm fan and expansion slots stay attached, which is nice.

With the motherboard tray removed, let's jump straight to installation.

Page 6 : Installation

An installation manual is provided with the NZXT Panzerbox for the faint of heart.

I started with installation of the motherboard first. I installed standoffs in the appropriate holes in order to line up with the holes on my motherboard and then secured the motherboard using screws.

The hard drive was next. I removed the cage from the case by removing a thumbscrew. I then slid my drive into the cage and secured it using the provided screws and then reinstalled the cage in the case – very simple.

I then installed the power supply in an orientation such that its intake fan faces the vent cut-out on the side panel. This design is great because fresh air is taken in by the power supply and exhausted as opposed to the power supply taking in heated air from inside the case.

To install the optical drive, I first removed two thumbscrews from each side of the bay in order to release the bay cover.

Then I slid the drive in and secured it using thumbscrews.

After installing the video card onto the motherboard tray, I just put the tray back into the case and secured it.

Don't forget to connect all the wires.

Page 7 : Testing & Performance

Powering the system up, I was pleased to see that there were no gaudy LEDs lighting up the fans and such. Two simple green and blue LEDs are present to indicate power on and hard drive activity.

I'll be comparing the cooling performance of the NZXT Panzerbox with the NZXT Beta.

System Configuration:

CPU: AMD Phenom 9950 X4 BE 2.6GHz
Motherboard: Asus M3A78 Pro
Memory: OCZ Vista Upgrade Edition DDR2-800 (PC2-6400) 4GB (2x2GB)
Video Card: HIS ATI Radeon HD 3650 IceQ3 512MB
Hard Drive: Hitachi Deskstar T7K250 160GB SATA II 8MB cache
Optical: Lite-On SATA DVD±RW
OS: Windows Vista Ultimate
Cooling: Stock

Cases:
NZXT Panzerbox, NZXT Beta

Case temperature measurements were taken under different conditions using Lavalys Everest Home Edition 2.20 using the motherboard's temperature sensor. Idle measurements were taken with the computer idling at the desktop for 2 hours and no CPU or hard drive intensive programs, such as antivirus software, running. Load temperatures were taken while running SP2004 Orthos and HD Tach's ‘Long Bench’ test multiple times. The maximum temperature over five different runs was taken and reported.

The ambient temperature was approximately 25ºC throughout all the tests.

The Panzerbox easily outperforms the Beta, which is no doubt thanks to the large 190mm fans and overall better cooling design. The price you pay for this performance is the noise. The Panzerbox is extremely loud. The bad part is, there is no way to adjust the fan speeds either. If a fan controller of some sort were included, it would have made me very happy.

Page 8 : Conclusion

I've always been a fan of innovative designs and therefore, I really like the NZXT Panzerbox. Though it is a performance-oriented case, with its two 190mm fans and vented structure, it still looks good. I particularly enjoyed the fact that installation is made very simple due to the removable motherboard tray, copious amounts of interior room, and thumbscrews everywhere. The build quality is also very good and the case feels sturdy yet manages to have a low weight.

The only thing I would add to the Panzerbox is the ability to control fan speeds. As it comes, the fans are very loud. Though they do their job well, the noise level is a bit high. If the user could control the fan speeds, it would be great.

All things considered, the NZXT Panzerbox is a case that I would have no reservations recommending. Take a look at it if you're looking for a well-built case that performs extremely well – you won't be disappointed.

Advantages

• Easy installation
  
  
• Lots of room
• Good cooling performance

Disadvantages

• Loud; fan speeds are not controllable

I'd like to thank NZXT for making this review possible