A Builder’s Dream

When building a dream machine, the case is one of the toughest decisions to make.  Without a doubt the case plays the biggest role in the presentation of a computer.  Even with the best parts making up the guts of your rig, the machine won’t turn any heads if encased within a dreary lifeless exterior.  Though many people view the case as just for show, the case actually has many overlooked features that can help push a computer to its limits.  The Cooler Master RC 690 is not only a gorgeous piece of eye-candy, but also has some great features that make it a builders dream.
SIZE & LAYOUT
            The Cooler Master RC 690 is a mid tower case, meaning it is average size and is compatible with standard ATX and Micro ATX motherboards.  Unless you’re planning on running four Intel Xeon processors, a standard ATX motherboard will be just fine.  For a mid tower case, the RC 690 is pretty spacious.  At twenty inches tall and eight inches deep, it’s very comfortable to work in with plenty of room to move your hands around when building.  Though the RC 690 is a big case, it fits pretty well on any desktop without seeming too goddy.
The Hard Drive bays are set out of the way at the bottom right corner of the case and stay in place without having to screw them in.  Within the case are five hard drive bays and five standard bay drives.  There are also seven expansion slots; plenty of room to set up three way SLi and still have room for an aftermarket sound card.  The motherboard will sit about an inch above the top of the power supply so there is a comfortable distance between all of your components and the heat of your power supply. 
FEATURES
            Fans on the RC 690 are a somewhat generic.  The case comes with three 120mm fans—one in the front, one on the side, and one it the back.  There are brackets for three more 120mm fans to be installed, but are not included with the case.  These brackets are at the bottom, and top of the case.  With fans on the top and bottom, the case actually ventilates air very efficiently.  The case is about half an inch off the ground due to small rubber feet at the corners of the case.  This space allows the fans to suck up the cooler air from underneath the case and the top fans will blow the air out the top.  This cooling method is very efficient (as far as fans go)
            After all of the components (motherboard, video card, drives, etc) are in place, the dangling wires with which the components were connected are still floating around.  Dressing up the wires is easy with this case because Cooler Master included clamps that run vertically near the drive bays.  These clamps hold the wires in place and as out of the way as possible.  This not only makes the inside of your computer presentable and easy to work around, but also frees up space for better air flow.
            All of the drive bays and hard drive bays are cleverly designed to require no screws.  For the standard drive bays, you simply slide a bar to unlock the braces on each side and flip them open.  Once the drive is in place, the bars lock right back into place.  Cooler Master has also included a converter which enables you to use a floppy drive in one of the five standard drive slots.  The hard drive slots have small plastic inserts that hold the hard drive in place.  These inserts require no screws and easily slide in and out without the use of any tools.
            At the top of the case sits six ports.  These include the standard USB 2.0, Fire-wire and audio ports seen on most cases.  But there is also a eSATA port for connecting an external hard drive via SATA cable which is faster than standard USB cables.
CONS
            The RC 690 is made with Electronically Chromate Coated Steel, which is high quality steel, but the side walls are pretty thin and dent/bend rather easily.  This isn’t an issue unless the computer is going to be moved around a lot. For example, if you are building a computer to take to LAN events, be very careful with this case when in transit.
            This case comes with a 550 watt power supply.  A 550 watt power supply is plenty if you are planning on building an entry level machine.  Yet most builders strive for greater capabilities that a measly 550 watt power supply simply cannot support such as SLi.  Wattage aside, the power supply included with this case is not of the highest quality, therefore it will most likely break down and end up collecting dust just months after its first use.
FINAL THOUGHTS
            The Cool Master RC 690 is a great looking case with a truck load of features that make it a good choice for any builder. The fan setup is designed to keep your system cool no matter what parts are being run.  There is plenty of space to work around in and the wires can be tucked neatly out of the way.  All of the drives are easy to place or remove without tools.  The side panels are a little flimsy and the power supply is pretty much worthless, but for the price, the pros outweigh the cons.  I give this case four and a half stars because it isn’t the best case out there, but you defiantly get more than what you pay for with this setup.