CasEdge Diabolic Minotaur Case Review - Page 3 of 3 Posted:  January 4, 2004 Author:  Jared Kuolt Manufacturer:  CasEdge Source:  CasEdge The power supply included is a 400-watter private labeled for CasEdge by a Taiwanese manufacturer called SPI. The Diabolic series can be had with any of the 300w, 350w or 400w power supplies. The particular unit I received had the following published specifications: • CasEdge 400w Model F400-A Standard ATX compatible • AC INPUT:      115V/230V~, 10/5A, 60/50Hz • DC OUTPUT:      +3.3V === 20.0A, +5V === 32.0A, +12V === 16.0A      +5sb === 2.0A, -5V === 0.3A, -12V === 0.8A • Fuse Rating: 8A, 250V~ (+3.3V & +5V=210W Max) (+3.3V & +12V=330W Max) The following components were installed into the case, and will provide the basis for testing the strength of this power supply: • AMD XP 1700+ processor • MSI K7T Turbo 2 motherboard • ATI Radeon 7000 video card (temporary, don't laugh) • 512MB (2 x 256) Generic PC-133 memory • 3Com Ethernet adapter • 2 7200RPM hard drives (one 40GB Western Digital, one 60GB Maxtor) • 2 CD-RWs (both generic, one 8x4x24, the other is 40x20x48) Motherboard Monitor was used to record the highs and lows experienced on each voltage rail, to determine the strength of each. The system was first allowed to idle for a period of time to establish a baseline for the outputs.  Then Folding@Home was fired up and the computer was used as normal to put the system to the test. As you can see in the table above, the power supply was very stable going from idle to full load. The range of voltages are pretty small, indicating minimal fluctuation! Before you mention how hot my CPU is running, let me explain. This is an Athlon XP 1700+ that I received a while back from a friend who abused it. It has always run hot, but it doesn't help that the core is a little cracked. Do not pass judgment on the case for these hot temps (maybe I should reapply my thermal paste). As a matter of fact, my temps have dropped almost 5 degrees since changing to this case! A simple Foxconn 120 mm fan is mounted in the back of the case, which is nearly silent. The manual covers assembly of the fan which I find useless, but if you do not know how to install a fan, you are in luck! The fan included is UV sensitive whereas in the promotional pictures show a standard black fan. After I connected my IDE cables, my power cables and fans, I went for the motherboard connections (LEDs, Switches, etc.) What I found was a bit surprising. There are only two real connectors: power switch and power LED. What? No HDD LED or ... wait a second. NO RESET SWITCH? That's a little odd. A hard reset is bad for computer components and should not be used unless absolutely necessary and it could be accidentally hit by a passerby. These reasons seem a little diluted. Yes, there are other ways to reset, but they take longer and we geeks are not a patient species! Above left: LEDs lit up (they are much brighter than the photo shows, for the life of me I couldn't get a decent shot). Above right: Cold cathode (another bad shot) The power LED lights up the little face in the power button while the “eyes” connect using a standard power connector. CasEdge also provided high quality cables to attach your front USB, Firewire (IEEE-1394) and sound. The cover for these ports is a slide-able plastic chrome grate that look somewhat like teeth, completing the Minotaur theme. CasEdge has been around for long enough to make me comfortable endorsing their product. This case, albeit not bound to appeal to everyone's taste, is an excellent example of the quality work done by this company. As a matter of fact, I was so impressed that I plan to purchase a server case by them for my new office server. If you are in the market for a good case with great features, this is one to have! If you don't care for the look, CasEdge offers more standard looking cases with the same features. A search of PriceGrabber returned no results for this item, which isn’t a surprise for an item as new as this. Digging deeper on the internet finds the CasEdge Diabolic Minotaur case for sale at a few familiar locations such as Newegg ($145.00, with the 400 watt power supply and free shipping) and Xoxide ($159.99, with NO power supply and NO free shipping).  Neither price suggests that this is a cheap product, but it is a well built case that includes many unique features that help it earn a final rating of four out of five stars... Pros: • ”Tool-less” Assembly (drive rails especially) • Included cold cathode lighting • 120 mm fan • Ease of use • Air Duct & Filter • Solid and well-built • Variety of colors • Variety of available power supplies • Plenty of room inside Cons: • Slightly ambiguous manual (but could be revised by now) • Exterior design won't appeal to everybody • No reset button • A little heavy, definitely not a LAN party case Special thanks to CasEdge for supplying the Diabolic Minotaur case to BigBruin.Com for review! 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