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The
Light Show:::...
One
of the main "wow" features of the Wave Master
has to be the front panel lighting. A single blue
hard drive activity LED sits to the left of the main
lighting which consists of two high intensity blue
LEDs shone from behind the pillar. Unlike the HDD
activity LED which plugs into the motherboard, these
two LEDs indicate power on and take a feed directly
from your power supply via a regular 4 pin Molex connector.
I'm
sure Cooler Master could have gone even further with
this idea but they've left us all with a little to
think about. I'd certainly like to see the effect
created by the addition of a second colour of high
intensity LED, perhaps tied to hard drive activity
or maybe even sound activated.
Conclusion
The
3DVelocity 'Dual Conclusions Concept' Explained: After
discussing this concept with users as well as companies
and vendors we work with, 3DVelocity have decided
that where necessary we shall aim to introduce our
'Dual Conclusions Concept' to sum up our thoughts
and impressions on the hardware we review. As the
needs of the more experienced users and enthusiasts
have increased, it has become more difficult to factor
in all the aspects that such a user would find important,
while also being fair to products that may lack these
high end "bonus" capabilities but which
still represent a very good buy for the more traditional
and more prevalent mainstream user. The two catergories
we've used are:
The
Mainstream User ~ The mainstream user is likely
to put price, stock performance, value for money,
reliability and/or warranty terms ahead of the need
for hardware that operates beyond its design specifications.
The mainstream user may be a PC novice or may be an
experienced user, however their needs are clearly
very different to those of the enthusiast, in that
they want to buy products that operate efficiently
and reliably within their advertised parameters.
The
Enthusiast ~ The enthusiast cares about all
the things that the mainstream user cares about but
is more likely to accept a weakness in one or more
of these things in exchange for some measure of performance
or functionality beyond its design brief. For example,
a high priced motherboard may be tolerated in exchange
for unusually high levels of overclocking ability
or alternatively an unusually large heat sink with
a very poor fixing mechanism may be considered acceptable
if it offers significantly superior cooling in return.
The
Mainstream User ~
No,
you don't need this case, but do you WANT
this case? That's really what it boils down to. Cheap
cases can be hard to work with, badly ventilated and
easily damaged, a quality case will probably last
a careful and proud owner a lifetime...give or take.
There
are certainly easier cases to build your system inside
but provided you're not rebuilding on a weekly basis
it's no real hardship.
If,
like some of the aluminium cases currently on the
market, The Wave Master was selling for £200+,
I'd suggest you save your cash for something more
practial. However at just over £107 from Scan
it qualifies as a unique, slightly pricey but perfectly
justifiable treat for yourself. Despite the few niggles,
the biggest of which is the side panel resonance,
this is still very much a showcase in PC chassis engineering.
Get saving!
The
Enthusiast ~
It's
not really big enough to house a full-on water cooling
setup without a lot of planning. Its air cooling is
good rather than spectacular and the front mounted
drives are screws all the way.....but damn it looks
sexy!
A
high quality surface finish and striking looks make
this a real head-turner but aside from the removable
motherboard tray there's really nothing here to make
adding or removing hardware any easier, faster or
more pleasurable than almost any other semi-decent
case you can buy. The interior is dated in its design
though it's perfectly functional if not exactly inspiring.
The
ability to switch the external feature connectors
for a fan thus adding what is essentially a "blowhole"
is a nice touch that should add somewhat to the cooling
kudos of the Wave Master, just as well bacause in
its stock format it is not much more than adequately
ventilated.
All
in all this is a solidly built, sleek and very desirable
piece of kit and one that I would imagine a lot of
enthusiast would like to own, though more likely for
its looks and its finish rather than for its assembly-friendly
features. A very nice case that comes recommended
despite the few minor gripes. Sits quite rightly at
the top of the current Cooler Master range!
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