We here at Tech Critter are no stranger to the slew of cases that Cooler Master makes since more than a decade ago. To see them evolve is a pleasure of ours – and today’s highlight here is the MasterBox NR600. This is a full-sized ATX case with an affordable price tag, yet manages to bring features like no others.
Special thanks to Cooler Master Malaysia for the MasterBox NR600! The MasterBox NR600 (RM299) is an ATX case whereby the smaller variant, the MasterBox NR400 (RM249), is an mATX case with an overall smaller form factor. The
For an overview of the case itself, have a look at the video below.
At first glance, the MasterBox NR600 gave me a good impression as there are plenty of holes for breathing. One of the key feature of the MasterBox NR600 is the support for an ODD – or a 5.25-inch optical disk drive – at the top of the front panel. This is a very rare feature since it is pretty much nonexistent in modern-day PC cases.
The side panel design is different from the others as well. The power supply shroud extends all the way outward and is in the same plane as the tempered glass side panel. It’s really sleek, honestly.
Opening up the side panel reveals the spacious internals with two rubber grommets for cable management. The right side of the motherboard tray is slightly elevated to provide more room for cable management.
Looking at the PSU shroud, there are a lot of holes above it – and those are actually 2.5-inch disk mounts. To install the 2.5-inch disks, open up the accessories bag and install the rubber rings on these holes and screw in the studs on the storage disk. Brilliant method to mount these disks.
But that arrangement of holes are not the only disk mounts found in the case. For what I consider a “budget case”, the MasterBox NR600 shocked me as it has way more disk mounts compared to its competitors.
The MasterBox NR600 has:
- 5x 2.5-inch disk mounts
- 4x 3.5-inch disk mounts
So many disk mounting points!That’s just impressive – a total of 9 physical disk mounts on the case itself, excluding the M.2 slots that are present on your motherboard. That means you can more than 9 storage disks in the MasterBox NR600 and that is unheard of for a budget-oriented PC case.
From here we can also see that the MasterBox NR600 comes with two fans pre-installed – one at the center at the front and another at the back. You can mount even more fans or the entire AIO radiator at the top or the front of the case. Keep in mind that the most you can go for are 280mm for both the top and front of the case.
Keep in mind that half-circle means no fan mounting at the top.Let’s also not forget the main highlight – that 5.25-inch ODD bay support. For those who are still using it, this is definitely the case to consider. There is also another variant of the MasterBox NR600 that does not have ODD bay.
As a whole, we think that the MasterBox NR600 is actually the go-to choice for those who need lots of storage disks and with good airflow. The target audience is probably me as a content creator, since I have lots of storage disks. It is perfect for offices as well since it has such a sleek minimalist design.
Once again, the Cooler Master MasterBox NR600 is priced at RM299. It is available now at Lazada.
