AeroCool AeroEngine II-BBP Review

     The AeroEngine II does not come with a power supply, but does come with a rear fan mounting that will accept a 120mm (included), 90mm or 80mm fan.

     The case is sturdy, and secured with gussets in all the corners. The card slots come with push-out style covers rather than the typical break-out style. The motherboard io-plate is bolted in, but allows for the press-in style inserts as well.

     The case has room for 4 external 5¼ bays, 6 internal 3½ bays, and 2 external 3½ bay (one of which is occupied by the front connectors) Unfortunately, all bays are bolt-in style, and will require a screwdriver. To improve airflow, I removed all 4 of the 5¼ bay blanks, allowing air through the mesh covers that remain. I recommend taking them out only after removing the front cover since it is easy to cut yourself if you try to remove them from the angle shown above.

     Removing the front cover, we can easily see the massive 140mm fan which includes blue LEDs for illumination. Look how easy it is to get at the bay blanks. I wish I had know this beforehand, oh well, live and learn. We can also see why the front looks like it has a jet engine in it rather than a simple case fan. The styled plastic impeller is powered simply by the air moved by the 140mm fan.

     The case connectors (power, reset, HDD LEDs and such) are pretty much standardized, straight forward, and clearly labeled. However, the front access connectors (USB, fire wire, and audio) are a different story. I had to lookup the pinout of my mother board to figure out the correct pins to put the connectors on since each wire was individually terminated. The USB was probably the easiest to connect, but I still can't seem to figure out the correct pins to put the fire wire cables on. A simple, standard fire wire cable end would have gone a long way in my book. Same for the USB and audio cables. The one plus side is that if you have a non-standard hookup on your motherboard, you're set.

     Now of course with all this airflow passing through the case, I had to install my water-cooled pc. Amazingly, the midsized case provides plenty of room for everything. Including my secondary water cooling radiator. Believe it or not, there is still enough room between it and the rear 120mm fan for decent airflow.

     So what's it look like when everything (including my "white" DVD burner) is installed? Have a look. Clearly I have to replace that DVD burner with a black one.

Conclusion...

     Although there are a couple of things to not like about this case, overall I think it scores high in things that count for performance and off-the-shelf style. It would have been nice if a power supply were included or standard connections used for the front i/o port cabling. Also, the front doors being plastic has a light duty feel compared to the rest of the case. That being said, I would definitely recommend this case to anyone looking for a sturdy case with good ventilation, and who doesn't want to get stuck with a Frankenbox. Thumbs up for this one.