Final words and conclusion
Final words and conclusion
Bloody brilliant -- and I know, I know... with each and every chassis we test I say it, taste is personal. But the design that the Obsidian series upholds speaks to me so very much.
There's extremely little negative to report here really as the chassis (for a mid-tower) nears perfection. Each and every centimeter was thought through at some level and really, the two minor inconveniences I can remotely think of is that the HDD mounts feel a little too plastic and the USB 3.0 connectors lead outside the chassis towards your motherboard rear IO USB 3.0 connectors. That's it...
Style as stated is important, and if you like the clean not screamy looks of the Obsidian series then you'll be in for a treat, as next to the design the concept just works well. It's all very subtle, up-to the front panel IO which is hidden behind a hatch, and the top drive bay in which you can insert a SATA 2.5/3.5" storage device (also hidden behind a door when not in use).
You'll get an all black and very solid/sturdy design, which will make your more expensive components pop out more, the tool free design works like a charm, even the subtleties of opening a side panel is managed by handy latches which are so handy that it will surprise you.
Installing a 3.5" device is as simple as inserting it into a plastic rubber mounted bracket and sliding it into the drive bay. Optical or other 5.25" devices you simply slide in and secure and lock it into place. Cooling wise you'll get two silent 200mm fans and a 120mm fan, which can all be adjusted (one setting for all) by the fan controller.
Cable management then, again here's where the 650D really shines, cable routing is just not an issue as there are grommet holes inside the chassis allowing you to lead cables anywhere, very important is that behind the motherboard tray there is plenty of space for a lot of wires. So again, that's top notch.
We can go on and on here, but the last topic I'd like to end with is the space inside the chassis. There's plenty of space to have your PC hold three lengthy graphics cards as the 650D has 8 expansion slots, in fact it could allow for a 4th, but it's there where I'd say go look for the 800D. Any graphics card to date should fit just fine though. But you can even take it a step further as the drive cages are adjustable and can be removed and relocated.
And then the final subtlety... an integrated fan controller allows you to adjust cooling performance and/or the noise level you require. Brilliant stuff. So there you have it, the Obsidian 650D is just a spectacular mid-tower chassis. It is a little pricy, though we found it for as little as 140 EUR here in Europe and expect something close to 200 USD in the USA. But it is worth that money alright, top notch gear and as such it receives our best hardware award. Well done Corsair.
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