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The Verdict
Okay Obi-Wan the tale ends like this: the Tai Chi case is by all means not a cheap case, it'll cost you a sizable quantity of money. But hey, for that money you'll also get a massively built, quality PC case. Looking back my key impressions would be that this really is an extraordinary case, it has that rough and sturdy thing going on that I like so much. It's huge, you have so much space to work in.
The design itself is like a huge cooling ribbon, a huge heatsink and can expected to be working that way also. Everything in the case well thought well through, from its design to ease of installation, materials used and usage itself. It however has one slight mishap, the two fans. They are just too noisy for a case of this quality. It's not extremely loud at all though, but they are clearly audible at all times. Next to that I would have preferred to see a 100% screw less design. Sure you can insert your videocard or whatever into the system in a flash, but installing a HD or DVD-ROM goes the old-fashion way with the four screws? Yes you can use the thumbscrews, but you will use a screwdriver. And I know, I know, I am nitpicking here but at this price level I am allowed to do so I think.
As lame as it sounds that's really all I can think of what could be improved for the Tai Chi case. It's BTX (new form factor for mainboards) ready, you do need to order a new (cheap) rear plate though. It's spacious, it's design flabbergastingly beautiful, your system is optimally cooled, removable mainboard tray and yeah, yeah, yeah. I like the Tai Chi for sure. But I get the feeling you already noticed that.
With a street price of just over 250 EUR / 300 USD this case is not among the cheaper ones, that price is a little hard to digest. If you opt for the water-cooling kit add another 80 EUR / 90 USD to that price but hey, if you want quality then this case is an absolute must. Overclocking, water-cooling, pure aesthetics, ease of use, whatever your needs are, the Tai Chi beyond doubt fits the profile for it.
To the highest degree the case is impressive, that is the wording I just have to end this article with. This is a dream case for many of us.
Special thanks to Annie from Thermaltake for submitting the case to us. And also special thanks to David Gunning for editing our articles over and over again. (Ed: *sniff* And all it took were some threats about some "creative editing" to get him to say that >< )
Highly recommended!
Tai-Chi Super Tower Case
Model: VB5000SNA
Manufacturer: Thermaltake
Info: website
