The Raidmax Raptor ATX-823 Gaming Case (Review)

The Raidmax Raptor ATX-823 Gaming Case (Review)
Review Score:

If you are building your own gaming PC, then you have probably been looking for a real gaming case for your PC. If you aren’t building one but instead just want to purchase one, you might want to check out the best prebuilt gaming pc under 1000 depending on your budget. For those building their own, Raidmax has released an affordable hardcore gamer case to fit all your needs. The Raptor by Raidmax is efficient at eliminating heat issues that occur in high powered PCs. It comes with a complete set of ventilation fans, airfoils for easy venting, and room for even more. There’s a section dedicated to 3.5″ hard drives complete with five bays and mounting kits.

There’s even additional mounting bays for smaller SSD and 2.5″ SATA HDDs. Unlike some towers, there is no need to purchase mounting kits. Plus, all your drives are neatly organized; they’re stacked together in the bottom corner of the case. There are no messy cables or wires and everything is easily hidden out of view, it might also be worth looking into the best vpn canada that could assist with online protection.

The Raptor comes with zip ties and cable organizers to help with cable arrangement. If you’ve ever upgraded your rig or built a custom gaming PC, you’re familiar with the frustrations of keeping the cables organized inside your tower.

One surprising feature is the locking device that secures hardware inside the 5.25″ installation bays without the use of screws. This makes removing hardware simple; there is no need to fuss with screws and screwdrivers. The additional expansion bays that don’t use the new locking system have over sized thumbscrews that can be hand tightened.

The RAIDMAX is built with cooling and ventilation in mind. There’s a filter system (which is included) that installs underneath the case where the power supply is located. The purpose of this filter is to prolong the life of your power supply. The filter collects dust and other debris that would otherwise clog your power supply. When the filter gets dirty, it’s pretty easy to clean with a can of air or a vacuum.

The Raptor’s sleek black and red design is pleasing to the eyes. A black and blue tower variation is also available if the color red doesn’t excite you. The pre-installed fan system is rigged with bright red LED lights that illuminate the inside of the case; it looks impressive when running in a dark room.

Located on the top of the tower is a control/command panel that has fan speed and LED brightness controls. So if you place the Raptor in a tight area (i.e. between a wall and your desk), you can turn up the fan speed to ensure better ventilation.

Additional features include (2) USB 2.0 ports, (1) USB 3.0 port, and a mic and headphone jack. These are all located on the control/command panel for easy access. The Raptor was definitely designed with the hardcore PC gamer in mind. While it can be argued that many gaming towers offer similar features, the Raptor offers them all in a single tower. Having the mic plug in front makes it easier to plug in a headset before starting a game of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, and means it is a very good choice of computer gear for Valorant. Who likes bending over their tower and digging through a tangled mess of cables just to plug in a headset? I certainly don’t.

There are a few important things worth mentioning if you plan on building your first gaming rig with the Raidmax Raptor (especially if you plan on reusing any existing cables or even your old power supply from a previous mid-tower configuration). First of all, the Raidmax is a full size gaming tower (511(L) x 192(W) x 502(H)mm).

Some power supplies that are between 600-700watts have shorter power leads. And since the HDD bays and motherboard are mounted further apart than in a standard mid-tower case, the power leads from older power supplies will not be able to reach the motherboard or peripherals because of their placement. While you should upgrade to a gamers power supply for better hardware performance (i.e. 750watts or better), it is possible to use your existing power supply as long as you purchase power lead extenders.

You may also be required to purchase longer IDE/SATA cables for the same reason. Since the Raptor offers a tremendous amount of internal expansion and free space, most standard cables are too short to reach the peripherals (especially preexisting cables from PCs manufactured from about a year or two ago). You may want to reconsider salvaging cables from a preexisting home PC for your gaming rig.

The Raidmax Raptor is an incredible tower case. It offers full expandability, plenty of ventilation, and a user-friendly control/command panel that is perfect for the hardcore PC gamer. The Raidmax Raptor is well worth the investment no matter how you chalk it up. Don’t forget to get the Best cordless mouse for gaming as well!

James ‘Daripp3r’ Pittaro
Product: Raidmax Raptor
Price: $97.99 (Superbiiz.com price)
Available at: Frys.com, Superbiiz.com and other PC retail locations

Raidmax Raptor’s Official Website

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