Cooler Master HAF 932

Item: Cooler Master HAF 932
Author: Harry Butler

Written by Harry Butler

October 16, 2008 | 11:23

Tags: #120mm #140mm #air-flow #atx #benchmarking #case #e-atx #haf #high-air-flow #testing #tests

Companies: #coolermaster #cooler-master

Results

The Cooler Master HAF 932 has only gone and shot straight to the top of every single one of our performance charts for cases, taking the lead at idle and CPU load by 1°C over the fully fitted Akasa Omega and Zalman GS 1000, and equalling the best result in the GPU stress test!

This represents simply awesome thermal performance and unquestionably makes the HAF 932 the coolest case that we’ve ever tested. What’s more miraculous is that these results were achieved straight out of the box – we didn’t have to upgrade or alter the cooling set up at all.

What makes these results all the more impressive is that the HAF 932 was also very quiet indeed – even when stress testing, the loudest thing in the case was the CPU cooler and when we disconnected that, the hard disk drive spinning was still more audible than the noise from the HAF 932’s low RPM cooling fans. Really, we’re not joking here, the HAF was shockingly quiet, and the most you’ll hear is the low rush of air entering and exiting in the case.

Usually we expect high airflow cases like the HAF 932 to be wind tunnels, using high RPM fans to achieve performance at the cost of making the system very noisy. Here though, the extensive use of large low RPM fans to create a negative air pressure environment inside the case, and the large mostly mesh front fascia and ventilation slits cut in to the sides allows air to be passively, and more importantly quietly, drawn into the case, with the beefy exhaust array delivering simply superb cooling performance.

Final Thoughts

While we’d expected the HAF to impress us with quality thermal results, it’s shocked us with its outstanding thermal and acoustic performance. We’d fully expected it to be another noisy fan fest and instead the HAF 932 has proven itself by thermally outperforming every other case we’ve tested, and all whilst being very ear friendly into the bargain.

Sadly, there are some flaws that tarnish the fantastic performance, and the most pressing is probably the lack of any dust filtering system. With so much air being drawn into the case, it’s going to attract dust at a ferocious rate, and with no dust filters your system is soon going to resemble the inside of a vacuum cleaner’s dust bag rather than the pinnacle of modern computing.

The look of the case is also pretty disappointing – there’s no way to get around it, the HAF 932 looks like something that fell off the back of a Hummer, and it isn’t going to be winning any beauty contests any time soon. It’s a real shame as previous Cooler Master cases have managed to pull off the feat of being both big and beautiful, and their designs have risen to almost cult like status in the modding community – something we highly doubt the HAF 932 will ever achieve.

However, the HAF 932 goes a long way in making up for its looks by being a joy to work with internally, with excellent cable routing options and drive bay mounting systems, plenty of internal space to fit even the biggest of hardware set ups and the outstanding reconfigurable cooling set up that can accommodate all but the most outlandish watercooling loops. The ability to switch PSU from top to bottom is unique in our experience, as is the cut out section behind the CPU socket for easy access to help in fitting back plate mounted heatsinks without removing the motherboard, both of which are innovative and very welcome inclusions.

It’s not too damaging to your wallet either, priced at just under £120 (inc. VAT), or below $150 (ex. Tax), which is about the same as the Akasa Omega (which you’ll need an extra four 120mm fans to see the best performance from) and just £10 dearer than the competing Antec 1200, another case specifically designed for high airflow.

Click to enlarge

The HAF 932 is also a clear £35 cheaper than the other big offering from Cooler Master, the Cosmos, whilst offering many of the killer design features of its more expensive sibling, so if you’re looking for pure performance over style, then the HAF 932 represents a very convincing choice. While many will baulk at the idea of spending so much on a case, a good one will outlast every other component in your system, so they’re generally a sound investment.

But sadly PC enthusiasts, modders especially, can be very superficial in their choice of case and rightly so – many of us spend hours and hours a day next to our trusty systems so it’s only natural to want to buy something that looks good to house your precious hardware and this is where the HAF 932 is really let down. Its styling is all over the place, and the side panel especially verges on the ridiculous, as four different styles crash into each other in a design disaster.

It comes down to whether you’re looking for pure performance, or a good mix of performance and style. If all you’re after is a case that’ll cool your system to its fullest potential then look no further – the HAF 932’s acoustic and thermal performance are simply awesome and if that’s all you’re after, stop looking, because this is the case to buy.

But sadly the world isn’t fair like that, and as in the case of pop music starlets, talent isn’t worth too much if you’re not a stunner too. While the HAF 932 does almost everything right technically (bar the woeful exclusion of a dust filtering system), the huge tragedy is that most people (ourselves included) are still pretty shallow and just won’t like the fact it’s all over the place aesthetic design.

If Cooler Master was to release a more sensibly restyled version of the HAF 932 with some decent provisioning for dust filters, we’d be looking at unquestionably one of the best cases on the market, but as it stands right now it’s an excellent, yet sadly flawed product.