Cooler Master MasterBox 5t Review

Performance Analysis

Thermal performance here is average on both fronts. The CPU and GPU delta T results are both mid-table and neither awe-inspiring nor worrisome. This case will cool your components adequately but if low temperatures are a top priority you've got a number of better options.

Changing the fan speed only had an impact on the CPU temperature, suggesting that the front fan doesn't actually play much of a role in cooling the GPU. It may have benefited from being installed one slot higher, but we often find that this is the case and its position as it is will definitely help out if you're running a pair of hard drives in the HDD cage. The CPU, however, was 4°C cooler at the higher fan speed and again this isn't a surprise as the exhaust fan often affects the CPU temperature a lot.


Noise from the fans was pleasantly low and even at full speed was hardly an issue. Honestly, we think Cooler Master has missed a bit of a trick here by not increasing the speed range of the fans and thus making more of a difference between high and low speed. After all, this isn't a case geared towards low noise, so more flexible fan control with a more powerful option at the higher end would have been nice.

Conclusion

The £60 MasterBox 5 won our approval in our original review for its simple but well executed design and solid cooling results. The MasterBox 5t isn't quite as impressive on that latter front, perhaps due to its more solid front panel, but it does net you a fair few extra features and a bit more aesthetic flare for the £15 increase in asking price: a fan controller, a carry handle and more options for both air and water-cooling, as well as the new paint job and front LED - a pretty fair deal in our eyes.


However, we do have some reservations. Build quality felt lacking in more places than we'd have liked, for example, and there are a few places where Cooler Master could have made the build process even more efficient internally. Still, the feature set gives the MasterBox 5t a bit of uniqueness and a possible appeal among certain users. Given that the chassis is also easy to work with, fully insulated against dust and not too noisy, we're satisfied enough to bestow a Recommended award if you're shopping for a sub-£80 case and find the design appealing.