Corsair Crystal Series 570X RGB Review

Corsair Crystal Series 570X RGB Review

Manufacturer: Corsair
UK price (as reviewed): MSRP £184.99 (inc VAT)
US price (as reviewed): MSRP $179.99 (ex Tax)

Over the last few years, Corsair has arguably been the biggest driving force behind the 'RGB everywhere' trend that's steadily been spreading throughout the hardware industry since the K70 RGB keyboard launched. Like it or lump it, it's not going anywhere for the time being, and Corsair is continuing the trend today with two new cases in a new line called Crystal Series. The 460X RGB was previously announced, but the 570X RGB also joins the family today and is higher up the stack too. With a trio of RGB fans and slightly tinted, thick, tempered glass used for both side panels as well as the front and roof, the 570X is truly all about showing off – a far cry from the third Corsair case that launches today, the £65 Carbide Series 270R.


The main feature of the 570X's exterior is, of course, the abundant use of tempered glass. With a whopping four individual panels, the case is decidedly weighty and feels exceptionally strong (though we wouldn't want to drop it). When stripped to its steel interior, this effect is lessened, but build quality overall is still high.

The I/O ports are top mounted. Audio jacks and USB 3.0 ports are a given, but we were a little disappointed not to see a USB 3.1 front-facing port given that the case costs almost £200. Admittedly Corsair would have to loop a cable out of the case since there are no internal motherboard headers for such a port yet, which isn't an elegant solution.


Meanwhile, the power button is joined by three additional ones, although none of these are for reset. Instead, they control the RGB lighting of the three SP120 RGB fans installed behind the front panel. One controls the effect, another controls the speed of said effect and the final one changes the colour. These really are the perfect fans to pair with a case like this, and the synchronisation of the colours and effects is really neat. As you can see on the final page, the lighting is focused at the central ring, but the white blades help to disperse the lights throughout the entire blade area as well.


Each panel is secured in the usual way with four easily loosened thumbscrews and both the mounting points and the screws are rubberised to prevent scratches. Removing the roof and front panels gives you easy access to the full-cover dust filters that guard the fan mounts in these locations, both of which are held in place magnetically and are easily removed for cleaning. As well as the three pre-installed fans, you can mount a pair in the roof (120mm or 140mm) and one in the exhaust position (120mm only).


The case stands on a pair of massive rubberised feet and certainly won't be sliding off anywhere. A dust filter for your power supply is installed on rails, and it's dead simple to remove, clean and replace.

Specifications

• Dimensions (mm) 234 x 512 x 480
  
• Material Steel, tempered glass
  
• Available colours Black
  
• Weight 11kg
  
• Front panel Power, reset, 2 x USB 3.0, stereo, microphone, 3-button RGB controller
  
• Drive bays 2 x 3.5in/2.5in, 2 x 2.5in
  
• Form factor(s) ATX, Micro-ATX, mini-ITX
  
• Cooling 2 x 140mm or 3 x 120mm front fan mounts (3 x 120mm RGB LED fan included), 1 x 120mm rear fan mount, 2 x 140mm/120mm roof fan mounts (fans not included)
  
• CPU cooler clearance 170mm
  
• Maximum graphics card length 370mm
  
• Extras Removable dust filters, removable fan brackets