NZXT S340 Mid Tower Chassis Review – Best Case under $70?

CASE ASSEMBLY 

Assembly was rather simple, no standoffs were pre-installed but there is a central stud to help with placing the board on the trey. Proper cable routing was relatively easy, just how different this case is from most of the competition requires a bit more thinking before you start building in it. Although if you do just want to stuff all of the cables in the bottom chamber you definitely can, and it will not effect airflow to the main chamber whatsoever. Over all this was a case that gives you plenty of options for cable management depending on how much time you want to spend.

One thing that was really thoughtful was the cutouts below the motherboard to route the front panel cables and drive cables cleanly. Again scores big points with us!

We decided to go for the quick and dirty cable management since we wanted to know how much of the can be left in the bottom, and surprisingly we got it looking rather clean in the front, so first time builders will have a wonderful experience here.

As you can see the routing looks rather clean, dispite the fact we simply left the cables underneath in the bottom chamber.

Finally installing the PSU may seem a bit confusing, what is needed is to unscrew this bracket from the case then screw the PSU to the bracket then finally insert the PSU into the bottom compartment into the case then screw in the needed thumbscrews.

SYSTEM COMPONENTS 

This Test Bench build was the result of some great relationships and purchase; our appreciation goes to the below mentioned manufacturers for their support in our projects. All of the components we use for testing and evaluation can be easily purchased at a relatively affordable price. The links provided below can assist in pricing, as well as availability for those of you who may find interest in our equipment.

NOISE

While we are unable to record any decibel readings, taking a listen by ear we noticed the HDD in the bottom was louder than normal and we found myself noticing it without headphones on. Those of you looking for a silent PC may want to look into getting quieter drives or adding sound deadening material to the HDD cages. Aside from that the case was rather quiet, the fans sit at a pleasant hum and the mostly steel construction keeps noise in the case.

 REPORT ANALYSIS AND FINAL THOUGHTS

Overall, we felt that the NZXT S340 did a great job of making this feel much more premium than that $70 price point. It is mostly a steel chassis, which is something we don’t see from tcompetitors at this price, (e.g., Corsair’s 200r and 300r, Cooler Master’s N400). We really liked the PSU and HDDs having their own compartments hidden from view, as well as the large side panel window, although it did scratch relatively easily. We also like the fact that this case was designed to have a large radiator in the front.

We do get a fantastic magnetic dust filter in the front, but unfortunately the bottom dust filter under the PSU did not receive the same treatment. It’s also a shame that there was no rubber padding on the drive cages, hopefully this is something NZXT will remedy in their next revision, although perhaps a quieter drive would have fared better in this case.

All in all, this case is a great choice and the price it’s marketed at and would be a solid choice even above MSRP. And with that we give the NZXT S340 our Top Value award!

Check Out The Nxzt S340 On Amazon Today!