BitFenix Announces the Colossus M Series PC Cases

[Cristian_25H]

Today, BitFenix presents two members of the new Colossus M Series: Colossus Mini-ITX and Colossus Micro-ATX. They are the latest creations from the BitFenix Design Lab, a continuation of the original Colossus line that delivers a premium compact housing with a futuristic yet clean style.

The Future is Bright
One look at this chassis makes it instantly recognizable as a member of the Colossus line. The bold lines and angles create an unmistakably futuristic look that's tempered by our signature luxurious SofTouch Surface Treatment.





Immediately catching the eye is the BitFenix LiteTrak lighting system, which enables a continuous streak of light that wraps around the front and sides of the case. Users will be able to not only select between red, blue, and green lighting, but also choose a pulse mode that cycles through each color while adding a pulsing effect - all with a simple push of a button. Best of all, LiteTrak is powered by a single SATA power connection from the front panel - no side panel power connections required!

The ODD bay and mesh ventilated front panel is cleverly concealed by the front door, and the I/O panel, which includes two SuperSpeed USB 3.0 ports, is located on the side panel to maintain a clean look at all times.

Colossus Mini-ITX
The spacious interior offers two preinstalled 120 mm front and rear fans, and includes the option to install up to five 120 mm fans for extra cooling boost. Up to five 3.5" drives or seven 2.5" drives in total can be installed, or for those looking to run high-end graphics cards up to 330 mm, the 3 bay FlexCage can be easily removed. Colossus Mini-ITX supports installation of thick 240 mm radiators on the top or front, and the easily removable bottom dust filter prevents from dust accumulating dust inside the case over time. Colossus Mini-ITX is the perfect choice for enthusiasts who are looking for compact stylish case with excellent water cooling support and massive storage options.

Colossus Micro-ATX
Colossus Micro-ATX adds Micro-ATX motherboard compatibility, which means added expansion possibilities. The included bottom fan can be easily replaced with up to two 3.5" hard drives, and with the included removable storage rack, an additional two 3.5" HDDs or three 2.5" SSDs can be installed for excellent flexibility. The included magnetic heat shield prevents warm exhaust from the PSU from re-entering the case, and also looks great with its uniquely micro-textured surface. Users can also opt to install a single graphics card and a slim 240 mm water cooling radiator at the same time. Users who require added PCI-express expansion are going to love Colossus Micro-ATX.

BitFenix Colossus Mini-ITX and Colossus Micro-ATX will be available on store shelves in December.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site

 

[palibaya]

I think someday Bitfenix will release Survivor M, Shinobi M, Raider M, Ghost M, Ronin M, Shadow M, Outlaw M. All will have some internal with prodigy and prodigy M, just deferent external look

 

[PLAfiller]

I think someday Bitfenix will release Survivor M, Shinobi M, Raider M, Ghost M, Ronin M, Shadow M, Outlaw M. All will have some internal with prodigy and prodigy M, just deferent external look

I was thinking the same thing. Nevertheless, it just works. They got a sweet spot and are milking it all the way. I support this managerial decision- if it works why not? I wish Silverstone makes a smaller version of FT02- best case ever, in my opinion.

 

[ensabrenoir]

I like

 

[Casecutter]

I take it the ITX case places the graphics on that left side panel picture, while Micro-ATX is the one showing dual cards? Is there a difference in there exterior dimensions?

 

[dajinn]

I take it the ITX case places the graphics on that left side panel picture, while Micro-ATX is the one showing dual cards? Is there a difference in there exterior dimensions?

That makes sense so your assumption is probably correct. I wonder what would make the Colossus Mini ITX so different from the Prodigy though besides an external redesign and some minor interior tweaks.

 

[Nordic]

I take it the ITX case places the graphics on that left side panel picture, while Micro-ATX is the one showing dual cards? Is there a difference in there exterior dimensions?

Same exterior dimensions pretty much between the progidy the phenom and this case. Give or take handles.

 

[EpicShweetness]

I think someday Bitfenix will release Survivor M, Shinobi M, Raider M, Ghost M, Ronin M, Shadow M, Outlaw M. All will have some internal with prodigy and prodigy M, just deferent external look

Seems that way by looking at this "new" case
I hope the minds at Bitfenix are just having a little writers block, and we will still see wonderful innovative products from them.

 

[LiveOrDie]

When will BitFenix learn we need dam air vents on the side like the progidy my dam phenom cooks my GPU.

 

[WithoutWeakness]

When will BitFenix learn we need dam air vents on the side like the progidy my dam phenom cooks my GPU.

You can buy a Prodigy mesh side panel for your Phenom. They are built on the same platform so it should fit perfectly. I'm with you and I wish they had multiple versions with solid/mesh/windowed side panels but for $10 it's much easier than cutting holes and adding mesh:

http://www.performance-pcs.com/cata...=36989&zenid=3bf849119d0bc6a1ac96b3d202d8c8f5
http://www.performance-pcs.com/cata...=36988&zenid=3bf849119d0bc6a1ac96b3d202d8c8f5

 

[LiveOrDie]

You can buy a Prodigy mesh side panel for your Phenom. They are built on the same platform so it should fit perfectly. I'm with you and I wish they had multiple versions with solid/mesh/windowed side panels but for $10 it's much easier than cutting holes and adding mesh:

http://www.performance-pcs.com/cata...=36989&zenid=3bf849119d0bc6a1ac96b3d202d8c8f5
http://www.performance-pcs.com/cata...=36988&zenid=3bf849119d0bc6a1ac96b3d202d8c8f5

They may seem like the same case but they have different sized panels the Prodigy being smaller than the Phenom.

 

[WithoutWeakness]

They may seem like the same case but they have different sized panels the Prodigy being smaller than the Phenom.

View attachment 53015

Well that's dumb. I had assumed they were the same size. Sorry about that.

 

[LiveOrDie]

Well that's dumb. I had assumed they were the same size. Sorry about that.

All good the Prodigy was made smaller for the rubber stand and handles that snap off I have owned both and the Prodigy handles are crap, Still waiting for my NCASE M1.

 

[evulmunk33]

Hey guys, I work for Bitfenix

Our product development is heavily based on user feedback!
Since the needs and preferences go in pretty different directions for different users, we came up with the idea to create 3 different designs, each aimed at a different group of users.
We did this based on feedback and based on sales of our prodigy accessory

We have plenty of different front panels and side panels for our prodigy, all created because our fans requested it
The same thing will happen for our other cases, if enough people request a sidepanel window or a perforated sidepanel, or different color version, we will create one

Its not a matter of us LEARNING to use perforated sidepanels, the prodigy HAS perforated sidepanels, for the phenom and colossus mini we got a lot of feedback from people saying they dont WANT perforated sidepanels.
especially for colossus, having the sidepanels perforated above the light bars looked weird, we tried it...
And the same thing was true for a window sidepanel, so we decided to go for a plain sidepanel.
These decisions were based on the feedback we got at the time... but hey, we cant ask everybody if you think we should go for something else, let us know!

We are selling tons of prodigy cases with window sidepanels, and we received close to zero complains about VGAs running hot.
And we did a lot of testing internally and didnt see any issues, although we did use blower style VGAs which exhaust hot air from the case...

About innovation... it was quite a challenge to make the sidepanels glow evenly and all the way to the back, without installing extra LED strips on them, which would create more cables and make the case more expensive as well. We developed a light-bar system that transports the light from the front panel to the side panels, similar to glass fiber, and it looks very nice, especially in a dark room!

If you want a perforated or window sidepanel, want a different color, or have some other feedback, please let us know, either on facebook, or by using the feedback form on www.bitfenix.com
Or go ahead and send me a message and ill forward it internally

 

[LiveOrDie]

The gpu shown in the preview doesn't have a blower cooler, I picked up the evga acx version thinking it would cool better and move more air, But it fills the case full of hot air and seeing the gpu isn't sucking cool air from out side its just get hotter and hotter.

 

[evulmunk33]

The gpu shown in the preview doesn't have a blower cooler, I picked up the evga acx version thinking it would cool better and move more air, But it fills the case full of hot air and seeing the gpu isn't sucking cool air from out side its just get hotter and hotter.

yeah, we tested with the asus DirectCU as well and temps were fine... but thats a massive heatsink
what kind of temperatures are you getting?
how is your cooling setup?

 

[LiveOrDie]

Just replied to your PM, the Asus DirectCU cooler was fine when i was running a GTX 660 TI in my case but that GPU is smaller and creates less heat, I live in Australia and some times go to lans where there's no aircon where the ambient temps get up to 32c inside so the case becomes a nice oven if you every need to cook some food when your out , Also on a side note why wasn't the front logo made with clear perspex so the front fans LED would light it up?

 

[refillable]

Bitfenix is going all over the Minis! Seems like another masterpiece by the Bitfenix Company!

 

[evulmunk33]

Just replied to your PM, the Asus DirectCU cooler was fine when i was running a GTX 660 TI in my case but that GPU is smaller and creates less heat, I live in Australia and some times go to lans where there's no aircon where the ambient temps get up to 32c inside so the case becomes a nice oven if you every need to cook some food when your out , Also on a side note why wasn't the front logo made with clear perspex so the front fans LED would light it up?

yeah, i live in taiwan, very similar climate here man, i went custom loop but it doesnt really help with ambient temps of 30+ its tough to get good cpu temps...
i used a 360 and a fat 240 both with push pull, a decent swiftech block and that beefy switch pump, and still got really high temps on my i7 920...

yeah, youre the second to ask already, we did try clear and tinted semi transparent and even LED lit front logos, but feedback wasnt conclusive, so we stuck to a standard logo
BUT as you probably noticed, made it so you can change the logo piece
so once again, anybody can make their own logo or paint it, and if we get enough requests for it, we will make some different logos

not sure if we end up doing it since most people seem content with the stock one
But hey with 3D printing going mainstream... we might not have to right?

 

[LiveOrDie]

OK i thought i would post this here so every one can have a look at the results as evulmunk33 requested some testing to be done and also some photos.

Test method
FurMark Burn-In Benchmark 1920x1080 15min Tested on my system

Ambient temperature was 30.3c

Prodigy side panel with vent

Phenom side panel with no vent

You can see my GTX 780 TI hit its thermal throttling @ 81c using the panel with no side vent which is why the bench score is lower, Also the side panel got very hot in the area where the vent would of been.

Here you can see the Prodigy side panel is a bit to long.

 

[evulmunk33]

are you really gaming at 30C room temp? respect ^^

all these new nvidia cards throttling at only 80C is crazy... and its running 70C already with the sidepanel removed right?
Yeah flower style VGA coolers are really a problem in a compact case as they shuffle the hot air around and dont exhaust it
Its odd, i checked the reference 780 ti review w1zzard did and the card hits 83 even at stock speed... so it basically throttled at stock speed?
Still waiting for a 780 ti sample to arrive for us to test...

the rad fans are blowing air down into the case right?
i know its a hassle, but can you change the fans to blow air out the top?
Its not going to make a huge difference, but it might be enough to stop your card from throttling...

we are going to discuss internally whether to create a perforated sidepanel accessory
But im not sure if we are going to do it... phenom isnt meant to perform the same as prodigy, and with a blower style vga cooler it works fine
Even with your card it would probably work fine if it werent for the 30C ambient temp, right? it probably results in case temps of 50C+
If we equip phenom with a perforated sidepanel, we make it more like the prodigy... but if somebody wants a prodigy... then... they should get a prodigy... why are we making a new case then

mhhh the fans are not even spinning at 100% at this point, are they?
have you check if it helps to increase the fan speed to keep the card from throttling?

 

[LiveOrDie]

Yer there about a 3c increase with the vented side panel on which is a good thing, I had the fans pushing air out before i changed them to push air in as it helped lower the temps, When the card hits the Thermal Throttling i think for each degree it lower the core clock by 100mhz and yes the stock GPU cooler does hit Thermal Throttling on load tests, When the ACX version lowers temps by around 10c which is why i brought it, and Yes the fans where at 100% when the card hit 80c, Offering a side panel as a extra doesn't make the case like the prodigy it just gives users like me more options because if you guys don't even up making one ill ether stop using the phenom or just cut a hole in the side and add mesh, Really the phenom is a nicer case vs the prodigy one reason is i had the prodigy and it lasted about 3 months and the bottom broke off because it was only held on with 4 screws.


Also i think not having a vent is silly for people using high end video cards even for a blower type card sucking air from out side is still better than warm air inside.

 

[evulmunk33]

nvidia and amd are both pushing the limits now with their latest super highend cards
their max clock is now a boost clock, like intels turbo mode, and is only achieved in some situations... not all the time, and both nvidia and amd, and their partners, only guarantee the BASE clock...
The clock wont drop by 100mhz, its adjusted gradually and at a pretty high speed.
the lowest clock for a 780 TI is 876mhz, the highest are 1020... thats for the reference card, your EVGA card comes overclocked out of the box...
Both w1z here at TPU and anandtech got average 780 TI clocks of around 1ghz

looking at the furmark results you posted... they are almost identical...
so i guess when you benchmark your system you might notice some small performance differences as the card spends less time at the BOOST clock with the closed sidepanel...
But i doubt you can notice this in-game, right?

your prodigy handles broke?
hmmm i think it was damaged in transport... i just stood on a prodigy here and the handles bend a lot but they didnt break... and im a tall guy and weigh close to 90kilos
Just contact our support and theyll send you a fresh pair of handles

true, more options are always better, thats why we have so much accessory and created so many different SFF cases
its all about taste and what you want really, a lot of people prefer the prodigy over the phenom...
From a cooling perspective having anything but a mesh front panel doesnt make sense, and the top should have vents too, yet a looooot of cases out there are closed...
people like it and temps are good enough...
but yeah, there certainly are people who like a closed front like on phenom and still want a sidepanel vent for a super highend VGA...

well im glad you like the phenom
ill let you and everybody else here know as soon as I have news about the perforated sidepanel add-on

 

[LiveOrDie]

When my card in game lets say BF4 it runs @ 1124mhz all the time it will only drop from there if the Thermal Throttling kicks in ill post a graph when i can.

The handles didn't brake where you hold them they broke where they connect to the case.

 

[evulmunk33]

mhhhh must have been a really harsh shippment, the one i stood on doesnt have any cracks like that...
ill ask our support guys to send you a new pair of handles right away