A Closer Look - Inside

Before we dive into the interior of the case, let us take a quick look at the X-shaped side panel. There are four large folds, but only two of them have holes to attach a single fan to. Aerocool did not add such an option on the bottom two, as a fan here would conflict with the PSU bay.


The insides of the case are quite simple, as the entire front is made of 5.25" drive bays. There are three openings in the mainboard tray for cable management, but with only around 12 mm of space between the tray and side panel things will get tight in this area quite quickly. A cutout in the motherboard tray should give you access to the CPU cooler backplate.


Due to the choice of case front, the drive bays are quite simple. They are of the usual kind for such a configuration, but Aerocool has installed two of the plastic trays for hard drives and placed them in the front of the chassis with fans attached to them. This brings the total cooling units up to three so far. Seven of the nine drive bays have a screw-less system with a large X shaped lock and it should be noted that these ones really looks like the Xigmatek emblem to be honest. You will only be able to utilize these parts if you are installing a 5.25" device, as the hard drive trays will require the use of specific screws.


In the rear, there is nothing out of the ordinary really. The bottom mounted PSU bay is lined with basic foam as an anti-vibration measure, but still requires the use of normal screws. Above that are the seven expansion slots, each using thumb screws for easy removal of the covers. The top fan comes with clear red blades, a black frame and the Aerocool logo in the center.


Taking a quick look at the top of the case, one can clearly see the fourth fan, which is of the 140 mm variety. This one pulls hot air out the top of the case as well and has been placed in the center, to go with the red X on the top panel. A large dust filter has been placed on the floor of the Strike-X Advanced. It is glued to the chassis, so you won't be able to remove it for cleaning.


Remember page five in the manual? The Strike-X Advance we received comes with an external USB 3.0 cable. Apparently Aerocool offers the chassis with both types of cables and it is up to the importer/distributor to choose which one is wanted. I see absolutely no reason for two such models. The company should go straight for the internal variant, ditching this one. This is not 2010, when there was no internal header on modern motherboards!