A Closer Look - Outside

The DF-500 is part of the Dark Fleet family, which gained quite a bit of fame and attention several years ago. Back then, these type of enclosures offered an elaborate, futuristic design and came loaded with fans right out of the box. Out of the box, the DF-500 comes with an additional protective layer on the transparent front cover and glass side panel.


Looking at the front, the DF-500 does look quite futuristic with its bulging, tinted cover and straight edges and angles. You may pop the whole cover off to reveal three 120 mm intake fans that are also LED-equipped. In the rear, the chassis actually looks pretty basic, almost entry level, as it lacks any additional cooling fans and the motherboard expansion slots are all of the break-out kind.


Antec added a full glass window side panel on the main side of the DF-500; it is held in place by thumb screws, while the opposing side is covered by a solid metal variant.


Taking a closer look at the rear, the bottom sports a full-size ATX PSU bay with a single set of mounting holes. Above that are the seven expansion slots, of which the very top is reusable. Any expansion cards that are installed here will be held in place by a metal bracket that in turn is secured by two thumb screws. In the very top, you may install a 120 mm exhaust fan and adjust its vertical position to best align it with any CPU cooler you install within.


On the top is a large metal mesh filter that utilizes magnets to hold in place. You may install three 120 mm or two 140 mm fans in the ceiling. The DF-500 comes with the usual set of I/O for a modern chassis, consisting of two USB 3.0, a pair of audio connectors, and a small reset and larger power button.


On the bottom, a basic metal-mesh cover protects the PSU bay from dust and grime. Next to it, you may loosen thumb screws to adjust the position of the HDD cage within the DF-500, which allows for thick radiators in the front.