Assembly

Installing a motherboard within the Phenom Micro-ATX is done by traditional means, with the use of included spacers. There is still plenty of space around the CPU area to reach any cables on the bottom, or slide 3.5" hard drives into position on the floor of the case. Graphics cards are installed with their fans facing upward, which should also decrease overall temperatures.


You may install a 3.5" drive unto the separate panel with the use of traditional screws. The second possibility on the floor is done by similar means and fits quit snug between the fan an the case walls.


The third possible spot requires the use of the plastic tray and traditional hard-drive screws which are sunk into either the side or underside of the drive. One has to slide and screw the drive into the 5.25" bay from within the chassis once it has been placed onto the tray. The missing holes on one side of the tray only barely allowed me to attach it as the remaining holes were hard to see. You could pull the front of the chassis off and remove the metal frame's cover for more space during drive installation, though, so this impediment is one I could have easily avoided were it not for my laziness.


You can also install 2.5" drives in two different ways. The first uses the plastic frame on the side panel and requires four screws to hold in place. The second option is to install the drive on the separate bracket, which only requires two screws if you are going for the top or bottom spot. The way the bracket is designed still makes a 2.5" drive in the middle require all four screws to be sunk into it for a proper hold.


With both a 2.5" and a 3.5" hard drives on the bracket, we put the bracket back onto the frame of the chassis. As you can see, the drives were installed with their connectors facing toward the front of the chassis and, thus, toward the PSU and the required SATA ports on the motherboard.


Installing a power supply is quite easy as well—even if the system has already been assembled, thanks to the detachable frame. Once it has been applied, simply slide the entire contraption back into the chassis and secure it with a single thumbscrew.



With everything in place, the case still makes a good impression for its size since there is enough space around the board to reach all main connectors as long as no hard drive is installed on the floor. You should keep in mind that things are tighter than if you were to use a traditional mATX chassis, for example. You should also make sure that any SATA data and power leads are ready to go, so that you may install the hard-drive bracket and side panel properly, allowing you to attach drives to the system in the process. The top air vent also allows you to easily reach connectors at the top of the chassis. This is naturally only possible as long as you are not installing any fans there. As there is a large opening in the motherboard tray, the entire CPU socket area is accessible, which is quite unusual as our motherboard has its socket in a weird place; that said, it is refreshing to see a case accommodate it well. Most PSU leads have also been bunched up here to reduce overall cable clutter within the Phenom Micro-ATX.

Finished Looks

With everything in place, the chassis makes a great impression. Just look at it—the only telltale sign of the PC running is its bright blue LED in the side panel.


Taking a peek at the underside, the unique approach to the PSU bay also means that hot air is expelled downward and unto your working surface, but the pre-installed power cable still allows you to connect the traditional plug through the back of the case. All plugs here are easily accessible and nothing is out of place, even with the upside down layout Bitfenix used.