Assembly

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


You will have to remove the front panel completely to install an optical drive because there is no other way to get to the screws that hold the cover in place. Once removed, you may put the panel back on to then slide the drive in. You will have to use traditional screws to hold the drive in place.


You may install a 2.5" drive onto the separate bracket, which only takes two screws if you are going for the spot in the top or bottom. The way the bracket is designed still has a similar drive in the middle take all four screws to hold in place properly.


You won't be able to place a 3.5" drive into the very top if you use an optical drive as there is not enough space to do so. This is unfortunate since BitFenix could have squeaked out a bit more space toward the side panel for a bit more room.


Installing a power supply is quite easy as well because of the detachable frame—even if the system has already been assembled. You may install the unit with its fan facing into the case or toward the front. Simply slide the unit back into the chassis once the frame has been attached and secure everything with a single thumbscrew.


With everything in place, the Prodigy M still makes a good impression for its size since there is enough space around the board to reach the main connectors so long as no hard drive has been installed on the floor. You should keep in mind that things are tighter than with a traditional mATX chassis, for example. You should also make sure that all SATA data and power leads are ready before you install the hard-drive bracket and side panel since you will want to connect the drives to the system in the process. The air vent in the very top also makes reaching all the connectors in the top a breeze as long as you don't install any fans there. As there is a large opening in the motherboard tray, the entire CPU socket area is accessible, which is surprising because 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 to reduce overall cable clutter within the Prodigy M.

I, as you can see, pre-routed the I/O panel's cables. These have been moved from one side to the other because we want to install a window. The two 2.5" drive bays become nearly impossible to use while doing so unless you pre-wire everything using nothing but straight power cables (which are pretty hard to find) and somehow manage to close everything up properly.

Finished Looks

With everything in place and the optional side panel having been applied, the Prodigy M looks pretty cool even though the interior is full since BitFenix utilizes every little bit of space as well as possible. Those looking for a clean-looking gaming system will most likely resort to using the mounting possibility on the floor instead to put those ugly drives out of view. The bright blue LED (though overexposed in my pictures) can now be found on the other side. To keep everything upright, the buttons were turned around as well.


One issue that did not arise during the Phenom M review because we used a different PSU was the very tight fit of the included lead. So much so in fact that I managed to break it in the process. This is simply due to the fact that the plug of our Seasonic PSU faces the other way as compared to that of the Cooltek unit used in the past. BitFenix says that they will supply those who run into such a problem with an adapter. While this is great, nobody will willingly wait a week to get the part to use their newly built gaming rig properly. BitFenix should be proactive about it by including the part out of the box. The lack of such is also why you can see our white power cable disappearing underneath the chassis to power the system instead of simply plugging into the back.