A Closer Look - Inside

To access the interior, simply remove the thumbscrews holding each panel in place. Due to the compact size, Cooler Master has chosen to keep the interior essentially completely clear of any drive bays or brackets. This allows you to fit a full-size ATX board into this tiny box. On the backside, you will find several holes for cable routing, but unfortunately no grommets. There are two 3.5" trays for storage devices, but they may also hold up to two 2.5" SSDs, each.


In the front, besides the perforated panel, you will also find the only bracket within the Q500L. It is for the PSU to be mounted 100% internally, with the power lead ready to be plugged in. The frame itself is held in place by four screws, and you should be able to move it around a little bit, within the constrains of what your personal setup allows.


As mentioned before, the I/O may be moved around. To do so, simply remove the two screws holding it in place and re-install it on any of the edges as you prefer. Thanks to the square dimensions, the window panel just rotates along with the I/O.


In the rear, the individual covers for the expansion slots are held in place by traditional case screws and may be reused if your setup ever changes, while the top holds the aforementioned 120 mm fan. While that unit comes with semi-transparent blades, it has no built-in LEDs.


In the ceiling, you are once again greeted by a perforated panel just like in the front, with the same trend continuing
for the floor. This is all due to the fact that Cooler Master sought to give users as much flexibility as possible, and it allows for the case to be used in desktop mode. You may install up to two 120 mm fans in these panels or even opt for a 240 mm radiator in the ceiling if you like. I also see no immediate reason why you could not go with a second radiator of that size on the floor, especially if you opt for a mATX board, for example.


All the cables within the Q500L are of the default variety and definitely long enough to reach all the edges of the ATX board.