Thermaltake Commander MS-III
This case is different from MS-II at its
front, but both are based on the same chassis. The removable front has a 4th
5.25-inch slot, supported by the design of the chassis, and the difference in
overall structure, but that’s the only difference between the 2 models.
The interior design is the same as MS-II with
the addition of the 4th quick fastening screws for an open 5.25-inch
slot. The design of the chassis is similar.
The front panel of the case
Therefore, MS-III is only different in its
front, which seems to be larger, making the computer case larger than MS-II, in
overall. As in MS-II, the front of the front panel has a plastic frame, a foam
rubber dust filter, and the exterior grille. It’s fixed by the petal-shape
metal screws.
Product’s fan
MS-III doesn’t
have any difference compared to MS-II considering ventilation system, so we
decide to test it with a fan which is placed at the front part to cool the disk
racks. We use a Thermalright TR-FDB-12-1300 fan for this test session.
The accompanying
accessories are the same as what you receive in Commander MS-II, excluding the
different product name on the user manual.
The front connectors
The I/O connectors move to the center of
the front but still include a headphone and micro jack right between a USB 2.0 and
a USB 3.0 ports.
The voltage and drive indicators have
changed their shape; however, as in MS-II, they’re too bright. However, their
holes which sit on the front are smaller, so they only reduce mobility when you
look straight at them.
Images
of assembling the product
Everything we mentioned above about the
process of assembling a computer into MS-II will also be applied for MS-III. There’s
just a small annoying problem here. The cables for the I/O ports at the front
are fitted following the way of fitting the HDDs into the slots of the case
top. You can fit a hard drive there, but the screws for quick-fastening may be
broken under the pressure.
By this way, it will be a little messy
complicated because the quick-fastening screws need to be tighten clockwise to
unlock and counterclockwise to lock (this is also mentioned in 3 products of Commander
MS and Level 10 GTS samples with external slots). The process of tightening
something has the same meaning with a clockwise movement.
Ventilation
system
The ventilation system is identical to the
one on MS-II: a built-in 120mm-fan position is highlighted on the back panel (rotating
with the speed of 690 RPM at silent mode of the motherboard), a fan on the
front, side and bottom, and 2 positions for 120mm fan on the top of the
chassis. Each position, except for the side and the back, is equipped with a
dust filter.
The extra fans we install opposite to the HDD
support will rotate at the speed of 790 RPM with silent mode of the
motherboard.
Image
of a completely assembled product
MS-III looks less flexible than MS-II but
we guess that the main differences between these 2 models are not in the
design, but in the way the accessories are arranged. MS-III is considered to
stand on the desk with I/O connector in the middle of the front while MS-II, which
I/O connector sitting on the top, means to stand on the floor.
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Advantages
·
USB 3.0 supporting
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Affordable price
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Stunning appearance
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Harder-than-expected chassis
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Can contains lots of hard drives
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Provide many position for the fan
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Good dust-resistant ability
Disadvantage
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Made from thin metal plates
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No dedicated cable compartment
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Too bright LED indicators
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Cables from the I/O connector are put inside
in the way the hard drives are plugged into the slots of the top case.
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Only 1 default fan (but it highlights the
entire case system)
Thermaltake Commander MS-III’s technical standards
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Dimension, mm: 197x429x495
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Compatibility: ATX, microATX, Mini-ITX
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Exterior slots: 4x5.25”; 1x3.5”
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Interior slots: 5x3.5”; 1x2.5”
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External port: 1x USB 3.0; 1x USB 2.0; 2 audio
jacks
·
Fan: 1x120mm
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