Zalman R1: The review: Its a straight 10/10

[brownninja97]

@

 

If only it cooled as well as it looked. Its a gt610, you would think it runs on fairy dust, it doesnt run nicely. not at all

[spwath]

@Psykomantis00 Take the price in mind, this case smashes everything in its price range. It raises the benchmark a lot, the box had a hole in it so that caused the warping. Double the price and it goes down to 7/10

@spwath but at what price?

Idk I think it was like 70$

[2mnbars]

༼ つ ◕_◕༽つ GIB US VERSION ༼ つ ◕_◕༽つ

[Str_Mape]

Solid Review.
I just ordered one for $53 NZD for my new HTPC, for reverence 980's are $1000.

[IMPERIUS]

this vs the fractal R4/5? (those are 60 more $ in my country)

[brownninja97]

this vs the fractal R4/5? (those are 60 more $ in my country)

better in some respects mainly due to you getting a better fan controller and more fans by default. It is cheaper so quality isnt as great. Drive cages can be moved which is a god send as this price range. The main reason that id say this is better then the R4 is because this case doesnt cause finger prints to stay

[IMPERIUS]

better in some respects mainly due to you getting a better fan controller and more fans by default. It is cheaper so quality isnt as great. Drive cages can be moved which is a god send as this price range. The main reason that id say this is better then the R4 is because this case doesnt cause finger prints to stay

What about the fan filters?

[ManWithBeard1990]

The fan filters look quite coarse. Is there a finer mesh behind the perforated plastic sheet? Because that's not good enough.

[brownninja97]

What about the fan filters?

 

The fan filters look quite coarse. Is there a finer mesh behind the perforated plastic sheet? Because that's not good enough.

fan filters arent great, double at the one and one for the psu intake. Not great but at £20 you arent gonna get any better

[ManWithBeard1990]

fan filters arent great, double at the one and one for the psu intake. Not great but at £20 you arent gonna get any better

Oh yeah, if that's all it costs this is a great case.

[IMPERIUS]

fan filters arent great, double at the one and one for the psu intake. Not great but at £20 you arent gonna get any better

Is this case futureproof? I dont plan on changing the case in 4+ years and I'm thinking about getting the H440 or the R4/5 because of the filters etc...

Btw: this case costs almost 50€ in my country

[brownninja97]

Is this case futureproof? I dont plan on changing the case in 4+ years and I'm thinking about getting the H440 or the R4/5 because of the filters etc...

Btw: this case costs almost 50€ in my country

yeah it should be futureproof, all you really need to do is take that front intake filter out every month or so, throw it at a sink, wash it DRY IT and then put it back. Cases dont really need to get changed often, they dont suddenly loose their ability to hold a pc. Thats is unless something comes along which changes that but no one can predict that sort of event.

[Stann]

What is the best way to take off top panel? Do we have to unscrew something or just pull it up?

[brownninja97]

What is the best way to take off top panel? Do we have to unscrew something or just pull it up?

pull from the top and push from the bottom at the same time, push where the most tension occurs, you will when you pull. The rubber grips hold their ground very well.

[Stann]

pull from the top and push from the bottom at the same time, push where the most tension occurs, you will when you pull. The rubber grips hold their ground very well.

 

Ok, thank you for your answer. I will try. I hope i will not break it

[brownninja97]

Ok, thank you for your answer. I will try. I hope i will not break it

yeah i understand where you are coming from, i was worried about breaking it as well.

[IMPERIUS]

hows the airflow?

[pereira2088]

heya there.

 

how is the air flow with the front cover on? is it gonna stop too much intake?

[brownninja97]

heya there.

 

how is the air flow with the front cover on? is it gonna stop too much intake?

airflow is not the best, its expected for these sorts of cases, air does get to the places it needs to be. What sort of system do you have planned, most builds shouldnt have any problems with the supplied stuff that they give you.

[pereira2088]

i think i'm going i5 6500/6600 + mb h170 + gtx 970.(still waiting for the non-k   )

 

other options for case are the cooler master n300 (too big front end) or the elite 370 (no cable management)

[Kameegaming]

wow, this seems like a nice case, do you need to take off the top for a AIO to cool the CPU properly?

How is the Dust Filtering, Can you set this up for a nice Positive pressure? I 'm looking into getting an R5, to have a positive pressure case because of extreme dust conditions at college.

[brownninja97]

i think i'm going i5 6500/6600 + mb h170 + gtx 970.(still waiting for the non-k   )

 

other options for case are the cooler master n300 (too big front end) or the elite 370 (no cable management)

you will have no problems. just in case if you are a little edgy about temps get a blower style cooler for the 970.

 

The N300 is the strongest and only logical opposition for this(unless you wish to could the zalman z9 but that has a funky appearance) and well its pretty much the opposite of this. Your temps will be lower with the N300, not by a massive amount, cable routing isnt great with both cases, the N300 will be louder, a lot louder. The question is heat vs silence. Personally i always have music on so a silent case is pointless for me. the elite 370 can go die in a fire, its horrible to build in, ive built in a few hundred cases now and the 370 is shamefully bad, ill never recommend it to anyone.

 

wow, this seems like a nice case, do you need to take off the top for a AIO to cool the CPU properly?

How is the Dust Filtering, Can you set this up for a nice Positive pressure? I 'm looking into getting an R5, to have a positive pressure case because of extreme dust conditions at college.

The top is to stop noise meaning it blocks everything, if you want an AIo then yes the top must come off, all admit without that top bit it doesnt look so elegant.

 

Dust filtering is fine at the front, if you want it anywhere else you have to buy your own filters which is reasonable for a case of this price. cleaning the filter is easy, throw it at the size use water(dont use soap, the alcohol dehydrates and weakens the plastic). Dry it and put it back it, it takes less then a minute to do.

 

Positive pressure is pretty easy to pull off with that case, well most cases at that. 

 

This isnt going to stack up well against an R5, take in mind this is 1/3 of the price, lower build quality, less filters, less filtering. If you buy this case for your dusty environment make sure intakes are at the front, then you will be fine, other placements should be exhausts. Same issue with the R5, only use the front fans, its so much easier to maintain that way. 

 

I always cheap out on the case though, its more cost effective in my opinion to throw your money on the parts which will actually make a difference.

[Kameegaming]

 

The top is to stop noise meaning it blocks everything, if you want an AIo then yes the top must come off, all admit without that top bit it doesnt look so elegant.

 

Dust filtering is fine at the front, if you want it anywhere else you have to buy your own filters which is reasonable for a case of this price. cleaning the filter is easy, throw it at the size use water(dont use soap, the alcohol dehydrates and weakens the plastic). Dry it and put it back it, it takes less then a minute to do.

 

Positive pressure is pretty easy to pull off with that case, well most cases at that. 

 

This isnt going to stack up well against an R5, take in mind this is 1/3 of the price, lower build quality, less filters, less filtering. If you buy this case for your dusty environment make sure intakes are at the front, then you will be fine, other placements should be exhausts. Same issue with the R5, only use the front fans, its so much easier to maintain that way. 

 

I always cheap out on the case though, its more cost effective in my opinion to throw your money on the parts which will actually make a difference.

I already have a build complete, but it is in a Z11 plus, which is quite the dust magnet. The thing I like about the r5 is that you can also have a double front bottom intake, making it a 4 intake vs 2 exhaust from the AIO and a blower style GTX 970.

Now that I look at it H440 costs the same.

[brownninja97]

I already have a build complete, but it is in a Z11 plus, which is quite the dust magnet. The thing I like about the r5 is that you can also have a double front bottom intake, making it a 4 intake vs 2 exhaust from the AIO and a blower style GTX 970.

Now that I look at it H440 costs the same.

h1 can have a double intake also. h440 is nice but i need a 5.25 drive slot which that case lacks. 

[Kameegaming]

h1 can have a double intake also. h440 is nice but i need a 5.25 drive slot which that case lacks. 

I will just go with R5 because of superior filtering I guess.