Today for review I’ve got a PC case or chassis from NZXT called the Beta Evo. The Evo is the improved or redesigned version of the original Beta case, and it’s improved for the better overall. The Beta case is a budget style case, at least in price, but it’s won many awards and is not what you would expect from such a low priced case, the features and quality is something you’d see a much higher priced chassis. So read on to learn more about this case and see the comparison shots as well to the original Beta case….
Specifications:
Mid tower black steel chassis
Announcing the Beta EVO, a sleek, all black value packed mid tower case at a budget price. Beta EVO features advanced cooling performance with support for up to 6 120 mm fans with an option of a 140mm fan at the top. Beta EVO also provides external dual radiator support along with a meshed front panel allowing for enhanced cooling potential.
Full of options for expansion, the case fits high performance 10.5″ graphics cards, up to 4 external 5.25″ drives and 5 internal 3.5″ HDD racks. Beta EVO provides a number of features that significantly enhance ease of installation including screwless installation for 5.25″ drives and superior wire management capabilities with the bottom mounted PSU and 180 degree turned HDD cage. It also features punched holes in the motherboard allowing for quick CPU bracket removal.
Features
* Fits ATX Standard Motherboards and Power Supplies
* Fits large 10.5″ performance graphic cards
* Expanded cooling directly cools video cards and CPU
* Support for up to 6 120mm fans with the option of dual 140mm at the top
* Screwless installation for hard drives and external 5.25″ drives
* Black Internal finish for sleek look
* Meshed front panel allows for better airflow than traditional cases
* Superior wire management with bottom mounted :: PSU and CPU punchout for heatsink removable
* Removable PSU filter
* 180 degree Turned HDD for a cleaner internal finish and better wire management
* External Dual radiator support
* Top mounted USB/Audio for convenient usage
MODEL: Beta EVO Series
CASE TYPE: Mid Tower Steel
FRONT PANEL MATERIAL: PLASTIC
DIMENSIONS (W x H x D): 200 X 430 X 501 mm / 7.87″ x 16.9″ x 19.7″
COOLING SYSTEM:
FRONT: 1 X 120mm Blue LED (included)
REAR: 1 X 120mm
SIDE: 2 x 120mm
TOP: 2 X 120/140mm
DRIVE BAYS:
9 DRIVE BAYS
–4 EXTERNAL 5.25″ DRIVE BAYS
–5 INTERNAL 3.5″ DRIVE BAYS
MATERIAL(S): Steel with black finish
EXPANSION SLOTS: 7
WEIGHT: 7.28 KGS (W/O Power)
MOTHERBOARD SUPPORT MOTHERBOARDS: ATX, MICRO-ATX, BABY AT
Unboxing:
The Beta Evo comes in a relatively plain brown box, and the case inside is packaged well with styrofoam and plastic.
The Evo is all black really with just the NZXT logo being silver on the front. The power and reset buttons are located beneath the drive bays on either side of the case and on the top you’ll find USB, eSATA and audio ports along with two spaces for cooling fans.
The left side has two spaces for cooling fans, one is where your CPU would be located and the other is about where your video cards would be. You can install fans here for added cooling if need be. The right side of the case is all black with an indentation for helping to remove the side.
On the bottom you’ll find four rubber feet along with a filtered ventilation spot where the power supply would be located.
The Beta Evo is a bottom mounted PSU style case, and on the back you’ll find the common stuff, along with holes for water cooling as well. The left side of the case has thumbscrews holding it on, while the right side has regular screws.
Taking the side panel off you’ll find the inside if painted black to match the outside. The motherboard tray features several cut out for wire management and a large cut out where the CPU is located to make swapping coolers much easier.
An accessory box is included with several zip ties, screws, drive rails and plastic locks for the optical drives.
Inside you’ll find standard stuff, spots for hard drives and optical bays along with connections for the front panel and motherboard headers. The PCI covers are removable and replicable and they’re mesh to provide a bit more ventilation.
The front bezel just pops off easily, the bay covers also come off easily, behind the bezel you’ll find the 120mm cooling fan.
Installation, Performance, Comparison
Before we move into the installation of the system I wanted to quickly compare the Beta to the Beta EVO case. The front looks the same, but the top of the EVO has two spaces for fan, the left side has the same two spaces for fans but just moved up. The inside is virtually the same except for the cut out for the CPU coolers and some wire management, the back is totally different with the PSU on the bottom of the EVO and additional ventilation.
The differences in the two cases are for the better really, the EVO is much better designed especially the cut out on the motherboard for easy changing of CPU coolers.
Onto the installation, I installed the same system that was in the original Beta case actually, and I had no problems getting everything in there. The video card is an older ATI X1800GTO, but it’s large and it fit just fine.
You’ll notice I ran the wire up the back of the motherboard tray, it’s an un-sleeved wire so it fit fine, but if you stick a bunch of wires back there you might have a hard time getting the side panel back on. There’s really not enough room back there to route many wires, or at least thick ones.
The clips used for installing the optical drives are easy to use and seem to secure the drive nicely.
The front intake cooling fan does light up blue when powered on, but it’s not very bright, which is nice, I don’t care for very bright lights in my case.
Yes there’s only one fan in this case, it would be nice to have at least an exhaust fan included. Buying more fans will be an added expense of course.
Even with one fan though the case seems to do a decent job at cooling the system inside due to all of the ventilation holes in it.
I’d like to see another fan included and thumbscrews on both side panels, the right side is meant for wire management so why not make it easily accessible?!
For the price, about $60 not including shipping, it’s well worth the money.
Conclusion:
The NZXT Beta Evo is a much improved version of the popular and highly awarded Beta case. The original Beta case was nice, but the Evo takes things a step further and truly improves on usability.
In the price range of this case I think you’ll be hard pressed to fine a better one than this honestly, the Beta Evo is well worth the cost.
Pros:
+Looks good
+Well made
+Enough room for a decent system
+Inexpensive
Cons:
-Only comes with one fan
-Thumbscrews only on one side of case
-Not much room on back of mobo tray for thick wires
Ratings
Overall: 4 out of 5
Performance: 4 out of 5
Aesthetic: 5 out of 5
Build Quality: 5 out of 5
I would like to thank NZXT for the opportunity to review the Beta Evo Case and for their support of Bona Fide Reviews.
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