Cooler Master ATCS 840 Full Tower Case Review

Exterior Impressions Con’t

Cooler Master certainly didn’t miss a trick with this case; while having a large air filter is all well and fine, filters do get clogged up and air (and dust) does have a way of finding ways around these devices. In order to minimize dust infiltration further, the bottom front of the case (the area located between the fan and the filter) has a separate filter of its own. This one-two combination should for all intents and purposes eliminate dust from being sucked into the case by the front fan. Before we move on we would like to point out that in keeping with subtle and understated theme of the 840, the front fan does not glow or emit any light whatsoever; its only task is to move copious amounts of air and do so with as little noise as possible.


Just as the design of the front of the case takes an understated approach to styling, so too do the sides. With jewelry or fine (and uber expensive) watches the more expensive the item is the less garish it becomes. Accents, filigrees, stickers and aggressive styling is for the “lower classes” and the more you are worth the less you need to flaunt it; the same goes for cases apparently. The sides of the ATCS 840 are completely unadorned and in fact at first blush appear to be nothing more than flats slabs of aluminum. It is only when you take a closer look does the sophisticated styling become apparent. Cooler Master has gone for, in our opinion, the classy low profile extruded finish. This in and of itself is noteworthy as we prefer the natural look to shiny / reflective aluminum; but what is more important than its finish is the subtle styling and fit to these side doors.

These doors are probably some of the easiest doors to slide into and out of place that we have seen; and the lock up of them is as rattle free as you could wish. Unlike some other design philosophies there is no lock, levers or anything else which would break the ultra clean lines of the door; rather they have small and gentle flairs on the back to give your fingers a grip for removing them and adding a touch Stacker nostalgia to the look.


In keeping with the ease and elegance of the case the side panels are secured with thumb screws which unfortunately are not the captured style. This is one area where Cooler Master could have easily taken the classy and sophisticated design they are so obviously striving for to the next level. As it is, its still a very nice touch, just one which had the potential for a lot more. As stated earlier these doors are made from solid extruded aluminum and while they are "flimsy" in comparison to the HAF's, they are still strong enough to not feel like some cheap "tin" door!


On first blush, the back of the case appears to be a darn near clone of the HAF 932. You get the innovative dual zone PSU options, a 120mm exhaust and your typical peripheral slots. When you take a closer look a few things do stand out: namely its “only” a 120mm fan capable and not 140mm.


The one saving grace, and yet also the biggest negative (in our opinion) is the peripheral slots can be covered by the included optional black plastic air duct & fan housing. In a nutshell, this box can accept a 120mm fan (on the side of the box) and attached directly over all the peripheral slots. At the back of the box are two large openings with flexible rubber flaps to allow you to stick your video (and any other cables) through the box and attach them to your boards.

This is certainly a unique way of increasing air flow for your GPU and other hot running daughter boards, BUT it does come at a very steep cost. The cost is not in monetary value but in the added, ungainly, length it adds to this case's already long attributes. Even worse than this is the fact you now have a black box sticking off the back of your case like a big old pimple; and just like a pimple can ruin the looks of a beauty queen faster than their meth addiction, so too is the overall grace and beauty of this case ruined by this god awful box.


On the positive side, the bottom of this case is a slick piece of engineering. Just as with the HAF 932, Cooler Master has elected to use nice and large A/V style feet. We wish they had included optional wheels like they did for the HAF but if you are “stuck” with feet, these bad boys are the ones you want. Also nicely done is the optional internally bottom mounted fan’s intake port since it has an easy to remove filter over it.