Thermaltake Spedo Advance Package Case Review

Exterior Impressions cont.


The front of the Spedo has no fewer than twelve 5.25 inch bays. Five of them in the mid-section of the case actually conceal a large 140mm fan and the hard drive cages. A total of seven optical drives can be installed in the Spedo, or the included 5.25 to 3.5 inch adapters can be used to fill the case with a ludicrous number of hard drives. However you look at it, the Spedo has plenty of space to spare.

The top of the case is very different looking with four raised ventilation fins that appear to be purely cosmetic in nature. Although it can’t really be seen, there is a massive 230mm exhaust fan found beneath the grille toward the rear of the case.


Some of the cosmetic touches are quite nice on the Spedo, including the Thermaltake logo prominently displayed at the front of the case, and the reflective power and reset buttons.


An I/O plate can be found at the top of the case and has a pair of USB ports, an eSATA port and the essential audio connections. Although having the I/O connections on the top of the case is great if it’ll be residing on the floor, the ports will not easily be accessible with the 24 inch tall Spedo on top of a desk. A 1397 Firewire connector is not present on the I/O cluster but we’d gladly forgive this as it’s not commonly used outside of the Apple world and just adds more cable clutter inside of the case. In our opinion, if a motherboard even offers Firewire support, a single connector at the rear of motherboard or on a break-out bracket is good enough for those rare instances it may be required.


Wow, Thermaltake actually threw three separate grilles over the top exhaust fan. What purpose could this possibly serve besides hampering exhaust airflow? It doesn’t even have much of a cosmetic appeal in our opinion, so we’re still scratching our heads on this one.


At the bottom of the case, you’ll find retractable plastic feet. This is a nice feature, especially with extra tall cases as they can tip over much more easily than mid-towers. The feet themselves don’t protrude much, and click into place firmly.

Two 120mm stamped vents can be found at the bottom of the case. The one closest to the rear of the case is for the PSU intake, and the one at the center of the case is for an optional 120mm fan that can draw up cool air toward the expansion slots. Although Thermaltake includes an extra 120mm fan in the accessory bundle, it is best used elsewhere as you’ll see in our “Installation Section”.