| CM Storm Stryker Computer Case Review |
| Reviews - Featured Reviews: Cases | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Written by Hank Tolman | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tuesday, 28 August 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
CM Storm Stryker Computer Case Review
Manufacturer: Cooler Master
Product Name: CM Storm Stryker Model Number: SGC-5000W-KWN1 UPC: 884102017179
Price As Tested:$159.99 (Newegg.com)
Full Disclosure: The product sample used in this article has been provided by Cooler Master. In the fall of 2011, Cooler Master's gaming and enthusiast product branch, CM Storm, released the CM Storm Trooper Computer Case. It was a massive full-tower case with a very unique front I/O style and a big handle on top. The CM Storm Trooper received a lot of high marks by reviewers and owners alike. This time around, Cooler Master is changing things up just a little. The CM Storm Trooper is getting a face-lift and a name change. In this article, Benchmark Reviews is taking a look at the CM Storm Stryker, a white, windowed version of the Trooper. I have to admit that I am big fan of white cases, if they are done right. I am currently housing my system in the Thermaltake Level 10 GT Snow Edition case, and my wife's computer is bundled into a white NZXT Switch 810. Because of that, I was really excited to get my hands on the CM Storm Stryker and check it out. While a lot of the case remains the same as its predecessor, the white paint and the windowed side panel make it stand out a lot more for me.
Full-tower cases are starting to lose their appeal now that so much is being integrated onto the mainboard. Generations ago, in computer time, your system needed a video card, sound card, and a network card at least. You might have also included a modem, a USB controller, an additional IDE or SCSI controller, and any number of other devices in your system. All those peripherals added up and you needed the space to hold them. If you were an enthusiast, a full-tower case was probably a necessity. Things have changed, however. The sound, network adapter, and USB headers, and RAID controllers are all on the motherboard. Enthusiast motherboards might include a WiFi adapter or other peripherals as well. If you aren't going to be gaming or pushing your graphics, that's likely to be built-in as well. The point is, unless you are running Tri- or Quad- SLI or CrossFire configurations, a full-tower case is now too much. That hasn't deterred the manufacturers that cater to enthusiasts, however. CM Storm, among others, still maintains quite a few full-tower cases. So let's get on with it and start taking apart the CM Storm Stryker. CM Storm Stryker Features
SGC-5000W-KWN1 Specifications
Closer Look: ExteriorThe CM Storm Stryker is a tall and long case. It measures in at nearly two feet tall and two feet long. This probably isn't a case you'll want sitting on top of your desk. I really like the look of the CM Storm Stryker. The case is very detail oriented, making it very nice to look at. The highlights and the stylization are great. Cooler Master really scored big in terms of appearance for me with the Stryker.
What makes the CM Storm Stryker so tall is the handle on top. The handle is a nice addition to this behemoth, considering it weighs more than 30 lbs empty. Cooler Master says the handle can handle up to 95 lbs. Of course, if my computer weighed that much, I don't think I'd be moving it that often. The handle is covered with a rubbery grip material that makes it very comfortable to use.
Taking a look at the front of the CM Storm Stryker, it looks like there are nine 5.25" drive bays for use. While this is technically true, the top three are the ones that will be used primarily for optical drives. The other six are occupied by the 3.5" internal drive bays. The drive bay covers are very easily removed, and for that I am glad. The black drive bay covers contrast with the white case very nicely. There are also black lines stylized into the front of the case that make it stand out.
From this side, you can see the CM Storm Stryker's distinctive main side panel. Differing from the CM Storm Trooper, the Stryker has a window on the left side panel, in addition to the fan vents for the two 120mm intake fans. The Trooper just had venting along the main side panel and no window. Here, again, you can see the stylization by the use of the black divots around the perimeter of the window.
Moving on the rear of the case, you can see the black stylization continued with the use of black screws and divots. The expansion slot covers are also black, as are the cable holes. Speaking of expansion slots, there are plenty. Nine are horizontally oriented for use with the ports on your motherboard. There is also a vertical tenth expansion slot. The slot cover for this tenth expansion slot is used to protect your USB devices from thievery by jealous onlookers. You weave the USB cable through the cover before securing it into place and now your devices are safe and sound. Alternatively, you could use this for more USB ports or another expansion that connects via a cable to the motherboard.
The backside of the CM Story Stryker is a nice change to the mundane, plain, single colored panel that is normal here. Granted, you probably won't spend much time looking at this side of your case. If you do, however, you'll be pleased to see the black meshed venting that matches up with the venting on the main side panel. The black mesh breaks up the white monotony on the back and makes it easier to look at. Detailed Exterior FeaturesGetting into the finer details of the CM Storm Stryker's exterior, let's head back to the front of the case and check out the I/O panel at the top. The I/O panel is very robust and contains pretty much everything I would hope to see there. The large, black, hexagonal button at the top of the I/O panel is the power button, of course. Just under that are three buttons that I love to see on any case. They are fan controller buttons. The middle one controls the LEDs on the fans and the other two control the fan speed. The power and HDD LEDs and the Reset button are clearly marked on the I/O panel and below them are the ports. The standard headphone and mic jack inputs are here as well as a full complement of USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 ports. Eventually, I'd like to see cases start to move away from any USB 2.0 ports at all, but they'll likely have to wait until motherboard manufacturers start adding more headers.
Moving on down to the bottom of the front panel there is a silver plate with the CM Storm logo emblazoned upon it. This cover can be removed to give access to a secret compartment containing the CM Storm Stryker hardware. This compartment comes screwed into place. It also comes with a metal ring that can be used to lock it into place. Seems like a great place for me to start hiding my valuables. Who would suspect it!
Back around at the rear of the CM Storm Stryker we can see that the PSU is bottom mounted, just as it was in the CM Storm Trooper. This is the new standard and it makes a lot of sense as it helps to provide cool air from outside the case to the PSU intake fan. The nine expansion slots allow for quad GPU configurations. Near the top of the rear panel is a 140mm white exhaust fan. It can be replaced with a 120mm fan if necessary. I actually replaced it when building a machine into the CM Storm Stryker so that I could mount my water cooling reservoir here. Speaking of water cooling, there are three holes with rubber grommets above the rear fan for routing water cooling or other cables.
Up on top of the CM Storm Stryker you can get a better look at the handle that will help you lug around this beast. Besides the handle, the rest of the top of the CM Storm Stryker is very detailed in its stylization. There are diagonally oriented vents cut into the top panel as well as a meshed rectangular area directly behind the handle. The top panel is elevated from the top of the case which allows for the use of a removable dust filter that sits directly above the top fan. Because of this filter, you could conceivably orient the top fan to be an intake fan, allowing for more airflow north of the GPU.
The bottom of the CM Storm Stryker also houses a couple of removable dust filters. I live in southern Arizona, so more dust filters is always better. The smaller filter on the bottom of the CM Storm Stryker protects the PSU intake fan from dust. The larger filter covers the two other intake areas at the bottom of the case, one below the HDD bays and the other between the PSU and the HDD bays. These two areas allow for the installation of 120mm fans. Since I removed the 140mm from the rear panel, I had hoped it might fit here, but it doesn't.
Let's go inside the CM Storm Stryker now. Closer Look: InteriorThings start to get really exciting when we open up the CM Storm Stryker and have a look at the insides. The inside is very spacious. There is plenty of room in there for any motherboard up to XL ATX in size. The motherboard tray has standoffs for all of those sizes. The standoffs are labeled with letters and there is a legend in the center of the tray letting you know which standoffs should be used for each size of motherboard.
A closer inspection of the motherboard tray shows three large holes with rubber grommets that can be used for cable routing. Additionally, you can see a plethora of cable tie down points that protrude through the back of the motherboard tray. One of the features that I really appreciate on the CM Storm Stryker is the very large hole in the motherboard tray positioned to be right under the CPU mount on the motherboard. A pet peeve of mine is installing a motherboard into a case only to find that this hole does not grant full access to the CPU cooler from the opposite side.
The white LED fans that you see staring right at you when you open the case are attached to two removable hard drive cages. Not only can these hard drive cages be removed, but they can also be rotated so that the fans face the front of the case. This can help to improve airflow throughout the case, although I don't really think that's necessary as the case as excellent cooling with the fans facing the side.
Above the 3.5" drive bays are three 5.25" drive bays. For me, this is plenty, as I can't really see myself using even three of them. Some users could conceivably need more than three, however. If that's the case, you can re-orient the top of the two 3.5" drive bays toward the front and remove the cage and fan assembly. This will give you three more 5.25" drive bays. The 5.25" drives you install in the CM Storm Stryker will be secured using screws. No tool-free design here.
One more thing to mention about during a this closer look at the interior of the CM Storm Stryker is that the case supports up to nine add-in card slots. Looking for a quad-GPU setup? You'll be able to fit all four cards in the CM Storm Stryker. Now that we've taken a closer look, let's delve into the details of the CM Storm Stryker's interior. Detailed Interior FeaturesFirst off, we mentioned that securing 5.25" drives in the CM Storm Stryker requires screws and a screwdriver. Luckily, installation of 3.5" internal drives does not. If you can't tell, I am a fan of the tool-free configurations. 3.5" drives are secured using a drive caddy. The caddy holds the drives in place by snapping in at the four normal screw locations. 2.5" drives will have to be mounted using screws, but that is pretty normal. The removable 3.5" drive cages each hold up to four of these caddies.
The CM Storm Stryker looks big and spacious because it is. There is nearly 8" of space from the motherboard tray to the main side panel, giving you plenty of room for tall add-on cards and tall heatsinks. Behind the motherboard tray there is less space than I would like to see, just over half an inch, between the tray and the rear panel. The rear panel does, however, bulge out in an area. That relief is good for almost another half inch of clearance. This should be plenty for cable routing. Just make sure you have them tied down in the right spot.
Down near the bottom of the CM Storm Stryker on the inside is a third internal drive cage. This cage sits directly in front of the PSU area and can fit up to four 2.5" drives. That makes for a total of 12 internal drive bays. Hardware is also included with the Stryker to turn one more 5.25" bay into a 3.5" bay. That makes the grand total 13 possible drives. I think we are set for a while with that number. Of course, your 2.5" drives can be installed up above in the 3.5" caddies and this drive bay can be removed. This leaves some space for two 120mm fans, one of which sits right under the bottom 3.5" HDD cage. You could also use this space for a radiator if your water cooling hoses are long enough. Mine were not.
Building a system into the CM Storm Stryker is pretty simple. The holes are laid out for nearly any size of motherboard, so you will have put in all but two of the standoffs. These two are already mounted in the case and they are a little different than the rest. They have a small extension on them that fits through the screw holes of your motherboard, aligning it with the rest of the motherboard stand holes.
I used a motherboard that I had lying around for the install. It happened to be the ASUS Rampage IV Gene motherboard. That's a micro ATX motherboard, so it is dwarfed by the massive CM Storm Stryker. It's still an appropriate motherboard for the case, in my opinion. As an X79 motherboard, it comes ready to drive a powerful system. I added a GTX 570, a somewhat long card. It fit very easily into the CM Storm Stryker. The cables routed easily enough and I was especially appreciative of the hole in the motherboard tray directly above the CPU power port on the motherboard. In fact, the CM Storm Stryker even came with an 8-pin extension for this cord. This cord can be the bane of a perfectionist's existence because it is often difficult to route behind the motherboard tray. With that hole in right spot and the extension, I was a happy camper.
CM Storm Stryker Final ThoughtsI am a fan of big, feature rich cases. I also happen to be quite particular to white cases. Ever since I looked at the Thermaltake Level 10 GT Snow Edition, I knew I was in love. That became the case by which I judged all other cases. So far, all have fallen short and the Level 10 GT Snow Edition has remained my case of choice. That is, until now. The CM Storm Stryker has just replaced my Level 10 GT Snow Edition as the case which will house my precious rig. That is not a choice I make lightly.
One of the main reasons why the CM Storm Stryker appeals to me is the ease of installation. I am constantly in and out of my case. The swivel door on the main side panel of the Level 10 GT Snow Edition definitely beats out the CM Storm Stryker in that category, but the rest of the Stryker makes a strong case for itself. The handle on top is key. The Level 10 GT has a handle as well, but it's off center. The handle on the CM Storm Stryker provides a much easier mechanism for moving the case around, which happens a lot to my cases. The next deciding feature is the hot swappable 2.5" drive bay on the CM Storm Stryker. The hot swap bays on the Level 10 GT were appealing, but 2.5" drives had to be screwed in for them to work. Much simpler just to slide it into place.
One thing about the CM Storm Stryker that doesn't suit me is the top side I/O features. I like my system to be seen. I figure, why bother with a fancy side window and LEDs if you are going to hide your case under a desk. Because I keep my system on top of my desk, a full tower with an I/O on the top puts the ports a little high for my taste. However, if you keep your case on the floor, the I/O ports are in a perfect spot. Maybe I can modify the drawer at the bottom of the front panel with something to replace those ports. For now I'm just using a hub. The cooling ability of the CM Storm Stryker is surprisingly excellent and another reason why I chose to change over to this case. Even with both of the intake fans on the 3.5" drive cages oriented to the side, rather than the front, the CM Storm Stryker cooled as well as the Level 10 GT and better than most cases I have seen. The 200mm fan on top of the case likely has a lot to do with that. It was just surprising to me that the directed air flow from front to back was not as important as I had previously thought. CM Storm Stryker Conclusion
The CM Storm Stryker performed magnificently. The cooling ability of the CM Storm Stryker was as good as the best cases I've seen. The case comes stock with four fans; a 200mm, a 140mm, and two 120mm. With just those four, cooling is great. There is also space for plenty more cooling. The CM Storm In my opinion, the CM Storm Stryker is a great looking case. Then again, I am particularly partial to white cases with black accents. I think the stark contrast between the white case and the black features really makes it stand out. I also think the CM Storm Stryker actually looks a lot more like a Storm Trooper than the CM Storm Trooper computer case. It definitely stands out. The quality of construction on the CM Storm Stryker is excellent. Of course, I wouldn't expect anything less from Cooler Master's enthusiast division. Everything fits into place just right. There are no issues with the side panels fitting. I particularly like the rubber grip on the handle. The CM Storm Stryker excels in terms of functionality. This is important, as the main reason for buying a full tower case is for the functionality. The CM Storm Stryker sports a fan controller, USB 3.0 ports, and a handle on top. The Stryker also has plenty of room for water cooling radiators and pumps, 9 expansion slots, up to 13 hard drive bays, and up to 9 optical drive bays. My personal favorite feature of the CM Storm Stryker is the 2.5" hot swap bay at the top of the case. The CM Storm Stryker costs $159.99 (Newegg.com). This is right within a normal price range for full-featured, full-tower computer cases. The original CM Storm Trooper, however, debuted at $149.99. While the Stryker adds a windowed side panel, I think it would have been better if they had priced it the same. That being said, however, I replaced my Thermaltake Level 10 GT Snow Edition case with the Stryker. The Level 10 GT Snow Edition still goes for $289.99, so from that perspective the CM Storm Stryker is an outstanding deal.Pros:
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Stryker also has plenty of room for any hardware you could want to put in it. Cable management is easy and sufficient. The Stryker even comes with an 8-pin cable extension that relieves my most commonly troublesome cable management issue.
Comments
Still I believe there are a few cons to both Trooper and Styker, albeit mild ones. While most of those you've mentioned, I believe any case in these range should be totally tool-free. I'm old-school and don't hate screw-drivers, but after using a few Corsair, I do appreciate the tool-less designs. My friend has the Trooper and its thumbscrews need more than just thumb to be properly tightened!
Also the X-Doc, is that SATA2 or SATA3? I mean you'd expect people to use their 6GB/S SSDs much more than say Notebook HDD on such a hot-swap bay!
Finally I would've really wanted CM to include latches on the side panels which is way better than the hinge/slide, They've got it in the HAF-XM - why not in Stryker?
Yet these are just mild cons as the aesthetics and detailed craftsmanship blows me out!
Love it:
Control Panel (The power button is a little big and looks like it would be easy to hit by accident but really adds to the look)
Handle
Lots of fans
Cable Management
2.5" hot swap bay
Removable hard drive cages
Internal 2.5" SSD cage (even if it does look like it was an afterthought)
Filters
Hate it:
Fan controller (always use my own which leaves useless controls on the panel)
Bulging side panels (just yuck, Corsair did this too, yuck)
Only 3 5 1/4" bays (need four for 2 x 5 1/4" reservoirs or a res, fan controller and optical drive)
White (subjective) really prefer black interior
Drive bay covers on the front over the fans in place of a one piece removable mesh (why use drive bay covers if there are no drive bays there?)
Although this is not a case I would chose, I can see how some people would love it though. My biggest beef is the bulging side panels, I really don't like that on cases. The only one I do like it on is the Corsair 600T because it's a gentle convex curve and not a jutting bulge. Some of their other cases have the jutting side panel bulges as well.
Overall this is a pretty sweet case. It has lots of storage space, everything you need for water cooling, lots of fans. I can see why some would pick it.
Thanks for the review.
Help would be greatly appreciated as I dont want to end up with a case and no optical drive!
Thanks!