Raidmax Seiran Computer Case Review

Manufacturer: Raidmax
Product Name: Seiran
Price As Tested: $99.00

Full Disclosure: The product sample used in this article has been provided by Raidmax.

In October, I wrote a review of the Raidmax Blade mid tower ultra budget case. Although it was a functional case and quite inexpensive, there were things left to desire, which is just the nature of ultra budget cases. Today at Benchmark Reviews, we have another offering in the Raidmax mid tower line-up, the Seiran. The Seiran is Raidmax's newest mid tower entry, and pricewise, clearly not a budget case. I'm interested in seeing what Raidmax's higher end mid tower case has to offer that budget mid tower's don't, and how it stacks up against other mid towers in its price range. So with that short intro, let's get started!

The Raidmax Seiran is the newest in a line-up of Raidmax mid tower cases that seemingly grows monthly. Since the Seiran is a higher end offering, I'm curious to see what an additional $50 gets us. At the nearly $100.00 USD price range, there is a huge amount of hardcore competition for mid tower cases. To be fair, the MSR price always falls 10-20% rather quickly, so let's say this case is in the $80 price range. At that price point, I'd still consider this case a solid mid tower price offering, where the competition is not only fierce, but predatory.

When I was presented with an opportunity to review the Seiran, I requested a red or white model, but as you most likely don't know, requested and getting are two different animals. I got the trusty black version (AGAIN!). Thanks guys! The Seiran comes in red, white, and black, and as you can see here, it's looks put it squarely in the zoo of gaming cases. Let's see what sort of animal the Raidmax Seiran really is!

Raidmax Seiran Features

Ventilated Side Panel
Water Cooling Ports
Bottom Mounted Power Supply
Tool-Free Design
Novel Meshed Bay Covers
Top I/O Ports

Raidmax Seiran Specifications

External drive bays: 9 x 5.25"
Internal drive bays: 4 x 3.5" h.d./2.5" ssd racks
System board: 10” x 12” max size atx form factor / micro atx
Expansion slots: standard atx 7 slots
i/o ports: 2 x usb2.0 / 2 x audio / 1 x usb3.0
Dimensions: 480(l) x 185(w) x 480(h)mm
Cooling System:
Front:1 x 120mm led fan side:1 x 120mm led fan or 1 x 180mm led fan (optional)
Back: (black) 1 x 120mm black frame with red leaves fan, (white & red) 1 x 120mm black fan
Top: none
Colors: Black,White, Red

Closer Look: Exterior

Here we have a full frontal view of nine bays, which is a good start. It's a nice shape too, as the corners are beveled and not simply dead-on square. If I understand correctly, the top three bays fit 5.25" drives (with an option for one card reader or floppy type drive). Then you have the next three mounting 3.5" drives. The next bay is for 2.5" drives (SSDs), the next right after that fits a 3.5" drive, and then the next another 2.5" drive. Of course if you want to use 5.25" drives in the 3.5" slots, you can do that too, or vice-versa. This is a rather peculiar layout, and the "why?" will become evident in the detailed interior section.

The side view. As you can see, mesh grill and a 180mm intake fan. The intake is symmetrically pleasing to the eye.

I usually don't use an image of the cable side of cases because they would look like a black square in the middle of nothing. The Seiran is different, and here's one of the differences between the Raidmax Blade and the Seiran. (I tried to get a good reflection off the raised side panel so that you can see it's depth.) At its maximum depth, it's about a half inch. Instead of letting you stew in curiosity, I'll just tell you why this is here. For one, it could be simply aesthetics. There is, however, a utility to it: it's for cable management.

One of the problems with the Raidmax Blade was its virtually nonexistent cable space. As far as cable management goes, if it weren't for the expanded side panel, the Seiran would have suffered the same fate as the Blade because the two cases share internal similarities. As it is, adding the internal chassis cable groove space to the side panel space gives us about an inch for running main power supply cables. That's not bad.

This baby's got back. Nice red mesh expansion covers. I'm not sure what's better looking here, the front or the back. You can see the water/usb/whatever-else-you-can-think-to-run-out-of-them holes. Everything else is about basic case fodder here.

The top! The top's clean, and note, no blow hole. It's ripe for modding though. Get out your cutting torch and light that sucker off! I should say it before I forget too. The paint on this thing is pretty well done and feels like quality.

Detailed Exterior Features

A nice, little, clean I/O panel right on the front. You even get one USB 3 connection. The knobs: one is for fan speed and one is for fan LED control. Not bad. The knobs have a nice positive, dampened feel too them also.

This looks pretty boring. The now standard bottom air intake and filter for the power supply. There is something more interesting, though, that I need to share with you. The Raidmax Seiran shares the same plastic feet as the Blade does. There isn't any rubber on the Blade, but lookie here. Raidmax heard me and installed little silicon rubber-like recessed thingies into the plastic feet. Those would be the white square on both feet you see here. So now we have some rubber/silicon on the feet, and all is well.

Just like the Blade, the Seiran inherits the same DNA for bay covers, and they're really nice. Each cover has a filter built into it. You can't take the filter out, but you can pop the bay cover off and rinse it, then pop it right back on. The novel aspect of the bay cover is that you slide the latch to the left to release it. Since there is nothing else on the front of this case, that's all there is to cleaning the front filter(s). A very simple and clean approach that beats the heck out of prying off or even unscrewing the front face plate to get after the filter or to clean or replace a fan. I mean, these bay covers ARE the front. That's it!

Here's another shot of the top. This is a hand grip and a nice one at that. It makes picking this case up really easy and safe. The hand grip is solid, too.

The back again, just because I think it's sexy. Actually, look at the side panel and follow it back to the rear. Right in the middle we have a little handle. A light tug rear-ward and the side panel pops right off, no fuss, and no foul language. It works well. It could pose a little problem though.

Similar image here, but you can see that the handle is meant to fold over the back so it doesn't get broken. The problem is that is folds over your rear outlets. It's not really a big deal, but of course, it's worth mentioning. Both side panels incorporate these little jerk handles.

I don't know about you, but I could go for some post Thanksgiving pep-pizza and a soda, diet of course. I guess we should finish this review before we get all warm and fuzzy with a pizza, though. Can you smell it? No, not the pizza, the interior section, which is coming up next! Let's crawl into this box and get warm and fuzzy with its internals.

Closer Look: Interior

This is the business side of the case. Here we can see all nine drive bays, the CPU hole, cable routes, and some spaghetti coming out of the top. Altogether this is a pretty clean interior.

This is the internal cable canal. It's also about a half inch deep. As I stated earlier, if you run your cables through this groove and into the side panel space, you get a total of about one inch of cable space. If you're like me, however, and just want to cram your cables under the side panel and get that sucker closed, you might have a problem.

Remember I was saying that the drive layout was a little peculiar? That's because of the way Raidmax mounts the single fan in the front. You can see here that there is, indeed, and as previously mentioned, nothing in the front of this case, save bay covers. This is another clean aspect of this case.

Here it is. The front fan mounts to two of the drive mounts. The fan/drive mounts are a little different from the regular 3.5" drive mounts. That's why these two are for 2.5" drives, lest your 3.5" drives protrude far into the motherboard area.

Here you go. You lose around an inch and a half of space if you choose to mount a 3.5" drive here. But with four 3.5" bays, you're going to have plenty of room to mount them elsewhere. Really, you can mount any 9 drives wherever you want. So mix and match at your own will.

This is something that was missing from the Blade, drive caddies. They function like any other caddy, and lock down with the tool-less drive locks. With the Blade, using only these locks left the drives in danger of falling out, one, because there was no drive caddy and the locks were sloppy when set on a bare drive, and two, with the Blade, you only got one side of locks. The Seiran gives you drive locks on both sides, all the way up. Although not a really tight fit, the drives, after installation into the plastic caddies, lock down fairly snugly. If you want to screw them down, then you'll need to either screw into the plastic caddy itself, or use your own steel 3.5" drive caddy.

Detailed Interior Features

This is a 180mm fan, not a 200/230mm. It's a very slim fan too and it's a very lightweight fan. Perhaps some of you can clue me in on what type of fan this is? Check out the fan shroud. That's like a 1/16" thick! Whatever its actual thickness, it's a very thin and lightweight fan.

This is what I mean by lightweight. That's bendo baby. The fan blades are very thin and flexible. The blades are so thin that, as you can see, they easily bend when lifted with my index finger. It has an LED harness that connects to the front LED knob, just as the front fan does. You can replace the 180mm fan with a 120mm, if you desire. In fact, I believe the 180mm fan is "optional" so you might check before you buy if you want the 120mm instead (I'm not sure if Raidmax will ship the 180mm as standard or not).

Here's the punched out side panel canal for your harness and wires. It's a full half inch. Add that to the internal groove, and you get, as noted earliar, about an inch of cable space, if you stick to both canals. If not, you'll probably still have room for your wires and cables, but have a harder time closing the panel.

From the motherboard standoffs, you have right at 7" of space to the side panel. This should be sufficient for most of the tallest cooling towers.

Whoa!The Eagle has Landed NASA! You're looking at 12" of video card space. That, and the way the drive caddies are engineered, you only lose the width of your SATA cable, since the 3.5" drives fit flush in the back.

See what I'm talkin' about? You lose virtually no space here. I'm not a fan of backward facing drives, but this makes up for at least some of the disadvantages of a back mounted instead of a side mounted drive cage. Take note also that the drive cage is not removable.

Here's a shot of the tool-less hardware, or I should say, plasticware, or steel-astic.

Okay boys and girls, the cotton candy has all run out, the pizza is calling me, and the carnival is a movin' on, so let's get to the next section where I can tell you what I think, and give you a nice, tight, concise conclusion of the Raidmax Seiran mid tower case.

Final Thoughts

There isn't a lot to dislike about Raidmax's new mid tower offering, and it has some novel ideas behind it; but there are things that leave it wanting compared to other similarly priced cases. It's a basic case with some innovations, such as the entire front faceplate is nonexistent, replaced by filtered, easy to remove bay covers. On the other hand, I don't care for the lightweight 180mm fan Raidmax chose. Then again, you can swap the 180mm fan with a 120mm if you wish. I also don't like the fact there is a total number of three fans, but three fans should be enough to cool your rig, unless you're into serious OCing or live in an unusually warm place.

Think about this, though: You're main cooling is going to be two fans, one back and one side. So, if that doesn't do it, your out of luck, unless you water cool. Personally, I'm also not a fan of backward mounted drives, either, as opposed to side mounted drives. Again, even with the backward mounted drives, you get almost 12" of video card space. The point of this comparison is that there are many mid tower cases in this price range that (a) have more fans; (b) have side mounted drives, while offering nearly the same options as the Seiran elsewhere. I mean, when looking for a case, it's not about one case. You obviously need to compare cases, and one or the other will be the winner for you based on your needs. With that explained, let's continue our comparative analysis.

There are some nice upgrades over the budget Raidmax Blade mid tower, such as a little rubber on the feet, more drive locks, drive caddies, more general internal space, easy to remove front bays for cleaning or general access, and more cable space. But that's compared to a budget mid tower, and the Seiran isn't a budget case. Comparing it to other similarly priced mid towers tells a different story.

For instance, while the Seiran has an LED dimmer switch and a painted interior, the Cooler Master HAF 922 does not. However, the 922 has 200mm fans x2 with the option of mounting a total of three 200mm fans, plus an optional bottom 140mm fan, for a total possible of five fans! The Seiran has a total of three fans, with only one having a size option of 180mm or 120mm, but the 180mm option is very lightweight.

As far as value goes, if you can get the Seiran down into the 70ish USD range, then it's value is looking much better; but adding insult to injury, we have the Cooler Master Storm Scout at Newegg for 70.00USD, which also sports more fan options, side mounted drives, a painted interior, and four front USB 2.0 ports, but not a USB 3.0 port (Storm Scout review at Benchmark Reviews). At the 99.00USD range (MSRP), well, in my opinion, the Seiran is simply outclassed, having tons of scary competition, such as Cooler Master's HAF series. A quick search shows me that the CM HAF 922 can be had for 90.00USD! As I mentioned beforehand, the competition in this range is not only fierce, but predatory. As always, compare before you buy.

Raidmax Seiran Conclusion

The Raidmax Seiran is definitely a step up from the Blade mid tower I reviewed earlier this year, but that's expected, since the Blade is a budget case. There are some nice upgrades and innovative design improvements too, such as drive caddies, tool-less lock downs for both sides of the drive, a completely open front end that is comprised of unique and nice looking filtered bay covers, and a very roomy interior, boasting almost a full 12" of video card space (Thanks to the unique staggered drive bay/fan mount implementation).

Appearance is a subjective matter, but the Seiran is a bold aesthetic squarely aimed at the gamer market. The side panels are good looking and not overdone. The back of the case looks nice too with red mesh slot covers and a blue bladed fan. The front I/O panel is also clean and unobtrusive.

The construction of the Seiran is adequate but nothing to awe over. It's thin side panels feel tinny. Putting a micrometer on both the side panel of the Cooler Master Silencio 550 and the Sieran confirms this: The Silencio measures 00.03" while the Sieran measures 00.025". Overall, though, the case is plenty sturdy, and light. The internal paint is a nice touch, and so too for its nice, thick, beefy, filtered front drive covers. The panels were some of the best fitting I've used, coming off easily, and more importantly, going back on positively, without those infuriating line up errors.

Functionally speaking, it does what it needs to do, except it's a little light on fan power, with a maximum of three fans total. There is tons of space in the Seiran, however, with almost 7" of cooling tower space and almost 12" of video card space. The drive mounts are your traditional back facing into the motherboard area. Cable space is adequate to good, but not great. With a total of nine drive bays, you should also have plenty of drive space, and with seven expansion slots, enough room for expansion cards too. The front I/O panel has both a fan controller and an LED fan dimmer switch, plus one USB 3.0 port, along with the normal I/O ports and two USB.

With excellent cases, not good, not decent, but excellent cases running in the $80-90 USD range, the value for the Seiran is a little on the low side, if it comes in at around the same price. If it comes in at around $99, then comparing it to other offerings, it's options are outclassed. It's a decent case, but better cases can be had for the same or lower price. If, however, you like the design and the unique features of the Seiran, you won't go wrong buying it. It's not a bad case at all, and it's decent looking and easy to get to the front without pulling any faceplates off. It's just not excellent in the areas other cases are already excellent, and for the same price.

For these reasons, like the Blade, no special recommendation is given this time based on my analysis and the competition; but I would like to stress again that the Seiran is a decent case by any standards, with lots of interior space. It's just not up to a recommendation based on other like priced mid tower cases available (e.g, Cooler Master's HAF and Storm series). Please let me know what you think about my analysis because this is really the hardest part of the review. The people at Raidmax are people too, and their just trying to make it like the rest of us. If you think I'm being biased or unfair, let me know how or why in the comments section.

Pros:

+ Video card space
+ Cooling tower space
+ Front bay covers
+ Aesthetics
+ Functional
+ Painted Interior
+ Lightweight

Cons:

- Back mounted drives
- Adequate, but not great cable routing
- Total of three fans
- Side panels a little tinny

Ratings:

• Presentation: 8.00
• Appearance: 8.50
• Construction: 8.00
• Functionality: 8.00
• Value: 7.50

Final Score: 8.0 out of 10.

Benchmark Reviews invites you to leave constructive feedback below, or ask questions in our Discussion Forum.

Related Articles:

• Intel DH67BL H67-Express Motherboard
• Lian-Li LanCool PC-K58W Computer Case
• Rosewill Ranger Mid-Tower Computer Case
• EVGA GTX 460 SC Superclocked Video Card
• Func MS-3 Gaming Mouse
• IOCELL NetDISK 351UNE Network Storage Device
• CM Storm Strike Force SF-19 Laptop Cooler
• Rosewill RSL-113 Solar Infrared Dual-LED Lights
• TRENDnet TPL-303E2K 200Mbps Powerline Adapter
• Best CPU Cooler Performance AMD Socket AM3 Preview