Clash of the Titans - TT Tai Chi vs. CM Stacker 830

Cooler Master Stacker 830

Cooler Master's first Stacker received huge praise from the community for an abundance of space and a wealth of options in terms of how to place components inside the case. The 830 continues these traits, but extends them with a more stylish design and additional options aimed at making this a truly enthusiast-friendly case.

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While the Tai Chi is one of most massive cases that we've worked with lately, the Stacker 830 puts up a good fight. The case is extremely deep, with a total front-to-back measurement of 25½”. This is 4” longer than the Tai Chi – however, with the casters, the Thermaltake case is two feet tall - 3” taller than the Cooler Master. With the same relative size, but a significant difference in the two main dimensions, users will have to take care in selecting a unit that will fit where they intend to put their computer. Neither unit is that well suited for being on a desk, but with the flared feet, the Stacker might not look too bad.

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In this shot of the front, most of the various materials that make up the case are visible. Brushed aluminum is the predominant finish, but black painted steel, gray plastic, and a slightly darker gray plastic (now black plastic on many units) are all present as well. The front mounted ports are at the top, but face forward, and unlike the X1 reviewed last month, they don't get covered up when the door is closed. The recessed area above that is actually the front handle, and slightly in front of that is where the power button is located.

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The front-and-center Cooler Master logo is very nicely made - it was difficult to capture the real look of it, but this close up does a pretty good job. Overall, the fit and finish of the 830 is fantastic just like the logo. This is a stately case for the serious enthusiast just like the Tai Chi, but the approach to get to this feeling is pretty different.

The main design aspect that sets the cases apart is how complex the styling is. Where the Tai Chi is very monolithic, the new Stacker has quite a few intricacies and a whole lot of functionality. When the main door is open, some of this complexity is revealed.

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Like the Tai Chi and other similar cases, the 830 has many external 5¼” bays accessible externally, but only nine as opposed to the Tai Chi's eleven. Another difference is that the covers are vented in this case, and each one has a second filter behind the metal grill as well. The covers hold themselves in place very loosely, but aluminum flaps span the height of the case to provide additional holding power.

This next shot turned out much better as a collage of three separate pictures, and serves to show how these flaps and the front ports look up close.

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In this shot, we've opened the main door and left flap too, and towards the far right, the spring-loaded latch that keeps the door on its hinges is visible as well. Notice the ample spacing between ports and intricate molding of the plastic. Overall, this is one of the most unique port clusters that we've seen yet in terms of visual appeal, and although it might not appeal to everyone, its functional design is hard to criticize.

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Viewed from a more perpendicular angle, the layout of the top panel is easier to get a sense of. Two more USB 2.0 ports, the de-emphasized reset switch, and HDD activity LED are present along with the blue backlit power button. Cooler Master's choice to label these elements is certainly an issue of taste, but at least the font that they used is futuristic and consistent with the theme of the case.