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

Cooler Master Stacker 830 (cont’d)

The last aspect of the 830 that needs to be addressed is its ability to morph into a BTX compatible system. In showing how this is possible, we'll also highlight some of the other fine details of this complex case. It all basically comes down to a very well designed motherboard tray. Notice how thumbscrews are used instead of problematic plastic clips to hold expansion cards down.

Click to enlarge.

Since the main difference between ATX and BTX systems is the orientation of the expansion cards in relation to the I/O ports, those two components of the rear plate of the motherboard tray are separate, and can be put back into the tray reversed.

Click to enlarge.

After removing a total of six screws, the two panes of the back hinged right off. Once off, they can be attached to each other in reverse – exactly how BTX motherboards are laid out.

Click to enlarge.

After assembling the motherboard tray in its reversed configuration, the tray is slid into the opposite set of rails in the case. Next comes the fan juggling.

Click to enlarge.

The fans, fan cages, and fan grills are all interchangeable on the Stacker 830. The unit on the far left is a fan in its cage, the unit in the center adds the grill, and the unit on the right is simply an empty cage with grill. Each of these are needed in various places, but generally, the unit on the far left goes at the rear or top of the case, the unit in the center goes at the front if one wants additional air to be brought in at the front, and the unit at the far right is a passive vent that fits in front of the BTX duct.

Click to enlarge.

In this shot for instance, three of the standard bay place-holders have been removed in favor of the single cage and cover unit. In the bays themselves, one may install the BTX duct to direct air appropriately in terms of the BTX specification.

Without the extra adapter, the duct could still be utilized to simply channel air at a particular height of the case, but putting the extra adapter on is a piece of cake.

Click to enlarge.

Lastly, here are a couple of shots of the lighting of the case. In a completely dark room, a well-loaded 830 can put on quite a show.

Click to enlarge.

And the aforementioned power button: