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Under a small flap at the bottom/front of the case are connectors for USB, FireWire, headphones and mic. This is very convenient, but I would rather have seen these at the top since most tower cases are placed on the floor.

Around the back are two small switches that allow you to control the fan speed of the rear fan as well as an optional 80mm front mounted fan. There are three different settings which is limiting compared to a front mounted fan controller, but it’s still great to see something like this as standard on a case. The only problem here is that the pre fitted cable is a bit on the short side. This in turn means that some front mounted fans won’t quite reach the switch and you might have to find one with an extra long three-pin cable to make it work or get an extension cable.

One feature that I especially like about the A600A is the air duct on the left hand side of the case that funnels cool air straight to the CPU cooler. The duct can be adjusted to fit most if not all CPU coolers on the market as it can be adjusted length wise. This helps to improve the cooling of any CPU but especially the top of the range units that can get very hot.

The size of the case is 200 x 476 x 495mm (WxHxD) which makes it slightly taller than a lot of cases with three internal 5.25in drive bays. This is worth keeping in mind if you have a computer desk that’s made to fit standard midi towers. The A600A is however very light at just under 7kg without a PSU and even fully built it’s one of the lightest cases I have come across.

So how easy is it to build a system in the A600A? Well, it’s not the simplest to put together as you can’t slide the motherboard tray out, but there is plenty of space inside. It’s even roomy enough to install the hard drives after you’ve fitted the motherboard, which can sometimes be a problem in cases where the drive bays are down at the bottom of the chassis. AOpen has also added a quick release latch for the front of the case that makes it easy to remove. This has to be done so you can slide in the 5.25in drives as well as any external 3.5in drives.

It would however be great if case manufacturers in general would supply cable ties and a couple of places where you could attach internal cabling to route it in a tidy manner. However, AOpen has done a great job inasmuch that all fitted cabling has been tied down neatly along the floor of the case. The only things that will get a bit messy are the cables that connect from the front ports to the motherboard.
The connectors feature Intel spec layout for USB and FireWire as well as for the onboard audio, but there are also headers to fit any possible layout if your motherboard doesn’t follow Intel spec.

All in all I am very impressed with the build quality of the A600A and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a new case. It might not suite everyone’s needs, but it is spacious, easy to assemble and comes with a host of features as standard. It’s even affordable for an aluminium case at £109 inc VAT.

Verdict

The A600A is one of the very best cases out there, it comes with just about everything as standard, is easy to assemble and has plenty of space for every conceivable drive type.

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