Cubitek ATX ICE Case Review

1. Introduction2. Packaging and Bundle3. Cubitek ATX ICE: Exterior4. Cubitek ATX ICE: Interior5. Cubitek ATX ICE: Installation6. Testing Methodology and Performance7. Closing Thoughts8. View All Pages

We are sad to say that we are very disappointed with the Cubitek ATX ICE.  It has the potential to be a very good case but there are far too many issues that need addressing before we could recommend it in good faith to our readers.

The aesthetic design is very sleek but Cubitek have ruined the smooth aluminium finish with two cheap steel mesh fan vents and an unsightly join in a very obvious place on the top of the case.  Build quality is generally solid but, again, the fan vents feel flimsy and cheap.

Many case manufacturers preinstall most, if not all of the motherboard stand-offs for a standard system.  Cubitek however, supply them separately and don’t include a tool for securing them in place.  We also question Cubitek’s quality control processes as the front panel connectors are incorrectly labelled.

Even though Cubitek has cut a generous amount of cable routing holes in the motherboard tray, there is very little room behind this for thick cables.  This is unforgivable considering the vast width of the case and it causes the right hand side panel to bulge when it’s reattached to the case.  There are also no points to attach cable ties which makes routing even more difficult.

Without doubt the most disappointing aspect of the ATX ICE is the cooling setup.  If you’re looking to build a water cooled system then you’ll be sorely disappointed as there isn’t even room for a 240mm radiator in this case.

There is plenty of empty real estate in the roof of the case where Cubitek could have cut vents for 3x 120mm but instead, there is a single 140mm vent which doesn’t even have 120mm fan mountings.  The front of the case is a similar story as there is a single 200mm fan without any mounts for a different fan configuration.

We wouldn’t even recommend the case for a high-end air cooled system as the airflow from the included fans is poor and they are also quite noisy.  The temperatures we recorded were a significant amount higher than we recorded with the same system on our open test bench, both at stock settings and when overclocked.

At a price of £190 from Overclockers UK, we cannot recommend the Cubitek ATX ICE to anyone. We would recommend the Lian Li PC-V1020B, which is available for £199.99 inc vat.

At a price of around £90 we feel it would be much more competitive and would award it a Worth Considering award.  But due to the numerous flaws and incredibly high retail price, you’d be much better off looking elsewhere.

Pros:

• Brushed aluminium finish.
• Generally solid build quality.

Cons:

• Loud fans.
• Poor Airflow.
• Cheap steel mesh fan vents.
• Silver interior.
• No tool for motherboard standoffs.
• No cable tie hooks.
• Limited room behind motherboard tray.
• Wrongly labelled front panel connector.

KitGuru says: Best avoiding unless the price drops considerably.

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