Xigmatek Utgard Case Review

1. Introduction2. The Xigmatek Utgard (External)3. The Xigmatek Utgard (Internal)4. The System Build5. Testing Methodology and Performance Results6. Acoustic Performance7. Closing Thoughts8. View All Pages

For this build we are using the Thermaltake ToughPower 750W power supply. Why no red stripe around it ? Sadly during testing, the stripe had to be torn to get inside. Not the best design idea from Thermaltake, but the unit itself is great. Due to the slightly rounded edges of this specific PSU we had to use the bundled Thermaltake screws, rather than the shorter Xigmatek versions.

If you are installing a watercooling kit, then the top section has a detachable hood. This is removed by simply pulling on the tray.

The top I/O has two fan speed knobs which can be used to control up to six fans, in two banks of three. This is achieved by connecting to headers marked A1/2/3 and B1/2/3. The main power is then taken from a molex connector.

It is a great idea, but it seems almost impossible to keep the build tidy with so many cables running from all case locations.

Installing the motherboard is a straightforward process and there is plenty of room around the motherboard for the building process.

As a system test, we like to use the biggest video card we have which is the HD5870 modified Arctic Cooling Accelero XTREME. As this is 31cm long, you can be guaranteed if this cooler fits then any video card on the market right now will also fit.

The fact that the power connectors fit  along the length of the PCB means cable routing also needs to be taken into consideration. The orange locking expansion connectors are not the best we have used and are clearly built to a specific price point. We wouldn't say they were poor but they feel a little cheap, especially when compared to some of the recent metal designs we have tested.

As the image above shows, the card did fit inside the case, but it was rather snug.

The top of the chassis has plenty of room for working inside and we liked the internal design. We don't fit optical drives anymore, prefering to rely on USB and network software installations, but the mounting system is the same as the USB 3.0 drive adapter we installed, which works fine. Installing a hard drive is much like any other case, but we recommend you do it first, as drives are mounted back to front which can make getting past a long video card rather difficult.

Our final build was painless and didn't take a long time, there are no issues with the overall design.

As we mentioned earlier, the Utgard has three versions of side panel on offer. Ours shipped with the enclosed design which allows for two fans to be attached. The only problem is that without fans installed, the panel looks terrible, with gaping vents side by side. We fitted two Noctua fans – a 120mm fan and a 140mm fan. Although we have mounted both as exhaust in the images above, it is feasible to use one as intake and the other as exhaust.

The finished product, we think it looks rather appealing.

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