Corsair 7000D Airflow
More cooling! More cooling!
CORSAIR IS GOING BIG, with a new fulltower PC case and a new cooler to go with it; that’s the iCUE H170i Elite Capellix RGB seen in this issue’s “Build It,” an AIO unit with a whopping 420mm radiator. The 7000D Airflow is the case built to house such a chunky cooling solution, and it certainly lives up to its name.
Let’s start by talking about fans and radiators. The 7000D comes with three non-RGB 140mm fans, but there’s space for plenty more—the front can handle up to four 120mm fans (or three 140mm), and the same goes for the upright cooling bracket that sits behind the cable cover plate on one side. At the top of the case, there’s a removable rail bracket that can support 420mm of radiator space, and there’s naturally a vent for a single preinstalled 140mm fan at the rear.
Using all these concurrently isn’t quite an option, as large radiators mounted to the front and top can encroach on each other, but there’s undeniably space for plenty of workstation-level cooling here. The front and top panels are highly perforated steel to allow for superior airflow, with magnetic dust filters and hinged side panels, one of which is a full glass window. Taking the 7000D apart to build in is a relatively painless process.
The massive 80-liter interior allows for some chunky builds, with extended ATX mobo support and enough GPU clearance to handle the biggest RTX 3000-series cards. A windowed PSU shroud runs along the bottom of the case, allowing you to view your power supply (handy if you’re rocking a PSU with an integrated display, such as the Asus ROG Thor) while also concealing a pair of drive cages, each of which can hold three HDDs or SSDs.
Elsewhere, we’ve got four dedicated mounting plates for 2.5-inch SSDs, and a variety of plastic and metal contraptions for routing and concealing cables. The rear of the motherboard plate actually hides behind a second, smaller hinged metal panel beneath the vented side panel, ensuring a tidy appearance regardless of how your cable management skills are.
Although some serious case-modding would be required to fit a second ITX system in here, Corsair is evidently comfortable with modders using the 7000D for esoteric projects. Several additional brackets are included in the box (such as a vertical mount that anchors to the PSU shroud for showing off your GPU) and almost all of the extraneous parts can be removed with a humble Phillips screwdriver, from the drive cages to the built-in fan hub.
Even with all the extras removed, this is still a seriously heavy case. With its full-tower form factor comprising over 40 pounds of steel, plastic, and tempered glass, the 7000D can be a nightmare to move around, especially when building in it. The build quality here is superb, though, with every part feeling sturdy and well crafted. It’s little wonder that it costs so much; the hefty $260 price tag is a gut punch, but it’s at least in line with competing full-tower cases from the likes of Lian Li and Fractal Design.
The front I/O is very well equipped, offering four USB-A 3.0 ports along with USB-C and a headphone jack. There aren’t any RGB control buttons to be found here; the 7000D favors a more muted appearance, as evidenced by the dark tint on the window panels. It’s hard to deny that this is one of Corsair’s best-looking cases, both in the black model we’re reviewing and its vivid white counterpart.
This isn’t a case for the workaday PCbuilder, with its gargantuan frame and roomy, feature-packed interior. But it’s certainly an excellent choice for anyone who needs a large-scale build, whether that’s a central system packed with NAS drives or a supercharged editing rig. With smart design choices that make building easy (barring its overall bulk), the 7000D is one of the best full-tower cases we’ve seen in years.
Corsair 7000D Airflow
ARCTIC Top-notch build quality; loads of space for drives and cooling; good front I/O.
SAHARA Fairly expensive; as heavy as it gets.
$260, http://corsair.com