Jim's NZXT H440 Review (Competition Prize)

[jim]

So, it's a bit late in arriving, but I've finally got round to writing my H440 Review!

I’ve always had a preference for clean lines and simple designs for cases, starting with the Antec P180 and lately tending towards Silverstone and Fractal, but NZXT wasn’t a brand I’d really considered. The H440 definitely has enthusiast elements, for instance the red trim (I am reviewing the black and red model) and the side window, but with no front panel, bays or switches they have managed to create a really clean and simple look – with just enough flair to suggest that there’s a powerful system inside.

The install was quite easy, though some of the thumbscrews (appreciated) were so tight that I needed a screwdriver to remove them first time round (not so appreciated). Once both sides were off though, there was ample room for cable routing and plenty of rubber-covered gaps to run them through, and easy access to all of the bays and the rear of the CPU mount. Since I no longer use 3.5” drives, I was pleased to see that the bays were extremely easy to remove, which helps to increase airflow from the front of the case through to the processor and graphics card. The SSD was mounted on top of the PSU compartment, and with it being right under the window appears to be presented on a pedestal – thankfully the SanDisk branding matches perfectly with the case’s black and red theme!
Normally at this point I’d reach for a pack of fan adapters to drop the voltages, or try to bodge together a half-baked solution, so I was really pleased to see a clever built-in fan controller. All of the four included fans are connected to a small circuit board on the rear of the motherboard mount, and connecting this to a PWM controlled plug on the motherboard allows you to control all of the fan speeds simultaneously via your motherboard. I’m not sure I’ve found exactly the setting I want yet, but it’s great to know that all I need to do is go into the UEFI and change the target, rather than start adding resistors and adapters as I have done in the past! At this point I should also mention that the internal wiring is well managed, with USB-3 headers and so on routed carefully behind the back of the motherboard tray and easily passed round to the front.

With everything installed in a very short space of time, I powered up the machine and whilst I wasn’t expecting any earth-shattering changes, I have to acknowledge that it runs very quietly and looks quite smart with its subtle lighting on the NZXT logo inside the case. All-in-all, a very successful install – and whilst I wouldn’t have considered NZXT before I definitely would now. Trying to blend the clean lines and simple design that many of us go for with the more edgy colourful designs is tricky, but I think they have pulled it off.

[DR]

Photos?

[MrRockliffe]

Interesting to hear your H440 is quiet - I find mine quite loud. Perhaps it's my H80i? It's otherwise very quiet...

[jim]

Photos?

I'm a useless photographer and my phone is pretty hopeless, but I did get a couple of snaps when I put it together (also please forgive my cropping):

Overall, inc front panel, though it looks much more orange-y here!



From the side - everything blends in, especially the SSD on the bottom, except for the arctic-style GTX 970 Turbo!



From the bottom - this is a much better representation of the colour:

[jim]

Interesting to hear your H440 is quiet - I find mine quite loud. Perhaps it's my H80i? It's otherwise very quiet...

I need to play around with the BIOS settings so far, but yeah. It's all about the fan speeds ultimately, and I think having granular control over them makes a big difference in the H440. If I'm playing a game, and the CPU is going crazy, I'm happy for them to crank up, but in general office use it can drop everything right down to the minimum.