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Internal Features
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The case seemed to be just the right size for a mid-size case; the components weren't cramped, but had there been a little less room, installation would have been difficult. I found that it was necessary to remove the motherboard tray to install more drives comfortably, although removal and insertion of the tray took about ten seconds total.
 
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The motherboard tray is one of the features on this case that, despite the size of the case, made installation a breeze. When I was installing my 5.25" and 3.5" devices, I simply removed the motherboard tray, and I had all the room I needed to work. The tray is installed via two 'rail' sections in the case that it slides into. I found that a little bit of force was required to get the motherboard tray in and out, simply because the tray is snug against the rails. I note this only because the side panels required relatively no force to remove and replace - however I can understand why the motherboard tray would be snug - vibrations are ones enemy, and the last thing someone wants is their motherboard jiggling around the case.
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Traditional standoffs are used on the motherboard tray, and a standard ATX I/O plate is included. The plate itself was a little flimsy and popped out of the tray a few times until I installed the motherboard, after which, I had no problems with it. The seven expansion slots are all secured with thumbscrews, another nice touch from Cooler Master. The size of the thumbscrew allowed me to get enough torque to secure my PCI cards without a screwdriver - one less hassle for the user.
 
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The motherboard connectors (power, reset, etc.) are not bundled together, unlike the USB connectors, which can be a problem unless you have cable ties - especially since there is a side window. The only thing worse than a messy case, is a messy case with a side window. Unless you tidy up, everyone can see the gruesome jumble of cables.
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The PSU installation is quite simple. Cooler Master provides two faceplates - one for a standard ATX PSU, one for a redundant PSU. The proper plate gets screwed onto the PSU itself, and then the plate it screwed onto the case. The PSU is housed within a PSU cage which allows for side, bottom, and rear fans to be unrestricted, unlike some cases which block off the PSU fans. I had no problems installing my PSU into the case, nor do I expect others will have problems, unlike other cases which have had plates or objects blocking fans or the PSU itself.
 
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The case comes with a top blowhole, as well as one fan on the motherboard tray. My previous case had one fan in the front, as well as one towards the back, near the CPU. The top blowhole is held in place with a metal mesh, which also acts as a fan guard. Cooler Master believes that that since hot air rises, the blowhole allows for the exhaust of hot air naturally, so less fans have to be present in the case to provide airflow, and therefore less noise and power consumption is needed for the case.
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Cooler Master ATC-220B VX1: Based on one of their most popular models, the ATC-210B, the case has been further refined with a, um, funky "magic light reflection". Read on to see how we feel about one of Cooler Master's premium cases.
