Hard drive installation works a bit differently, but no more difficult. There are drive rails that need to be inserted into the drive as most other forms of rails. The difference here is no screwdriver is needed. Simply pop them in and slide the drive into place.

Our review unit came with a basic 380W PSU, but you'll need to verify with the shop you buy at if the case will come with a PSU. The power supply is of decent quality, and has all the required connections needed for today's modern motherboards.

Cooling Performance

Athlon 64 3500+, Foxconn WinFast 6150K8MA-8EKRS, 2x512MB Corsair XMS PC3200, ATI AIW X1800XL, Maxtor 120GB SATA 7200rpm, Swiftech MCX6400-V.

We'll be comparing the cooling performance to the Cooler Master Centurion 531 and Aspire X-QPACK MicroATX case. Understand that the Centurion 531 is a full sized tower, but since it features similar cooling properties, we've decided to include it. We were unable to use a large CPU heatsink with all of the test cases, so we opted for the lower profile Swiftech MCX6400-V cooler for all our tests.

Our usual heatsink setup (ambient temperature, thermal paste, etc.) was used, and to test the cooling features of the Centurion 540, we tested the case with the side panel vents exposed and closed off as done in our Centurion 531 review. We also tested the case with the rear 80mm fans installed and uninstalled (stock). A Cooler Master Cool Drive was used to collect results of the video card.

Stock configuration with side vents exposed

	CPU	System	Video
Centurion 540	49	38	53
Centurion 531	48	37	53
X-QPACK	50	40	55

Stock configuration with side vents closed

	CPU	System	Video
Centurion 540	50	38	55
Centurion 531	51	38	54
X-QPACK	50	40	55

Rear 80mm fans with side vents exposed/closed

	CPU	System	Video
Exposed	45	34	50
Closed	48	36	51

The Centurion 540 and Centurion 531 were generally neck-and-neck across the board. Both were stronger cooling performers than the Aspire X-QPACK. It's also quite obvious that the optimal cooling performance is when the rear of the case is configured with 80mm fans. The fan duct is also quite effective, and it needs to be since you're limited in your cooler choices.

Final Words

Personally, I'm a pretty big fan of the look and feel of the Centurion 540. The silver and black design is pretty slick and the front bezel is a major improvement looks wise, in our opinion, over their previous products. Those of you who keep their PCs on their desk will appreciate having the external I/O on the lower front. If you keep your PC on the floor, the location is a little less convenient.

As we've covered, installation is very easy with no tools required for peripheral installation. Despite the small size, the interior is roomy enough that the loss of the motherboard tray was not an issue. Every metal sheet was neatly folded so your chances of getting cut are pretty small.

The CPU fan duct does a good job of lowering CPU temps a bit, though owners of large air coolers will want to consider other options. Otherwise, cooling performance was very good and is not terribly noisy compared with other cases with stock 80mm fans. Keep in mind that no fans are included, so you'll need to spring for those and the low noise we just mentioned will depend on the fan choices you make. Something for enthusiasts to be aware of... water cooling is very possible with this case since the case allows for a 120mm fan.

For a cool , the Centurion 540 is a very good case for the money. You won't find a PSU with the case at that price, let alone the fans we just mentioned, but we think this is one of the easiest MicroATX cases to work with. It offers excellent cooling potential, it's very easy to work with and looks pretty damn slick to boot.

Pros: Solid construction, good cooling performance, tool-free, and good value for the money.

Cons: No fans included, limited air cooling choices with duct installed.

Bottom Line: Cooler Master has put in a lot of premium features into a fairly inexpensive case. While not everyone is going to need a MicroATX case, we think the Centurion 540 is among the best choices on the market.