High Performance Gaming on a Budget: Building a Value PC with Cooler Master’s Gladiator 600 Case

Exploring the Gladiator 600

Here we see the Gladiator 600 in raw sunlight with the left side panel off.  The inside of the case is not painted.  That is something you can do for yourself, if you wish.  Not painting the case’s interior is a major cost-saving feature for the manufacturer and it often differentiates a midrange case from a high-end one.  Inside the Gladiator 600 is sufficient room for full-sized video cards and large CPU coolers.  One mid-tower case is not more “roomy” than another; it depends on how well everything is arranged that makes a build easy – or not.  The Gladiator 600 is one of the most fun and trouble-free builds that this editor has ever put together.

The empty case in raw sunlight (left side)

We also see the Gladiator 600 comes with the standard internal connectors which are eSATA, USB, HD audio, and LED and switch connectors. The instructions come packaged in a plastic bag and the accessories are also packaged in another plastic bag. You will also get a 5.25 inch to 3.5 inch adapter included with your Gladiator 600 along with the necessary screws, zip ties, rails for the hard drive bays and also a dust filter for the power supply unit.  It is mostly a “tool free” build although a Philips screw driver is always useful

Now from the right. Note the clever cutouts for cable management

Here is the Gladiator 600 from the right.  The motherboard tray is not removable – a cost saving feature – but the clever cutouts make it completely unnecessary.  We will later see how we can easily remove and replace a CPU in just a few minutes – without the irritating need to remove the motherboard, just to remove a heatsink.

Here is the back panel:

The rear panel

We see another cost-saving feature implemented that is appropriate for a mid-range case, which is usually air-cooled.  There are no cutouts and grommets for water cooling tubes to pass through. We also see a space for an optional 80 MM-120 MM fan. To the left of the fan cutout is where the standard motherboard I/O shield plate is installed.

Below that are the standard seven expansion slots. Both left and right side panels are secured with two thumb screws each.

The front is constructed of plastic and metal mesh.  One can see through the front drive bays all the way to the back of the chassis. The metal mesh covers even act somewhat as dust filters as they are further covered inside with soft plastic mesh similar to that found in air conditioners.

Here is the front of the Gladiator 600:

The mesh covering the front acts as a dust filter

We see the front I/O panel with 2 USB ports, external Serial-ATA port along with the headphone and microphone jacks. Also on this panel, you will find the on/off button for the front cooling fan’s (conservative) blue LED, as well as the system’s power button and reset button. There is also a power LED and a hard disk drive activity LED. The bottom mesh mostly acts as a dust filter and allows for cool air to be pulled in through it using the blue LED 120 MM fan.

Here is the Gladiator 600 with the left side panel installed.   The right side panel is completely plain with no opening whatsoever.  You may add up to two 120 MM  fans on the side panel, but if you use a tall CPU cooler such as Cooler Master’s Hyper N212 – visible through the top fan opening –  the top cooling fan may have to be secured to the outside of your case as it is a mid-tower.  Note that there are no dust filters supplied to protect these openings.

Cooler Master does very nice painting that is easy to clean