{"id":10039,"date":"2009-08-08T03:27:50","date_gmt":"2009-08-08T03:27:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/alienbabeltech.com\/main\/?p=10039"},"modified":"2009-08-11T02:11:16","modified_gmt":"2009-08-11T02:11:16","slug":"high-performance-gaming-on-a-budget-building-a-value-pc-with-cooler-masters-gladiator-600-case","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/alienbabeltech.com\/main\/high-performance-gaming-on-a-budget-building-a-value-pc-with-cooler-masters-gladiator-600-case\/","title":{"rendered":"High Performance Gaming on a Budget: Building a Value PC with Cooler Master’s Gladiator 600 Case"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Value Gamer<\/span><\/h1>\n

Welcome to the first part of our value<\/em> series.\u00a0 We are currently deep into a world-wide financial recession, and although most gamers would love to upgrade regularly and have Tri-Fire or SLi graphics systems powered by the most expensive overclocked quad core CPU to play their DX10 PC games, most of us must be practical.\u00a0 For the first time, we are going to be dealing with the word, BUDGET<\/em>. We want to see how close to our Intel PC\u2019s performance that we can come, while building a completely new PC that is not only a competent gaming performer at 1920\u00d71200, but one that won\u2019t break our bank. Our introduction<\/a> was published last week.<\/p>\n

The Hardware and Conditions for our value gamer<\/span><\/h2>\n
\"Gladiator600_Image\"<\/a>

Gladiator 600 is a beautiful case<\/p><\/div>\n

We want a handsome PC in a nicely cooled case, a quality CPU cooler and a solid power supply unit (PSU) that will handle a multi-core CPU and CrossFire. We expect you are probably upgrading from your current PC and will migrate your keyboard, mouse, optical drives, hard drives, LCD and operating system to your new build. We chose a CrossFire motherboard as we are going to explore AMD\u2019s value CPU and GPU choices. We will also examine the stock and overclocked gaming performance of the Athlon II 250 X2 vs. the Phenom II 550 X2 vs. Phenom II 720 X3. We will match our new gaming build against our current maxed out, and much more expensive, Intel Penryn Core2Quad system \u2013 at stock, clock for clock and then at each CPU\u2019s max OC. To be completely fair in our benchmarking for both Intel and AMD platforms, we are benchmarking with two graphics cards each – Nvidia\u2019s GTX 280 and ATi\u2019s HD 4870-X2 and we are using identically configured PCs and identical hard drives in comparing them.<\/p>\n

From the image (above) from Cooler Master\u2019s site, we see the Gladiator 600 case is handsome indeed.\u00a0 Yet even a professionally captured picture does it little justice compared to \u201cin person\u201d and our own images will simply attempt to capture the excitement and experiences we have had building a new PC with an awesome value case.<\/p>\n

The Value Series:<\/span><\/h3>\n

We plan to break this series into several parts – although we may combine or expand the categories along the way (and the benchmarks will be published very soon as they are now finalized):<\/p>\n

1. The case
\n 2. The power supply
\n 3. The CPU and CPU Cooler
\n 4. The motherboard and system RAM
\n 5. The video cards and setting up
\n 6. Overclocking and fine-tuning performance
\n 7. The Benchmarks<\/p>\n

Why Cooler Master?<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

We have come to appreciate Cooler Master during the 10 months that ABT has been reviewing hardware. They stand out as a company that is dedicated to creating great cooling solutions and their innovations are impressive. What this editor finds to be especially refreshing is that they are very responsive to comments and even constructive criticism from the end user. As an example, it was suggested that their entry-level cooler Hyper N520 was time consuming to change out in this review<\/a> because you had to remove the motherboard.\u00a0 We even contemplated cutting a hole in the motherboard tray to allow access! Well, Cooler Master actually did this with their newer series of cases, including the Gladiator 600, which we are reviewing right here and now!<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The Case: Cooler Master\u2019s Gladiator 600<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Gadiator600-3\"<\/a>

Gladiator 600 has a classic look<\/p><\/div>\n

The \u201cLook\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The first thing we note about Cooler Master\u2019s Gladiator 600 design is this mid-tower\u2019s classic look.\u00a0 This is not a kid\u2019s PC, nor is it cheap in any way. It complements any d\u00e9cor. I was in total shock when I opened the Gladiator 600 box; I thought surely that Karan had made a serious mistake when I asked him to get me a \u201cvalue\u201d case from Cooler Master. I even argued with him about the price – as it was not available yet – as there was no way I imagined they could make such a great value for under $70. It took a very thorough examination to find out the differences between this awesome value case and their much more expensive line of cases.<\/p>\n

Cooler Master did an incredible job of saving money in the right places – without compromising style, cooling or quality. We will tell you their secret very shortly and I believe you will also be impressed with the Gladiator 600 in providing a great value in a superb mid-tower case. The chassis sports a plastic but chrome-looking part which visually divides the front into two sections and has the front I\/O panel there. The paint job of the chassis is very good and there are no imperfections that we could find.\u00a0 The paint is moderately easy to scratch.\u00a0 Even greasy handprints wipe off easily and we give high marks to the exterior.<\/p>\n

\"L_side\"<\/a>

On the left we see provisions for 2 more optional cooling fans<\/p><\/div>\n


<\/p>\n

\"Back_full3\"<\/a>

The back panel has room for another optional cooling fan<\/p><\/div>\n

The Specifications and features:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Gladiator600_specImage\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Features of the case include:<\/strong><\/p>\n

* Excellent airflow
\n * Superior cooling performance
\n * Well-managed interior space
\n * Excellent cable management system
\n * Easy customization for adding additional cooling fans
\n * Tool-free design
\n * User friendly
\n * Two-year warranty .. and much more!<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Cases and Cooling<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The PC case has evolved over the years from from its original passively-cooled closed white or beige box.\u00a0 All of the hardware has become hotter and hotter over the years as evidenced by the growing capacity of power supply units – especially for gamers.\u00a0 As PC cooling has developed over the years, so have cases to meet their growing cooling needs.<\/p>\n

The hardware outputs all of its heat into the case and there must be a good way to transfer and remove this heat or else the inside case temperature rises.\u00a0 In turn, a hot case raises the temperature of the hardware inside, leading to their possibly shortened lifespan or instability if overclocked.<\/p>\n

Cooling thus becomes critical to an overclocker.\u00a0 If we lower the case temperature, we lower the hardware temperature and generally we can overclock better with cooler components. The latest PC cases come equipped with fans that\u00a0 intake and exhaust a large volume of air, thereby lowering the temperature of the hardware inside.\u00a0 Many modern cases come standard with an intake fan and an exhaust fan. Even more extreme cases will have these fans as well as adding fans to the top, bottom and sides.<\/p>\n

The Gladiator 600 comes with two fans included \u2013 one 120 MM intake fan at the front and one 140 MM exhaust fan at the top of the case.\u00a0 You can easily add 3 more (optional) 120-140 MM fans for extreme airflow and cooling \u2013 one 120 MM fan at the rear and two side case fans either 120 or 140 MM<\/p>\n

Here is the front fan which is easily seen with the grille off.\u00a0 It also sports a (conservative) blue LED behind the front fan which looks great at night and can also be switched off.<\/p>\n

\"Gl600_frontfan_front\"<\/a>

The front cooling fan sports a conservative blue LCD that you can switch off<\/p><\/div>\n

Here is the big top 140 MM fan to exhaust hot air from your case which otherwise tends to pool at the top of a case:<\/p>\n

\"Gl600_topfan\"<\/a>

Gladiator's top cooling fan is 140 MM<\/p><\/div>\n

The second thing that a PC builder will appreciate \u2013 besides the Gladiator 600\u2019s reasonable price \u2013 is its attention to detail. The very worst thing is sharp edges inside a case and there were none in this one. The other thing that is important to consider when building a PC is to not grab the cheapest budget case that you can find.\u00a0 Technically, you don\u2019t even need a case; you can set everything up on a workbench.<\/p>\n

It is important to consider that a well-designed case properly holds the components in exact relationship to each other; there is no mismatch or straining anything anywhere to add or remove hardware. In addition – if designed properly \u2013 a good case will help to keep cooler air circulating around your expensive components and help to prolong their life by keeping them as cool as possible. Heat is an enemy of your hardware and Cooler Master understands this. All of this became critical to our project where we must overclock our budget CPUs to perhaps attain the performance of those many times their price.<\/p>\n

Cooler Master\u2019s name “Gladiator” is similar in an ancient Roman theme to their \u201cCenturion\u201d name, which is their earlier line of mid-range value cases.\u00a0 We have been using our Gladiator 600 for over a month – switching hardware in and out almost daily – and we love it!\u00a0 Now that it has been properly introduced, let\u2019s explore the Gladiator 600 and begin our build.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The Packing Box and the Presentation of the Gladiator 600<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The Gladiator 600 comes well-packed in a tough cardboard box that also advertises its features in retail stores. Although it looked like the delivery company might have used it for target practice for training their drivers, the case was perfectly preserved. We give our \u2018thumbs up\u2019 for minimal but effective packing \u2013 and much less to recycle and\/or reuse.<\/p>\n

\"Box_full\"<\/a>

This tough box was battered but the precious contents were preserved <\/p><\/div>\n


<\/p>\n

\"Back_side\"<\/a>

The specifications are on the box<\/p><\/div>\n


<\/p>\n

\"CM_GL600_box-004\"<\/a>

Features are advertised on the box<\/p><\/div>\n


<\/p>\n

\"CM_GL600_box-side_cap\"<\/a>

The protective packing includes the box, 2 end caps and a tough plastic bag<\/p><\/div>\n


<\/p>\n

\"CM_GL600_AirflowDiag\"<\/a>

Gladiator 600 advertises excellent airflow for cooling your components<\/p><\/div>\n

Now that we have unpacked the Gladiator 600, let’s give it a thorough examination.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n


<\/p>\n

Exploring the Gladiator 600 <\/span>
\n <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Here we see the Gladiator 600 in raw sunlight with the left side panel off.\u00a0 The inside of the case is not painted.\u00a0 That is something you can do for yourself, if you wish.\u00a0 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.\u00a0 Inside the Gladiator 600 is sufficient room for full-sized video cards and large CPU coolers.\u00a0 One mid-tower case is not more \u201croomy\u201d than another; it depends on how well everything is arranged that makes a build easy \u2013 or not.\u00a0 The Gladiator 600 is one of the most fun and trouble-free builds that this editor has ever put together.<\/p>\n

\"Empty_L_side\"<\/a>

The empty case in raw sunlight (left side)<\/p><\/div>\n

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.\u00a0 It is mostly a \u201ctool free\u201d build although a Philips screw driver is always useful<\/p>\n

\"Empty_R_side\"<\/a>

Now from the right. Note the clever cutouts for cable management <\/p><\/div>\n

Here is the Gladiator 600 from the right.\u00a0 The motherboard tray is not removable \u2013 a cost saving feature – but the clever cutouts make it completely unnecessary.\u00a0 We will later see how we can easily remove and replace a CPU in just a few minutes \u2013 without the irritating need to remove the motherboard, just to remove a heatsink.<\/p>\n

Here is the back panel:<\/p>\n

\"CM_GL600_back\"<\/a>

The rear panel<\/p><\/div>\n

We see another cost-saving feature implemented that is appropriate for a mid-range case, which is usually air-cooled.\u00a0 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.<\/p>\n

Below that are the standard seven expansion slots. Both left and right side panels are secured with two thumb screws each.<\/p>\n

The front is constructed of plastic and metal mesh.\u00a0 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.<\/p>\n

Here is the front of the Gladiator 600:<\/p>\n

\"FrontPanel\"<\/a>

The mesh covering the front acts as a dust filter<\/p><\/div>\n

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\u2019s (conservative) blue LED, as well as the system\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n


<\/p>\n

Here is the Gladiator 600 with the left side panel installed.\u00a0\u00a0 The right side panel is completely plain with no opening whatsoever.\u00a0 You may add up to two 120 MM\u00a0 fans on the side panel, but if you use a tall CPU cooler such as Cooler Master\u2019s Hyper N212 – visible through the top fan opening –\u00a0 the top cooling fan may have to be secured to the outside of your case as it is a mid-tower.\u00a0 Note that there are no dust filters supplied to protect these openings.<\/p>\n

\"L_side\"<\/a>

Cooler Master does very nice painting that is easy to clean<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/p>\n


<\/p>\n

Installing the PSU<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s look at the options for installing our power supply.<\/p>\n

\"DustFilter\"<\/a>

A dust filter is supplied for the PSU<\/p><\/div>\n

Here we see the supplied dust filter that is supplied for use usually in conjunction with the power supply.\u00a0 Of course, if you use your PSU with the fan facing up, the dust filter can be used elsewhere within the case just as long as you use an 80 MM fan. If you install your PSU with the fan facing downward, the best place for this dust filter is under the power supply, to protect it from clogging with dust as the next image illustrates.<\/p>\n

\"DustFilterInstalled\"<\/a>

Here is the dust filter installed<\/p><\/div>\n

Simply place the dust filter in the case clips and you will now protect your power supply unit from choking with dust drawn in from beneath your case.\u00a0 If the dust filter starts to clog with dust, simply tip your PC on its side and vacuum the dust away.<\/p>\n

\"PS_Fan_down\"<\/a>

Here the PSU is installed with the intake fan facing down<\/p><\/div>\n

We are using Cooler Master\u2019s Silent Power 600 M (which we will also review in our value series) which was also supplied by Cooler Master – to illustrate positioning.\u00a0 Here the power supply unit is installed with the fan facing downward and positioned directly over the dust filter.\u00a0 The cool air is drawn in by the power supply\u2019s fan from beneath your PC and exhausted out the PSU\u2019s grille.\u00a0 In this position, the PSU\u2019s fan does not affect case air flow at all.<\/p>\n

\"PS_Fan_up\"<\/a>

Now the PSU is installed with the intake fan facing up<\/p><\/div>\n

Here the power supply unit is installed \u201cupside down\u201d with the fan facing upward.\u00a0 Of course, the dust filter is no longer needed here as the warm air from inside<\/em> the case is now exhausted out the PSU\u2019s grille.\u00a0 One of the disadvantages with the fan facing up is that now you have to take extra care so as not to drop a screw or other tiny object into the now open PSU.\u00a0 As a tip, cover your open PSU with a cloth when you are adding a video card, for example.<\/p>\n

Notice the rubber strip that we slightly pulled away on the right to show it better.\u00a0 The rubber insulation is installed on both sides of the power supply and it helps to isolate any vibration and dampen noise as well as to keep your PSU (and case interior if you paint it) from being scratched.<\/p>\n

\"CM_GL600_bottom1\"<\/a>

The large rubber feet prevent scratching and isolate vibration<\/p><\/div>\n

The bottom of the Gladiator 600 sits on 4 rubber feet which serves the dual purpose of isolating vibration and keeping it solidly on any surface that you set it on without scratching or damage.<\/p>\n

We got our power supply in.\u00a0 Now let\u2019s put it all together.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Putting it all together<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The first thing we usually do is to install the motherboard.\u00a0 Installing the mainboard is done by using the included spacers and screws. It should become apparent at this point, that mid-tower cases are very compact and that you do not have much room to work with. If you are going to completely fill your case with hardware, make sure you plan your assembly process very carefully.<\/p>\n

It is wise to install the CPU and CPU cooler first along with the RAM on the motherboard and then install it into the case. Here we show our stock AMD cooler before and then after it is in place.<\/p>\n

\"CPU_install\"<\/a>

The motherboard is installed with the RAM and CPU first<\/p><\/div>\n

\"CPU_install_backside\"<\/a>

The CPU cooler can easily be installed without removing the motherboard<\/p><\/div>\n

\"CPU_Cooler_backplate_instal\"<\/a>

No more removing the motherboard just to change a CPU or cooler<\/p><\/div>\n

Oh what a tangle of cables we see!\u00a0 But there is relief as Cooler Master provides an excellent way to reroute and hide them as we shall demonstrate in the second image.<\/p>\n

\"Case_mobo_CPU\"<\/a>

We can hide this tangle of cables<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Gl600_side_open1\"<\/a>

Cables are rerouted mostly behind the motherboard - for neatness and airflow<\/p><\/div>\n

You can also see from the above image that in the front of the Gladiator 600, the bottom\u00a0 half is taken up by a hard drive bay which can accommodate five hard drives by using the Cooler Master supplied rails. The top area is filled with the five external drive bays, each of which has a sturdy plastic sliding lock to hold your drives securely.<\/p>\n

To install our external drives, we had to pry off the entire front of the chassis. In our next image, you can clearly see the front intake fan. The front metal mesh may help with the larger dust particles a bit, but behind all of the front grills are plastic foam traps for dust and they are quite effective in keeping your case’s interior dust free.<\/p>\n

\"Gl600_frontgrille_off1\"<\/a>

Pry off the case front to install your optical drives<\/p><\/div>\n

Installing your drives is almost too easy with Cooler Master\u2019s \u201ctool-free\u201d design.\u00a0 Just slide your hard drive into the adapter and lock it into place.\u00a0 We liked the more secure feeling of screwing our hard drive to the adapter and we used the four supplied screws.<\/p>\n

\"Gl600_toolless_HD_back\"<\/a>

The tool-free design makes installation very easy<\/p><\/div>\n

Next you slide your drives into the bays; first partway, then properly seated, as shown:<\/p>\n

\"Gl600_toolless_drives\"<\/a>

Step 1 - insert the drive<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Gl600_toolless_optical\"<\/a>

Step 2 - position it<\/p><\/div>\n

When they are seated properly, simply press down on the clip and they are locked into place.\u00a0 You can also use screws if you are using your PC for LAN games and want your drives secured even better.<\/p>\n

\"Gl600_HD_lock\"<\/a>

Step 3 - lock it down with a finger press<\/p><\/div>\n

All the mainboard expansion slots also have a screwless system in the form of plastic clips.\u00a0 Unfortunately, they do not hold well, and to make it even worse, they are quite easy to break.\u00a0 Fortunately, Cooler Master has included black screws which we highly recommend that you use for heavy video cards like GTX 280 and HD 4870-X2.\u00a0 Here the plastic clips are useful as they will hold the video card in place “hands-free” while you use a screwdriver to secure it.<\/p>\n


<\/p>\n

\"Gl600_side_open21\"<\/a>

Don't bother with the plastic clips for the expansion slots<\/p><\/div>\n

Each of these extra-long video cards will fit into the Gladiator 600 but it takes some care, effort and mental planning to insert them if all of your bays are filled.<\/p>\n

\"NotMuchRoomGPU\"<\/a>

It is a tight squeeze for a 10.5" videocard; it tighter for two - plan ahead<\/p><\/div>\n

Well, that was easy!<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s test the Gladiator 600’s ability to cool the hardware inside and then we will wrap our review up.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n


<\/p>\n

The Final Build and the Cooling Test
\n <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

For our case cooling test, we used AMD’s Phenom 720 X3 which has a stock core speed of 2.8 GHz and which we overclocked to 3.5 GHz.\u00a0 For this case temperature test, we used our GTX 280 plus a second card – 8800 GTX in Nvidia\u2019s PhysX configuration.\u00a0 Either video card will heat your case and together they are a real test of a case\u2019s ability to move cooling air past your hardware.\u00a0 What makes ours far more intense of a test than usual, is that our 8800 GTX is an open cooler design which dumps this mini-furnace\u2019s heat right into your case and further roasts the GTX 280 above it.<\/p>\n

Test Configuration – Hardware<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n