Cooler Master CM Media 281 Mid-Tower/Desktop/HTPC Case

Reviews: Cases

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Max Slowik
Kurtis
Cooler Master
Apr. 22, 2007

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First Impressions

The CM Media 281/280 is a standard size mid-tower case, larger than most HTPCs (16.93in W. x 7in H. x 18.78in L.). This is both to its advantage and disadvantage. Instead of being limited to short heatsinks, small motherboards, and other potentially performance-limiting hardware like most HTPCs, the CM's larger size will accommodate regular computer components: large, passive heatsinks will work just fine, and there's room for a lot of drives.

But for many people, a small footprint is itself the advantage of home theater PCs. In order to blend in with all the stereo equipment, the computer needs to be small.

The case is mostly steel, with a plastic front bezel. The bezel has a brushed aluminum veneer with a glossy black finish to give it that stereo-equipment look.

The case feet join the bezel with a faux-finish. They are plastic made to look like brushed aluminum, though they have good non-abrasive rubber pads for soles.

The CM Media comes with a single, silent 120mm exhaust fan and has spots for three more fans around the case. There is one fan mount for the hard drive cage and two near the CPU area, for use as intake or exhaust, but Cooler Master does not include fans for them. These CPU fan mounts can house 80, 92, or 120mm fans. Because the vents have mounts for all three fan sizes. They aren't subtle at all, and probably look a little ugly to some people.

Fortunately, when standing vertically, one of the fan mounts works out to be on the underside of the case, out of view.

The paint on the case is very good. It's a light powder-coat semi-gloss black. While it's not immune to finger prints, it's quite scratch-resistant.

The power button is chrome with the same black patina as the front bezel. It's sturdy, with a good spring and straight movement, and is surrounded by a clear ring with an LED. It's a dim blue with a slight green tinge that matches the VFD of the CM Media 280 variant. The reset button is behind a drop-down access panel, along with the other I/O connections and HDD activity light. The HDD LED is close enough that its activity causes the power ring to pulse unobtrusively.

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Page 1: Introduction
Page 2: First Impressions
Page 3: Inside the Case
Page 4: Quality Check
Page 5: Conclusion

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