Many PC gamers use a mid-tower computer case, mainly because most full-featured motherboards are also full-sized ATX. Mini-ITX motherboards have come on the scene over the past few years, but many of them have been under-powered, and not exactly suitable for gaming. Intel’s ION platform is changing that, and now there is a legitimate need for small Mini-ITX cases for small and cute gaming system builds.
ThermalTake’s Element Q case is a small and cute case that is also targeted towards the PC gamer and computer enthusiast. Not only does it have a small footprint, but can take a decent amount of hardware, and even includes its own power supply.
Features
- Quintessence – Typical small form factor, Mini-ITX chassis
- Qute – Cute, a small size which requires minimum spacing
- Quiet – Energy saving platform with fanless design
- Built-in 200W SFX power supply
- Front I/O ports for easy access
- Compatible with Intel Atom platform
- Don’t settle for less. Element Q supports full-size 5.25″ Optical Disc Drives (Blu-Ray Players or DVD-RW Drives)
On the next page we expose the Element…
The Thermaltake ElementQ mini case is made from SGCC (cold-rolled) steel and has a plastic front. The main part of the case is covered by a “U” metal shield, which has been painted black.
The front bezel is made from molded black plastic, and has two drive bays; a single 5.25″ drive bay for optical drives, and a single 3.5″ bay, which is suitable for card readers, hard drive, or an SSD loading bay (like the one reviewed here http://www.ocmodshop.com/ocmodshop.aspx?a=1762). Below this bay is a a pull-down cover that concels two USB 2.0 ports, a headphone and microphone jack. Flanking each side of the 3.5″ bay is a reset button, power button, red hard drive activity LED and blue power LED. The bays are also surrounded by red trim, which looks rather nice. At the bottom of the bezel is a hidden air vent, which allows fresh air into the case.
Front, back, right and left of the Element Q case
Each side of the case has a stamped pattern which allows airflow into the case. The rear of the case has ventillation holes , a slot cover for a video card, exhaust for the included 200W power supply, and an ITX I/O area. To give you a sense of scale, the I/O area is practically the width of this case.
The “U” metal cover encloses the top, left and right sides of the case, and is removed by removing four screws from the back. It can be a tight fit, and it requires a bit of force to push back on this cover.
Once the cover is off, the inside of the case can be seen. The small power supply is already mounted, and a bag of screws and other mounting hardware is included inside. Of course, all of the front panel motherboard header cables are pre-wired to the front panel. It has both HD Audio and AC97 audio connectors, in addition to a single USB header, and of course power, reset, power LED, and HDD LED headers.
- Two plastic drive rails (for the vertically-mounted HDD)
- various case screws
- a tiny speaker lead
- four adhesive vinyl anti-slip feet
- a small clear cable tie
The power supply is a ThermalTake SL-B220SFX 220W type. It has a single 4-pin motherboard power connector, SATA cable, single Molex connector, 1 floppy connector, and a 20+4 pin motherboard connector cable. with the following specifications:
| DC Output | +3.3V | +5V | +12V | -12V | +5Vsb |
| Max Output Current | 12A | 12A | 3.5A | 0.3A | 2A |
| Mac Output Power | 80W | 180W | 3.6W | 50W | |
| Total Power | 220W | ||||
The case is pretty small, but you can fit a decent amount of hardware in there. There is a 5.25″ bay, 3.5″ external bay, and single 3.5″ internal bay, although this last one is not obvious. You can in theory install two hard drives (perhaps three if you use an SSD bay converter). One hard drive can fit in the internal 3.5″ bay, and another full-size hard drive can fit standing vertically opposite of the video card slot. The back and front of the case is held together by the extended 5.25″ bay and a plastic piece which holps hold everything together.
The included power supply insinuates that it only expects a single hard drive and optical drive, given the limited number of power connectors. You can easily use a power splitter for your needs, however.
On the next page we install hardware…
Since there is very limited space, you must pop the front bezel from the front, which is easily done by pressing your thumb against four plastic tabs at each of the bezel’s corners. It is highly recommended to remove the power supply and install the motherboard first, attach cables, then drives, and then power.
Mini-ITX boards only have a limited number of screw holes, and the motherboard tray has been pre-formed to accept these screws, so there is no need to install any brass standoffs. Install the I/O panel and motherboard, and then screw into place.
The front drive bays must be loaded from the front (hence the reason the front panel is temporarially removed. With the case top off, you easily have access to both sides of the drive, and can attach mounting screws. Attaching another hard drive is relatively easy with the included plastic drive rails. Attach these rails to a standard 3.5″ hard drive, and line them up with the screw holes at the top, and make sure the plastic rails fit into the metal groove on the bottom.
It must be noted that there is no positive air pressure included with this case. The only active heat exhaust the case experiences will be from the power supply. Since the case only has room for a single-slot video card it is unlikely that you’ll be using a GPU heatsink with seperate exhaust. The only fresh air the case receives is from the ventillation holes on the front, sides, and back.
Once the hardware is installed, attaching all of the cables can be tight, but there is a decent amount of room underneath the drive bays to stuff cables. Since room is tight it is very important to route your cables and tie them up so they don’t obstruct airflow or any CPU fans. Once your hardware is installed, don’t expect to mess with it too much, as the room is tight, which requires practially taking everything apart just to do something simple like removing dust.
The small SFX power supply isn’t the best thing in the world, but does feel pretty heavy for its size. Besides, what do you expect from a PSU that comes with a case, especitally when that case is under $100? In practical use, however, many cheap power supplies are fine if you don’t use over 60% of their rated load. The included power supply works just fine with the 90W load we put on it, and the heat exhast from the PSU ranged from 81 to 86 degrees F, and the fan was practically silent. Most people that get a case this small will probably use a motherboard with integrated graphics, and I would be wary recommending a high-power video card monster in this setup.
So what do we really think? Read on the next page…
The ThermalTake Element Q VL52021N2U Mini ITX case has everything you need, and nothing you don’t. It is a pretty neat little device and makes for a decent little gaming machine. You can fit a good amount of hardware for a midrange gaming setup, and it doesn’t take up too much space on your desk (or LAN party).
The case isn’t the smallest Mini-ITX case in the world, but those extra few inches make installation a lot easier. The footprint is still very small, and can fit just about anywhere.
The included power supply will do its job well, as long as you use some common sense. This case doesn’t have any positive case pressure or any other active cooling. If you choose your parts well then you won’t have any heat or power issues. Given this guideline, you can build a pretty decent gaming or MAME machine, but don’t expect to build a rig with the best 3dMark scores on the block.
The case is well-built, like many of ThermalTake’s products, and is pretty easy to work in if you follow common-sense procedures and route everything properly. The case is rather inexpensive for a mini ITX case, but you don’t get any glowing bells and whistles. There are still a few customization options, such as a custom paint job, and this case is screaming to have a plexiglass window installed in the top (along with a see-through Blu-ray drive cover).
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