Sunbeam Acrylic HTPC Case

[t_ski]

[page=Introduction]
Introduction
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sunbeamlogo.jpg
I would like to thank Sunbeam (http://www.sunbeamtech.com/) for supplying the review sample.

Features:
<blockquote> HTPC chassis
High quality hardware
Core fan design
2 x USB 2.0 Ports , Audio and Microphone in Front of the Case
Can be assembled 8 pcs 3.5" HDD
Four 80mm fans included</blockquote>

Specifications:
<blockquote><table border="1" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0" class="ramtable" width="450">
<tr>
<th scope="row">Color:</th>
<td scope="row">Transparent (HTPC-T)<br />UV-Blue (HTPC-HUVB)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th scope="row">Drive Bay:</th>
<td scope="row">5.25" Drives Bay x 2<br />3.5" External Drive Bay x 1<br />3.5" Internal Drive Bays x 8</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th scope="row">Front I/O Port:</th>
<td scope="row">USB 2.0 x 2 + Speaker + Microphone</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th scope="row">Weight:</th>
<td scope="row">Gross Weight: 5.6 kg; Net Weight: 4.8 kg</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th scope="row">Dimensions:</th>
<td scope="row">47.5 * 44 * 19.5cm (L*W*H)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th scope="row">Motherboard Type:</th>
<td scope="row">Standard ATX</td>
</tr>
</table></blockquote>

[page=Packaging & Contents]
Packaging & Contents
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc01sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc01.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc02sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc02.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc03sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc03.jpg)
The Acrylic HTPC case comes in typical Sunbeam packaging, consisting of a black cardboard box with color images and specifications on the box. Like most acrylic cases, this one requires assembly, so the box is small and thin.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc04sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc04.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc05sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc05.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc08sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc08.jpg)
Inside the package the parts are placed in another cardboard box and banded together with two plastic straps. Half of the inner box contains the acrylic panels for the case, while the other half contains the hardware, fans and other pieces.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc06sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc06.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc07sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc07.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc09sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc09.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc11sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc11.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc12sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc12.jpg)
Included with the case are four 80mm UV blue LED fans and four chrome wire grills. Nearly all the components are individually wrapped, which keeps parts from rubbing together or scratching other parts. The acrylic panels are wrapped in white foam, while almost everything else is placed individual resealable bags.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc10sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc10.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc13sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc13.jpg)
The other items included with the Acrylic HTPC case are the rear metal PCI and I/O panel, a front I/O panel, a pair of white cloth gloves and two screwdrivers.

[page=Case Assembly]
Assembly
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc15sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc15.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc14sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc14.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc16sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc16.jpg)
To start the assembly of the Sunbeam Acrylic HTPC case, the bottom panel needs the four case feet and two power supply supports attached to it with the included double-sided tape. Four corner brackets are then attached loosely with the chrome thumbscrews. By leaving these thumbscrews just a little loose, adding the side panels and making minor adjustments will be much easier.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc17sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc17.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc18sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc18.jpg)
There are nine motherboard support stand-offs included with the kit, and these should be added next.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc19sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc19.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc20sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc20.jpg)
The Acrylic HTPC case features eight internal 3.5" bays, which has to be the most I have ever seen in an HTPC case. In fact, it is probably more hard drive bays than on many standard cases, aside from some full tower monsters out there. Here, the two HDD cages are assembled and added to the lower panel. These two cages can be left out if not needed, or one or both used depending on the user's needs. It would make sense to add the drives to the cages as they are assembled, but the drives were left out for clarity.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc21sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc21.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc22sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc22.jpg)
Next the front panel was assembled. Two of the fans and two of the grills were added to their respective openings, and the front I/O panel was added, too. Then the front panel was attached to the corner brackets, still leaving the thumbscrews a little loose.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc23sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc23.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc24sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc24.jpg)
Moving on to the rear of the case, the metal PCI plate should be attached to the rear panel, along with another 80mm fan and grill. This panel then gets attached to the bottom, same as the front.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc25sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc25.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc26sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc26.jpg)
Now the two side panels can be added, and they get attached with more of the silver thumbscrews. There are two supports that are used along the sides to help hold the case together.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc28sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc28.jpg)
Sunbeam includes a bracket for their "Core Fan" system, which in this case is another 80mm fan that is used internally to provide additional airflow around the PCI cards. This works rather well, unless by some chance the video card used is a full-sized card like any of the high-end models from ATI or NVIDIA. This bracket might be in the way then, and if left out of the system there would be four open holes on the top panel.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc27sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc27.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc29sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc29.jpg)
The top panel gets added last, and then all of the thumbscrews can be tightened up.

[page=System Installation]
Installation
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc30sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc30.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc31sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc31.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc32sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc32.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc33sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc33.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc34sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc34.jpg)
When adding components to the Sunbeam Acrylic HTPC case, the optical drives and front bay devices should be added with the HDD bays removed. The hard drives should be added to their bays while they are being assembled, and then they can be added after the 5.25" drives are installed. Here, the long, thin screwdriver Sunbeam provides comes in pretty handy. It easily reaches down between the HDD cages and the front panel, which is enough to tighten the two front screws. The rear two screws can be added after the cages are in place. Everything else goes normally with the screws provided by Sunbeam. In some cases normal screws would be too short, especially when trying to pass through the 1/4" thick acrylic panels.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc36sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc36.jpg) http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc37sm.jpg (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sunbeam/UVHTPC/images/sbhtpc37.jpg)
Although the case looks completely clear, it is UV reactive. These two pictures were taken with an external black light shining on the case. An internal black light works well, too, but washed out the images a little.

[page=Value & Conclusion]
Value and Conclusion
<table width="100%" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" id="result">
<tr><th>http://www.techpowerup.com/images/dollar.gif</th>
<td>
The Sunbeam Acrylic HTPC sells for $79.99 US Dollars.</td>
</tr><tr>
<th>http://www.techpowerup.com/images/thumbup.gif</th>
<td>

Eight hard drive bays for massive amounts of media storage
Four 80mm fans included
Core Fan system helps reduce video card temperatures
Accepts ATX size motherboards
UV reactive
Assembly is simple and straight-forward

</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<th>http://www.techpowerup.com/images/thumbdown.gif</th>
<td>

Back PCI panel made of thin metal
Core Fan bracket may interfere with full-sized video cards
Not for everyone

</td></tr>
<tr><th>8.8</th>
<td>
This is the third acrylic Sunbeam case I have seen and assembled, and it has to be the easiest one yet to put together. Although the assembly may be time-consuming, it is far more forgiving when putting the panels together, and the assembly order is somewhat flexible. I loved how there were a total of eight hard drive bays available, which could allow multiple-terabyte raid arrays for media storage. The four included 80mm fans are quiet and blend in with the case, and the Core Fan system has proven itself before in reducing video card temperatures. Beside the UV reactive looks, gamers will love that this case can house a standard ATX motherboard, so they are not limited to a micro ATX solution.<br />
<br />
As long as a clear acrylic HTPC case is your thing, there are only a couple things that detract from the Sunbeam Acrylic HTPC case. The rear PCI panel is made of thin metal, which has a tendency to bend if care is not taken. The other problem I had was that the Core Fan bracket can get in the way with full-sized video cards, and there wasn't anything included to fill the mounting holes if the bracket was not used. This could be corrected with just a few extra screws and nuts to place in the holes when the bracket is removed.<br />
<br />
Overall I found the case to be very easy to assemble and work with. If you are in the market for an acrylic HTPC case, make sure you check out this one from Sunbeam.
</td></tr>
<tr><th></th><td>http://www.techpowerup.com/images/recommended.gif</td></tr>
</table>

[Siren]

Hmm.. I don't think I would want this setting in my living room..lol

[PrudentPrincess]

Maybe as a LAN box.

[Firedomain]

my only complaint about a case like this is that the UV reactiveness will show every scratch when lit up!

i used to have a sunbeamtech led acrylic UV blue case & i could see all the scratches! now with my current PC i have a sunbeam led acrylic case thats not UV reactive.. but a lot of stuff in it is!.... dont get me wrong.. if u take all the care u can with this & keep it scratch free it will look awesome... but i dont like things beeing lit up in the lounge while ur trying to enjoy a movie!.... as a gaming/lan case, sure thing (but more likely to get scratched!)

[tkpenalty]

Hmm.. I don't think I would want this setting in my living room..lol

I'd want it. :p

Probably do some mods, use some stuff to cover some parts (PSU cabling...).

Looks awesome anyway!

Did we do a review on their towers? They are like arcryic antec 900s, except for the difference in PSU mounting. I have to admit, the fan grille ruins it, i'd prefer not to have the fan grilles mounted on the fans.

[t_ski]

Did we do a review on their towers?

No, but I have built one for a project for someone else before. I thought it was a pain on how much it had to be taken apart to swap out the hardware (Motherboard, hard drives, PSU, etc.). It was this one:

http://www.sunbeamtech.com/PRODUCTS/ac9b/AC9B.html

[jbunch07]

This case looks really nice i would get it for like a lan box or something but i dont hink it would be all that great for a real powerhouse, there just not a whole lot of room for cable management and things like that,
does look pretty sweet though!

[OrbitzXT]

I know this post is a bit old but I just put together my new computer today using this case. One thing I learned is that pictures don't do it justice. It tends to look cheesy in every picture I've seen, even when I try to take pictures of it myself. Another user in a separate thread warned me that I would experience heat problems in this case, especially since I wanted to use fan filters. The two 80mm fans in front I have taking in air with filters on and one exhaust in the back, with the Zalman 9700 blowing out the case in the back as well. My E6550 at stock settings idle at about 25C, I haven't even begun to OC or stress the CPU at all since I don't have an internet connection on that computer yet.

I put in a E6550, Zalman 9700, 1 Seagate 250 GB HD, an eVGA 9600 GT and a Rosewill 550W PSU. I'll try to upload pictures once I can find a decent camera, I have a Samsung Juke which takes fairly bad pictures. It looks great though in my opinion, however I'm not sure if I'd go with this case again in the future simply because putting it together was annoying. By no means was it difficult, it was very easy. When you first take out everything from the box it can seem overwhelming with all the bags of screws and parts, but it is very easy to assemble.

One of the things I love the most is the amount of space the motherboard spacers give you, I forgot to put on the backplate for the Zalman 9700 and I had already screwed in the motherboard. In any other case I would have had to take the motherboard out but there was so much room that I managed to still get it on, it leaves a lot of room for cable management too which is very nice. Some people would say dust is an issue, but with fan filters it manages to stay cool still and clean. Assembly took me about 2 hours, but I wasn't rushing and was taking my time. So like I said, this was a fun experience doing it once, but I'm not so sure I'd want to have to assemble the case with every build I do...and I build computers every couple of months.

[Exavier]

Thanks for the user feedback, Orbitz; how is it durability-wise? Stable, or does it 'give' slightly? I just don't trust acrylic much from my Design Tech days..

[OrbitzXT]

It feels very sturdy and durable, its designed extremely to deal with the heavy components inside the case.

[OrbitzXT]

I took a picture, and I realize what the problem with pictures is, they make the brightness of the case seem very cheesy. The glow from the case right now in the middle of the afternoon is actually very nice sitting next to my HDTV, which I'm using as the monitor. The glow is much....softer I guess in person.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h204/OrbitzXT/259508604_874878841_0-1.jpg

The picture was taken with my Samsung Juke...which is awful too =) I'll try to get a better picture when I can.

[Exavier]

Still better than most pictures I've seen of it ;)
Looks good, but I might go the Lubic way if I can get my hands on it..