Photos: The Case Interior
Opening up the case the first big thing I notice is that the case is made of two levels. The bottom has the power supply, 2.5″ drive bays, 3.5″ drive bays, and 5.25″ drive bays. Slots for a couple of 80mm fans exist in case you want some airflow on the bottom of the case. I really wish Cooler Master decided to include those fans since things can get a bit toasty down below.
The top level is more of a standard affair. A motherboard tray with a nice huge backplate cutout exists for those who want to change backplates without removing the motherboard. Screws for the PCI brackets are all of the tool-less variety which is a nice touch, although removing them the first time required a screwdriver since they were all screwed in rather tight.
Cooling on the top of the case is decent and consists of two 120mm fans as well as the option for a rear-blowing 120mm fan although this fan is not included. If you are really feeling like there is not enough airflow a 200mm fan can be added to the top panel.
If you were looking at watercooling with the HAF XB it could be quite interesting depending on which route you take. People going for the all-in one watercooling route easily have the ability to mount a 2x120mm radiator in the front of the case. If you are wanting to go for something more exotic like externally mounting a 3x120mm radiator be aware that you will likely have to add your own watercooling grommets. The case has cutouts for watercooling tubing but both cases have had rough edges and could really need a grommet of some sort to get rid of those edges or you run the risk of cutting the tubing.
