Cooler Master - CM Stacker [PC Enclosure]

The back side of the CM Stacker has a lot less complexity. We can see the removable panels on top and bottom with the fan-circle insets where the power supply(s) will be mounted. The 120mm fan grill, and the color coded multi-I/O panel. Aside from the special power supply panels, not too much going on back here.

One of the most popular early mods that Overclockers were performing was to put an exhaust fan into the very top panel of the enclosure. With the way some frames were arranged within the chassis, this task could prove to be very difficult indeed. Now, a top blow hole is a standard feature with many of the high end enclosures that Cooler Master offers. A high quality and sturdy metal mesh is used as a screen and the whole apparatus is held in place with small flush mounted machine screws. The overall appearance is very professional.

The left side panel has a very large grate that is lined with a foam filter on the inside. Though the CM Stacker will not ship with a fan installed here, there are provisions to install an 80mm fan. The grate is held in place by small machine screws that will have to be removed to gain access to both sides, in order to securely fasten a fan. Unless you use plastic push rivets. Again, Cooler Master has done a very nice job here providing a very functional ventilation option while keeping its appearance very tidy.

The CM Stacker control panel is loaded with everything but fan controllers! SIX usb 2.0 compatible ports, 1 Firewire, Audio (mic and speakers) and the normal Reset/Power buttons and Power/IDE LEDs. The control panel can be relocated to any of the open 5¼ inch drive bays of your choosing. The electrical connectors for all of these ports use header style jumper blocks, so there will be NO annoying wires running out the back of the enclosure to mate up with connectors on the rear multi I/O panel.

The CM Stacker is simply loaded with features that go beyond what we expect from typical PC enclosures. With home multi-media servers becoming more and more popular, users may be looking towards larger enclosures to include the many extra drives and devices that make home servers so lucrative. No, I would not say the CM Stacker is something the average LAN party attendee would want to build their system upon, but the enthusiast LAN party HOST may very well find this enclosure PERFECT. Provided room for an additional power supply spells very easy water cooler kit installation for the masses of Overclockers looking at H2O as their next cooling solution. With an already superb ventilation system, the optional Cross Flow Fan is a tremendous mark in cooling innovation. All of these features do come with a price. Yes, the CM Stacker does cost more than most typical steel enclosures available in the retail world. You may also find yourself with a screw driver in your hand more than you would with other full tower enclosures. Quality comes at a price, and convenience features are always limited in their flexibility. It would be hard to call the CM Stacker The Perfect Case but it sure does come close.

I've had conversations with the Tech Support and Public Relations people at Cooler Master and they informed me "Do not use the hard drive tray to mount a floppy drive in the enclosure. We have a specialized bracket that is used to mount the floppy drive in the CM Stacker. Then you use the the 3.5inch cutout faceplate that comes with the CM Stacker." So this information supersedes the initial report that I included in this review; YOU WILL NOT loose the 120mm intake fan on the front should you choose to install a floppy drive in the CM STACKER. However, you will need to obtain the mounting bracket.

Club Overclocker Rating
Innovation:	10 out of 10
Performance:	9.5 out of 10
Quality:	9.5 out of 10
Stability:	N/A
Compatibility:	N/A
Overclocking:	N/A
Software Pack:	N/A
Value:	9.5 out of 10
Overall Rating 9.5

Skill Level
Project Skill Level (10 being hardest)	4 out of 10