The Cosmo S

The Cosmo S is not meant as an advancement on the current models in the Cosmo range, but instead designed to bolster the products already available in that category. This case has been designed for the gamer, and the LANer; i.e. bold, striking looks and over-the-top cooling.

Speaking of OTT cooling, this case can squeeze in a total of nine 120mm fans depending on whether you purchase additional modules, and a stock 200mm side fan. Using the power of arithmetic, that adds up to 1280mm of fan (yes I know it’s the wrong way to calculate but its sounds ridiculous).

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The Coolermaster Cosmo S comes in a large black box with suitably dark photos showing the case in a manner making it look evil. The huge swish of red that matches the ‘S’ part of the Cosmo logo adds the needed colour that the box requires to appeal to shelf buyers. The box describes all the intimate details of the enclosure inside, including the much touted touch-sensitive power button.

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Once you slice through the packing tape, you’ll find a polystyrene top which hides the brown bag inside. This bag is a draw-string affair with a large Coolermaster logo on the side in silver; this gives an impression of quality from the word go. This bag is a bit of a pain to remove as it’s slightly smaller than it should be, but it’s definitely better than infant-suffocating plastic bags other cases arrive in.

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With the case, you get the usual array of goodies, including a seriously in-depth manual with detailed exploded isometric diagrams, a lot of cable management tabs and cable ties, motherboard stand-offs, screws, a couple of FDD brackets, an EPS extension cable and finally a buzzer.

External

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The case itself is made of aluminium for the two side panels and the chassis itself, while the front panel and the top is fashioned from a nice high-quality plastic albeit slightly hollow sounding. The case features a large amount of black wire meshing which fits between the plastic top, is present on all of the bay covers, and the huge side panel cover for the 200mm fan behind. This meshing will collect dust like no tomorrow, but the inside of the case should be kept free from this heat-trapping menace by the dust filters planted over the case.

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Front

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The whole front of the case is constructed of curved black mesh drive covers, each with their own dust filter. These are enveloped in two side doors, much like the ones found on the Armour case, but this time they have a purpose. Here they click-lock into place (like the front of your TV) and they need to be opened in order to remove any of the drive covers. These are made of aluminium and painted the same as the rest of the case metal. Each of the drive covers guards one of the seven 5.25” bays; there is also a 5.25” to 3.5” drive cover which was missing in this sample, but allows you to use the supplied FDD brackets to install your favoured external 3.5” drive.

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A minor issue with the curved drive covers is that I’ve yet to come across a CD/DVD drive that also has a curved front. Mounting a drive will instantly change the way the front of the case looks, and if you only have a beige, or silver drive, it’ll look completely out of place.

Sides

The colour that Coolermaster have gone for it’s a little odd. Instead of either silver or black, they have chosen what appears to be brown-tinged silver. It seems to work quite well with the sheer black sides, but it’s still an odd colour to go for. These side panels are made entirely of aluminium, and are simply anodized black and completed with a brushed finish. The far side panel simply has a Coolermaster logo in the top corner, while the nearest panel features a massive mesh cover for the 200mm fan behind. This mesh is complete with a great looking Cosmo S logo which adds a little bit of colour to the overall rather subdued palette CM has gone for.

Top

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The top front of the case is where you’ll find the large touch-sensitive power button and the front I/O connectors. These are hidden behind a sliding panel that allows you to stealth their existence to a certain degree, however the panel is quite obvious and it doesn’t slide easily meaning you are most likely to leave it open. It would have been better to see another click-lock flap, rather than a sliding approach as then would be completely stealthed when not in use. Speaking of stealth, none of these ports have any labels on explaining their use; not a problem for the knowledgeable PC owner although it looks strange. Fortunately, you can vaguely see that there are light up areas where the name of the port will shine through once the case is turned on. One major omission from this panel is a reset button. On more than one occasion, I’ve been thankful that this switch has been included on my case; removing this button on a case that is designed for overclockers and overclocking may leave some annoyed.

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Oddly, there is a Knightrider-style line across the top coloured red, and is constructed from matt plastic which doesn’t really match the glossy surrounding plastic. This is skirted with two hefty handles which allow you to pick the case up, and appear to be more utilitarian than styling as a result. They connect directly to the chassis itself rather than the plastic top giving them the strength needed to lift the 14kg weight. These handles are mirrored on the bottom of the case, so the case is held up by an inch or so by these ski’s. This is important as the case uses the bottom to provide ventilation to the power supply and another 120mm fan space; of course both spots have dust filters. The ‘skis’ are smooth, and have no grip to them; it causes the case to skate around on hard surfaces, while the weight of the case itself prevents the effect on carpets.

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Behind the I/O panel there is a massive expanse of mesh work which is part of a removable top section of the case. This is where you can mount three 120mm fans, either on the top or inside the case depending on your space requirements. These fan slots don’t have any dust filters, so it’s advisable to use them for pumping air out rather than in. From stock, only the most rearward position is filled with a fan, which of course is Coolermaster branded and hologram’d.

This area is designed to allow a triple radiator system to be installed underneath, and then a load of 120mm on the top. This is a water coolers dream as there isn’t any need to reach for the Dremel or have an expensive radiator hanging off the back of the case.

You can quite clearly see the virgin aluminium beneath through the top grill which doesn’t look particularly great. To fix this problem, all you have to do is grab three LED fans and mount them on the top. When in use, these will shine through the mesh and hide the bare aluminium beneath.

Rear

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The rear of the case is a little different from the usual setup as Coolermaster have gone for a bottom mounted PSU. Firstly, the top has a couple of water cooling holes complete with grommets. There are two tabs either side which well pulled release the side panels which hinge outwards under their own weight. Below this is the usual mobo I/O hole with a filled fan mount next to it. Looking further down, you’ll find the seven PCI covers, each with removable and replaceable covers; not the cheap bend out type. Underneath this is the power supply hole, which allows you install the PSU the right way up or up side down for whatever reason you may have for doing so. The entire rear section is hemmed in by the plastic outer parts of the case, making it look as if there is a section of the plastic fascia missing.

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