BitFenix Raider Case Review: All These Little Things
by Dustin Sklavos on February 28, 2013 12:01 PM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- bitfenix
- ATX
Conclusion: Needs a Revision
The BitFenix Raider is a case I almost desperately want to like. I've had a personal, vested interest in BitFenix for a while now as a small manufacturer that produced some really great stuff, and I've wanted to make sure other people knew it. Their breakout product has probably been the Prodigy (which got picked up by almost every boutique under the sun), but really, they've had great stuff for a while now. I still think the Mercs are among the best budget cases money can buy.
BitFenix does a lot right with the Raider. However I feel about the case's quirks, you can't really deny it's a good-looking case, and it's pretty sturdy on top of that. The SECC steel used for the side panels is a little bit thin, but the rest of the body is very solid. Thermals and acoustics are both pretty middle of the road, and even though it's mostly useless in the stock configuration, I do appreciate the inclusion of a fan controller if for no other reason than that you won't have to add one later should you need it. The USB 2.0 headers coming out of the internal 3.0 headers are also a minor convenience I wish more manufacturers would include.
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Where the Raider falls apart is when all the little details are taken together. What BitFenix really needs to do is take their baseline of this case and revise it. All the ideas are sound, but the execution has been fudged. Enlarge the cable routing holes, use twist ties on the included cable bundle (and route it through the tray closer to the top of the case to avoid blocking the top 5.25" bay), and loosen that bundle. Ship the thing with feet already installed that are bolted through the bottom of the shell. Allow for mounting a 240mm or 280mm radiator in the top of the case instead of just a 200mm fan, but include a pair of 200mm fans in the front and the top as well. The fan controller gives you an opportunity to choose between high performance and low noise, so take advantage of it with powerful fans.
Finally, there's the price tag. NewEgg currently has the Raider for $99, and at that price it's a bust, flat out. Users who want a more powerful case and don't mind mediocre build quality (or questionable aesthetics) will get their money's worth and then some from Antec's $59 GX700. When the Nanoxia Deep Silence 2 starts shipping stateside it'll eat the Raider alive at $99, offering good looks, good noise, and good performance. The $99 price tag is also within striking distance of Antec's devastating Eleven Hundred. There's one version of the Raider available for $79 on NewEgg right now, and that's really where the case ought to be at present.
There's potential for the Raider to be a great case, but BitFenix's designers need to take it back to the drawing board. Unless you're married to its looks (and admittedly I can understand that), there are better deals for better cases to be had elsewhere.
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c0d1f1ed - Thursday, February 28, 2013 - link
I have this case and I quite like it. Indeed the feet aren't screwed on but use good quality sticky tape, which doesn't bother me one bit since it sits on the floor all day anyway. It might even help with the noise! Also indeed the cabling is tight, but I actually like that. It took some care to route things but I don't intend to change/add things often. The fans that are pre-installed are of high quality and the speed control is built in. Very silent even on high, and I consider myself sensitive to that.My only minor complaint is that the power LED is too bright. It's not matte but shines like a keyhole finder LED. Fixed that by cutting a corner out of a sticker and placing it over it. All-in-all a very minor thing to make it pretty close to my ideal case.
jminneman - Thursday, February 28, 2013 - link
I mean seriously. Why, in this day and age, would I ever have a need for 4 5.25" bays? I can see the need for having 1 on any case, or 2 on larger cases (full height and bigger).My preference would be to lose all 5.25" bays. I never touch a CD/DVD/BluRay any more at all. If there is a way for me to download it or get in on USB that is what I prefer and it is only getting more common every day.
Certainly I understand there are edge cases that require more than 1 or 2, but just imagine what you could do with that area freed up. Imagine how many 3.5 bays could fit in the space of 4 5.25" bays. That would be one slick storage case.
killerclick - Friday, March 1, 2013 - link
Get a smaller case if 5.25" bays bother you. I use 2, one for the optical drive (all my backups are on DVDs), one for my 3.5" drive that I put in an elastic sling to stop it from spreading vibrations inside the case. Since the fan controller lever on the case started crapping out, I'm thinking of adding a PWM on one of the 5.25" drive bays, so then 3/4 will be in use.rickon66 - Thursday, February 28, 2013 - link
It looks like they got tired of putting the Antec 1100 on the charts, seeing as how it kicks all the other cases butts time after time.Dustin Sklavos - Thursday, February 28, 2013 - link
Actually, I have my results spreadsheet broken down into sub-$100, $100-$149, and then $150 and above. The 1100 hangs out between $100 and $149. ;)bill4 - Thursday, February 28, 2013 - link
Anyone noticed EVERY SINGLE review this guy does is negative?I mean, what a shocker, he didn't like this case!
And he always uses the old line negative reviewers use at the end, some variation of "there are better options". Sometimes he names these, sometimes he doesnt.
Well if there are better options, why dont you review them! And if there are good products, and presumably you've reviewed some of them, then why are all your reviews negative??!! If these better competing products exist, then where are your positive reviews?
Pbryanw - Thursday, February 28, 2013 - link
Really? I can't tell if you're serious or trolling?For a positive review read his assessment of the Nanoxia 1 in which he positively purrs about the case. Ok, so he's critical of a lot of cases, but I'd rather have someone who errs on the side of negativity, than someone who thinks every case is great and so gets 8/10 or some kind of award.
What I think it comes down to is Dustin is looking for that perfect case, and when a case falls short like this Betfenix, he quite rightly points out where they've gone wrong and I prefer this approach. I imagine it's also good feedback for the designers of these cases.
WeaselITB - Friday, March 1, 2013 - link
Seriously? Are you new here?Just from the past couple of months --
Fractal Design Define XL R2 -- generally positive
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6764/fractal-design-...
Nanoxia Deep Silence 2 -- positive
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6742/nanoxia-deep-si...
Corsair Carbide 200R -- positive except for drive cage
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6515/corsair-carbide...
Nanoxia Deep Silence 1 -- positive, Bronze Editor's Choice
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6479/nanoxia-deep-si...
NZXT Phantom 820 -- positive, Bronze Editor's Choice
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6367/nzxt-phantom-82...
And those are just the ones that I could remember the conclusion after having re-read the title of the review. If something's wrong with the case, he calls them out on it, which I like. I just wish he'd start using bigger than mATX (I kid, I kid! :-p)
-Weasel
tecknurd - Friday, March 1, 2013 - link
""Their breakout product has probably been the Prodigy (which got picked up by almost every boutique under the sun), but really, they've had great stuff for a while now.""Really, do tell. After getting the BitFenix Prodigy, it actually lost my expectations. It just sucks, it just sucks, it just sucks. I replace it with a lot better case such as the Lian Li PC-V354.
There are so many reasons why it suck. I did review of the BitFenix Prodigy on newegg, so you can read it there. What BitFenix only has is they got style, but quality is their lowest priority or is not part of the engineering process.
lmcd - Friday, March 1, 2013 - link
which color, what's your name, etc.Thanks for the worthless comment. You didn't even refer to your own review well.
Bitfenix isn't bad; there are far worse and Bitfenix has many great ideas in all of their cases.