Cooler Master Haf 932 Case Review

[truefusion 3]

Cooler Master HAF 932

I have purchased this case, and i am here to provide a review on the case. Now, this beast is quite a case—quite big indeed. Though it has a military theme, it is a very nice looking theme. I didn't think i would like the side view window and the honeycomb ventilation on the side, but it makes the case look very nice. Unfortunately, this case does not bring any dust filters, which i find weird after hearing that the 922, the smaller version of this case, does bring dust filters. This case has an overall tool less design and is made mostly out of steel, but not entirely. The specifications say it has a net weight of 13.2kg and a gross weight of 15.4kg. It is slightly heavy, especially after putting in all the computer parts. It has three 230mm fans: one on the top (exhaust), one on the side of the case (intake) and one on the front (intake). It also has a 140mm fan on the back of the case (exhaust). Though it has a lot of fans, the noise produced by it isn't loud and is extremely bearable.

Installing the hard disk drives was pretty easy, though you should make sure that you have snapped it on to the holder (if you will call it that) correctly. Optical disk drives install easier and won't move unless perhaps extreme force is exerted to the drives. The 230mm fan at the front has a red LED light. Some of the reviews on Newegg said it was pretty bright; however, to me it is not bright; in fact, the brightest light (after turning off the lights to my room) is the blue LED power light at the front of the case—which is about hundred times smaller than the red LED light. This case, also, has a design that considers water cooling, having two holes in the back of the case and a place near the top front to insert coolant. It also has excellent cable managing features, though i would suggest perhaps getting a power supply unit with long cables. The mount to place the power supply unit, after reading some of the reviews on Newegg, if you have a power supply unit whose fan is at the bottom of the power supply unit, they say that it doesn't pull in much air from the vents the mount has. However, my power supply unit doesn't have a fan at the bottom or top of it, so i don't have to worry about any of that.

"HAF" stands for, if i'm not mistaken, "High Air Flow." This case has a lot of ventilation, with also ventilated expansion slots. But although this case does not come with dust filters, i hear that if you bug Cooler Master enough, they'll eventually make some for the case. This case replaced an old case of mine, the Cooler Master Centurion 5. The HAF 932 is about 3 to 4 inches taller than the Centurion 5. Since i am able to install extra fans along with the ones that come with the HAF 932, i took out the ones from my Centurion 5 and stuck them into the HAF 932. This should help cool down the case even more. Also, the top 230mm fan can be removed and replaced with 3 120mm fans (though the third one won't have much of an effect on the case). The 230mm fan on the side of the case and be removed and replaced with 4 120mm fans, too. This may be the last case i purchase.

The case came wrapped in a plastic bag, and upon taking it out of the box i felt a lot of static. So before putting any hardware within the case, be sure to touch a metal part of the case to ground yourself.

Overall, i'd rate this case 9.4 out of 10.

[onscreen 0]

Good review but you miss out the most vital information, the material that this chassis used to build on. I am going to buy this as honeycomb have better airflow than those mesh but honeycomb is fond to be a dust collector too

[zokiopp 0]

I have an opinion. the haf is so expencive and in my place a real good solution in price/performance is Antec 1200 . Because i bought an awesome gaming computer with i7 procesor and the best nvidia graphic gtx 295 i have temperature problems and im planing to replace my atrix 9006 with antec 1200. It has the best airflow ever.

[truefusion 3]

I have an opinion. the haf is so expencive and in my place a real good solution in price/performance is Antec 1200 . Because i bought an awesome gaming computer with i7 procesor and the best nvidia graphic gtx 295 i have temperature problems and im planing to replace my atrix 9006 with antec 1200. It has the best airflow ever.

Actually, the HAF 932 is cheaper than the Antec 1200, by around $25 (unless you compare it with the Antec 1200 750, then it's a bit of an overkill in price compared to the HAF 932, though i'm not sure why). I was actually deciding whether to go with the HAF 932 or the Antec 1200 before i bought the HAF 932. Here are the reasons why i went with the HAF 932 instead of the Antec 1200 after doing much research on both cases and viewing a lot of case reviews:

More room for extra optical drives.

Cheaper than the Antec 1200 with equal design quality.

Bigger fans (i love big fans), therefore less noise from the fans and more air being pushed (or pulled).

Side panel supports more than one fan.

The only advantages i can think of that the Antec 1200 has over the HAF 932 is that it has dust filters for all of its intake fan spots, has a bigger tray on the top of the case, and provides controllers for its fans; and maybe adjustable HDD bays. Any other "advantages" would be aesthetic concerning the LED lights on the fans, which can be turned off, i think.

[Tramposch 1]

Do you have an image of the motherboard tray? (I just want to see if there are good wire management options for behind the board.)

[rpgsearcherz 5]

Nice review and great looking case.I'm confused about the "dust filter" issue though. Does this mean all of the openings are just... Open? Like dust will just go straight into the case?If so I see that as being a huge potential problem. Dust getting in a case can kill it faster than anything (more heat, dust blocking fans, etc.)Would it be possible to add your own filter to it? I'm thinking along the lines of putting up a cloth of some sort in the inside of the case taped up in order to catch the dust. This could then be cleaned or whatever, depending on what type of material was used.Just an idea for a possible solution. Although, without being able to see inside the case it's hard to tell.

[Tramposch 1]

Dust filtres can be purchased, and are very cheap. It isn't all that odd for a case not to come with dust filters. It is just an added feature for usually higher-end cases.I went around dusting my schools computers, wow, there have been these computers which have not been opened in 10 years......

[rpgsearcherz 5]

Dust filtres can be purchased, and are very cheap. It isn't all that odd for a case not to come with dust filters. It is just an added feature for usually higher-end cases.
I went around dusting my schools computers, wow, there have been these computers which have not been opened in 10 years......

Sounds like mine... I never really clean(ed) mine until not too long ago when I took one apart to take out a fan and.... It was bad enough that I spent hours pulling everything out and doing everything I could to get it cleaned... By that point it was too late.

So I've learned to keep my PC's clean, .

[truefusion 3]

Do you have an image of the motherboard tray? (I just want to see if there are good wire management options for behind the board.)

For this case the cable management is very good, but only if you have a power supply with long cords. My power supply had somewhat medium-sized cords (if there's any standard in sizes), and i couldn't get all the cords around through the back of the motherboard case, even though the images on their website show a PSU easily getting through all the holes. Concerning images, Newegg should have clear enough images of the inside of the case.

Nice review and great looking case.
[1]I'm confused about the "dust filter" issue though. Does this mean all of the openings are just... Open? Like dust will just go straight into the case?

[...]

[2]Would it be possible to add your own filter to it?

[1] Yes, that's basically what that means. Interestingly enough, though, even though i can see the dust piling up on the honey-comb mesh where the fans blow air in, when i open the case, i don't see any dust on the motherboard, gfx card, tv tuner or the fans.

[2] I guess, but i'm not sure if Cooler Master has been annoyed enough to where they've finally released dust filters for this case, so that is something to look into. The only fan i can see someone having trouble installing dust filters for is the fan on the front. I haven't messed around with the fan in the front, but the top and side fan required a 3mm hex key to unscrew.

[Tramposch 1]

That is very odd that it requires such an odd tool to take off a fan. Could they not have just used regular screws? jeez. They also should not have put the powersupply at the bottom because the 8 (or 4) pin CPU connector is one of the shortest cables, and I can tell you it will be impossible to make it reach from behind the motherboard up to the CPU connector without extensions, on most power supplies atleast.I have been thinking of buying either this case, an antec 900, or 1200. Also those wire management holes would only work well with a full ATX size motherboard.Hows the Noise levels? I know bigger fans have lower RPMs so it should be quiet, so overall how is the noise level?Also.... Does it come with all the motherboard standoffs? and how long is the esata to sata cable for the front connection panel.

[truefusion 3]

That is very odd that it requires such an odd tool to take off a fan. Could they not have just used regular screws? jeez.

Interestingly, a friend of mine purchased the HAF 922, the smaller one, and he says the fans have the regular Phillips head screws. I haven't verified this, but the 922 does have things that the 932 doesn't and vice versa.

They also should not have put the powersupply at the bottom because the 8 (or 4) pin CPU connector is one of the shortest cables, and I can tell you it will be impossible to make it reach from behind the motherboard up to the CPU connector without extensions, on most power supplies atleast.

The case came with an 8-pin extender, but i didn't need it. The motherboard connector, though a slightly tight fit, made it around the back of the case to the motherboard.

Hows the Noise levels? I know bigger fans have lower RPMs so it should be quiet, so overall how is the noise level?

According to the specs, the big fans are about 19dBA, the 140mm is about 17dBA. If it is really/absolutely quiet in your room/house, then you can hear the fans, but it's (very) bearable—not something that would keep a person from sleeping. But practically any amount of noise can cover all the fan noise.
Also, concerning the fans' airflow, i did what one can call the "paper test," that is, putting a sheet of printing paper in front of the fans to see at what distance the fans pull or push air. The top fan didn't allow the paper to touch the case, keeping it suspended in air about an inch away from the case (i found this slightly interesting). The 140mm in the back pushes the paper a bit from about an inch away from the case. The front and side pull the paper in about an inch away from the case.

Also.... Does it come with all the motherboard standoffs? and how long is the esata to sata cable for the front connection panel.

It came with a lot of motherboard standoffs; there's enough for about 2 motherboards. The front panel cords (which includes the e-SATA connection) were really long, extending more than across the case. But i shoved the e-SATA cable behind the mobo tray, since i'm not going to be using it.

[Tramposch 1]

Alright, thanks!That is great info.My case right now is very noisy, I would say probably around 30 dB, its hard to tell, I think it is my CPU cooler though.Thanks for the info again.