Cooler Master HAF 922 ATX Case

Introduction
 
With the enthusiast market ever expanding, as do the expectation’s of consumers. We each have our own individual needs that need fulfilling. A component that needs careful choice is the case, not only is the part we see the most but it must comfortably house and cool our precious investment.
 
Cooler Master is one of the brands many enthusiasts turn to in search of that precious case to house our beloved components. And no wonder when they have brought us classics like the ATCS 201, Wavemaster and Stacker 810. Recently in a bold styling move the HAF 932 was released, looking very industrial in design but with its big fans, great airflow and native 360mm water cooling radiator support the 932 flew off the shelf. With more and more of us attending LAN events, or simply not having the room for a full tower chassis, Cooler Master answer our prayers and bring us the HAF 922 we are looking at today, will it be as feature packed as its bigger brother or just another small case with its sights set too high? Lets take a look at the specs taken from the Cooler Master website:
 
Available Color: Black
Material: Steel + Plastic and Mesh Bezel
Dimension (W / H / D) Main Unit: 253 x 502 x 563 mm / 10.0 x 19.7 x 22.2 inches
Box: 285 x 550 x 605 mm / 11.2 x 21.7 x 23.8 inches
Weight 8.7 / 10.9 kg ; 19.2 / 24.0 pounds
Motherboards ATX / Micro-ATX
5.25″ Drive Bay 5 Exposed (one could convert to 3.5″ drive bay)
3.5″ Drive Bay 5 Hidden, 1 Exposed (converted from one 5.25″ drive bay)
I/O Panel USB 2.0 x 2,
MIC x 1,
Audio x 1 (support HD / AC97 Audio),
eSATA x 1
Expansion Slots 7 + 1
Cooling System Front: 200 mm fan x 1 Red LED on / off fan x 1 / 700 RPM / 19 dBA
(can be swap for 120 / 140 mm fan x 1)
Top: 200 mm fan x 1 / 700 RPM / 19 dBA (can be swap to 120 mm fan x 2 )
Rear: 120 mm fan x 1 / 1200 RPM / 17 dBA
Bottom: 120 / 140 mm fan x 1 (optional)
Side: 200 mm fan x 1 (optional)
(can be swap for 120 mm fan x 2)
Power Supply ATX PS2 / EPS 12V (optional)
 
Looking over the spec list it looks promising, a multitude of fans and fan options from 120mm up to 200mm. This case certainly reads like its designed to keep everything cool but will it perform as a package? Cooler Master hasn’t forgotten connectivity with USB, eSATA and MIC inputs all on the list. Lets take a a closer look over on the next page.Â