NZXT H2 Classic Black Review
Category : Cases
Published by Marc Büchel on 21.01.13
Although NZXT's H2 has been available for quite some time now, this doesn't change anything, when it comes to the fact, that it's still an interesting case to have a closer look at. NZXT wants to offer an enclosure that is suitable for building a silent PC and furthermore it should come a reasonable price. This is reason enough for us to review this case. 
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On the following pages we will show you the strengths and weaknesses of the NZXT H2.
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Left side |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Top / Bottom |
| Page 3 - Front / Back | Page 7 - Conclusion |
| Page 4 - Right side |
Discuss this article in the forums [pagebreak]
Preview
Specifications
| Model | NZXT H2 |
| Case Type | Midi Tower |
| Dimensions | 215 x 466 x 520 mm (W x H x D) |
| Material | Steel, Plastic |
| Color | Black / White |
| 5.25'' drive bay | 3 x external |
| 3.5'' drive bay | 8 x 3.5''/2.5'' |
| Expansion slots | 7 |
| Form factors | ATX, Micro-ATX, Mini-ITX |
| Weight | 8.9 kg |
| Cooling | 2 x 120 mm Front, 1200 rpm 1 x 120 mm Rear, 1300 rpm 1 x 140 mm Top optional 1 x 120 mm Bottom (optional) |
| I/O ports | 1 x USB 3.0 2 x USB 2.0 Audio in / out |
| Fan controller | 3 stage fan controller |
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Left side |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Top / Bottom |
| Page 3 - Front / Back | Page 7 - Conclusion |
| Page 4 - Right side |
Discuss this article in the forums [pagebreak]
Front
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| The front of NZXT's H2 is simple, elegant and therefore timeless. As soon as you open the front door you'll see an acoustic insulation mat, helping to reduce unwanted noise. In the top part of the front one can see three 5.25'' bays and below those you find two 120 millimeter fans, which have been mounted in an interchangeable frame with integrated dust filter. On the left and right hand side of the two retention frames there are small flaps, which make it possible to remove the fans. Once the fans are removed, one can see, that there are copper contacts on the case as well as on the retention frame. This enables a user to remove the fans without detaching its power cable. Should you now be concerned, that you might not be able to put other fans into the retention frames, we can tell that there are 3-pin connectors which allow you to put other fans into the retention frame. |
Back
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| Turning the case around and looking at it from the backside, we can se that NZXT placed the power supply in the bottom area of the case, which is against the ATX standard. But in our opinion placing the PSU in the bottom area of the case makes a lot of sense since wiring the case becomes easier and in the end you get an optimized air flow. Right behind the CPU cooler there is a pre-installed 120 millimeter fan, which has been connected to the three-step fan controller the NZXT H2 ships with. Below the fan on the right hand side there are two rubber grommets, preparing this case for installing a water cooling. Last but not least there are seven slot bezels. The fact that there are seven of these means, that it's not possible to install a dual slot graphics cards in the last expansion slot of a motherboard. In this regard we also have to mention that it's highly unlikely, that you might do so. Usually populating the last expansion slot means, that you have a quad SLI setup and once this is the case, you might choose a case which is optimized for a high airflow and not a silent case like the one here. |
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Left side |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Top / Bottom |
| Page 3 - Front / Back | Page 7 - Conclusion |
| Page 4 - Right side |
Discuss this article in the forums [pagebreak]
Right side
 |
| As expected the right hand side panel is unspectacular. The only thing special about it is the noise insulation material on the inside. Other than that there are neither holes for fans nor connectors or buttons. It's just a clean metal sheet. Taking off the side panel grants you a clear view at the motherboard tray. There is a big hole where the CPU cooler goes, which makes installing this piece of hardware easier once the motherboard has been tightened to the tray. Furthermore one can see three rubber grommets which cover holes that a allow neat cable management. Next to the rubber grommets there are metal loops to tie cables to the motherboard using cable ties. Worth noticing is also the fact, that there is plenty of space between the motherboard tray and the side panel, that one can easily put all the cables right here. |
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Left side |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Top / Bottom |
| Page 3 - Front / Back | Page 7 - Conclusion |
| Page 4 - Right side |
Discuss this article in the forums [pagebreak]
Left side
 |
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| Like the on on the right side, the left side panel is unspectacular. Again there is noise insulation foam and there are no ventilation holes, which is typical vor silent cases. Let's have a closer look at the 3.5'' drive bays. These haven't been mounted with a 90 degree angle, NZXT chose to place them parallel to the side panel. In order to avoid colliding with the cooler or a graphics card you have to remove the front fans and then you can slide out the carriages easily. These have been made from plastic which seems to be brittle. If you place a 3.5'' drive it will be mounted one vibration absorbing rubber grommets. The carriages themselves are held in place by thumbscrews and the overall installation process of hard drives is very easy. Something else that has been well made is the snap-mechanism for the three 5.25'' drives. This one locks the drives tightly. In fact over the past years we have seen a lot of screw-less locking mechanisms that did their job way worse. Looking at the slot bezels NZXT puts them in palce with the same thumbscrews they use for the side panels. If you want to install a graphics cards it can measure 28 centimeters lengthwise when the hard drive cages are installed and 31 centimeters when the hard drive cages have been removed. | |
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| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Left side |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Top / Bottom |
| Page 3 - Front / Back | Page 7 - Conclusion |
| Page 4 - Right side |
Discuss this article in the forums [pagebreak]
Top
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| Here you can find a ventialtion hole for a 140 millimeter fan. In the case of a slient case would have liked to see that the manufacturer covers is with noise insulation material from the inside, to further optimize the overall noise level. In the front you can see power and reset buttons as well as mini jacks for headphone and microphone, one USB 3.0 port, three USB 2.0 ports and the three stage fan controller. Another great feature is the external 3.5''/2.5'' drive bay, using which you can easily copy file from a 2.5''/3.5'' hard drive. | |
Bottom
| At the bottom of the case you find two ventilation holes. The one which is in the center of the case, can be equipped with a 120 millimeter fan. The one in the back is right below the power supply. Therefore the PSU is able to suck in fresh air. Both ventilation holes have been covered with a dust filter. Furthermore there are four solid rubber feet, which provide this case with a safe stand. | |
| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Left side |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Top / Bottom |
| Page 3 - Front / Back | Page 7 - Conclusion |
| Page 4 - Right side |
Discuss this article in the forums [pagebreak]
Conclusion
| General | + | - | |
| The NZXT H2 is a well
thought midi tower case. Next to side panels and a front door that
has been equipped with noise insulation material you can find even more
practical features like a three step fan controller and an external
3.5''/2.5'' hot swap bay. What we also liked is the fact, that the front
fans have been mounted in retention frames, which makes it very easy to
remove and clean them. Furthermore on the right hand side of the case,
between the side panel and the motherboard tray there is plenty of space
to put all the cables to neatly wire the case. One thing you should be aware of, if you're about to buy a silent case is, that temperatures are quite a bit higher then with high airfolw cases. But still the NZXT H2 offers a decent airflow and therefore cooling is still on a good level. |
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Design - Noise insulation - Retention front fans - Fan controller |
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| Manufacturing quality / Ergonomics | + | - | |
| Overall build quality is on a good level. NZXT didn't make the mistake to go for super thin side panels to save weight. They use solid metal sheets and paired up with the noise isolation material you get good stability and reasonable stiffness. Furthermore it has been easy to install hardware in the case. We also liked that there were several holes in the motherboard tray to route cables to the backside of the board. NZXT decided to make the case a bit wider, therefore the cables, which have been routed to the backside can easily be place there. We also liked the snap mechanism for 5.25'' drives. It locks drives tightly and it's way better than a lot of other locking mechanisms we've seen with other cases over the past years. | - Build quality - Interior Space | ||
| Design | + | - | |
| NZXT created a very decent and good looking case with the H2. They chose to move the buttons and connectors away from the front panel to top of the case. Like this they can keep the front plain and simple. On the front door there isn't even an NZXT logo. The front door looks like hairline brushed aluminium but in fact it's made of plastic. What gives the H2 an individual touch is the hole in the bottom area of the case, where fresh air is being sucked in. | - Design | ||
| Recommendation | + | - | |
| We can recommend the H2 to everybody who's looking for an overall great silent PC case. If you put the fans to 40% of their maximum rotation speed they become subjectively inaudible. | -
Silent-PC - Gaming-PC - Desktop PC - File Server |
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| Rating | |||
| The NZXT H2 gets very good four and a half out of five stars. The case comes at a very fair price point of CHF 105.- (est EUR 88.-). | |||
Buy the NZXT H2 at ocaholic Ricardo for CHF 90.- |
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| Page 1 - Introduction | Page 5 - Left side |
| Page 2 - Preview | Page 6 - Top / Bottom |
| Page 3 - Front / Back | Page 7 - Conclusion |
| Page 4 - Right side |
Discuss this article in the forums
Redacted by: m.buechel@ocaholic.ch