LUXA2 LVA30052N1Z Aluminum LM300 7-Inch Touch Screen Pro ATX , Micro ATX, Mini ITX Media Center /HTPC Case (Black/Silver) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Before I get into detail, let me first say the 5 star overall rating I gave this is based on pros and cons compared to other so called "HTPC" cases. This is the only case I've come across that in the end does not look like a computer. It is VERY aesthetically pleasing, pictures online do not do it justice. It is also, by far, the most solid construction I have ever seen in a computer case. This case is built so solid, I am confident it will be with me for the rest of my life. These things were important to me above other factors such as an included cable, which I can just replace. There are however some things that could be improved. Now on to the Attributes I rated.

Construction Quality - Solid as a rock. The exterior and top panels are all made of 5 millimeter thick aluminum. Not only is this strong, but it goes a long way in keeping the computer quiet. By being so thick the panels do not resonate. The side and front silver colored panels are bead blasted for a matte finish. The top panel is uncolored brushed Aluminum. The black panel in the front is also brushed Aluminum, however it has been anodized. The bottom plate appears to be a heavy gauge stamped steel with a black finish. There are 4 rubber feet to support the case. The optical tray cover and memory card reader cover are both heavy Aluminum and open and close slowly and accurately. Nothing on this case rattles.

Ventilation and cooling - Cooling is sufficient for what this case is intended for, but a few revisions could be made in my opinion. There are no intake fans on this case, and a single 120mm rear exhaust is the only thing moving air. A good power supply with a 140mm fan built in such as the Corsair TX Series really helps. I saw in a video review that you can fit the tallest of CPU cooling solutions in the case. That is true, but only if you don't install an optical drive. My blue ray drive hit the fins on my Thermalake V1 Cpu Cooler. Certainly no 140mm cooling solutions will fit, and I'm not sure how many if any, 120mm solutions would fit. On a positive note the stock CPU cooler is suffice, keeping the CPU around 39oC(Max for Intel Core 2 Quad/ i7 is 100oC, your cpu may differ). If you install a basic Graphics card the ventilation is good enough. If you are like me and have a very high end GPU it will not be. I plan to water cool the case because of this which leads me to a negative. There are no provisions for running water lines out of the case. It can be done, but will need custom work. There is enough room under the drive tray for a crafty individual to install 2 120mm fans. I plan on putting 2 800 RPM fans to circulate air over my drives and move hot, stagnant GPU air around the case to be exhausted.

Hard Drive/Expansion - Luxa2 provides provisions for only two hard drives. Other HTPC cases offer provisions for the installation of 4-6. Personally this is not a downfall for me, as I prefer to keep my mass storage in separate housings. This is so they are not being powered on every time I am on the computer, and so they are not exposed to any more heat then necessary. A crafty individual could however fit more drives if they chose to. A third drive cold be fit by screwing two short lengths of aluminum angle stock on the bottom right side of the drive tray, directly under the hard drive and in front of the power supply. There are a number of places to tuck away an SSD as well. If one used an SSD for the operating system and tucked it in front of the power supply, you could still fit two 2 terabyte drives in the spaces provided. The case fits up to standard ATX motherboards, and has seven expansion slots. One is dedicated to pass through the touch screen VGA connector. There is enough room for the largest of graphics cards, as I had no problem fitting my VisionTek Radeon HD4870x2(which I will be water cooling). I also could easily fit my Asus Xonar HDAV 1.3 Deluxe Sound Card which is as big as many video cards.

Included Accessories - All of the provided cables to connect the case to the mother board are approximately twice as long as they need to be. This makes cable management harder then it needs to be. The front panel audio conector splits off at the end to provide connections for HD audio and the Legacy(outdated) AC'97. No one uses AC'97, so one less loose connector would be nice. I will be customizing or purchasing new connectors all around to fix this, however it should have been provided at this price. The mess of wires it creates impedes what little airflow there is.

Peripherals - The touch screen is of higher quality than I expected. With just a few tweaks to the GPU settings the screen has good contrast, and can be seen at any angle I've looked at it from. More importantly the touch screen is perfectly functional. The Volume knob makes clicking sounds when turned. It sounds "cheap". Most won't be using the knob or front controls often however because of the remote. The remote is not the best layout, but it does work as both mouse and keyboard. It took me a week to get used to, but its fun to use now. If you are not happy with the remote, there is an Infrared sensor on the front of the case, and other Media Center compatible remotes should also work. The power button is a dull white LED light, not distracting at all. There is one bright blue led behind the lower panel, however when it is closed you can not see it at all. The iMon software is more useful than other reviews would have me believe. Its navigation can seem confusing or backwards at times, but no more or less than other media center front ends. Like anything you just have to get accustomed to the controls. I do suggest not using the software they provide and going straight to Soundgraph's support page to download the newest version, otherwise it will prompt you to update right after installing.

Overall I'm very happy with the case. I know my 5 star overall may not coincide with the breakdown ratings, but every other case has its downfalls as well. Compared to other cases I considered, this one just stands apart from the rest. I feel good when I look at it, and I use the touch screen to play music (more than I thought I would)without having to turn my TV on. The best part is that it doesn't *look* like a computer. My friends have seen it and said "Hey, whats that?" They knew it was part of my theater, but had no idea it was a PC. Other cases just look like boxes, and don't use as thick of metal throughout. It looks like it belongs next to high end stereo/theater equipment, isn't that the idea? Hopefully this helps answer some questions some may have about this!

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Product Description:
Product Name LM300 Touch Pro P/N LVA30052N1Z Case Type Home Theater Media PC Media Kits Built-in all new revolutionary 7-Inch touch screen hot keys module Touch Screen Screen Size : 7-Inch Wide LCD Screen Ratio : 15:9 Maximum Resolution : 1024 x 768 Screen Output : D-Sub Power Input : 12V DC Touch Screen Dimension Height: 203.5mm (8.01 inches) /food stand included: 218mm (8.58 inches) Width: 460mm (18.11 inches) Depth: 410mm (16.14 inches) Weight 9.79kg /21.58 lbs. Cooling System Rear : 120 x 120 x 25 mm /4.72 x 4.72 x 0.98 inches Silent Fan, 1300rpm, 17dBA Drive Bays - Accessible - Hidden 3 1x 5.25-Inch 2 x 3.5-Inch Material Aluminum extrusion Color Front Panel: Black /Body : Silver Front I/O USB 2.0 x 2, IEEE 1394 Firewire, HD-Audio, multi-card reader Card Reader Slot MS/Pro/Duo, CF/Micro drive, MMC, D,SM….23in1 multi-card reader Expansion Slots 7 Motherboards ATX /Micro ATX /Mini ITX PSU Standard PSII Power Supply (Optional)

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