NZXT Source 340 Mid-Tower Chassis Review
Peter Donnell / 10 years ago
Final Thoughts
Pricing
The pre-order for the NZXT Source 340 is just £54.95 + shipping from Overclockers.co.uk and can already be purchased in the US for $87.29 from Amazon.com. This is great value for money given the range of features and the quality on offer. The Source 340 is also covered by a standard 2 year warranty.
Overview
The Source 340 is one of the biggest innovations on the chassis market right now. It’s quite clever that almost nothing on this chassis is new, original or that innovative in a sense, at least to my eyes, but the chassis as a whole unit is. The PSU shroud is something that the modding community has been doing for a while now and NZXT even did something similar on their recently released H440. The cable guard to the right of the motherboard has been done by modders many times over, but NZXT are the first to put it into a consumer ready product (that I know of). Then we’ve got the complete lack of optical drive bays and no USB 2.0 ports, two bits of technology which are slowly going the way of the Dodo.
You’ve got front mounted hard drive bays for 2.5″ drives, but standard 3.5″ drive bays in the front of the chassis are gone, leaving a staggering amount of space for long graphics cards and thick front mounted radiators. This is basically taking what modders have been doing for ages; only NZXT has now stripped out the drive bays for you.
Then you’ve got the exterior design, it’s pretty minimalist, which is a polite way of saying bland. However, it’s been treated with a sleek paint job and a crystal clear side panel window that shows off that stunning interior. The chassis manages to be subtle from the front, but incredibly flashy when viewed from the left side.
The only minor oversights I can see with this chassis is that I don’t like the design of the top mounted fan vent and that there are snap off covers on the expansion slots. This chassis is very budget friendly given its spec, but surely they could bump the price up a tiny bit to include decent looking reusable covers!
The price certainly is a focal point for the Source 340, it’s got all the features I would expect on a premium grade chassis at mid-budget prices. There are tiny compromises here and there, but the end result is that you get a whole lot of cool features for your money.
Pros
- Reliable build quality
- Dust filters
- PSU shroud
- Excellent cable routing
- Ultra-long GPU support
- Competitive price
- Clear side panel window
Cons
- Snap-off expansion slot covers
“The Source 340 is one of the most competitive chassis’ on the market right now. It has enough features to put many other chassis’ in its class to shame, and it does it at a price that will leave a smile on your face. It looks great, it’s packed full of features and it’s a little unique; you would be mad not to at least consider this for your next build or upgrade.”
Thank you NZXT for providing us with this sample.