Cooler Master Debuts Affordable MasterBox Lite 5 Mid-Tower Case
With an eye towards expanding and refreshing their case lineup, Cooler Master has just announced the MasterBox Lite 5 mid-tower case. The Lite 5 is a new model, with a translucent front panel and customizable trim colors. Not to be confused with the MasterCase 5 that we reviewed back in 2015, the MasterBox 5 Lite is the latest variation in the MasterBox 5 series, which now consists of six different models.
The MasterBox Lite 5 is a 43-liter ATX mid-tower design, and This model supports Mini-ITX to ATX motherboards with a total of seven expansion slots. Due to its depth and wide open interior design, this case can handle expansion cards up to 400mm in length, which means that it can easily fit the longest consumer graphics cards on the market. For the CPU cooler, it is worth taking note that, it has a hard z-height limit up to 160mm tall for heatsinks. This doesn't mean much in the grand scheme of what's available for CPU cooling, but the tallest models like the Noctua NH-D15 will unfortunately not fit.
With dimensions of 200mm(W) x 468.8 mm(D) x 454.5 mm(H), the case is quite narrow, relatively deep, and a roughly average height. Surprisingly, for a case made with a combination of steel and plastic, it is reasonably lightweight at 5.07kg. While we are on the topic of dimensions, Cooler Master have included a generous 25mm to 35mm of cable routing room behind the motherboard tray.
Liquid cooling capabilities are aplenty, with support for one 120mm radiator at the back of the case and one 240-360mm radiator (up to 50mm thick without fan) on the front of the case. Speaking of fans, there is one 120mm fan pre-installed in the back of the case, and there is room for three 120mm or two 140mm fans on the front of the case. Dust filters are included on the front and bottom of the case (for the PSU fan). When it comes to connectivity, the front I/O panel has two USB 3.0 ports, as well as both audio in and audio out 3.5mm jacks.
As you can probably see, the interior of the case has been split into two chambers. The enclosed bottom chamber is where the power supply – which can be up to 180mm long – is installed. Although not explicitly mentioned in the available documentation, we strongly believe that the bottom chamber is also where you will find the single 2.5" SSD mount (either there or behind the MB tray) and two combo 2.5"/3.5" drive bays.
Clearly, one of the main marketing points of this model is aesthetics. The centerpiece is the angular front fascia, which Cooler Master calls their DarkMirror front panel. It is a tinted and highly glossy piece of translucent plastic – likely acrylic like the side panel – that is fully removable to help with the installation of any liquid cooling components. The edge-to-edge side panel window is tinted yet highly transparent, fully removable, and held in place with thumbscrews. As with other MasterCase designs, there are also some external customization possibilities thanks to the inclusion of three trim pieces of various colors – black, white, and red – for both the top and bottom part of the front fascia. And if that is not enough, Cooler Master have also made 3D printing schematics of the top and bottom trim available for download so that DIY community can customize this case.
The Cooler Master MasterBox 5 Lite is currently available for pre-order at Newegg.com for $50 USD with a stated release date of May 19th.
