This review is for the newer Pure Base 500FX sold in this listing page, not the 500DX also being listed, though they are almost identical except for the 500FX having better fans and lighting. It's a fairly long review, so the TL;DR version is it's mostly a great case with only a few non-deal breaking downsides.
For starters, this is my first full build, which I transplanted from another case. The instructions are lackluster with just a few photos and little explanation of the parts. That said, it's not a deal breaker for anyone that has been inside a case before doing upgrades or generally a computer enthusiast. The only other con in this case is the fans being connected to a single hub in the stock configuration mean there are no independent controls for them. All 4 fans (3 intake, 1 exhaust) are going to be locked to the same speed, though that speed can be controlled with third party software like Fan Control. It's not really a problem for me, but would've been nice to have the option for independent control. I do wish it had a second Type-A USB connection on the front instead of the Type-C.
The thing that really drew me to the case was the aesthetics and being pleased with he Be Quiet! Pure Rock 2 I already own. The stock RGB patterns include one of the best I've seen among other stock and third party light patterns, and I love the back side ring light design on the fans. The down side here is not all RGB platforms play well with each other, as I found out the hard way. Be Quiet! is compatible with Signal RGB, but my motherboard isn't compatible with the case hub or Signal. At best, I get minimal control through Asrock's own lighting software, but that is limited to solid colors only. I'm also unable to pass the case light control into Razer Chroma. This seems to be a problem with Asrock's implementation of RGB control rather than the case itself, as others don't seem to have this problem.
Performance wise, I don't have a very powerful system, so my temps didn't change much. I think I only saw a 1-2 degree drop at best, but this is from already low temps and could also be due to normal variance. On the up side, the fans can be set to zero RPM with a custom fan curve in the third part Fan Control software. I now have a custom curve set that lets my system idle without the case fans running, only ramping them up when under load and temps increasing. This will help keep dust out of the system and reduce cleaning frequency of it and the filters.
When setting the fans to full speed, I can't hear a thing from them. The front mesh opening is large enough and far enough away from the fans that I don't feel any air moving through it (in other words, no significant air restriction). These fans are great at what they do, and I have a very quiet system even when running under a full load.
Cable management was not very difficult. The only concern I had was the thick 24-pin motherboard connection from the PSU. The decorative cover plate has a cutout with a bend to route cables to the right side of the mobo, but my 24-pin cable was too thick to make that turn and then turn a second time to plug in. What I was able to do instead is route that cable out of the top of the cutout and back down, making for a fairly simple and unobtrusive routing that still let me keep the cover plate in place. I think I may like this better than the typical routing that comes through and makes a big u-turn that reaches half way to the side panel before coming back to plug into the mobo.
Panel securement may be a bit dated by using thumb screws instead of spring loaded latches like many other cases, but this isn't a big deal. Most people are not going to be in the case working around often enough to become an issue worth complaining about. Everything goes together smoothly and securely, which is what really matters here. I like that there are two HDD mounting locations, and that the HDD cage is adjustable. In the default position, the cage is mounted right behind the bottom intake fan. If you don't have tons of extra cables needing to be hidden, you can shift the cage back about an inch and get a bit more air from the bottom fan into the main compartment.
Accessing the filters is a bit hit and miss, depending on your perspective. The bottom PSU intake filter is easily removed from the front as a slide out filter. The top filter is in a sturdy frame that is secured with good magnets. The front intake filter requires removing the front mesh panel, which is where the complaints come in. A lot of people complain pulling that panel takes a concerning amount of force. This may be true, but there are no cables to worry about yanking out (yay push pin and pad connectors for the lighting), and the locking tabs may loosen up over time to become more reasonable.
All in all, the 500FX is a nice case that was fairly easy to build in. They even include a handy standoff tool in case you need to move those around for different mobo configurations (stock is ATX, but I have a micro-ATX mobo). If RGB isn't your thing, this may still be worth choosing over the 500DX simply for the extra fan if the price is right. You can turn the lights off if you don't want them. Their customer service was also very responsive to a concern I had.
| Number of USB 3.0 Ports | 1 |
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