Corsair 2500D Airflow review - An Air Mini alternative?

Prawn here with an in-depth review of the ‪@corsair‬ 25000D Airflow. I've built in this case in several ways (specs below) so that I can give you an in-depth review of the case and the potential lay out options as well as things you need to think about before buying and building in this case.
This is a case that's comparable to the Lian Li Air Mini in my mind and that's no bad thing. It has solid build quality and is compact, yet offers options like support for ATX power supplies and upto a 360mm radiator.
However I found a few issues worth knowing including issues with GPU installation, cable management, SSD wiring/positioning and more, so watch to find out.
Disclosure: Shopping links within the description of this video generate a commission at no extra cost to you. These are added for your convenience but other retailers are available. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Products:
Products featured may also have been sent for free for review/testing purposes. Often these have to be returned by me, but not always. I endeavour to avoid bias in my videos wherever possible and try to give honest, subjective opinions. Unless otherwise stated, the videos are not sponsored financially.
See deals on the Corsair 2500D Airflow:
Amazon US - amzn.to/3OXqmSI
NewEgg - newegg.io/ncee0150c6
Amazon UK - amzn.to/49N9A0t
Amazon FR - amzn.to/49OylcD
Amazon IT - amzn.to/3UWtp1k
Amazon DE - amzn.to/42R8miB
Amazon CA - amzn.to/49QKq0U
Amazon AU - amzn.to/3Ie1DFM
Overclockers - tidd.ly/49NaCcN
Scan - tidd.ly/3wv4RlO
Specs of the builds
Build 1:
Case - Corsair 2500D Airflow - go.corsair.com/Py9DWe
Motherboard - MSI B760M PROJECT ZERO - amzn.to/49t41EA
CPU - Intel i7-14700k - amzn.to/3TcHdn8
RAM - Crucial Pro Overclocking 32GB Kit (2x16GB) DDR5-6000 - www.crucial.com/memory/ddr5/c...
CPU cooler - Lian Li Galahad 2 Trinity - • Lian Li Galahad 2 Trin...
Fans:
5 x Lian Li SL120 V2 Reverse Blade - • Lian Li SL120 V2 Rever...
6 x Lian Li SL120 V2 - • How to connect and set...
PSU - Corsair RM1000e - • Corsair RM1000e PSU un...
NVMe - Corsair MP600 Elite - go.corsair.com/WqakEA
GPU - MSI GeForce RTX 4070 Super 12G Gaming X Slim amzn.to/3uK6OdE
SSDs - Crucial MX500 2TB and Crucial BX500 2TB • How to install 2.5 inc...
Build 2:
Case - Corsair 2500D Airflow - go.corsair.com/Py9DWe
Motherboard - Gigabyte Aorus B650i Ultra • Gigabyte Aorus B650i U...
CPU - AMD Ryzen 7 7700X amzn.to/3sBhDxc
RAM - Corsair Vengeance RGB DDR5 16GB x 2 6200MHz go.corsair.com/eKAL3Z
CPU cooler - Corsair iCUE H150i ELITE LCD XT - go.corsair.com/MmxLEq
Fans:
11 x Corsair AF120 RGB Elite - • How to connect and set...
PSU - Corsair SF1000L - go.corsair.com/anj2yR
NVMe - Corsair MP600 Elite - go.corsair.com/WqakEA
GPU - MSI GeForce RTX 4070 Super 12G Gaming X Slim amzn.to/3uK6OdE
SSDs - Crucial MX500 2TB and Crucial BX500 2TB • How to install 2.5 inc...
Fan controller - 2 x Corsair Commander Core XT - go.corsair.com/q4Ar0Y
Corsair USB hub - go.corsair.com/5gM1Pj
Specs of the 2500D Airflow
Dimensions 479 x 304 x 376 mm
Material: Steel, Tempered Glass
Included Fans: None
Cooling Layout: Front: 2x 120mm; 2x 140mm
Top: 3x 120mm; 2x 140mm
Side: 2x 120mm
Bottom: 3x 120mm; 2x 140mm
Rear: 1x 120mm
Radiator Compatibility
Front: 240mm, 280mm
Top: 360mm, 280mm, 240mm
Side: 240mm
Bottom: 360mm, 280mm, 240mm
Rear: 120mm
Expansion Slots (Main):
4 Horizontal (Vertical GPU Mount Sold Separately)
Motherboard (Main): Mini-ITX, Micro-ATX
Storage: 4 x 2.5-inch SSD or 2x SSD and 2 x HDD
Clearances:
PSU: 225mm
CPU Cooler: 180mm
GPU: 400mm
Dust Filters: Front, Bottom, Side
Front I/O:
USB 3.2 Gen1 Type-A (x2)
USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C (x1)
Headphone/Microphone (x1)
Power/Reset
PSU support: ATX / SFX
00:00 Hello
00:47 Motherboard support
02:08 Case overview
02:45 PSU support
04:31 Cable management
07:21 HDD cage problem
08:53 Rear Connect motherboard
11:06 SSD issues
14:50 Radiator mounting issues
19:19 Front fan noise
20:51 GPU install issues
22:31 Wood effect panels
25:20 Conclusion
😍Special Thanks😍to my KZbin members:
SirSpawnsALot, Meatykeyboard, Rawrr483, Space Cannons, Mike S, Jason Morgan, Starastin, McFarty, Kraken Tortoise, Gaming Nomad, Jay Shank 007, Beaster Bunny, Spandau Guy, Steve Patterson, Chris Thompson, D Shaddix, Hao Vo, Scott Chappelle, Sotong, AuF5guy, Friendly Fire, Bhushan Mahesh Gandhi, Elbert McCormick, Fazu Battlecaster, Dureren12, ONENONLYCASPER, April Nelson, aDam aDamin and you?

[@TheProvokedPrawn]

Specs of the builds (note these include affiliate links which may earn me a commission at no extra cost to you): Build 1: Case - Corsair 2500D Airflow - go.corsair.com/Py9DWe Motherboard - MSI B760M PROJECT ZERO - amzn.to/49t41EA CPU - Intel i7-14700k - amzn.to/3TcHdn8 RAM - Crucial Pro Overclocking 32GB Kit (2x16GB) DDR5-6000 - www.crucial.com/memory/ddr5/cp2k16g60c36u5b CPU cooler - Lian Li Galahad 2 Trinity - kzbin.info/www/bejne/mJmze5WCg9Bkqtk Fans: 5 x Lian Li SL120 V2 Reverse Blade - kzbin.info/www/bejne/l6HceYKlg71mkLM 6 x Lian Li SL120 V2 - kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZqizmpKwg99-fJY PSU - Corsair RM1000e - kzbin.info/www/bejne/fIbRl6h8a9OGjNk NVMe - Corsair MP600 Elite - go.corsair.com/WqakEA GPU - MSI GeForce RTX 4070 Super 12G Gaming X Slim amzn.to/3uK6OdE SSDs - Crucial MX500 2TB and Crucial BX500 2TB kzbin.info/www/bejne/f4Ctf6yYgL9nrc0 Build 2: Case - Corsair 2500D Airflow - go.corsair.com/Py9DWe Motherboard - Gigabyte Aorus B650i Ultra kzbin.info/www/bejne/qYjGq4Wqd7tjf8k CPU - AMD Ryzen 7 7700X amzn.to/3sBhDxc RAM - Corsair Vengeance RGB DDR5 16GB x 2 6200MHz go.corsair.com/eKAL3Z CPU cooler - Corsair iCUE H150i ELITE LCD XT - go.corsair.com/MmxLEq Fans: 11 x Corsair AF120 RGB Elite - kzbin.info/www/bejne/m3bIfq18fd2njdk PSU - Corsair SF1000L - go.corsair.com/anj2yR NVMe - Corsair MP600 Elite - go.corsair.com/WqakEA GPU - MSI GeForce RTX 4070 Super 12G Gaming X Slim amzn.to/3uK6OdE SSDs - Crucial MX500 2TB and Crucial BX500 2TB kzbin.info/www/bejne/f4Ctf6yYgL9nrc0 Fan controller - 2 x Corsair Commander Core XT - go.corsair.com/q4Ar0Y Corsair USB hub - go.corsair.com/5gM1Pj

[@nobodygaming4248]

nice build i would love to see a review of the inwin f5... it looks pretty interesting 🙂

[@esrtradajesse]

Patiently waiting for this to release even tho i just upgraded my case to the h6 flow

[@johnmarston1873]

I have an O11D Mini and now this gonna be my next case. I love it.

[@MorgFlame]

What a weird, wide, thicc oddly looking cool, futuristic Bentley looking case :)

[@formulaic78]

ITX will have to be my next project in about five years when my x670e board is no longer optimum and I've scratched the glass on my h6 flow. I'll be following one of your guides when I attempt it I'm sure.

[@TheProvokedPrawn]

Hopefully I'm still doing them in 5 years!

[@GpconnectInfohotspot]

with every fan slot used, how airflow is manager on this case ?

[@danielcastillo2542]

Does anyone know if it fits the phantom spirit CPU air cooler? it is a 154mm tall

[@alexandrubodilca7160]

With itx format did you measured the max thickness radiator that can be used in a custom loop? I am trying to see If i can fit 2 EK P360M (top and bottom) and 1 EK P240M (side)

[@CapriSonne1311]

Would a 45mm thick 360 Radiator fit in the top or does the ram get in the way?

[@imnugget8085]

So beautiful

[@luisdi3462]

I've been asking for a dual chamber micro atx case, this is weird but at least it's something, hopefully lian li comes with a newer version of O11 mini too

[@spooky1279]

They announced the BTF atx case so its not long before they downsize it

[@matthewpatterson9184]

Great review... Will you be reviewing the 6500X (or 6500D)? Hoping to pick one up when they become available.

[@TheProvokedPrawn]

What do you like the look of more? Probably the D at some point.

[@matthewpatterson9184]

​@@TheProvokedPrawn I'm leaning towards the X but happy to see your review of either model. They appear to be largely similar.

[@TheProvokedPrawn]

@@matthewpatterson9184 cool. I generally lean towards the Airflow models as they're better in my experience but interesting to see what people find appealing.

[@matthewpatterson9184]

@@TheProvokedPrawn Now you mention it, I do currently have the 4000D but want to step up to something with more airflow. Perhaps the 6500D would be the more ideal choice.

[@SpaceyMonkey75]

Non sequitur; I'm looking for a deep case that will accommodate a strimer plus cable running off of a zotac rtx 4090 AIRO. My Corsair Obsidian 500d has been running without a side panel for the better part of a year.

[@ThatOneOddGuy]

You have turntable there Oddly enough I'm making my own so I can get better focused lighting on whatever my subject would be

[@kitpalencar5165]

The Air 240 has excellent cable management. Shame it didn't make an appearance here.

[@GonzoGaming22]

I would get a 90 degree angle cpu header adaptor if mounting a zero mobo and using HD caddy .This case is almost as messy as the 2000 case . Lol

[@Aggressive_Splooge]

Will you review the 6500d?

[@TheProvokedPrawn]

Hopefully sometime soon yes

[@smthsmth]

its fricking huge

[@TheProvokedPrawn]

That's what she said

[@diogopadrao4118]

This seems very nice. You know what you video made me think about? If with these new Motherboard with cables on the back, we will start seeing more cases like the Tuf G502 that want to put even the AIO on the back, to hide the maximum of cables and even perhaps one day CPU on the back

[@mdrizzle6665]

Wow…a copy of the O11 air mini….. im so excited for the SAME case with a different logo…. Cuz you know, the corsair logo adds 0.004% fps boost vs lian li’s logo 0.003% boost….

[@CHNHNGXN]

Hit like before I see

[@TheProvokedPrawn]

Hope you liked it when you saw it too

[@teslarage]

Omg I love your voice 😂

[@TheProvokedPrawn]

Thanks. Sub to hear more of it

[@teslarage]

@@TheProvokedPrawn I did! Its a marathon!

[@coys4life450]

It looks like a O11 air mini Matx edition lol

[@TheProvokedPrawn]

Yeah I don't understand why it doesn't support ATX tbh because the Air Mini does. And both work with ATX power supplies.

[@Trooper93x]

How many likes for a vertical gpu mount short video with the same msi slim 4070 super?????

[@TheProvokedPrawn]

I asked Corsair for the vertical mount but they haven't sent one yet so sadly I doubt it'll happen as the GPU is only a loan sample

[@mikebaker2927]

Some weird design choices in this case.

[@TheProvokedPrawn]

yup

[@murdergorilla4087]

I almost waited for this case to run the msi project zero but then remembered what garbage msi is and bought a nv5 instead.

[@TheProvokedPrawn]

Really? I've had good experiences with MSI. What are your issues

[@Ralinor666]

What is this? A case for ants? Show me the big one.

[@TheProvokedPrawn]

Ooh errr

[@Ladioz]

Very complicated case. Huge pass on this case

[@MDXZFR]

Who cares about aesthetics? You can mount 60mm thick radiator on the side with 39mm fan which is better than that aio