The BEST Compact Micro-ATX Case? (Aerocool CS-106 Review)

I was recently looking to buy a really small mATX case for an upcoming HomeLab storage server build (aka a custom NAS) and I ended up buying the Aerocool CS-106, a micro ATX case that promises full cooling support (including liquid cooling support with a 120mm radiator) - even though it's much smaller than many other mATX cases.
And the best bit? It cost me less than £20 here in the UK, which is approximately $25. That's great value, but does the case's performance stack up? I answer this (and more) in this video, where I show all aspects of the case off - and also show how a PSU and two motherboards would fit inside of it.
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The individual timestamps for this video are:
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00:00 Aerocool CS-106 mATX Case
01:35 Opening Up The Case
02:49 The Front Panel
04:50 Motherboard Size Support
07:35 CPU Power Cable Issue
09:10 Cooling Support
09:55 Aerocool CS-106 Dimensions
11:21 Final Thoughts
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Credits
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Thanks to the following resources (sounds, images etc):
"Pop-up Sound" by BeezleFM (freesound.org/s/512135/ -- License: Attribution 4.0)
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#PCBuild #Aerocool #Computer

[@TechOverwrite]

Hey everyone, I enjoyed giving my thoughts of this compact mATX case. What did you think of it? 🧐

[@andrewvickers4487]

Enjoyed the laughs hehe, really nice useful watch as ever and I'm currently looking at MATX options and loving the SFF vs ATX. How important is having a full mesh style front for max air flow? Looking forward to the conclusion re cables.

[@TechOverwrite]

Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, I had fun reviewing it 😄 I think some level of mesh in the front is important for sure - a small number of SFF cases seem to disregard this a bit too much IMO, and I've always known this as critical for airflow. I'll definitely post a build video when it comes to it, and update this video. Hopefully I still have a good opinion of the case after attempting a full MATX build in it lol 😂

[@Kzxhy]

you should look at ionz' kz-32v if you havent already. 15 litre matx with decent enough cooler and gpu clearance for just £25.

[@TechOverwrite]

Thanks for the suggestion, that does look like a smart case and it's another good budget one. 🙂 I like how the side air holes look like part of the design, instead of this CS-106 case where they stand out a bit too much.

[@Kzxhy]

@@TechOverwrite yeah its a pretty smart looking case, but i genuinely think the best part is simply how small it is, it's probably the smallest case that supports an matx board, atx psu and full height gpu up to 250mm