Corsair Obsidian Series 450D Performance Mid-Tower PC Case Review

A Detailed Look – From the Outside

From the outside the Obsidian 450D looks a lot like the 350D, 750D and 900D. The overall styling, especially the front panel/bezel area, looks nearly identical except the 450D now has an open grill area in front of the intake fans instead of a solid panel. Consistent with some of the other newer Obsidian Series cases (350D, 750D and 900D), the 450D appears to incorporate several design features intended to reduce manufacturing costs. The 450D incorporates a steel chassis with plastic and brushed aluminum trim pieces.  The case is painted matte black inside and out with black anodized, brushed aluminum trim plates on the front. The riveted SECC chassis is light weight but rigid and the black matte powder coat finish matches the black plastic and aluminum parts well.

The 450D front panel includes an exposed I/O panel and two external 5.25” optical drive bays at the top and a removable grill at the bottom, which protects the two 140mm intake fans. Pressing the two top corners of the grill releases it and then it just lifts out, no tools required. A fine mesh screen is built in to the backside of the grill to act as a dust filter.

The external I/O panel contains:

•    Headphone Out
•    Microphone In
•    System Reset Button
•    Main Power Button
•    Power and HDD Activity light
•    (2) USB 3.0 ports

The left side panel features a large, smoked gray acrylic window (12.3” x 12.3”), while the right side panel is solid. Both side panels are removable and secured with two thumb screws at the back. In practice, both side panels are relatively easy to take off and re-install and fit securely once in place. However, they don’t feel as robust as the 650D side panels and the thumb screws are not as convenient as the 650D’s built-in latches.

The top of the Obsidian 450D case features a large grill area that has numerous fan mounting locations for both air and liquid cooling (three 120mm or two 140mm fans/radiator). The top grill is covered by a large, easy to remove filter, which is held in place with magnetic strips along all four edges.

Looking at the rear of the enclosure reveals a typical ATX-tower style layout with the power supply mounted at the bottom of the enclosure instead of the top.  A 120mm exhaust fan comes pre-installed and there are three pop-out openings below the fan for routing external liquid-cooling hoses in and out of the chassis if desired. Be careful though, if you punch out the knock-out plugs to route water-cooling hoses, it will leave potentially sharp edges – a couple nice grommeted holes would have been nicer.

All of the expansion card brackets contain ventilation slots to allow warm air to exhaust out the rear of the case and are secured with thumb screws.

Flipping the 450D case upside down exposes four rubber feet, two more optional fan locations (two 120mm fans/radiator with HDD cage removed), and a large dust filter. The filter is held in place with magnets but it does not slide in from the back the way it does on the 750D. Instead you have to reach under the case and pull it loose, which in practice is relatively easy.