A Closer Look: Interior
Once we get the side panel off we can get a better visual on that filtered vent for the graphics card as well as the interior paint finish. This paint is very thick and durable. Even though my previous experiences with a handful of Mini-ITX chassis was left to be desired due to the space constraints; the Node 304 has an intelligent design making full use of the available space in the cube design. The hard drive brackets are removable; and are situated just above where the power supply will be mounted near the front of the chassis. There are also a few tie-off points for zip strip or other cable management tools available.
With the hard drive brackets removed, we get a clear view of the front Silent Series R2 92mm fans that are pre-installed. Beneath those fans is the area and mounting bracket that the power supply unit will be installed and mounted to. For such a small form factor, I really am surprised with the amount of available space in this chassis, especially with a 140mm fan pre-installed.
Another pleasant surprise that I found with this chassis was the built-in fan controller, which is mounted to the back of the chassis, and has enough connectors to satisfy the included chassis fans. The fan controller has three speeds; low, medium, and (you guessed it) high. I would like to add here that all of the included chassis fans have three-pin connectors.
Once the front panel is removed, which is extremely easy by the way, we gain access to the rest of the connectors such as the front panel audio connector, USB 3.0 connector (which has a 2.0 connector also), and front panel motherboard connector.
With the aluminum front panel removed, we get a clear view of the preinstalled 92mm fans and the removable filter as well.
Now that we have examined the interior of the Node 304, let us take a closer look at the installation of some hardware and the finished looks!
