Thermaltake S500 TG – Packaging and Contents
The packaging for the Thermaltake S500 TG is rather plain; however, it is effective for protection I will say. The packaging did take a bump or two on the way to our lab. Thankfully, there was no damage to the chassis itself. In this particular situation, the function was far more important than aesthetics. Even still, the packaging does present the appropriate specs and features, as it should.
As expected, the shipping material is pretty standard these days. The protection of the chassis is handled by two protective foam pieces and a plastic bag. Additionally, you will receive a small box containing the various screws, zip ties, and instructions for installing your hardware as well.
Now let us take a closer look at the chassis itself!
Thermaltake S500 TG – A Closer Look
The Thermaltake S500 TG is about as large as a mid-tower chassis can be. Although, the case is not as heavy as I expected it to be, despite its size. There is a tempered glass side panel that is secured with thumb screws at the rear of the case. It is clear at this point that the aesthetics are one of the S500 TG’s main selling points. The design does look modern and is only marked by the small Thermaltake logo in the lower-middle area of the front panel, which is entirely flat and smooth. The black matte finish looks great and is fingerprint-resistant to boot.
On the rear of the chassis, we find a pretty standard ATX layout, which will suffice for the majority of users out there. The expansion slot covers are, thankfully, the removable/reusable kind and are finished with the same black paint as well. The overall theme that Thermaltake is aiming for with this chassis is definitely a step up from previous generations.
The front I/O panel is located at the top and front of the chassis. Thermaltake included two each of the USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports for the front panel of the S500 TG. Unfortunately, these ports are not LED illuminated, like some of Antec’s other cases, which makes finding the ports in a dimly lit scenario much easier. The power button is LED backlit, thankfully so that helps a bit. Also present is a reset button and standard 3.5mm headphone and microphone jacks as well. A nice touch here is that Thermaltake included rubber port dust protectors which is a nice little detail.
The top of the chassis is otherwise flat and smooth, just like the front panel, and is easily removed in order to upgrade the cooling of the chassis. The bottom of the chassis has a removable filter as well. Additionally, the front panel connectors are pretty standard for a chassis these days, nothing new here.
The interior of the S500 TG is equally beautiful, featuring the same black finish. The rear cooling system consists of a single pre-installed 120mm Thermaltake fan. The S500 TG also has a power supply chamber that is pretty common in chassis these days. This design allows for the hiding of those pesky-but-necessary power cables and the like. The result is a clean-looking build, something that I think we can all appreciate. Above the power supply chamber we find the preinstalled vertical GPU mounting bracket as well as a 2.5″ drive mount as well. There is also as additional 2.5″ drive mount installed on top of the 3.5″ drive cage, which also houses two 3.5″ drives as well. We get a better glimpse of the top of the chassis which can be easily accessed to upgrade the cooling as you see fit. Installed in the front of the chassis is a single 140mm fan for intake.
The backside of the motherboard tray is host to an SSD mounting brackets, Velcro cable ties, and several options for cable routing and management as well. What I like here is that Thermaltake did not try to over complicate the situation as some other cases have failed to do so. Sometimes simple is the better choice!
Now let us move on to the installation portion of this review!
Installation and Finished Looks
Thermaltake did a great job by making the HDD and SSD installation process a breeze. That being said, you will need a screwdriver to install your HDDs and SSDs into the included brackets. Installing the power supply was also a walk in the park, thanks to the removable power supply bracket.
With all of the hardware installed and cables ran, there is still an incredible amount of room for other components! The build looks clean and operates silently.
And there we have it! The S500 TG chassis brought to us by Thermaltake! Let us cover a few final thoughts in the conclusion of our review.
