Product Listing

Thermaltake Level 10 GT Battle Edition - Man Your Battle Stations!

By Wong Chung Wee - 18 Oct 2012
Launch SRP: S$449

External Design

External Design

On first impressions, the Thermaltake Level 10 GT Battle Edition has a plasticky look-and-feel, due to its seemingly obtrusive components and parts that jut out from their places. According to its official specifications, the casing uses SECC that is galvanized steel via an electroplating process with zinc as the coating material. The empty casing weighs about 12.7kg and it features a single carrying handle that runs along its entire depth. Since it is a single grip bar, there is no way to hold this hefty case in a balanced manner; any moving of this chassis will entail using some part of your body to support whatever heft that escapes the lifting efforts of your arms.

From the side, you can tell that the casing has been given the military ammunition box treatment, complete with the classic yellow fonts. On the top, you'll find the plastic carrying handle of the Level 10 GT Battle Edition. It feels rather sturdy though it is made entirely from plastic.

The front fascia of the Level 10 GT Battle Edition has a number of black wire mesh covers that offer direct air intake and front cooling options. There are a total of four 5.25-inch drive bays with easy-to-remove front covers with wire mesh. There is a lone front-facing 3.5-inch drive bay that also has a front cover with wire mesh. Its four front I/O ports are USB 2.0 ones. The power and reset buttons are first from the top of the row, while the headphone and mic jacks take up the bottom. The bottom half of the case is dominated by five quick swap 3.5-inch drive bays - the buttons that are numbered one to five, will release these bays sideways when depressed. The security lock to the side of the front facing 3.5-inch drive bay prevents the quick swap 3.5-inch drive bays from being removed without permission. With the security lock in operation, the buttons cannot be depressed and the drive bays remain in place.

Looking beyond its carrying handle at the top of the chassis, we see wire mesh covered vents that provide air intake. The smaller air intake is not removable; however, the larger air intake features a removable wire mesh. Located behind the mesh is a supplied 230mm cooling fan with LEDs. We shall take a look at it later in the article. The buttons that control this particular fan are located near the top I/O ports that comprise of two USB 3.0 and an eSATA port.

The top of the Thermaltake Level 10 GT Battle Edition features two air intakes and more I/O ports. The top cooling fan control buttons are next to the pair of blue USB 3.0 ports.

 The top 230mm cooling fan has three control buttons; two of them control its speed while the third one operates its LED based lighting.

The wire mesh, next to the buttons and ports, cover a number of hexagon air vent cut-outs . The slight indent of the wire mesh may tempt users to use it as a tray for containing their PC knickknacks; however, we do advise against it as these items will reduce the air flow through the air intake behind.

 This is is one of the air intake vents of the Level 10 GT Battle Edition next to the top I/O ports which we almost mistook it as a PC accessories tray.

Its larger counterpart features a bundled 230mm cooling fan with LEDs. The fan control buttons that operate it are located next to the USB 3.0 ports. The front cover with the wire mesh is removable with the deft push of a button tucked behind the chassis.

 The removable wire mesh sits in front of the supplied 230mm cooling fan. The casing does offer some control over the operation of the cooling fan, in terms of its rotational speed and LED illumination.

The release button of the removable wire mesh is located at the rear of the casing, tucked near the top edge where the plastic top cover ends. The wire mesh cover is easy to remove for easy maintenance, and even its wire mesh is removable; however, the latter involves prying a number of wire mesh tabs that hold it in place. The bundled 230mm cooling fan is removable as well to allow other cooling options to be installed in its place.

 The release button for the top mesh cover of the 230mm cooling fan has been highlighted with the red frame.

With a press of the release button, the wire mesh cover can be removed in a jiffy to reveal the bundled 230mm cooling fan with LEDs. And of course, this allows easy maintenance of the fan and its mesh cover.

The removable wire mesh cover of the top 230mm cooling fan. The wire mesh is held in place by ten wire tabs that can be pried straight so that the wire mesh can be thoroughly cleaned and even replaced.

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8.0
  • Aesthetics 8.5
  • Functionality 8.5
  • Usability 9
  • Value 6
The Good
Quick swap 3.5-inch drive bays
Security via lock-and-key system
Excellent cable management system
Four large cooling fans in total
Fan control system with LED control
The Bad
High premium for Battle Edition
Limited availability
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