Coolermaster Wave Master Case

shadykidd

Member
Jul 31, 2006
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I am looking into building my first PC, and I really like this case.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811119023

I have a few questions that I am not sure about concerning this case.

1) Are the 80mm fans a concern? Most cases seem to have 120mm now. Can I easily upgrade the case fans?

2) Will a Scythe Ninja fit into this case?

3) Since this is an older case, anyone have any experience using this case that might be able to pass on some helpful information?

In case you want to know, the PC that I plan on building will be an C2D E6600 (probably a little overclocked) and nVidia G80 series when released.
 

GalvanizedYankee

Diamond Member
Oct 27, 2003
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Search the archives of this forum for WaveMaster...Then read.

My opinion...It's a well built, beautiful case with a crappy air intake set-up that is
next to impossible to mod.

Look down the page for Zepper's thread about his new Rosewill case. Won't hurt to read.


...Galvanized
 

shadykidd

Member
Jul 31, 2006
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Thanks for pointing me towards the archives. There is a lot of helpful info there, but I did not find anything concerning the Scythe Ninja. (yes, I did search).

So, (a) would a Ninja fit into the case and (b) would a ninja help the air flow problem this case has?
 

RallyMaster

Diamond Member
Dec 28, 2004
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No. The Ninja's performance will be greatly limited by the WaveMaster's 80mm fans. 996GT2 built a PC with that case and the 80mm fans are loud. Extremely loud. The Ninja will be a tough fit inside the case because the WM is a skinny hoe (can barely fit an Accelero). It will be extremely difficult to mod 120mm fans into the case. Again, 996GT2 has cut a 120mm hole in the side of his case (but it does not have a fan there because he was a doofus and didn't listen to me...). You should direct questions to 996GT2 or wait and let him post.
 

Zepper

Elite Member
May 1, 2001
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The Wavemaster is a very well-made case. Unfortunately the design wasn't as well done... The mobo drawer limits the size of the fans at the rear. You'd have to widen the whole case over an inch to accomodate a drawer that could hold a 120mm fan. Looks like the WM would need to be widened even for a 92mm. Check on http://www.geeks.com as they have had some silver OEM ones for really low prices in the recent past.

You can do an "outside the box", no cutting mod to use a 120mm fan on the rear like This. As for the front (if you need more than the two 80mm fans can do), you could use the Scythe Bay fan if you can get away with using only one 5" bay for an optical drive. Or you could just put a vent hole in the bottom of the case near the front, or in the bottom of the left door near the front. Plenty of mesh filters out there that would look good for finishing off a vent hole.

The two 80s at the front could be just low speed fans for providing a bit of air flow for the HDDs - the important fan for system cooling in most cases is the rear exhaust. Provide some vent for air to get in toward the lower front and the exhaust will take care of the rest. SVC has 80-120mm fan adapters for cheap, or you can shop around and find really fancy, machined aluminum ones.

.bh.
 

shadykidd

Member
Jul 31, 2006
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Since this will be the first PC I am going to build, it sounds like I will be better off forgetting about this case.
 

Zepper

Elite Member
May 1, 2001
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I was still editing my post above when you were posting. See if my suggestions could put you back in your Wavemaster. But, if you decide you can't (or don't want to bother to) make it work for you, look at Silverstone cases. The guys that started Silverstone did most of the design work on the first CM aluminum cases including the wavemaster.

There is only one case available that I know of that combines a mobo drawer with a 120mm rear fan and that's the Akasa that G-Y is so hot for ;) . But it's almost unobtainium here in the states. One dealer is all there is - hope your wallet is phat. It doesn't have the looks of the Wavemaster though - almost nothing does.

Finally there is the recent CM Mystique. Not made as well as the WM, but it has 120F/R and is an Al case. The new 632 version just popped up with a very different-looking front bezel. I started a thread on it. No mobo drawer though.

.bh.
 

dawza

Senior member
Dec 31, 2005
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Zepper is dead on with his suggestions and insights on the Wavemaster. It is, as stated by others, a beautiful and very well put-together case that unfortunately was not properly designed to handle hot modern components efficiently in stock form. That said, the system you wish to build should not throw off too much heat- if you were looking to put a Prescott and an X1900XT in the Wavemaster and have the system remain cool within reasonable noise limits, it would be a different story.

If you feel comfortable with making a few modifications to the case, I would not hesitate to recommend the Wavemaster. However, if you are apprehensive about the thought of sharp tools around your first build, there are other choices which will serve you well. I always tell people who are concerned about the dearth of fans >80mm in the Wavemaster that in the end, the case is well worth putting some work into. You would be hard pressed to find a more solidly-built, cleanly-finished, and aesthetically pleasing case in the sub $150 range.
 

shadykidd

Member
Jul 31, 2006
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Well, after some research it seems that I am not going to find a case that comes even close to the Wavemaster, at least for my preference.

I talked to my Dad (I'm a college student), and he has practically any tool I would need to mod this case (Rotozip, Dremel Tool, hole cutting-blades, and blades especially made for steel and aluminum). With his help, I should be able to mod this case perfectly. I heard that it comes with a conversion kit to make the top USB ports into a fan as well. With all of those modifications, my setup should be running very cool with plenty of air flow.

Can you guys suggest any fans that I can use? I'll need one 120mm for the mod job, and I want to replace the stock 80mm fans as well.

Thanks again for all your help and suggestions.
 

dawza

Senior member
Dec 31, 2005
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There was a member here who cut the front intake holes out to improve upon the restrictive front grille- search for posts by 996GT2. The high impedence of the front grille is one main problem cooling-wise with the WaveMaster. Note that the front aluminum is VERY thick, and you have to take care not to damage the support pillars for the aluminum piece that hides the grille.

I decided that instead of going through the trouble of cutting out the front grille, to cut out a 120mm hole on the side panel right over the CPU heatsink area for passive intake (no fan). This alone dropped my temps by about 4C. It would be a good idea to filter the hole as well. I actually experimented with a side intake fan, but found that there was no improvement in CPU temps with the fan, and the mobo temp actually increased 1-2C.

I removed the top USB port because I never used it, and the cables made for messy wiring. However, my experience with a blowhole in this case has been that it makes no difference whatsoever, while contributing to noise and increasing the possibility that something will fall into the hole and fry the system. I now have the mesh fan holder sans fan, and actually keep the mesh covered with a book to both prevent stuff from going in, as well as to dampen noise coming out. If I were to do it again, I would probably just have removed the cables and connectors from the top metal plate and left it in as is.

I added an 80-120mm fan adaptor to the outside of the rear exhaust hole and coupled it with a GlobalWin 120x25mm fan. The fan wire was put through a PCI slot where I removed the cover. The GlobalWin, despite being a ball bearing fan, undervolts on PWM very gracefully. Slapping on an 80-120mm adaptor and the GlobalWin to the rear dropped my CPU temps by at least 3C under full load, and was much quieter. You may find that the adaptor interferes slightly with removal of the side panels, but you should be able to get around that.

I currently use the front intake fans mainly as a mechanism to cool my HDD; I am sure some air does come in through the front grille, but the side 120mm hole is the primary intake mechanism; I have an SI-120 cooling my processor, and the fan on the heatsink is positioned right over the 120mm hole, allowing efficient passive intake through the hole. I am not sure how well this would work with tower-style heatsinks.

If you do not want to use any 80mm fans in the system at all, it is possible to mount 92mm fans for front intake. You cannot screw them in, but the front mounting bracket will allow you to slide a 92mm frame in; mount the fans with double-sided tape or velcro, or some other adhesive. I currently use Arctic Cooling 92x25mm fans, and they are OK, although nothing special; they also lack RPM monitoring, but they are cheap and are rated for a long lifetime. The do not have any ball bearing clicking when undervolted via PWM, which is a plus. There is some motor hum, but as long as they are run at low volts, it is not too bad.

I would strongly suggest you control the fans with a fan controller; the CoolerMaster Aerogate 3 is a good choice for the WaveMaster, as many controllers that use knobs will not work with the WaveMaster's front door; the Aerogate has been on sale at SVC for $8, and at that price, simply cannot be beat.

SVC also has 80x25mm GlobalWin fans; if the 80mm model is anything like the 120mm, it would be a solid choice if you wanted to use 80mm for front intakes, or were set on having a blowhole fan.

80-120mm fan adaptor

GlobalWin 120x25mm fan for rear exhaust

Aerogate 3 fan controller/temp monitor

Arctic Cooling 92x25mm fans
 

Zepper

Elite Member
May 1, 2001
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I bring the wires for my adapted (outside the box) fans right in thru the adapter (see pic in earlier post). Requires you to notch out the fan frame a bit more to prevent crimping the wires, but it works great and very clean. Other than that, and the concept that you want to put your air vent(s) as far away from your exhaust fans as possible toward the lower front of the case - so the air does more work before being blown out the exhaust, I second most of the above.

.bh.
 

shadykidd

Member
Jul 31, 2006
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Thanks Zep and dawza, I'll be taking your advice. I much rather add an external rear fan than cut the side of the case.
 

chef24

Member
Mar 3, 2006
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If your dad has all those tools then he must love to mess with projects like this.

Sit down with him and come up with your own design to mod your CM, make it a project and have fun doing it.