Xigmatek Venom X Review

Texon-Ware has recently launched XIGMATEK in Pakistan. Texon-Ware has introduced a complete range of products from XIGMATEK including coolers, cases, PSUs, and Gaming Chairs. We have recently tested their AURORA 360 AIO cooler. In this content, we will take a spin on Xigmatek Venom X Review which is a mid-tower PC case with support for motherboards up to E-ATX size.

XIGMATEK VENOM X ARCTIC PC Case Review

The chassis comes with 4x A-RGB fans pre-installed (3x on the front and 1x on the rear). XIGMATEK has provided a dedicated controller hub as well in the box. This chassis is available in white and black colors. The white case color variant is labeled as ARCTIC.

The salient features include:

• Easy Cable Management
• Two Panel Front and Left Side Tempered Glass
• Superior Airflow and Ventilation Chassis Design
• Easy & Removable Dust Filter for Quick Dust Clearing
• Liquid Cooling Radiators Compatibility: Front 240mm and Rear 120mm
• Multiple Cooling Fan Placement Support 120mm / 140mm Fans
• Item:                                VENOM X ARCTIC
• Manufacturer:                  XIGMATEK
• Price:                               Check Price on Amazon

VENOM X ARCTIC Specifications

XIGMATEK Venom X Packaging and Unboxing

The chassis is shipped inside a standard brown color cardboard box.

The salient features of the case are mentioned in tabular format. The clearance aspect is clearly highlighted as well, which is:

• 158mm clearance for the CPU Cooler’s height
• 380mm clearance for the graphics card’s length
• Motherboard support is up to E-ATX
• Radiator support is up to 240mm
• Up to 8x fan mounts (for 120mm size)

The specifications are printed in a tabular format.

The net weight and gross weight are printed on the shipping label along with the EAN and UPC labels. The model includes 4x Rainbow RGB fans.

XIGMATEK VENOM X Box Contents

Following are included in the box:

• 1x Plastic made PCIe slot cover in black color
• 3x Zip Ties
• 1x Remote Control
• 1x Controller Hub
• 1x set of self-adhesive mount
• 1x container of the screws.

Venom X Closer Look

Here is what XIGMATEK is saying about their chassis, “Venom X Review is an innovative product of gaming PC case from Xigmatek. Its features are tempered glass panels on the left and front sides to perfectly display every component of the build. CPU Cooler clearance 158mm, VGA clearance 380mm, liquid cooling radiator support of 240mm at the front side, and 120mm at the rear side. The PSU shroud is for cable management with a more tidy display. This XIGMATEK Venom X Review is beautiful inside and outside, a perfect choice for a gaming PC build.”

The Xigmatek Venom X Review is a mid-tower chassis that comes in two colors; white and black. It has a dimension of 435x200x435mm. It is made of steel, plastic, and tempered glass. The chassis has a net weight of 6.7Kg. Let’s start by taking a closer look at the exterior of the chassis.

Venom X Exterior

We have a tempered glass panel on the front side which is secured using 4x black color screws. The dust filter and the 3x 120mm A-RGB fans are visible behind the glass panel. X on the bottom designates the Xigmatek branding.

There is roughly a 7mm or so gap between the glass panel and the dust filter on the front. This XIGMATEK Venom X Review is an air-intake on the front.

The above picture shows the single large size dust cover (non-magnetic) after taking the glass panel off. The filter is placed on 4 studs (2 on the top and 2 on the bottom). The filter is secured using catchers in the middle of both sides.

The above picture shows the dust filter after removal.

The XIGMATEK Venom X Review has 3x pre-installed Rainbow RGB fans (120mm) on the front. Please note that we have not yet taken off the front panel itself.

The above picture shows the front of the chassis with the complete front panel removed. Place your hand on the cutout at the bottom of the panel and pull it gently to take it off.

The above picture shows the backside of the front panel.

We observe several rough surfaces, scratches on the plastic body of the chassis. Some of the rivets are not properly done.

The ARCTIC edition is a white color chassis. XIGMATEK has done a glossy white paint on the steel. The plastic part of the frame is not in a glossy finish and two-tone is clearly visible.

The XIGMATEK VENOM X has a tempered glass panel on the side. It seems to have a 4mm thickness. The panel is not tinted and it is secured using 4x black color thumb screws/nuts. Also, there are 4x plastic made inserts on all the corners of the glass. I was expecting them to be rubber made but they are not. These provide a buffer zone to avoid scratching the glass. The side panel is not fully flushed against the frame of the case.

The XIGMATEK VENOM X ARCTIC is beautiful craftsmanship though it reminds me of several other similar designs from multiple brands like CORSAIR, KOLINK. Hence, there may be nothing fresh about this case.

We have a standard layout on the rear. There is a cutout for the IO shield of the motherboard. On its right, there is a vented area for the 120mm fan mount. One Rainbow RGB 120mm fan is preinstalled. We can adjust the height of the rear fan.

There are 7x PCIe slots in the center. The first slot has no cover which makes no sense. The slot covers are not reusable and they need to be snapped off before the graphics card installation. These slots are implemented with raised ends outside of the chassis. There is a PCIe cover secured using 1x thumb screw. You would need to lose the cover to install/remove the PCIe devices.

The non-glass side panel is secured using 2x thumb screws which are not captive. There is a PSU mount on the bottom. It has no standard mounting provision there.

There is a removable non-magnetic dust filter under the PSU vented portion. The cutout on the front panel is visible here. The black color feet give sufficient lift to the chassis from the bottom for better ventilation.

Looking at the top side, there is a vented portion on the right side with a magnetic dust filter. We have 120mm/140mm fan mounts here. The front IO panel is also provided on the mainframe.

We have a rail mount system that gives the users flexibility to adjust the position of the fans.

I/O panel is located on the top frame of the chassis. Following connectivity options are on the I/O panel.

• LED Indicators
• Audio Jacks
• 2x USB 2.0 Ports
• Power Button
• 1x USB 3.0 Port
• 1x Non-Functional USB Type C Port
• RGB Button
• Reset Button

RGB button does not do anything as its 2-pin connector can’t be connected to the provided hub/controller. This is an oddly strange implementation.

The side panel is made of steel. It is finished in glossy white paint.

Venom x Controller Interior

Let’s take a look at the interior of the chassis.

The complete inside of the case is done in white color. The case looks spacious though it is still compact mid-tower chassis. The overall layout is fine and would appeal to many in this price range. The inner height of the tray is 331mm and its length is 384mm.

The motherboard tray has 9x standoffs in golden color preinstalled. These standoffs are installed for microATX configuration. This would mean we need to remove some of the standoffs for the standard ATX configuration. I am not sure why XIGMATEK went this way. Maybe they are aiming at micro-ATX builds for this XIGMATEK Venom chassis which would not make sense since they are claiming the case to be compatible with E-ATX size motherboards.

Please note that installing an E-ATX size motherboard will cover the 3x cutouts next to the tray area and there will be no more cutouts to pass the cables through.

We have a large size cutout to install the CPU cooler conveniently. There are two large-size cutouts on the top to pass the EPS and other cables. Then there are 3x cutouts in vertical layout on the right side of the motherboard tray. The far-right area is not usable from this side as 2.5” drives can be installed on this area but from the backside.

There is a 30mm gap between the top of the chassis frame and the motherboard’s top. Similarly, there is a displacement of 20mm from the radiator mount to the side of the chassis. This displacement shows the compatibility with respect to the RAM height. The case does not support the radiator on the top due to short displacement. We can only install 2x 120mm or 140mm fans on the top.

There is a Rainbow RGB 120mm fan on the rear. These fans have a proprietary 6-pin connector that can only be used using the provided hub.

The PCIe slots are in the same plane of the chassis frame. The covers are not reusable. XIGMATEK has provided a plastic-made black color slot cover in the accessory pouch. This could be a cost-saving measure as other than that, it does not make any sense.

The above picture shows the close-up of the front fan mount provision. We have a rail mount system which is good but this mount is a bit flimsy so take care when installing the radiator there. The pre-installed Rainbow RGB 120mm fans have a dual loop for some brilliant RGB lighting.

There is a 60mm gap on the PSU shroud upfront. I am not sure about the probable use of this cutout since the HDD cage is fixed and the user can only install a 120mm or 240mm radiator on the front. Seems like it is for ventilation purpose!

We have an almost full-length cover on the PSU area. It does not cover the HDD cage on the front side. There are three cutouts on the PSU cover located towards the motherboard tray. Another cutout is towards the glass panel side.

This is where you can optionally pass the PEG cable(s) through for your graphics card. We observed that this cutout is narrow as we found it difficult to pass two 8-pin PEG cables through it. Since the shroud does not have a vented portion on the top, it would be better to install the PSU with fan side down.

The PCB for the I/O panel is installed on the upper right side of the chassis. The PCB is in green color.

The side of the PSU shroud has an angular cutout from which the label or branding of the PSU could be seen.

There are vented areas on the HDD cage. Let’s take a look at the other side of the chassis.

The XIGMATEK Venom X Review is a compact mid-tower chassis. The backside is also finished in glossy white color paint. We have a total of 14 cable tie points. The user can install up to 3x 2.5” drives on the left side area. There is no mounting provision on the backside of the motherboard tray. This is a dual-chamber layout.

The lower chamber has a provision for an HDD cage and PSU mount.

The HDD Cage is permanently installed using rivets in the chassis. The user can install up to 3x 3.5” drives there. This is no tool-less mounting as there is no caddy in the cage.

The PSU mounting area has 4 feet on which the PSU is rested when slided from the rear. The PSU length is mentioned to be a maximum of 200mm which does not seem possible. We would recommend 160mm or so length PSU since cables would also need to be placed before the HDD cage.

We have spotted rough finishing on the backside as well.

We have the following cables coming out of the front IO panel:

• USB 3.0
• USB 2.0
• HD Audio

System panel connectors.

There is a 2-pin connector labeled FAN. This Fan cable is coming from the RGB button on the IO panel. This connector is supposed to be connected to the provided A-RGB fan hub/controller. Surprisingly the 2-pin header of the hub is not wired hence we can’t use this cable anyway.

We have already covered the hub/controller in our content on XIGMATEK AURORA 360 cooler which can be accessed through this link. You can find the details there. One thing we would like to mention is that the hub provided with the AIO is fully functional whereas the hub provided with the chassis has limited functionality.

The above picture shows the proprietary connector of the pre-installed fans.

Test Build and Experience

First thing first, don’t forget to snap the PCIe slot cover before installing the motherboard otherwise you will end up removing the motherboard to remove the covers as I did. I started the test build by installing the standoffs for the motherboard. Some of the standoffs were not at a straight angle and proven difficult to manage.

Then the motherboard was installed. This was an easy task and the rear fan did not obstruct the motherboard’s rear I/O panel’s shroud. XIGMATEK has not provided any socket wrench for the standoff installation which is required.

PSU was an easy installation. The cables were routed easily as well though we may run into tight space for the extra cables particularly when the PSU is not modular.

I would suggest connecting the EPS connector to the motherboard before installing the CPU air cooler. Next, the CPU air cooler was installed. Before installing the fan on the heatsink, the 4-pin PWM cable was connected to the CPU_Fan header.

The graphics card was installed. I would suggest connecting the SATA cables to the motherboard before the graphics card’s installation. I could not use the small and narrow cutout on the PSU shroud to pass the GELID ASTRA RGB Sleeved extension cable and ended up running the cable through the 60mm gap on the front side.

The bottom connectivity has no issue and one can easily route the cables through the cutouts as per requirement.

The above is a picture of the test build with a quick power-on test for the POST. The 120mm or 240mm AIO can be installed on the front and a 120mm AIO can be installed on the rear. AIO on the top would be a hard fit due to short displacement with respect to the RAM height. Here are some pics of the build.

Thermal Venom X Testing

Following test build has been used for thermal testing:

• MSI MAG Z490 TOMAHAWK
• Intel i7 10700k [Stock, Auto]
• Noctua NH-U12S
• T-Force NightHawk RGB 16GB 3200MHz CL16 kit
• Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 FE
• Addlink S70 256GB NVMe SSD
• bequiet! Straight Power 11 850W PSU

Noctua NT-H1 is used on the CPU IHS. AIDA64 Extreme 6.30 is used for thermal testing using FPU and GPU at a time. Following configurations have been tested and reported in the graph:

• Stock Configuration [Complete Front Panel installed]
• Complete Front Panel removed

Please note that we can’t regulate the speed of the pre-installed fans. They can either be set at low or full speed (if that is full speed!) using the remote control. The cooler’s fan was set to run at 100% PWM cycle. The rest of the settings were on Auto, Stock in the UEFI/BIOS. A stress test of 30 minutes was done using AIDA64 Extreme 6.30 (FPU and GPU) with an idle time of 10 minutes. System was powered off between all runs for a minimum of 30 minutes as well. Let’s take a look at the results.

The ambient temperature was 32.4°C and 32.2°C. I am reporting delta temperature in the graph. The average of cores temperatures was taken. The difference in the CPU temperature with and without Front Panel comes to 4.4°C which is above the acceptable range.

So, in terms of the CPU cooling with an air cooler airflow restriction is playing its role. For graphics card, the result is similar. We are seeing a 4.7°C delta between both configurations. The narrow gap between the front glass and the mesh dust filter is affecting the temperatures overall. Part of it seems to be coming from the low static pressure, and low airflow-oriented fans.

Conclusion

The XIGMATEK VENOM X Review is a mid-tower chassis available in black and white colors. The chassis has a dimension of 435x200x435mm making it a compact chassis. It is made of steel, plastic, and tempered glass. The chassis has a net weight of 6.7Kg. The chassis supports a motherboard up to E-ATX size with some decent provision for the cooling gear and the storage. One of the key highlights is the tempered glass on the side and front panels to showcase your build. Another feature is the provision of 4x Rainbow RGB 120mm fans.

We have tested the ARCTIC (white) edition of the chassis. XIGMATEK has done a decent job in giving glossy white paint work all around the chassis. Though we have observed some rough finishing on various points all around. The PCIe slot cover area is also a bit flimsy so take care while handling it. The same goes for the front mount rail.

Cooling Provision

Following are the fan mounting possibilities:

• Up to 3x 120mm on the front [3x Pre-Installed]
• Up to 2x 120mm/140mm fans on the top
• 1x 120mm on the Rear [1x Pre-Installed]

Following is the radiator mounting support:

• 120mm / 240mm on the front
• 120mm on the rear

Storage Provision

Storage provision is:

• Up to 3x 2.5” Drives on the back panel
• Up to 3x 3.5” Drives in the HDD cage which is not tool-less

Clearance

• CPU Cooler of up to 158mm height is possible
• Graphics Card of up to 380mm length is possible
• PSU length of 200mm with the HDD cage though we would recommend 160mm length PSU

In terms of filtration, we have a magnetic dust filter on the top, a non-magnetic dust filter on the front, and a non-magnetic dust filter on the bottom. The chassis has a good amount of filtration, to say the least.

The pre-installed fans use 6-pin proprietary connectors which can only be used with the provided hub/controller. There is an RGB button on the top panel. Unfortunately, it is useless since we can’t connect it to the bundled hub/controller as that controller has no active circuit for the 2-pin header. What an oversight!

Build experience inside the VENOM X ARCTIC was smooth and easy though your mileage would vary depending upon the configuration. We have tested the chassis using an air cooler and reference design graphics card. Airflow is restricted in this XIGMATEK Venom X case. The PCIe slot covers are not reusable and they need to be snapped off before the motherboard’s installation.

Some of the standoffs could not be installed straight and this makes it tough for the motherboard’s complete and secure installation. XIGMATEK has not provided a socket wrench either to install the standoffs. In terms of finishing, though we appreciate the glossy white finish which looks good but we found some rough spots here and there on the frame of the chassis.

The XIGMATEK VENOM X ARCTIC is retailing at around Rs.16,000/- at the time of the review. This is a good price point for the features set offered by the case albeit with certain overlooks and decent build quality with restricted airflow. At the end of the day, this chassis would serve its purpose in quite a style.

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