Formerly Aspire, Apevia changed their name about a year ago, primarily to avoid confusion with Acer's Aspire line of products. After a year with the new name, Apevia hasn't changed much, as they continue to pump out colorful and flamboyant enclosures, power supplies, fans, keyboards, mice and other accessories. Last year we looked at Apevia's X-Pleasure, which gave us a good look at one of their full tower lines, and this time around we're examining the X-QPack2, an upgraded case from their previous QPack line of SFF (small form factors) enclosures.

SFF enclosures tend to be much more appealing to the LAN party and HTPC (Home Theater PC) crowds. LAN party junkies tend to focus a lot more on the transportability of a case, as well as the the overall attraction. And while the appearance is also a plus for HTPC users, they additionally tend to want sleeker cases that more easily integrate with their other home theater components. Follow along as we take a good look at the X-QPack2, paying close attention to how it fairs against other SFF enclosures in it's class...

Specifications

Model	X-QPACK2-RD/500
Case Type	SFF (Small Form Factor)
Dimension	14.7" x 11.2" x 9"
Carrying Handle	Yes
Windowed Side Panel	Yes
Front Panel Material	Plastic
Chassis Material	Aluminum
Color	Black/Red
Cooling System:	Rear: 1 x 120mm w/ blue LED Front: 1 x 80mm
Motherboard	Micro ATX & Baby AT
Drive Bays	2 x 5.25" Three 3.5" x 3 (1 exposed, 2 hidden)
Front I/O	Two USB 2.0 One IEEE 1394 2 x Audio (Mic and Headphone) LCD Temperature readout
Expansion Slots	Four
Weight	11 lbs
Power Supply Included	Apevia 500w ATX

Apevia offers 9 cases in the X-QPack2 line. The primary difference being the color, however two cases in the line offer a "No Window" option.  We were sent a red and black case for review, with the more common 3-window design. Running down the specification sheet, we notice that ATX owners are left out in the cold, not an uncommon trait for SFF cases, but still disappointing.

Apevia didn't include a whole lot to brag about in this bundle, seemingly hoping that the contemporary and colorful appearance would appeal to more customers. What you do get is a power cord for the included power supply (we'll get to that later), a bag of motherboard and accessory screws, and a basic user's manual.

The black cover is held on by a few thumbscrews and easily slides off. With windows on both sides and the top, there will be plenty of views for friends to check out that new hardware that you have been bragging about, putting to the test your cable management skills. There are also unfiltered vents on both sides of the cover, and with the black case, believe us, those dust bunnies can become visible pretty quick, so keep a can of compressed air handy.

After taking the cover off, we noticed Apevia threw in one of their own 500w ATX power supplies with two +12 volt rails (16A and 18A). The +5 volt and +3.3 volt lines measure 30A and 25A, respectively. The PSU included two SATA connectors, and the cables came wrapped in a black wire mesh, presumably to assist in the cable management department. We did not run the PSU through formal testing, but it did survive our test hardware without a hitch. While we weren't forced to remove the PSU during installation, we did so in order to have the extra space to view and work in the interior. Those additional wires in the way would otherwise have been a PITA.
Most of the case is constructed of an extremely lightweight aluminum, with the front is consisting of sharp looking plastic. The X-QPack2 has room for two 5.25" optical drives, though no stealth covers for those of you still cruising along with those unsightly beige drives of yesteryear. They also include a slot for the old floppy drive, if you happen to be one of the old-timers that still just can't bare to build a system without one. While some of us here at HardwareLogic may be "old-timers" (except forum moderator Jokerswild, he's ancient!), we have moved on to the more modern USB and firewire connections to handle our temporary storage and file transfer duties, and we can't remember the last time we updated a BIOS with a floppy. And like most modern cases, the X-QPack2 did not disappoint, including those standard front panel inputs along with the extra headphone and mic jacks. 

Also included on the front panel are two unfiltered intake vents. As previously mentioned with the intake vents on the sides of the cover, dust that collects becomes quickly visible on the surface, a trade off we're more than willing to live with for the cooling benefits. There are two screws on the inside of the case that must be removed if you would like to add your own filters to the front, which we recommend.

One exceptional addition to this flashy enclosure is the inclusion of a LCD temperature readout on the front. Included inside the case are two wire probes than can be affixed or taped to any hardware that you wish to monitor. On the LCD, the readout permanently displays the CPU and HDD as the two hardware items being monitored, however you can affix them to whatever piece of hardware you so choose.

A special note for the frequent traveler and LAN party fans is that Apevia included a spring loaded handle.  This is quite different, but not necessarily worse, than the large ergonomically designed handle that was attached to the Thermaltake Lanbox case that we reviewed a few months ago. The X-QPack2 weighs in at about one-third the weight of the Lanbox, so a large handle is not necessarily needed. At first we were skeptical that the handle would work well, especially since it is only attached to the plastic front face of the case. However, as we carried the case around, we found the it to be quite sturdy and reliable, particularly with the lightweight nature of this nearly all aluminum chassis. Any remaining skepticism quickly turned to confidence as this handle put no undue stress on the fingers, even with the case stacked with hardware.
With the cover and PSU removed there is plenty of room to work in this tiny case. While the ultra thin aluminum is flexible and flimsy, by the end of the installation we found that it remained respectably durable and the trade off to make this case a literal light-weight was well worth it.

For cooling duties, Apevia includes an 80mm blue fan (non-LED) for intake in the front and a 120mm blue LED exhaust fan in the rear. With those fans and the additional exhaust duty of the included power supply, the X-QPack2 is not lacking in it's air flow duties.


Removing the motherboard tray wasn't too difficult, but a few additional features could have made it effortless. We had a couple standard case screws to remove that were just begging for thumbscrews. And there was no apparent ridge or loop to assist with pulling the motherboard tray from the case either. Removing the tray without any hardware installed was not much of problem, we just had to give it a push from the inside and it slid out easily.  But with the motherboard and complimentary components installed, the task isn't quite as easy.