XPG Invader X BTF Mid-Tower Chassis Review

Introduction, Specifications, and Pricing

XPG has once again sent us an ATX case to examine, this time more of an update to the Invader X. Dubbed the Invader X BTF, it looks like XPG has jumped into the reverse motherboard support bandwagon. The OG Invader X scored 84%, trying to warrant a high price point.

It has breakaway PCIe slot covers, no cable grommets, and no cable grommets. However, it still includes five ARGB 120mm fans and a PCIe 4.0 Riser cable with a vertical GPU mount.

Demo of the XPG Invader X BTF Mid-Tower Chassis with a completed build

The Invader X BTF was selling for $140 at Amazon at the time of writing. So, how does the Invader X BTF differ from its slightly older brother? Well, let's go find out.

Specifications

• Dimension (HxWxD): 485mm x 245mm x 448mm (H*W*D)
• Color: Black, White
• Material: SPCC, 3mm Tempered Glass
• Form Factor: ATX, Micro-ATX, Mini-ITX, BTF ATX, BTS m-ATX
• 3.5" HDD/HDD Tray: 3 (3.5" HDD or 2.5 "SSD)
• I/O Port: USB 3.2 Type-C x1, USB 3.2 Type-A x2, Hybrid Audio Port, Reset Button, Power Button
• Fan Included: 5 x 120mm (optional by model) (4 x Reversed Fans + 1 x Regular Fan)
• Fan Support: Rear: 120mm x 1, 140mm x 1, Top: 120mm x 3, 140mm x 2, Side: 120mm x 3, Bottom: 120mm x 1, 140mm x 1
• PSU Shroud: 120mm x 2
• Radiator Support: Rear 120mm, Top Up to 360mm, Side Up to 360mm
• Graphics Card: 400mm (without side radiator installation), 270mm (with side radiator installation)
• CPU Cooler: Height 175mm
• PSU Length: 240mm
• Weight: 8.95kg
• Warranty: 2 Years

Packaging

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The packaging seems unchanged except for adding the "BTF" and the extra feature branding on the Top.

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Again, the side specification side of the Invader X BTF shows literally the same thing as the previous Invader X.

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Again, the rear of the packaging is nearly identical to that of the Invader X. Take notice: no PCIe 4.0 riser cable is included. There is nothing more to report here.

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When we remove the Invader X BTF from the cardboard packaging, we are greeted with open cell foam and the Invader X BTF in a clear plastic bag to protect against debris. A cardboard accessory box is also inset on the open cell foam.

Outside the XPG Invader X BTF Mid-Tower Case

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Now that we have all the Invader X BTF packing materials, we can see the side of this second version of the fishbowl that XPG has decided not to change. The side 3mm tempered glass panel is held with two captive thumbscrews; however, the top panel, also held with two captive thumbscrews, must be removed before trying to remove the side panel.

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Now, moving to the front of the Invader X BTF, there is nothing new to report again. Still, the front I/O runs along the bottom lip, consisting of a triangle power button, a small circular reset button, two USB 3.2 Type-A ports, a combo 4 pole microphone/headset 3.5mm jack, and a USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C port. This front tempered glass panel is removable by unscrewing two screws on the right-hand side; the Top and bottom are held into place with a POGO pin design.

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The back side pane, which is fully made from steel, has the side intake pattern cut out with a magnetic dust filter in place. The rear side panel is held into place with 2 more captive thumbscrews.

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The rear of the Invader X BTF is largely unchanged from the original. Having the ability to remove the 7 PCIe slot and replace it with a vertical GPU mount is trending in the market now, so it's nice to see that. However, XPG still has not addressed the PCIe slots that have a breakaway design, something that was pointed out in the previous review of the Invader X, which is disappointing. The PSU bracket, again held into place via 4 captive thumbscrews, allows the user to install the PSU outside the chassis.

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The top pane, again held in place with two captive thumbscrews in the rear, has the same triangular ventilation pattern as the rest of the Invader X BTF.

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Again, the bottom of the Invader X BTF is unchanged. A slide-out dust filter is accessible via the tempered glass side. Four good-sized rubber feet should keep the chassis from moving around on a desk.

Inside the XPG Invader X BTF Mid-Tower Case

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Moving to the interior of the Invader X BTF, the BTF/reverse motherboard support is now evident. Other than the BTF support, nothing has changed. Included are four reverse-bladed 120mm fans, three of which are intake mounted to the motherboard side wall and a single one mounted as an intake in the floor. Another 120mm fan is also mounted in the rear as exhaust. Additional fan or radiator mounting is also available on the roof, supporting either 2 140mm (280mm) or 3 120mm (360mm) fans. A total of 10 120mm fans can be installed simultaneously. All included 120mm fans are of the ARGB variety.

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Finally, moving to the backside, surprise, surprise, nothing has changed from the original Invader X. So let's go ahead and get the test build installed, do some temperature testing, and reevaluate for my closing thoughts.

Test System, Installation, and Finished Product

• Motherboard: Z690 AORUS Pro (Intel Z690) - Buy from Amazon
• CPU: Intel Core i5 12600K - Buy from Amazon
• Cooler: Cooler Master PL360 Flux - Buy from Amazon
• Memory: Corsair Dominator Platinum DDR5-7200 32GB - Buy from Amazon
• Graphics Card: ZOTAC Gaming GeForce RTX 3090 Trinity OC - Buy from Amazon
• Storage: Corsair MP600 PRO XT Gen4 PCIe x4 NVMe M.2 SSD - Buy from Amazon
• Case: MSI MAG PANO 100L PZ
• Power Supply: Enermax PlatiGemini 1200w 80 PLUS Platinum ATX 3.1 and 12VO PSU - Buy from Amazon
• OS: Microsoft Windows 11 Pro 64-bit Build 22621 - Buy from Amazon
• Software: AIDA64 Engineer v7.35.7000, CPU-z 2.10.0 x64. GPU-Z 2.60.0, and HWiNFO64 v8.07-5515

Final Thoughts

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Building in the Invader X BTF was no different from building in the previous Invader X, mainly because nothing really has changed.

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Testing the XPG's Invader X BTF ATX case, I used the Intel Core i5 12600K on a Z690 AORUS Pro motherboard. For the memory, two DDR5 sticks of Corsair Dominator Platinum RGB ran at DDR5-7200M/T. The test GPU was the Zotac NVIDIA RTX 3090 Trinity, which was run at stock power limits and clocks via MSI's Afterburner GPU Overclocking and Monitoring utility. The four ARGB 120mm intake fans XPG have pre-installed to allow airflow via the side of the chassis. In contrast, triple 120mm Mobius fans mounted on the Cooler Master PL360 Flux, which was mounted to the roof, leveled the air pressure off nicely. The Intel Core i5 12600K CPU, which has 10 cores with 16 threads, had temps only rise to an average temperature of 63C while maintaining average boost clocks of 4.5GHz with 1.212v for vcore. In contrast, the Zotac NVIDIA RTX 3090 Trinity's GPU core only averaged 75.3C while keeping an average frequency of over 1.8 GHz for its boost clocks.

All testing was completed using Aida64 Engineer's System Stability Test version v7.35.7000 for over 3 hours; the ambient temperature was 23.5C. Other monitoring software used was HWiNFO64 v8.07-5515, TechPowerUp GPU-Z v2.60.0, and CPU-Z 2.10.0.x64.

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Concluding XPG's Invader X BTF compact mid-tower chassis is a mixed bag of sorts. Having only cut two additional holes in the motherboard tray to support full-sized BTF/Reverse connection motherboards, choosing not to include the previously included PCIe 4.0 riser cable, and not improving on anything else is disappointing. Shifting over to pricing, the Invader X BTF is currently at $139.99 on Amazon.com, which is about the same price as the previous model. In stark comparison, however, Corsair's recently released and recently reviewed 3500X ARGB is the Invader X BTF's biggest contender in terms of value and performance.

So, is the Invader X BTF a chassis you should look at if you are building with a reverse connection motherboard? I would say possibly. Yes, if every fan location is pre-populated with 120mm ARGB fans. However, we are only talking about two additional fans. However, Corsair's fans are not cheap, which makes the cost very similar to the Invader X BTF. I guess when it comes down to it, some people are just looking for a case to build in that isn't what everyone else has, so at least XPG has that going for the Invader X BTF.