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APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review

APNX's visually appealing V1-W Dual Chamber mid-tower computer chassis offering support for dual 360mm radiators is one you can add to your shortlist.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case
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Hardware Editor
Published
Manufactured by APNX with an MSRP of $119.99
6 minutes & 45 seconds read time
TweakTown's Rating: 90%
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The Bottom Line

APNX has released its second mid-tower ATX case, and boy, is it a visual pleaser. Offering support for dual 360mm radiators, the V1 might be the perfect compromise for system builders and water coolers alike.

Pros

  • Wood accents on the side intake
  • Supports up to ten 120mm fans or six 140mm fans
  • Very well built
  • Great cooling potential

Cons

  • No included fans
  • BTF/reverse motherboard support is absent
  • Must remove the PSU to change the CPU cooler
  • $120-150 depending on color and front panel

Should you buy it?

AvoidConsiderShortlistBuy

Introduction, Specifications, and Pricing

The last time we looked at an APNX chassis, the C1 made quite the impression for APNX's entry into the case market. Now, with its second case to the market, the V1, APNX has sent over the white model for us to look at. Priced from $120 to $150, our model comes in at $140 with no included fans. Can the V1 can live up to the C1's value and reputation? We'll find out.

A quick look at our build in the APNX V1-W

ItemDetails
ModelAPNX V11-W
Form FactorATX Mid-Tower
Dimensions290 x 485.5 x 500mm (W x H x D)
Weight (without/with package)Not Stated
Materials.8mm SGCC, ABS, Tempered Glass
Colors AvailableBlack, White, Black/White, Black/White/Wood, Black/Wood, White Wood
Motherboard SupportATX/Micro ATX/mini-ITX
Cooling CompatibilityFront: 3x 120mm or 3x 140mm or 240mm radiator or 280mm radiator or 360mm radiator or 420mm radiator | Top: 3x 120mm or 2x 140mm or 240mm radiator or 280mm radiator or 360mm radiator | Rear: 1x 120mm or 1x 140mm | PSU Cover : 2 x 120mm fan | Side: 2 x 120mm fan
Supported FansFront-Right: 120mm x 3 or 140mm x 2 or 160mm x 2 (Max.) | Top: 120mm x 3 or 140mm x 2 (Max.) | Bottom: 120mm x 3 (Max.) or 140mm x 2 (Max.) | Rear: 120mm x 1 (Max.)
Drive bay Internal3.5" Drive Bays - 2 Max. (2 x 3.5" / 2.5") | 2.5" Drive Bays - 6 Max. (4 x 2.5" and 2 x 2.5" / 3.5")
CPU Cooler Height (max.)Supports CPU cooler up to 170mm
GPU ClearanceSupports GPU up to 395mm (W/O radiator in the front-right position)
WarrantyNot Stated
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* Prices last scanned on 12/7/2024 at 5:44 am CST - prices may not be accurate, click links above for the latest price. We may earn an affiliate commission from any sales.

Packaging

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 1

Here we are with the external box of the APNX V1-W. It is made of brown cardboard and has a V1-W sticker on the side. The specifications on either side in various languages are not pictured.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 2

When the V1 is removed from its packaging, we are greeted with top and bottom open-cell foam pieces. One clever thing was that the APNX had packaged the V1 upside down, which meant that when I opened the box, I had to flip it over, and it was already in the correct orientation.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 3

When I opened the external box, the accessories and the user's manual were on the bottom or the top.

Outside the APNX V1-W Mid-Tower Case

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 4

Now we have the V1 with all its shipping materials removed. Although it looks like a traditional mid-tower ATX case, the V1 differs.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 5

Ahh, there is an angled side panel with actual wood slats.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 6

APNX also sent an additional black front panel just in case I didn't like the wood.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 7

The black front panel was installed; it looks quite sleek.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 8

The top half of the rear side panel has mesh venting, which helps the PSU take in cool outside air.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 9

Moving to the rear of the V1, we see a more conventional dual chamber design with the PSU mounted behind the motherboard tray. All the ventilation is cohesive; even the PCIe slot covers match. APNX also considered external cable management with an adjustable clip between two locations.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 10

The top panel has an angular design, which reminds me of other dual-chamber fishbowl-style ATX cases, like the Hyte Y60.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 11

The bottom of the V1 has six decently sized rubber feet to keep the V1 from slipping around.

Inside the APNX V1-W Mid-Tower Case

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 12

Now, the tempered glass side panel has been removed, revealing the spacious interior of the V1. There is lots of room for activities; however, there is no support for BTF/reverse motherboards. Depending on the motherboard position in the roof, side, and bottom fan locations, up to a 360/280 mm radiator can be installed. The motherboard position can be shifted either towards the ceiling or further down to accommodate larger AIOs or liquid cooling radiators.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 13

Pre-installed is a GPU support bracket, which is a nice touch.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 14

The bottom of the V1 has a slide-out dust filter that slides out on the tempered glass side, making it highly accessible.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 15

The top of the V1 supports up to a 360/280mm radiator and or corresponding fans. This mount is also removable by unscrewing three screws along the mount itself.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 16

Now, moving to the back, remove the steel mesh side panel, which shows the second chamber in the V1. The PSU is mounted directly behind the motherboard cutout, so keep that in mind when changing CPU coolers. A swing-out SSD/HDD bracket is held in place with two screws but is not needed due to the two powerful magnets keeping the bracket in place. This SSD/HDD bracket supports up to two 3.5" HDDs or up to six 2.5" SSD/HDDs.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 17

Swinging the SSD/HDD bracket out of the way shows more cable management of the V1, complete with several Velcro ties throughout. Blacked-out front I/O cables are also nice to see. Finally, there is no more ketchup and mustard. Yay!

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 18

We find some 2.5" and 3.5" HDD installation hardware inside the accessory box and a baggie of PSU installation hardware. APNX has also included two additional POGO pin brackets, a standoff installation adapter, and two silver thumbscrews.

Test System, Installation, and Finished Product

ItemDetails
MotherboardGIGABYTE Z690 AORUS Pro (Buy at Amazon)
CPUIntel Core i5-12600K (Buy at Amazon)
RAMCorsair Dominator Platinum 32GB DDR5-7200 (Buy at Amazon)
GPUZOTAC GeForce RTX 3090 Trinity (Buy at Amazon)
DisplaySamsung Odyssey G9 Dual QHD 240Hz (Buy at Amazon)
SSDKingston Fury Renegade 1TB (Buy at Amazon)
PSUEnermax PlatiGemini 1200w 80 PLUS Platinum
CoolerCooler Master PL360 Flux (Buy at Amazon)
OSMicrosoft Windows 11 Pro 64-bit (Buy at Amazon)

Final Thoughts

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 19

The final build is now complete. The rear has good cable management, and the storage bracket now covers any mess in the bottom.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 20

APNX also sent along their vertical GPU bracket, including a PCIe 5.0 riser ribbon cable.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 21

With the build complete, here is a final view. APNX does a great job visually and, for the most part, in performance.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 22

The APNX V1's most notable feature is the 45-degree side intake, but it really comes alive when some ARGB fans are lit up behind it.

Testing APNX's V1 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. In stock configuration, the V1 does not include any fans. However, APNX did send some 120mm F1 fans over for the build; with that said, I will be doing two thermal tests, one with the fans off to simulate a stock configuration and the second with the fans enabled. For exhaust, triple 120mm Mobius fans mounted on the Cooler Master PL360 Flux, mounted to the roof, along with an additional APNX F1 fan mounted in the rear, provide exhaust.

All testing was completed using Aida64 Engineer's System Stability Test version v7.35.7000 for over 3 hours; the ambient temperature was 24.6C. Other monitoring software used was HWiNFO64 v8.07-5515, TechPowerUp GPU-Z v2.60.0, and CPU-Z 2.10.0.x64.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 23

In the stock configuration (no included fans), the test CPU, intel Core i5 12600K, 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 1.2v for vcore. In contrast, the Zotac NVIDIA RTX 3090 Trinity's GPU core only averaged 80.5C while keeping an average frequency of just about 1.8 GHz for its boost clocks.

APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case Review 24

With the seven 120mm F1 fans that APNX also sent along, having three 120mm fans on the side intake, three more 120mm in the bottom as intake, a single 120mm on the rear for exhaust, and the three 120mm Cooler Master Mobius fans on the AIO make for a total count of 10 120mm fans. The test CPU, the Intel Core i5 12600K, which has 10 cores with 16 threads, had temps only rise to an average temperature of 54C while maintaining average boost clocks of 4.5GHz with 1.2v for vcore. In contrast, the Zotac NVIDIA RTX 3090 Trinity's GPU core averaged 78.3C while keeping an average frequency of over 1.8 GHz for its boost clocks, which seems like one additional notch on NVIDIA's boost table due to the extra cooling.

Wrapping things up, I found the APNX V1 a pleasing case to work in. The cable management was pretty good, with careful thought about where cables would be run from. Aesthetic-wise, the V1 is almost a cross between a Fractal Design North and the HYTE Y6. The V1 differs from those two cases in functionality. Neither case supports dual 360mm radiators, but the V1 does. Now, the other two include two 140mm or three 120mm fans for around the same price as the V1, so that is something to consider when comparing. In the end, if a different case is what you are after, the V1 will not disappoint but will still deliver the traditional features of a typical Mid-Tower ATX case.

Performance

95%

Quality

95%

Features

85%

Value

85%

Overall

90%

The Bottom Line

APNX has released its second mid-tower ATX case, and boy, is it a visual pleaser. Offering support for dual 360mm radiators, the V1 might be the perfect compromise for system builders and water coolers alike.

TweakTown award
Photo of the APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case
Best Deals: APNX V1-W Dual Chamber Mid-Tower Case
Country flag Today 7 days ago 30 days ago
Loading... Loading...
Buy
* Prices last scanned on 12/7/2024 at 5:44 am CST - prices may not be accurate, click links above for the latest price. We may earn an affiliate commission from any sales.

Hardware Editor

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Ryan joined TweakTown in 2022, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t been around the block a time or two. He has always been a gamer through and through, and building PCs started when he took apart his family’s 486 DX2-based PC. He is into everything PC but enjoys building, gaming, and water cooling.

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