The front of the CM 690 II Advanced as I have already said is very clean looking. I really like the front bezel CM have done a great job with the visual looks on CM 690 II Advanced but also the feel too. Whilst the front does feature perforated mesh down the middle it maintains a minimalist appearance. There are 2 gleaming accents of silver that run from the bottom right along the top to the back of the case.. There are 4 x 5.25" drive bays, to get at these bays the front unclips with a light pull. The Cooler Master insignia is attached in the middle of the mesh region which covers up the 140mm LED fan that is mounted underneath
Moving around the back of the CM 690 II Advanced, from the bottom we can see that PSUs will be mounted at the bottom of the case. Above this there are 7 expansion covers with an additional bracket to the side which can be removed and used for the graphics card retention bracket or even a fan controller. None of these expansion covers have any perforated mesh. Further up there is a space for the I/O panel on the motherboard and then to the side of this an area for the rear exhaust fan which is 120mm in size. This fan has a honeycomb styled mesh to allow heat to dispel. Above the exhaust fan opening there are 2 x rubber grommets that act as water cooling outlets.
The CM 690 II Advanced box
Observing the CM 690 II Advanced from the top we get a closer glimpse of that nicely designed mesh exterior. The front panel consists of the following: (left to right) light on/off switch, eSATA port, USB2.0 port, headphone and microphone ports, another USB2.0 port, reset and power buttons and activity LEDs.
The front panel
Behind the front panel there is a docking station. Getting access to this feature is quite simple. The cover just slides back to reveal SATA ports beneath. This allows you to hot-swap devices like SSDs. As we close in 2011 we have seen many cases this year - particularly those just released not featuring anything like this yet Cooler Master have made it their intention to integrate such functionality at the very beginning of the year which is commendable.
The cover shielding the SSD docking station
Further along the top of the CM 690 II Advanced there is again the continued design we saw on the front of the case - smooth, clean mesh. Underneath this mesh is the top mounted 140mm fan that Cooler Master have included. The exterior has been an impressive insight into what looks to be a great case. Great looks, nice feel and what appears to be good build quality.
The top of the CM 690 II Advanced
