I have an ASUS TUF Gaming GT502 computer case on my desk. It is unusually heavy and roomy. The first thing that comes to mind is the phrase from the Guy Ritchie film: “Heavy is good. Heavy is reliable. Even if it doesn’t go off, you can always hit it on the head.” But all joking aside, the case on my desk is not just massive, it is thoughtful, beautiful and elegant in its own way. Today I will show you all its advantages and disadvantages, explore all its capabilities and, of course, delight you with many vivid photos.
Market positioning
ASUS has a variety of great gaming cases in its arsenal. From classic and restrained to extravagant, flashing with all the lights. All of these models have a distinctive style that is easy to recognise even at a quick glance. The GT502 is amazing because at $190, it is truly unique. Yes, it’s a lot of money for a case, and the competition in this market segment is huge, but here’s what I want to point out.
Firstly, this is a case from a top brand, which indicates the quality of materials and attention to detail. Secondly, this is a case with a non-standard layout, which has a separate compartment for cable management, which is incredibly beautiful and practical. And thirdly, ASUS TUF Gaming GT502 impresses with its modularity, which means that you can build many variations of gaming builds on its basis. By the way, ASUS occupies a mid-budget niche with this case, but at the same time, no money was saved on any little things.
TUF Gaming GT502 specifications
- Напрям: ігровий
- Form factor: Midi Tower
- Installation option: vertical
- Motherboard format: ATX
- PSU format: ATX
- Dimensions (H×W×D): 450×285×446 mm
- Maximum length of the PSU: 200 mm
- Maximum length of the video card: 400 mm
- Maximum height of the CPU cooler: 163 mm
- Weight: 11 kg
- Material: steel
- PSU location: bottom
- Number of internal bays: 3.5″: 7
- Number of internal 2.5″ bays: 9
- Number of expansion slots: 8
- Number of places to install fans: 13
- Number of places for installing the SVO: 3
- Max. length of the SWO: 360 mm
- Number of USB2 Gen 1 ports: 2
- Number of USB Type-C2 Gen 2 ports: 1
Read also: ASUS B760-PLUS WIFI motherboard review
Appearance
The first thing I saw when I opened the shipping box was a pair of textile handles threaded through massive hinges at the top of the case. It was thanks to these handles that I was able to pull the case out of the box. At first, it seemed like a controversial decision, although it adds charm, but after moving this giant from place to place, I came to the conclusion that such handles are very appropriate. The textiles do not cut into your hands and look very cool. If necessary, the handles can be removed, and the case will only become more brutal in appearance, exposing the powerful steel hinges.
The front of the case is a transparent panel that can be opened with a single hand movement, although it is firmly fixed to the clamps. The side cover is designed in the same way. The combination of transparent covers creates the effect of an aquarium inside the case. The view completely encompasses the contents, creating a sense of a deep panorama. It should be very beautiful in combination with the backlighting of the components.
On the opposite side, the lid is blind, with numerous perforations for better cooling. Both lids are easy to open by pressing the buttons on the back. Not a single screw – just a pleasure!
As for the perforations, they are also present on the top cover of the case, which is held in place with magnetic fasteners and can be easily removed.
The TUF Gaming GT502 also has air intake holes on the bottom, so it has solid metal legs.
I got the model in black, although it is also available in white – it looks completely different, more delicate. There is also a backlight element on the case – the RGB TUF Gaming emblem.
I really liked the lack of “design for design’s sake” – the case is very functional. If it seems too rough to some, I advise you to take a closer look at the white model, which has a more ethereal look.
Package contents of ASUS TUF Gaming GT502
The case comes with a box containing a variety of fasteners and accessories. There are quite a few large and small screws – with a large margin. Even if you lose half of them while assembling your PC, don’t worry, the remaining ones will be more than enough. ASUS has provided three Velcro fabric ties for cable management. They are reusable and very convenient. But the manufacturer was clearly stingy. When assembling the gaming station, I really missed these straps. I wish there were 10 of them, so as not to bother with plastic ties. The latter are also included in the kit, in the amount of eight units, but at this price of the case, they could have put the packaging.
Among the accessories, I liked the magnetic support for massive video cards. It is adjustable and very sturdy. The only strange thing is that its position is fixed by tightening a conventional Phillips screw. It would be much more appropriate to use a screw for tightening by hand, but, unfortunately, it is not included in the package.
The bar for vertical installation of video cards turned out to be very interesting. It is mounted instead of the plugs of the expansion slots. After the manipulations, the graphics adapter is installed with the help of a riser, facing the player.
We were not given the riser itself, and this is not surprising. The cost of high-quality copies ranges from $55 to $135. We can only imagine how cool it would look.
I would have liked to see an Aura RGB controller included with the case, which is clearly missing here. Instead, there is only a lone adapter to control third-party controllers from the power button. The older GT502 PLUS model has a controller, but it is not available in Ukraine.
I almost forgot to mention the manual. It’s illustrated and clear, and I really liked it. It’s a rare case when the manual is really nice to use when assembling a computer.
Among all the accessories, I missed a regular Phillips screwdriver. This is not a reproach to ASUS at all – none of the manufacturers bundle their cases with screwdrivers. It’s just an interesting observation that with a large number of case parts that are attached to clamps or magnets, there are still components that need to be installed with screws. That is, no matter how hard engineers and designers try, you still need a screwdriver to assemble a PC. So give it to us… please.
Read also: All about USB standards and specifications
Dimensions
Let’s talk about the dimensions of the mastodon from ASUS. I’ll start with the weight. Is 11 kg a lot or a little? The answer is that for an average case, it’s a lot. But weight is an undeniable advantage for a good case. See for yourself. Heavy weight means a strong and thick metal case. Solid metal means no vibrations and excellent sound insulation. The absence of extraneous vibrations is a direct way to save your nerve cells and increase the service life of your components. It’s not for nothing that server enclosures are made of thick-walled steel sheets – all for reliability.
Just keep in mind that your computer desk needs to be very sturdy. 11 kilograms of empty case can easily turn into 16 gaming computers.
The GT502 is a great size. It looks like a real giant. However, the appearance is a bit deceptive – the illusion of excessive massiveness is created by the cubic design. The case rises 450 mm above the table, which is significantly less than Full Tower chassis. As for the width, ASUS TUF Gaming GT502 takes up as much as 285 mm of space. Personally, I could hardly fit it on my desk with a 27″ monitor. The case depth is 446 mm, and this is a forced tribute to support the most modern video adapters.
Air filters
Dust protection is a good thing, and the more of it, the better. The GT502 has more than enough dust filters. Let me tell you more about them. Most dust enters the case with the airflow from the cooling fans. When the supply fans are installed in the lower part of the case, the amount of dust entering the system increases several times. The worst case scenario is when the case is located on the floor. No matter what you say, there is always dust there. ASUS TUF Gaming GT502 reliably solves this problem with a fine mesh filter under the case. It is mounted on a sled, and to remove it, you do not need to disassemble or turn the case over. We took it out, cleaned it, and put it back in place. The job took three minutes.
On the side cover there are magnetic mounted grids. They are located directly opposite the PSU cooling fan, the case cooling system and the HDD tray. These filters are easy to clean with a brush or under running water.
The removable top cover also contains a magnetically attached strainer. When the upper case cooling system is set to draw in cold air, the filter performs its main task. If the fans are set to exhaust hot air, it may seem that this filter will only get in the way. However, do not forget that this filter also prevents dust from entering the case naturally. So, in any case, the filter is very useful.
Buttons and connectors
On the GT502 case from ASUS, all the connectors and controls are arranged on the front side. As for me, this is the most convenient location. The ports include the most necessary things: a 3.5 mm combined audio output, two USB 3.2 Gen 1 and USB Type-C Gen 2 ports. As usual, there are power and reset buttons. There is another very interesting button called AURA Sync. By connecting it to the Aura RGB controller, you can quickly control the backlighting of the case and components… with just one button. For example, a single press will switch backlight modes, and a long press will control its state.
TUF Gaming GT502 cable management
The correct organisation of wires inside the case is not only beautiful, but also useful. Neatly laid cables do not impede the cooling of the case. In addition, the large cable management space allows you to arrange the wires freely, and not in one big bundle. This, in turn, prevents them from overheating and eliminates electrical interference.
The GT502 case has, I would say, a separate case for organising wires. The large space behind the side cover, measuring 380×420×70 mm, is completely separated from the main component compartment.
What you will have to share space with is the power supply. It is installed in isolation from the other components, providing itself with a personal temperature regime. That is, heating up the power supply does not affect the temperature inside the case at all. This is very, very cool.
And while there’s more than enough space in the bay to organise your cables, there’s one thing that does mar the perfect picture. I’m talking about the drive mounts. They take up quite a lot of useful space. So if you decide to build a multimedia station based on the TUF Gaming GT502 with a lot of HDDs and SSDs, you will have to put up with a lack of free space for organising wires. In the case of a gaming PC, the mount can be removed to free up space.
My impression is that the additional cable management compartment is a great thing. Although the case has grown in size because of it, the benefits of well-organised wires easily outweigh this point. Harmony and order reign in the main compartment without cable harnesses. The eye can’t get enough of it.
What about hardware?
The main indicator when choosing a case is the ability to install the necessary components in it. If you have a 400 mm long video card in mind, but it doesn’t fit in the case, why would you need such a case? In the case of the ASUS TUF Gaming GT502, you won’t have any problems. Video adapters up to 400 mm long, and even slightly longer, fit into it without any problems.
The motherboards that are installed in the chassis can be up to the full-size ATX format. There are no bigger boards in the gaming segment anyway, so we can say that the GT502 supports all the latest motherboards.
Don’t forget about the CPU cooler. The case has a height limit of 163 mm. This is not so small, but you won’t be able to install top-of-the-line air cooling. I advise you to use a cooling system to cool the processor. There is enough space in the case to install water cooling.
Power supplies are supported up to 200 mm in length. Yes, 1.5 kW monsters won’t fit in the GT502, but there is a small life hack. Just remove the HDD basket and you’ll get 80mm of additional space for the power supply.
Installing disc drives
The ASUS TUF Gaming GT502 has a huge number of places for mounting disc drives, both 3.5″ HDD and 2.5″ SSD. Look carefully!
Two HDDs or three SSDs can fit on the side panel between the case bays. They won’t spoil the interior design, as they will face the cable management bay.
The bottom mount of the main chassis bay supports the installation of two SSDs and one HDD at once.
A removable bay located in the side bay holds three HDDs or SSDs.
There’s also a convenient box for an SSD or HDD in the side compartment.
As you can see, there is a lot of space for drives in the case, but there is one thing. Most of the presented mounts are universal and can be used for both drives and fans. If I had to choose, I would give preference to the cooling system. After all, in a gaming computer, a large number of drives is not so necessary. There is room for a couple of drives, and the rest is for coolers. However, the GT502 allows you to experiment!
Cooling options
The cooling capabilities of TUF Gaming GT502 are pretty well thought out. I’ll start with the classics – a place for a 120 mm fan on the rear panel. It’s just like 20 years ago. However, the installation of this fan is very effective in removing hot air from the case. At the bottom of the GT502 is a removable mount for three 120mm intake fans. The upper part has a mount for three 120mm exhaust fans or two 140mm fans. This installation of the coolers will ensure through airflow and make cooling of the desktop components as efficient as possible.
The GT502 has two more places for cooling fans. However, their presence causes me some confusion. The first place is the side cover between the case bays. You can put three 120 mm fans there. Where they will take cool air to cool the components or where they will remove the hot air is not entirely clear to me. After all, there is a blind side cover on the back. It would be better to occupy this mount with disc drives.
The second place is a bar at the top of the bay for cable management. Three 120 mm or two 140 mm coolers can be installed here. The side cover even has perforations for these fans. However, by installing them to draw air from the outside, only the wires and the back of the motherboard will be cooled. By turning the cooler to blow out, you will not achieve any effective cooling either. The most appropriate thing, as I see it, would be to remove this bar altogether, freeing up a decent amount of space for cable management.
Oh, and one more thing. All the fan mounting slots support the installation of 120mm to 360mm long CVO radiators. That’s enough room for both your CPU and graphics card!
Impressions of TUF Gaming GT502
ASUS did not lose with the launch of the GT502. In the mid-range segment of cases, where there are a lot of serious competitors, the TUF Gaming GT502 looks very, very worthy. Personally, I think the case is a very good option for building a gaming station. High-quality and reliable materials, interesting design and great customisation potential will definitely find their fans. The well-thought-out system of interaction with the case is worth mentioning – lids with latches, magnetic fasteners, fabric handles and other goodies. To be honest, I fell in love with this case. Not at first glance, but in the process of assembling the computer, marvelling at the attention to detail and rational, competent solutions. Of course, the case is not without its drawbacks, but the impressive base of supported components and the ability to organise stunning backlighting cover all the nuances.
ASUS TUF Gaming GT502 also has the ability to perform cable management that gives you goosebumps. Almost cable to cable.
Read also:
- Sony Xperia 5 IV review: A compact flagship for pocket photography
- Lenovo ThinkBook 16 G4+ IAP review: a good multimedia laptop