[Hardware] DarkFlash DLX22 Review: Lots of Room to Improve

[Agent47]

 

 

Because Computex didn’t happen this year, we were unable to see what cool hardware many small Taiwanese manufacturers have come up with. But of course, companies that we normally see there can still send their products our way, as darkFlash did with its latest case,  the DLX22.

At first glance, this chassis looks like a relatively standard ATX unit with a few twists – a side intake, GPU riser, and swiveling doors. These are all great ideas in abstract. But in practice, the case falls short and fails to deliver a good building experience, with issues ranging from bad design to disappointing manufacturing quality.

While there’s much more detail to explore (some of which is quite interesting), I can tell you up front that the DarkFlash DLX22 will not be making it onto our best PC cases list. The DLX22 is priced at $130, but currently has a $10 discount on Newegg. At this price point, the chassis is facing a ton of competition – competition that outperforms and outclasses this case by miles. 
DarkFlash’s DLX22 comes with a very plain exterior design that I quite like. It’s simple, clean, and no particular aspect of it stands out much. The front panel is made from steel and is easy to pull off. The side doors swivel and have a moderate tint to blend together the internal components, and the chassis is held up by plastic feet.

The chassis also lacks structural rigidity. When placed on the desk, if I push and tug the top of the case around, there is a concerning amount of flex. This is because all of the corners are fixed together with just one fastener instead of three – so whatever you do – do not build a liquid cooled system in this case with acrylic or PETG hardline tubing.
he internal layout of the darkFlash DLX22 is mostly straightforward, with a few exceptions. The case can house up to ATX-size motherboards with ease in the main compartment, along with the longest of graphics cards.
Of course, the star of the show in the DLX22 is the GPU anti-sag bracket. This creation is meant to hold up your graphics card to prevent it from sagging and sitting in your chassis unevenly, and take some load off the PCI-Express slot of your motherboard in the process (although, they can generally handle the weight just fine).

Given the proliferation of massive cards as Nvidia’s impressive RTX 3090 and 3080 make their way into new builds, it’s a good time for extra GPU support. But this bracket lacks elegance. The abundance of visible thumbscrews doesn’t look good. They lend the bracket a primitive, scaffolding-like feel as a solution for a mostly minor issue. Arguably worse: This bracket also won’t work with very big graphics cards as it can’t move outwards far enough. And if your GPU’s shroud doesn’t sit above the fans, it will make the GPU lean on one of the fans, stopping it from spinning.

Cooling
For cooling, you can mount up to three 120 mm fans or two 140 mm spinners in both the top and front locations, along with those respective radiator sizes. There is also a side intake that has room for two 120 mm spinners. So if you have an all-in-one liquid cooler, there’s a good chance you’ll want to mount it here, as the front panel intake is limiting.
The front has no air filter, and the holes in the mesh of the panel will be difficult to clean out. The side intake does have its own filter, as does the bottom of the chassis, though I have to mention that the filter at the bottom is just a sheet of mesh with no sliding or magnetic system to hold it in place – instead it’s held in just by tabs, making it a serious pain to remove, clean, and replace as you’ll have to flip the chassis to get to it.

No fans are included with the case, which is a big thumbs-down at its $130 price point.

Below the power supply shroud there is also plenty of room for large power supplies, but only one 3.5-inch HDD tray. Given the amount of space in this case, and the segment it is priced in, I would expect a minimum of two drive bays. The back of the motherboard tray has room for two 2.5-inch drives -- and that’s it. Again, this case is big (and kind of expensive) for a case that’s only designed to house a total of three drives (aside from whatever M.2 options are on your motherboard).