The case
Outside the package, the AVC-M1 looks like the narrow version of a typical ATX size HTPC case. We received the black version of the case and the reflective coating is very clean and shiny with only a chrome strip at the front breaking the black streak. The power button and LED are found at the top left side of the faceplate, just beneath the company logo. Spreading across the lowest part of the faceplate is no less than 10 media control keys and the reset button. You can use the media buttons to launch the media center application, navigate through it and control the volume levels of your HTPC. The left part of the chrome strip is a small door which hides the front USB, firewire and headphone ports. Unfortunately the chrome strip is also very prone to fingertip marks, so prepare to leave evidence each time you want to open the small door. The single optical drive that this case can support is hidden behind a well designed door.
The sides of the AVC-M1 are not perforated, but the top of the case is. A funnel aids the CPU cooler by allowing it to draw fresh air in directly from the outside, while the area above the expansion cards and motherboard chipset is perforated. There is a single 80mm fan at the rear of the case, the largest and most effective fan that someone can fit at the rear of a HTPC case.
The insides of the AVC-M1 are simple. The case comes without a PSU installed but you can install a mATX power supply of your choice. The drive cages allow the installation of a single 5.25” optical drive and two 3.5” hard disk drives. You can also install a single 80mm intake fan at the front of the case, but the fan will not blow fresh air on the 3.5” drives, it will only work as an intake for the entire system. The AVC-M1 can fit all mATX motherboards, so we tested it by installing one of the biggest motherboards, the Abit F-I90HD. The motherboard did fit but its right side went beneath the optical drive cage, making the assembly of the system a bit difficult. The RAM modules and cables at the right side of the motherboard must be installed before placing the optical drive into the cage. Thankfully the cage is high enough, so no RAM modules or other components will be restricted by it.
Behind the mirrored front of the case, GMC placed the iMon VFD display. This 2 x 16 characters display can be programmed via software to display virtually anything you’d like; the time and date, the weather forecast, the news, your system data, your new e-mails, even a graphic equalizer when playing audio files. It can also display media information if you are using a popular player, like Windows Media Player or Winamp. The iMon software offers nearly endless possibilities.
