Datasheet figures next to each other, and the airflow balance, pressure verdict and case air heating that the fans in each box compute to behind that case's own front. Calculated with the CaseFlow model, not measured.
| Thermaltake CTE C700 TG ARGB | Thermaltake The Tower 500 | |
|---|---|---|
| Form | Mid Tower | Mid Tower |
| Volume | 93.9 L | 93.9 L |
| Dimensions | 566 × 328 × 506 mm | 608 × 388 × 398 mm |
| Front | glass solid or glass front | glass solid or glass front |
| Fan mounts | front 3 × 140/120/200, top 2 × 140/120, rear 3 × 140/120, bottom 3 × 140/120, side 1 × 140/120 | front 2 × 120, top 2 × 120/140, rear 2 × 120/140, bottom 2 × 120, side 3 × 120 |
| Radiator support | front 420 mm, rear 420 mm, bottom 360 mm | top 280 mm, bottom 240 mm, side 360 mm |
| Dust filters | front, top, bottom, rear, side | front, top, bottom, side |
| GPU length | 410 mm | – |
| Cooler height | 190 mm | – |
| Stock fans | 3 × CT140 ARGB (front), 1 × CT140 ARGB (top), 1 × CT140 ARGB (rear) | 2 × standard fan (rear) |
| Stock airflow, max rpm | 147 in / 148 out CFM | – |
| Stock pressure verdict | negative: mid -1.7 CFM | stock fans named but no datasheet - nothing computed |
| Case air at 290 W | +3.6 K | – |
| Stock fan noise | 41.7 dB(A) | – |
| All mounts, reference fans | 351 in / 330 out CFM 7 / 5 mounts | 296 in / 264 out CFM 7 / 4 mounts |
With a reference pressure-optimized fan on every mount the CTE C700 TG ARGB moves more air. The stock fans of the The Tower 500 are named without figures behind them, so its stock columns stay empty. The pressure verdict describes the stock fan set, not the case: stronger or extra intake fans in the free mounts, or slower exhaust fans, turn a negative balance positive.
Each stock fan contributes CFMmax · derate · rpm/rpmmax behind its wall's mounting class: filtered mesh
front and side mounts as dust filter, bottom as floor + filter, top and rear as open grille, solid and glass fronts as side-slit intake at
roughly half of a mesh front. Front, bottom and side blow in; top and rear blow out.
| Mounting | Airflow blades | Pressure-optimized |
|---|---|---|
| Open grille | 0.88 (0.80–0.95) | 0.88 (0.80–0.95) |
| Dust filter | 0.70 (0.60–0.80) | 0.78 (0.70–0.86) |
| Floor + filter | 0.64 (0.52–0.74) | 0.72 (0.62–0.80) |
| Solid or glass front | 0.50 (0.40–0.62) | 0.58 (0.48–0.68) |
Worst case sums intake at the low end of each band and exhaust at the high end; positive there means positive regardless of how the estimates fall. Case air: ΔT = 3.1 · W / throughput (m³/h), with an open-cooler GPU putting its full board power into the case air plus board, RAM and drives. Capacity puts a reference pressure-optimized fan on every mount at max rpm — 120 mm 60 CFM, 140 mm 75 CFM — a generic good fan, not a product.
Mount counts, radiator support and clearances are datasheet figures. Nothing here is measured; the same model runs in CaseFlow.