• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

Alphacool Unveils Apex Pro Skeleton Carbon Cases

btarunr

Editor & Senior Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Oct 9, 2007
Messages
47,901 (7.37/day)
Location
Dublin, Ireland
System Name RBMK-1000
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5700G
Motherboard Gigabyte B550 AORUS Elite V2
Cooling DeepCool Gammax L240 V2
Memory 2x 16GB DDR4-3200
Video Card(s) Galax RTX 4070 Ti EX
Storage Samsung 990 1TB
Display(s) BenQ 1440p 60 Hz 27-inch
Case Corsair Carbide 100R
Audio Device(s) ASUS SupremeFX S1220A
Power Supply Cooler Master MWE Gold 650W
Mouse ASUS ROG Strix Impact
Keyboard Gamdias Hermes E2
Software Windows 11 Pro
A case made of carbon? The Apex Pro Skeleton Carbon is the first case from Alphacool on the market that is second to none. This design case offers great flexibility, which is ideal for comprehensive water cooling of PC components. Made from real carbon tubes and held in place by CNC-milled aluminium corners, the case can be fully dismantled and individually adapted to your own wishes. Completely in the stylish and modern Apex design, it also includes a distro plate specially adapted to this case, including a pre-assembled VPP Apex pump. With the usual chrome-plated brass connections and brilliant digital aRGB lighting, it fits perfectly into the ensemble. The smoked glass side panels complete the iconic look.

The Alphacool Apex Pro Skeleton Carbon case impresses with its outstanding design and offers unparalleled customization options thanks to its fully screw-fastened construction. Equipped with three radiator mounts, this case provides ideal conditions for high-performance cooling systems. An included GPU bracket with cable enables vertical mounting of the graphics card. The mainboard tray including cable box can also be positioned flexibly, giving the user a wide range of creative configuration options for the Skeleton case.



The included Distro Plate with a 750ml reservoir offers connection options for CPU, GPU and radiators. The pre-installed Alphacool Apex pump is powerful enough to support complex water cooling loops. The connections of the Distro Plate are made of chrome-plated brass, as is usual with Alphacool. By embedding the connections in the acrylic, the problem of possible leaks due to cracking is avoided. Fitted with O-rings, the two connector parts lock together during installation and ensure maximum safety.

The Apex product line from Alphacool represents the highest level of perfection. First-class materials and innovative technologies guarantee an exceptional premium product. Consisting of genuine carbon and modular, CNC-milled aluminium connectors, the Apex Pro Skeleton case offers limitless creativity with a unique look. Each Skeleton case is one of a kind, designed to unleash the user's vision and creative ideas.

The Apex Pro Skeleton Carbon and Apex Skeleton Carbon cases (standard version, without distro plate and without vertical GPU mount) are now available in the online store.

Features
  • Genuine carbon
  • Can be completely dismantled
  • Optimized for water cooling
  • Smoked glass side panels
Pricing
  • Apex Pro Skeleton Carbon Case: UVP/MSRP €999.98
  • Apex Skeleton Carbon Case: UVP/MSRP €649.98
For more information, and to purchase, visit this page.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site
 
Interesting design, but dat price...not so much :D

Didn't iWin and/or Cougar (or other mfgr) do something similar years ago ?
 
No usb c on the front panel for this price in 2024? I know that not all devices use usb c, but it's a question of time now, and a case isn't a part you change regularly.
 
I will never understand why anyone would buy these over actual high-end cases from singularity or somewhere else.

The price doesn't make sense to compete against custom cases with custom features IMHO.
 
I will never understand why anyone would buy these over actual high-end cases from singularity or somewhere else.

The price doesn't make sense to compete against custom cases with custom features IMHO.
Well, apparently, these were designed for the "more money than brains" and/or the "hey look at me & what I got" crowd, so there's that, hehehe :)
 
I'm gonna design my own skeleton/half-open case and gonna name it "Dusty". :D
 
First I was like damn, but when I saw the price, I was like daaaaaamn....

Looks dope though, there's just something about these half-open cases what pleases my eyes.
 
I will never understand why anyone would buy these over actual high-end cases from singularity or somewhere else.

The price doesn't make sense to compete against custom cases with custom features IMHO.
400 cheaper than a similar sized singularity case that has no pump or distro included. I also think this looks better and it it is not all acrylic like Singularity cases. I would prefer it to be 200 cheaper, but it is better value than https://www.performance-pcs.com/chassis/water-cooled-chassis/spectre-3-0-case-black.html, or this https://iqondigital.com/products/singularity-spectre-4-case. Just my opinion.
 
Wow $1000 US for a Case. I thought the Phanteks 919 or that Cooler Master case were stupidly priced but this is a whole new level of unabashed hubris.
 
Wow, that's enormous and not in a good way.
(L)61cm x (W)26cm x (H)57cm

The price of €649 for just the case is really high but not unreasonable for the low-volume manufacturing runs, CNC machine time, and seemingly high quality material choices. I'm not sure I like cheap carbon weave when there's no structural need for it and this thing weighs a ridiculous amount for a skeletal case - using carbon instead of aluminium or plastic likely only shaves a few hundred grams off an 11kg case since most of the weight is in the CNC'd blocks of aluminium and the glass panel.

For those calling this a €1000 case, that includes a distro plate and pump, something EK or corsair would gladly charge you $250 and $150 for, respectively.
 
Hard to tell from the pictures but it looks like it only takes 2 360 rads but hopefully it will take more.

I like the look but it will be a dust magnet and nowhere to add dust filters but they probably wouldn't have done much anyway because it's open.
 
What!?!

No air filters?!?

Naturally, just kidding. :roll:
 
Very nice, then saw the price. Computer says no...................
 
No usb c on the front panel for this price in 2024? I know that not all devices use usb c, but it's a question of time now, and a case isn't a part you change regularly.
Usb hubs are available...but you need an expansion slot.
 
I'm gonna design my own skeleton/half-open case and gonna name it "Dusty". :D
Or you could call it "BlowXblow", as in 24/7/365, hahahaha :)
 
Neat concept.
However, charging that kind of pricing for a design that *minimalizes* the 'special' material...
Seems kind of insulting.

Kinda funny, really...
CF makes for a decent EMI shielding material, yet they chose a semi-open skeletal design. :shadedshu:
 
Well, apparently, these were designed for the "more money than brains" and/or the "hey look at me & what I got" crowd, so there's that, hehehe :)
Singularity falls squarely into that category also. He's throwing shade at AC but plugs a boutique brand hawking overpriced plastic boxes in the same sentence. Nothing wrong that but their cases are #$%&ing ugly, but I guess that's overlooked because of how much they paid for it. "Actually high-end" what a joke.
 
Almost makes me wish I had an old generator laying around I could convert.
 
At this price point (I know production volume will be extremely limited), this case is frankly terrible deal. Too much potential wasted for an open case (e.g. no option for 90 degree motherboard, 8 or 9 PCIe slots mounts or 480/400mm rad mount). As a concept it's OK, as a practical case it's certainly 0/10. Any of Thermaltake's P3/P5/P7/P8 is vastly superior pick for fraction of the cost.
 
e.g. no option for 90 degree motherboard

The case at a glance is very modular, 90-degrees, inverted can be seen from the images being easily doable by moving a couple mounts/brackets. I made that observation before reading this bit in the article.

"The mainboard tray including cable box can also be positioned flexibly, giving the user a wide range of creative configuration"
 
At this price there's no excuse
That is kind of the point.
It is almost impossible to find a case with a slot for a DVD drive or any other hardware.
Its reminiscent of the trashcan Macs that looked great but needed a stack of hardware to be functional.
 
That is kind of the point.
It is almost impossible to find a case with a slot for a DVD drive or any other hardware.
Its reminiscent of the trashcan Macs that looked great but needed a stack of hardware to be functional.
Except in this case (pun not intended) nothing is lost or gained by choosing USB-C or USB-A since they're the same spec. Guy is making a fuss over a nothingburger.

No usb c on the front panel for this price in 2024? I know that not all devices use usb c, but it's a question of time now, and a case isn't a part you change regularly.
These exist:
1000000217.jpg


1000000215.jpg


Seems lost on you but the beauty of USB is the connector is no longer tied to the spec, USB-A aren't going "age" any faster than USB-C ports since the underlying spec is the same.
 
Last edited:
Except in this case (pun not intended) nothing is lost or gained by choosing USB-C or USB-A since they're the same spec. Guy is making a fuss over a nothingburger.


These exist:
View attachment 359264

View attachment 359261

Seems lost on you but the beauty of USB is the connector is no longer tied to the spec, USB-A aren't going "age" any faster than USB-C ports since the underlying spec is the same.
Paying that much and you still need adaptor to use modern device, yeah, no excuse. I don't say every usb need to be replace by usb c port, just put at least one on the front panel when you release a case in 2024.
 
Back
Top