MSI MEG Maestro 900R PC Case Review

Conclusion – A lot of disappointment

I want to love this case, but it feels unfinished

When we first saw the MSI Maestro 900 PZ, we fell in love. We’ve long been a fan of MSI’s Maestro series, so much so that we built a custom “MS-Eye Candy Apple Red” PC using their Maestro 700L (See our review here). Simply put, we’ve been looking forward to the Maestro 900 for years, and hoped that the case could be used for a similar custom PC project. Sadly, the case MSI has released hasn’t met our expectations.

The MSI MEG Maestro 900R gives us mixed feelings. We love the case’s bold design, its use of glass, and its well-machined metallic elements. However, many areas of this case feel poorly designed or downright cheap. That’s not what we expect from a case that currently retails for £799.99 in the UK.

Let’s be clear: this case can be used to craft beautiful showpiece systems, but some design elements feel off. The top dust filter doesn’t match the design language of the rest of the case. It feels like it was taken from the bottom of another case, not the top of a premium MSI MEG Maestro chassis. The plastic panels covering the top and bottom of the case also flex when touched, making them feel cheap and poorly designed. The same goes for the cable-hiding elements on the left and right of the case’s motherboard tray. When detached, they flex easily. Again, this makes the case feel a lot less premium than it is.

Cable management is a problem

Despite this case’s size, users will be forced to work in confined spaces. This case’s removable, test-bench-like motherboard tray forces nearly all cables to fight for space. This makes building a PC inside this case problematic, especially if you want to use multiple monitors, wired internet, and wired accessories. One hole in the motherboard tray is barely large enough for two fingers, and it is expected to handle most external cables. That includes your PSU power cable, multiple monitor cables, and more. To make matters worse, there was clearly enough space around this hole to make it much larger.

Building a PC inside this case was a chore

With limited space for PSU cables and many small holes for cable routing, building a PC inside this case was a challenge. It sucked a lot of joy out of the PC building process and replaced it with frustration. To a certain extent, I feel that people who want this case for its aesthetics are better off hiring a dedicated PC system builder to do the job for you. Someone like PCSpecialist, Overclockers UK, Scan Computers, or your local equivalents. Let them handle the PC-building challenges, and just enjoy a showpiece system at the end.

We’ve spent almost two years looking forward to this case, and perhaps we have overhyped it. That said, for £799.99, we expected better. It feels like a few small changes could have made this case much better, and we’re disappointed MSI didn’t spot them and make any changes before launch. A case like this should ooze premium quality, and while it certainly looks the part, the PC building experience leaves a lot to be desired, and some elements could have used another design itteration.

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