MSI MPG Sekira 100R Mid-Tower Case Review

Today, we take a look at MSI’s MPG Sekira 100R mid-tower chassis. This is the second review of a series of new MSI cases announced in August, the first being the MSI MPG Gungnir 110R. The Sekira 100R is a gaming chassis that provides a touch of class with its chrome edging, ARGB lighting, and tempered glass front and side panels. It shares many of the great features we loved in the Gungnir 110R but with a different aesthetic and several innovations that caught our attention. Conversely, if you prefer an RGB-less build, be sure to check out the Sekira 100P. It is the same chassis as the Sekira 100R, without flashy lights or tempered glass front panel. Today we’ll focus on the MPG Sekira ARGB.

Features and Specifications

The MPG Sekira 100R is a mid-tower gaming chassis. It’s painted with an all-black satin finish and features a tinted tempered glass left side panel and a partial tempered glass front panel with a diagonal ARGB light bar that divides the front panel.

The top I/O panel features a USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C port (20 GB/s). There’s also a pair of USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A ports (5 GB/s), HD audio jacks, an ARGB controller button, power button, and a reset button.

MSI includes four ARGB 120 mm fans with the Sekira 100R. Three at the front for intake and one at the rear for exhaust. At the front, top and bottom are three filters to keep dust out of the inside.

For hard drive locations, the Sekira 100R holds up to four storage devices. There are two SSD trays that mount 2.5″ drives and a removable HDD caddy that houses up to two 2.5″ drives or two 3.5″ drives. This provides ample storage for any gaming chassis.

Also included is a powered ARGB hub and controller that manages up to six ARGB devices from either the I/O LED button or via the motherboard’s controller.

Below are specifications and features lists for the Sekira.

MSI MPG SEKIRA 100R Features
	MPG: Game in Style The MPG series brings out the best in gamers by allowing full expression in color with advanced RGB lighting control and synchronization. Experiment on another level of personalization with a front LED strip that provides convenient in-game and real-time notifications. With the MPG series, transform your equipment into the center of attention and top leaderboards in style.
	FACE OF VISIBLE GREATNESS Illuminate new possibilities with the MPG SEKIRA 100 Series. Crafted with quality materials and loaded with features, this mid-tower chassis reaches for the stars with a design that unleashes peak performance.
	STUNNING TWO-TONE DESIGN The MPG SEKIRA 100R’s front panel is constructed with flush sheets of aluminum and tinted glass, demonstrating an attention to material quality and high-performance design.
	BETTER TOGETHER Synergize MPG SEKIRA 100 Series with an MSI motherboard including bridging a USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type-C port for convenient access. Establish a complete MSI gaming ecosystem with a graphics card and liquid cooling.
	INSTA-LIGHT LOOP BUTTON Quickly control the fan color and lighting effects with Insta-Light Loop at the touch of a button. Click through the profiles at ease and choose a favorite.
	ARGB LIGHTING Put on the show of a lifetime with 4 pre-installed ARGB fans powered by MSI Mystic Light.
	TOP VENT LID The MPG SEKIRA 100 Series top vent lid provides additional system airflow and comes with a magnetic dust filter for easy removal and cleaning.
	TEMPERED GLASS WINDOW A tempered glass window reveals the arsenal inside the MPG SEKIRA 100 Series. The screw less tempered glass window is held with a locking mechanism that is secured with the sliding top vent lid.
	FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE A total of three filters have been placed around the MPG SEKIRA 100 Series to prevent dust from entering the system.
	OPTIMIZED AIRFLOW MPG SEKIRA 100 Series is optimized to provide generous and effective airflow for system cooling. The MPG SEKIRA 100 Series comes included with 4 fans and up to 6 total can be mounted.

Packaging & Contents

MSI ships the Sekira in a sturdy brown cardboard box. The two larger sides are identical and display sketch art of the enclosed chassis with the product name in bold print. One end features a table similar to the specifications table above, while the other has several features represented in multiple languages. A bright red sticker informs the postal worker to handle it with care. Opening the box reveals the pair of Styrofoam end caps and the case safely wrapped in a large plastic bag.

There aren’t a lot of included accessories with the Sekira, but what is needed is here. Inside the chassis, you’ll find a quick installation guide, a user’s manual, six small zip ties, two thumbscrews, a 3-way fan splitter, and two baggies of screws.

Exterior At A Glance

MSI’s MPG Sekira 100R is a gaming chassis with just a hint of class. Its chrome edging and sharp corners provide a touch of elegance. The lower half of the front panel features heavily tinted tempered glass. The angled dividing line you see is a thin ARGB light bar. What you can’t see before powering up the Sekira is the MSI dragon shield in the upper right corner of the glass. The left side is also tinted tempered glass, while the right side is solid steel sheet metal.  Spanning the full height of the sides of the front panel and the top and bottom of the chassis features abundant ventilation slots. Early impressions are that this case should provide slightly better airflow than the Gungnir we reviewed last month, which performed well.

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A Closer Look

From the outside, the Sekira looks beautiful and appears to be a capable chassis. Now it is time to inspect each section of this chassis before assembling a functioning, testable system.

Front

We start with the gorgeous front panel. The top black painted brushed aluminum and lower glass are attached to a plastic molded frame. The side vents are steel mesh and measure an inch and a half each providing a total intake surface area of over 52 square inches. This will be more than adequate for any gaming build. With the front panel removed, we see the intake filter and three included 120 mm ARGB fans (direct carry-over from the Gungnir). The fans and filter work well, so there’s no need to re-invent the wheel. Once the filter is removed, we can see the optional mounting slots for up to two 140 mm fans.

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Left

Moving to the left side identifies a unique side panel retention system. MSI designed a removable top panel that also retains the left and right side panels. The top retention panel utilizes two thumbscrews before gently sliding to the rear. Once removed, the left and right side panels simply lift up and off. There are pros and cons to this retaining method. The biggest pro is the speed at which you gain full access to the inner compartments, both the right and left sides.

Additionally, gravity keeps the glass panel in place, potentially preventing an accidental drop, that is, unless you tilt the case. This leads to the biggest con that we see. If you only need access to the right side, the left side remains unsecured creating potential for damage. It would be a good habit to remove both panels when working inside this chassis simply from a safety standpoint. Either way, this is a nice piece of ingenuity, and it’s always good to see fresh ideas come to market.

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With the left side panel removed, we have access to the main inner compartment. If you’ve read the Gungir review, you will probably recognize this area. It is nearly identical except for the cable pass-through grommets. The Sekira receives grommets for all nine available cable openings. The motherboard tray features a large CPU cooler mount opening, and the motherboard standoffs are pre-installed for an ATX motherboard.

The rear of the main chamber has a single 120 mm ARGB exhaust fan installed, and there are seven vented expansion slot covers. At the top are fastening holes for up to two 120 mm or 140 mm fans. Alternatively, you can mount up to a 240 mm or 280 mm radiator to the top. The entire front end of the chassis includes three intake fans. Finally, the bottom of the main compartment is the PSU shroud. Centered on the shroud is the first of two removable SSD trays. There is also an opening at the front of the shroud for mounting a thick radiator and an opening at the rear for displaying the power supply.

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Right

Rotating 180° to the right side, we see the back of the motherboard tray with its large CPU cooler opening. There are four velcro straps near the front for routing the bulk of the cables between the five main cable openings. Additionally, there are six cable zip tie points placed in strategic locations. The seven grommeted cable pass-through holes are at perfect locations for routing everything to the motherboard. The two openings at the front of the chassis are far enough forward to be helpful if an EATX motherboard is installed: many manufacturers fail at this. It’s good to see MSI execute this layout correctly, especially at this price point. Located below the CPU cooler opening is the second SSD tray. This tray matches the one found on the PSU shroud and is entirely interchangeable. Next to this is the SATA-powered ARGB controller and header. Up to six devices can be connected and controlled using the top I/O LED button or connected to a compatible motherboard via the motherboard’s ARGB software.

The bottom compartment houses the power supply and HDD/SSD caddy. The drive caddy is removable and features a pair of trays. Each tray can mount either a 3.5″ HDD or a 2.5″ SSD. This drive caddy can also be reposition for additional clearance up front for water cooling components. The power supply bay fits up to 250mm long PSUs (w/o the drive caddy) and has four square rubber pads to reduce vibrational noise. The specifications on the Sekira website state a 250 mm maximum PSU length without the drive caddy installed. In reality, there is far more space than what they claim. Our measurements result in approximately 350 mm from the case’s back to the front fans and a maximum of 220 mm with the caddy installed.

Rear

The back of the chassis is nearly identical to the Gungnir with the only exception being the two retaining thumbscrews for the top panel. The 120 mm rear exhaust fan is located adjacent to the motherboard I/O opening. At the middle of the chassis are the seven horizontal expansion slots. The slot covers are vented to allow the chassis to breathe a little easier. There is a removable cover that also features holes for easy access to the fastening holes (See “Left Front” image two sections up). At the bottom of the case is the PSU garage. The mounting holes allow for a PSU to mount an intake fan at the bottom of the chassis. which provides cool, filtered air directly to the power supply.

Top

Laying the Sekira on its right side, we are now looking at the top of the chassis. The Input/Output section is located at the top of the front panel. From left to right, it features a large power button, smaller reset button, Power LED (white when ON), USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 Type-C, a pair of USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A ports, microphone jack, headphone jack, and an LED controller button. The top panel has vented holes with an angled pattern at the front. Once removed, we gain access to the top magnetic filter. This is the coarse type filter that we usually find for top exhaust locations. Under the filter is a second top panel that serves as a mounting area for up to two 120 mm fans, two 140 mm fans, a 240 mm radiator, or a 280 mm radiator. Note the mounting holes are not slots preventing any adjustment to the top fan or radiator placement.

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Bottom

Rotating 180° again brings us to the bottom of the case. Large rectangular feet are located at the four corners with each utilizing rubber pads to keep it firmly in place and absorb any vibrations from moving internal components. Directly under the PSU garage is another coarse intake filter with this one retained by a series of simple tabs. As this is an intake location, it would be nice to see manufacturers using the fine mesh filter here. Regardless, the provided filter is better than nothing at all.

Fans

A total of four MSI MAG MAX F12A ARGB 120mm are included with the Sekira. Using PWM or DC  (3-pin) power, they are rated up to 1500 RPM, they are powered by a 4-pin PWM connector and a 3-pin addressable RGB connector. The frosted turbine features nine blades with a hydro-bearing hub and rubber dampening mounting pads. Even at full speed, these fans are whisper quiet while moving plenty of air.

Storage

Like the Gungnir, the Sekira features four trays for mounting storage drives. There are two SSD trays, each secured using four tabs with slots and a single thumbscrew to lock it in place. The two HDD/SSD trays feature toolless side locking clips with rubber dampeners for the larger 3.5″ hard drives and fastening holes for mounting 2.5″ drives. These HDD/SSD trays slide into the removable HDD caddy just in front of the PSU. Additionally, the HDD caddy can be repositioned 35 mm to the rear to accommodate a front-mounted radiator.

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The Builds

We’ve analyzed each section of this case, and now it’s time to grab some parts and see what a couple of mock-up builds will look like. We will highlight this case’s ability to house custom water cooling components and large air coolers before moving on to testing its thermal capabilities.

Water Cooled Build

Identical to the Gungnir, the Sekira allows for 65 mm for a front fan and radiator assembly. For a mock-up custom water-cooled build, we could mount a 240 mm radiator at the top and a 360 mm radiator at the front. Due to MSI using mounting holes rather than mounting slots, this limits our ability to adjust these radiators. As you can see, it would be tough, if even possible, to route hoses to both radiators in this configuration. I’d recommend sticking with either a single radiator or using two dual-fan radiators. Also, like the Gungnir, this chassis is relatively shallow, meaning there isn’t much room for mounting a pump, reservoir, or pump/reservoir combo. Locating them on the side under the GPU may be your only option, though this is the normal challenge when attempting to install a custom water-cooled build in a smaller chassis.

Air Cooled Build

Air cooling in the Sekira is far more straightforward. The 170 mm CPU cooler clearance provides plenty of real estate for some of the largest air coolers on the market. Here we’re using be quiet!’s Dark Rock 4 with a total height of 160 mm that leaves us with plenty of room to spare. You can see the three intake fans drive cool air to all the major components keeping them cool and refreshed during long gaming sessions.

Cable Routing

Rotating the build around to the right side displays the cable management provided in the Sekira. This is not just a shallow case; it’s narrow too, providing only 18 mm of space for routing everything. Fortunately, the way the case is laid out and the locations of all the cable tie points make this job much more straightforward than an inferior chassis. Make no mistake, though; it is a tight fit, and proper planning will prevent headaches and rat’s nests.

Lighting

In addition to the four ARGB fans, MSI added a diffused (frosted) light bar to the front panel along with the MSI logo. The Sekira features a built-in LED controller and is controlled with the Insta-Light-Loop LED button at the top of the case. There are a total of 26 color and effect options through the included ARGB controller. Alternatively, the lighting can be powered via MSI’s proprietary Mystic Light software or other motherboard manufacturer’s software. We had no issues controlling the lighting with the installed ASRock motherboard during this review. Below is a table of the available colors and effects with the included controller. Note: The images below are not a great representation of the lighting, but it was the best this camera was capable of.

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Thermal Testing Procedure

So the Sekira looks great and can house all your gaming gear, but how does it perform? It’s time to test if it’s all a show or if it can perform as well as it looks. With the case in its stock orientation and all the fans at full speed, an overclock will be applied to the CPU and GPU. The overclock will be as high as possible, maintaining stability and staying within the thermal limits of the components. Aida64 Extreme and 3D Mark Firestrike are run together to apply a load to the CPU and GPU until temperatures plateau. We then remove the side panel and continue for another entire run of Firestrike, measuring the temperature drop. If the case is getting proper airflow, the case temperatures will remain within a few degrees of the original result. If there is a significant temperature drop with the side panel removed, the case is starving for fresh, cool air.

Looking at the results, the Sekira does a fantastic job pushing air through the chassis. With the air temperature rising only 2.5° Celcius above ambient. With the left side panel removed, there was about a 1° temperature drop. This is right in line with most of the other cases in this comparison. The four MSI MAG MAX F12A fans play a critical role, and since these come with the case, they should provide great value.

Conclusion

The MSI MPG Sekira 100R is a well-built mid-tower chassis. It features intelligent innovations like the top retaining panel to gain easier access to the entire internal chamber and also adds modern connectivity via a pair of USB 3.2 Gen1 ports and a USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 port for fast data transfer or fast charging a mobile device. The front panel provides ample fresh air for the four included fans and the ARGB lighting adds to an already beautiful aesthetic. Cable management was about as good as expected for this size case and grommeted cable openings are always an appreciated bonus. There is little to dislike about the Sekira 100R. It’s just a great case from top to bottom.

We found a couple of different prices when searching online. Amazon lists the MSI MPG Sekira 100R for $119.99, while one of Newegg’s MarketPlace vendors has it listed a bit higher at $150.39. Naturally, the Amazon price is preferable, but even at $150, we would have no problem recommending this case. A 3-pack of the MSI MAG MAX F12-A fans is a $70 value at Amazon. MSI executed a slam dunk with this chassis and is easily Overclockers Approved.

-John Nester (Blaylock)

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