Hi all,
There's been a few threads surrounding the topic of enclosures and discussing specific ones. I've seen some really good insights to pros/cons of a particular solution and learned quite a bit from them. I think it would make sense to kick off a thread where we consolidate thoughts on the chassis so that others may gain knowledge/experience from our research.
Make: Silverstone
Model: Fortress FT02
Style: ATX Full Tower
Why You Like It
The external design is very monolithic and minimalist, good proportions and well balanced with just enough round edges to smooth things out. Biggest draw for me is the rotated motherboard tray and 3x180mm intakes on the bottom. This is a key innovation which I assume Silverstone has patents on which is why rest of the industry has not adopted. This really allows heat to flow in its natural direction via convection with hot air rising and vented directly out the top of the case. The improved thermals especially for blower type GPU fans can't be overstated. Although other cases such as as the Raven from Silverstone also has this feature, I don't like the exterior design as much but that's a matter of personal taste. The 3 intake fans are quiet due to large diameter while moving considerable amount of air and are filtered to keep case clean with positive pressure.
With that said, no case is perfect - I think the design for drive bays is the biggest drawback, 6x5.25" seems excessive in this day and age but Silverstone may have opted for this due to the flexibility it affords with adapters and mods. The mounting and orientation of the motherboard could cause space issues with longer optical drives and cabling could be an issue depending on where the SATA ports are on the board. 5x3.5" bays accessed via sleds are a bit clunky to use and again echoing my earlier point, I would like to see more 3.5" bays, let's say 2 stacks of the 5x3.5" section for 10 drives total and leaving 3x5.25".
Pro Reviews:
AnandTech | SilverStone Fortress FT02: True Classics Never Go Out of Style
Silverstone Fortress FT02 Revisited | silentpcreview.com
SilverStone FT02R-W Review | bit-tech.net
There's been a few threads surrounding the topic of enclosures and discussing specific ones. I've seen some really good insights to pros/cons of a particular solution and learned quite a bit from them. I think it would make sense to kick off a thread where we consolidate thoughts on the chassis so that others may gain knowledge/experience from our research.
Make: Silverstone
Model: Fortress FT02
Style: ATX Full Tower
Why You Like It
The external design is very monolithic and minimalist, good proportions and well balanced with just enough round edges to smooth things out. Biggest draw for me is the rotated motherboard tray and 3x180mm intakes on the bottom. This is a key innovation which I assume Silverstone has patents on which is why rest of the industry has not adopted. This really allows heat to flow in its natural direction via convection with hot air rising and vented directly out the top of the case. The improved thermals especially for blower type GPU fans can't be overstated. Although other cases such as as the Raven from Silverstone also has this feature, I don't like the exterior design as much but that's a matter of personal taste. The 3 intake fans are quiet due to large diameter while moving considerable amount of air and are filtered to keep case clean with positive pressure.
With that said, no case is perfect - I think the design for drive bays is the biggest drawback, 6x5.25" seems excessive in this day and age but Silverstone may have opted for this due to the flexibility it affords with adapters and mods. The mounting and orientation of the motherboard could cause space issues with longer optical drives and cabling could be an issue depending on where the SATA ports are on the board. 5x3.5" bays accessed via sleds are a bit clunky to use and again echoing my earlier point, I would like to see more 3.5" bays, let's say 2 stacks of the 5x3.5" section for 10 drives total and leaving 3x5.25".
Pro Reviews:
AnandTech | SilverStone Fortress FT02: True Classics Never Go Out of Style
Silverstone Fortress FT02 Revisited | silentpcreview.com
SilverStone FT02R-W Review | bit-tech.net