Hello Fellow [H]'ers!
If you've seen some of my F/S/T threads here, you'll know that I have been going through a lot of different cases in search of that perfect case that'll hold me over for at least the next year. I'd used the Silverstone TJ09-BW for the last 1 1/2 years and, while that was/is a great case, it's hard for me to use anything for over a year without getting bored with it. The search for the TJ09's replacement brought almost a dozen very nice cases through my hands including the following:
* Zalman GT-1000 Black (great, well made case but way too cramped.)
* Antec P180 Mini White (brief mATX experiment; ended up as the case for the kids' computer. Awesome little case with excellent cooling!)
* Lian Li PC-X500 (good case but somewhat impractical design w/ limited storage options.)
* Lian Li PC-A17 (never even installed in it - boring design w/ blah aesthetics.)
* Lian PC-A10 (great looking case w/ poor air cooling. Being used as an HTPC in master bedroom.)
* Lian Li PC-V1010 (surprisingly good case w/ good cooling; just never liked the rounded front panel.)
* Lian Li PC-7 Plus II (small, outdated case. Gave it to my cousin.)
* Lian Li PC-B70 (got this case twice - one stock and one custom powdercoated. Great case but it is just GINORMOUS; not practical for use on top of a desk where I keep my case.)
* Lian Li PC-B10 (never installed into it though it looks like a really cool case; traded to Aztlan before I could build in it)
About three months ago, I went with the original Silverstone Raven. I was drawn to this case by the innovative design w/ the 90* rotated motherboard design. I was unsure about this case initially because it didn't look that great in the various review photos and A LOT of members here commented about how atrocious it looked. Some complained about the potential weight of a case of this size being made of steel. Still others voice concerns over the case's use of plastic. The good news is that the case is a lot better in real life than it appears in photos online!
The Raven turned out to be a very good case with some great features along with a number of quirks. Those put off by the plastic parts shouldn't be because the quality of the construction is typical Silverstone quality and is very nice. It is not at all cheap in either look or feel. Looks-wise, the Raven is actually a pretty good looking case that isn't anywhere near as gaudy as it might initially appear to be. The case actually grows on you and, while I realize that some will never like it, you should really check it out at a local store before dismissing it solely on its looks. As for the weight issue, it is on the heavier side but it's not so much to be a deal killer either.
On the down side, there were a few things that Silverstone could've improved upon on this case. First and foremost, for a case this large, the actual space for the components is fairly small and the installation in pretty cramped. Also, cable management is good in some areas and pretty bad in others. The rotated design made it just about impossible to hide some of the cables (like the PCIe power cables) and required extra long cables in other places (like the SATA cables). Most importantly, cooling wasn't as good as it should be given the advertised "stack effect" design. The problem here, I think, is due to location of the two 180mm fans on the bottom. There is one directly below the GPU's and the other under the HDD's and optical drives. The glaring omission is a direct source of fresh, cool air directly underneath the CPU/RAM area. Also, the placement of these 180mm fans combined with the relatively small/restictive filtered intakes isn't really conducive to good cooling. The PSU blocks the GPU fan and the HDD/optical fan's airflow is inefficient at best. Going from the PC-B70 to the Raven, I GAINED(!!!) about 7 to 10* Celcius on my CPU temps using the same TRUE 120 + 2x Noctua push/pull setup. Perhaps most annoying was that the temps rose about 4-5*C with the side panel on - so I had to remove the plexi-glass window to help alleviate this problem.
So in summary, here are the good and bad of the original Raven:
Pros:
* Quality Silverstone construction, fit and finish.
* Looks much better in real life than you think.
* Innovative (though not perfected) 90* rotated motherboard design.
* Tool-less optical drive retention clips worked well.
* Well designed HDD cage w/ anti-vibration inserts (and one (1) hot-swappable slot).
Cons:
* Cramped installation for a large full tower case.
* A little on the heavy side - which is to be expected.
* A little too big overall for my taste.
* Cable management could be improved in some areas.
* Retractable front drive door is clunky and very noisy in operation.
* LONG SATA cables are required (should be included with the case)
* Poor placement of the bottom 180mm fans hinders cooling.
* Lack of a fresh air source immediately below the CPU/RAM area.
* Overall cooling not as good as it should/could be.
* Temps noticeably increase with the side panel on.
If you've seen some of my F/S/T threads here, you'll know that I have been going through a lot of different cases in search of that perfect case that'll hold me over for at least the next year. I'd used the Silverstone TJ09-BW for the last 1 1/2 years and, while that was/is a great case, it's hard for me to use anything for over a year without getting bored with it. The search for the TJ09's replacement brought almost a dozen very nice cases through my hands including the following:
* Zalman GT-1000 Black (great, well made case but way too cramped.)
* Antec P180 Mini White (brief mATX experiment; ended up as the case for the kids' computer. Awesome little case with excellent cooling!)
* Lian Li PC-X500 (good case but somewhat impractical design w/ limited storage options.)
* Lian Li PC-A17 (never even installed in it - boring design w/ blah aesthetics.)
* Lian PC-A10 (great looking case w/ poor air cooling. Being used as an HTPC in master bedroom.)
* Lian Li PC-V1010 (surprisingly good case w/ good cooling; just never liked the rounded front panel.)
* Lian Li PC-7 Plus II (small, outdated case. Gave it to my cousin.)
* Lian Li PC-B70 (got this case twice - one stock and one custom powdercoated. Great case but it is just GINORMOUS; not practical for use on top of a desk where I keep my case.)
* Lian Li PC-B10 (never installed into it though it looks like a really cool case; traded to Aztlan before I could build in it)
About three months ago, I went with the original Silverstone Raven. I was drawn to this case by the innovative design w/ the 90* rotated motherboard design. I was unsure about this case initially because it didn't look that great in the various review photos and A LOT of members here commented about how atrocious it looked. Some complained about the potential weight of a case of this size being made of steel. Still others voice concerns over the case's use of plastic. The good news is that the case is a lot better in real life than it appears in photos online!
The Raven turned out to be a very good case with some great features along with a number of quirks. Those put off by the plastic parts shouldn't be because the quality of the construction is typical Silverstone quality and is very nice. It is not at all cheap in either look or feel. Looks-wise, the Raven is actually a pretty good looking case that isn't anywhere near as gaudy as it might initially appear to be. The case actually grows on you and, while I realize that some will never like it, you should really check it out at a local store before dismissing it solely on its looks. As for the weight issue, it is on the heavier side but it's not so much to be a deal killer either.
On the down side, there were a few things that Silverstone could've improved upon on this case. First and foremost, for a case this large, the actual space for the components is fairly small and the installation in pretty cramped. Also, cable management is good in some areas and pretty bad in others. The rotated design made it just about impossible to hide some of the cables (like the PCIe power cables) and required extra long cables in other places (like the SATA cables). Most importantly, cooling wasn't as good as it should be given the advertised "stack effect" design. The problem here, I think, is due to location of the two 180mm fans on the bottom. There is one directly below the GPU's and the other under the HDD's and optical drives. The glaring omission is a direct source of fresh, cool air directly underneath the CPU/RAM area. Also, the placement of these 180mm fans combined with the relatively small/restictive filtered intakes isn't really conducive to good cooling. The PSU blocks the GPU fan and the HDD/optical fan's airflow is inefficient at best. Going from the PC-B70 to the Raven, I GAINED(!!!) about 7 to 10* Celcius on my CPU temps using the same TRUE 120 + 2x Noctua push/pull setup. Perhaps most annoying was that the temps rose about 4-5*C with the side panel on - so I had to remove the plexi-glass window to help alleviate this problem.
So in summary, here are the good and bad of the original Raven:
Pros:
* Quality Silverstone construction, fit and finish.
* Looks much better in real life than you think.
* Innovative (though not perfected) 90* rotated motherboard design.
* Tool-less optical drive retention clips worked well.
* Well designed HDD cage w/ anti-vibration inserts (and one (1) hot-swappable slot).
Cons:
* Cramped installation for a large full tower case.
* A little on the heavy side - which is to be expected.
* A little too big overall for my taste.
* Cable management could be improved in some areas.
* Retractable front drive door is clunky and very noisy in operation.
* LONG SATA cables are required (should be included with the case)
* Poor placement of the bottom 180mm fans hinders cooling.
* Lack of a fresh air source immediately below the CPU/RAM area.
* Overall cooling not as good as it should/could be.
* Temps noticeably increase with the side panel on.
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