SilverStone FT03: Nothing Else Like It
by Dustin Sklavos on April 28, 2011 12:25 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- SilverStone
Conclusion: In a Class of Its Own
SilverStone's engineers have produced a stunningly unique and very attractive piece of kit in the FT03. It's one of their crown jewels and justifiably so: the FT03 has excellent thermal design, decent noise with the stock fans at stock speed, and if you're into the minimalistic look it's frankly just plain nice to look at. In fact, that's really the main draw of the FT03: the case is uniquely designed in a way that's both aesthetically pleasing and eye-catching while being remarkably functional. Assembly is remarkably simple, and the case is capable of housing a tremendous amount of performance. I'd be considering using it for my own tower if I didn't need more than the four internal drive bays as well as a dedicated 5.25" bay.
Compared to the positives, the weak points of the FT03 are comparatively minor. Noise remains an issue but not an unsolvable one (though I'm concerned about more powerful cards like the GTX 580). The side panels and bottom grate also come off far too easily.
My biggest complaint about the FT03 may actually be its hidden costs. You can get the case for $169 up front, but that's really not the end of the additional expenses using it can incur. First, you have to use a slimline slot-loading optical drive (and there's no access to the button either, you have to use the operating system to eject the drive). These things don't grow on trees and they easily cost twice as much as a conventional optical drive. That gets compounded if you're like me and need a blu-ray reader/writer, where suddenly you're looking at paying at a bare minimum $200 for the privilege. At least there's a cheap solution to this: buy an external.
Second, and thankfully at least a little less egregious, you need a small, modular power supply. Let's be realistic here: if you're willing to spend $169 just on the case and then cheap out on the power supply, you're going to get exactly what you pay for and probably what you deserve. Most serious builders are going to go for something modular anyhow, but in this case it's essential. While SilverStone's short modular cable kit isn't absolutely essential, it's preferable, and that adds yet another expense.
Finally, if you're like me you'll want to invest in a fan controller, and given the form factor and design of the FT03 that really doesn't leave many options. Once again the best one available is going to be the one I used for the GD04, Xigmatek's expansion slot fan controller.
When all is said and done, though, if you're not the kind of person the SilverStone FT03 appeals to, none of these things matter. You probably weren't planning on spending this much on a case anyhow and you're not interested in the conversation piece, and that's fine. But if you took a look at the FT03 and thought it was a slick piece of engineering like I did, this review should read like almost nothing but good news. You'll need to invest a bit more to really make the most of it, but you were already considering investing in it anyhow, and in exchange you get a case that's both attractive and remarkably functional. All things considered, that's worth at least a Bronze Editor's Choice award. I'd be anxious to see what would happen if SilverStone worked those minor kinks out.
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IlllI - Thursday, April 28, 2011 - link
why in the world would they decide to stick that ugly, plastic thing on the side?other than that it looks decent. i'd be willing to forgive the ugly plastic lid, but the thing on the side completely ruins the aesthetics
softdrinkviking - Thursday, April 28, 2011 - link
what're you talking about? the silverstone snowflake?Spoelie - Thursday, April 28, 2011 - link
no, check the gallery, third picturesoftdrinkviking - Monday, May 2, 2011 - link
oh man. i didn't see that.that is really strange; not my cup of coffee.
heffeque - Thursday, April 28, 2011 - link
He means the top grill.The tittle is "Nothing else like it", but seriously, the idea is extremely similar to this other casing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D0NbGbZBPL0&t=4...
:-)
headbox - Friday, April 29, 2011 - link
I thought I was going to get RickRolled for a second there...Yes, even the best PC cases have NOTHING on Apple designs from more than a decade ago. The PowerMac G3 and G4 cases are still miles ahead of the "high-end" from Lian Li or others. And the PowerMac G5 and Mac Pro cases are just amazing. Hate on Apple all you want, but no one designs enclosures like they do.
Oh, unless you like alien eyes on the front.
bman212121 - Monday, May 2, 2011 - link
The G3 was interesting but I don't know if I would use that setup for a full sized build. It would probably work well for this scenario though using a mini ITX. (The mainboard is mounted to the side panel and when you open up the case you lay the board down and out of the case) With a smaller size having the board basically come out of the case to mount and work on makes it so much easier to add memory, an expansion card, or work on something else in the case. The outside of the G3 is all plastic and does still look good with it.The G5 is definitely one of the nicest looking cases, but I find it hard to work inside of. (it's a fairly large case too) The thermals are covered nicely in the PowerMac but it's a real pain to insert drives. The Intel Mac Pro has a better layout but I'd still change the inside around some. If anything the solid aluminum side panel is a blessing compared to most other cases.
tbutler - Wednesday, May 4, 2011 - link
Yeah, from a easy-to-work-on standpoint, the G3/G4 design is probably the best I've ever seen. Unfortunately, towards the end of its run it started having cooling issues (remember the "Windtunnel" nickname?)The G5/MacPro case does much better on cooling; it's not as easy to work on as the G3/G4 case, but it's not bad. One thing that makes it gadget porn for me is the complete lack of cabling in the interior work area, and the near total lack of cabling at all; the only time I've ever had to mess with cabling at all was when I installed a second optical drive, and had to run a SATA cable down to the motherboard. That cable was a bit tricky to run and required disassembling more of the case than I'd like, but after that it wasn't bad. (I also had to hook up the second power lead to the optical bay, but that was pretty trivial.)
softdrinkviking - Monday, May 2, 2011 - link
no he doesn't. check the third pic, like spoelie saysRasterman - Thursday, April 28, 2011 - link
I agree, for $170 bucks, plastic is not allowed, it should be aluminum, or glass would be very cool.