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Review on SilverStone Technology CS380B-X V2.0: The Ultimate 8-Bay Compact ATX Tower Case in Black by Osoulo Sharp

Revainrating 4 out of 5

Great option for full size ATX servers, with caveats

I ordered one of these to build a home server. This machine will do a lot; NAS, routing, game servers, virtual machines. I will use R9 3950 in MSI Meg Ace with 4x8GB GSkill Trident RAM. With the BeQuiet Dark Rock Pro 4 I managed to fit my board very tightly into the case. It requires some maneuvers and turns to get all the information. The assembly is present in the case but fits without touching/pressing anything that shouldn't be there (the CPU cooler may be 2mm from the top edge of the case). It's snug, but I like it - there's no wasted space. However, the length of the GPU is an issue. I was hoping to just use the GTX 1080 I have lying around, but there's no chance - the board is too long, let alone the cooler. If you're using something better for Server/NAS like 1030 or similar then it won't be a problem. Build quality is probably best described as efficient. The metal is thin but rolled or profiled in all places to increase rigidity. That reduces the weight and, I'm sure, the price. Cooling seems a bit limited, but that's typical for smaller cases. Just an exhaust in the usual place on the rear I/O. The top plate is solid with no ventilation. I feel like there's still room in the top of this case for thin profile fans, even with a setup like mine. I will be using Noctua PPC for the exhaust to make up for the lack of options. A large CPU cooler, like the one I use, ends up an inch or two from the case's exhaust vent, which should help keep CPU heat from being trapped inside the case. The intake is in a good location and pushes air directly into the hot-swap drive bay. However, the dust filter for this intake doesn't appear to be removable, which is disappointing (it's easy to do yourself with hot glue and some magnets, whatever). Directly in front of the power supply there is space for a supply air fan with a filter. In general it seems decent. It could have been better. However, I really like this case. This suits my use case well.

Pros
  • Space saving mid tower chassis design
Cons
  • Can't remember