be quiet! Silent Base 800 Case Review

Promising “unique performance and usability,” the Silent Base 800 debuts the case line of power supply brand be quiet!

By Thomas Soderstrom
published

Early Verdict

The Silent Base 800 is a stylish and quiet choice for users who want to combine the look and price of a full tower with the component space of a mid-tower. Removable/repositionable drive cages make room for larger motherboards and longer cards but reduce the maximum number of drives that can be installed.

Pros

  • +

    Build quality, Full-Height, Noise-dampening, Removable drive cages, Reduced-Weight, Style

Cons

  • -

    Internal ATX mid-tower frame

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Introduction

Power supply brand be quiet! probably knows a thing or two about noise dampening and airflow, so why not build a case? Traditional chassis designs are fairly easy to individualize, ODMs are ready at the production line to supply the parts and the science of noise dampening is already well-known. The Silent Base 800 thus gives us the expected combination of standard ATX dimensions, drive doors, fan covers and foam inserts.

The be quiet! Silent Base 800 only comes in a black base color, but there are also optional silver and orange trim colors available — our test model is black on black.

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Thomas Soderstrom
Thomas Soderstrom
Thomas Soderstrom is a Senior Staff Editor at Tom's Hardware US. He tests and reviews cases, cooling, memory and motherboards.
24 Comments Comment from the forums
  • dcunited
    Wait, stop. This thing looks exactly like the Fractal Design R4/ R5.
    Reply
  • PaulBags
    A shame it wasn't compared to the r5
    Reply
  • Shneiky
    I am a big be quiet! fan (no pun intended). Been using their power supplies for years and I am using their fans wherever I can. But what turns off from this case is the lack of cuts in the tray for attaching cables with zip-ties. This is a big miss from be quiet!. Wonder how they forgot about it. It is a vital point for descent cable management in the back.
    Reply
  • SinxarKnights
    Apparently this case is already out of stock on newegg.
    Reply
  • Anathemata
    Considering the Fractal Design R5 already beats out the 760T in my own experience, I don't know how this case can be competitive unless you are specifically looking for a case that has colored trim and a completely black interior (that you can't see, because no window).
    Reply
  • JeanLuc
    Pros: ..... Full-Height

    That's a feature not a 'pro'.
    Reply
  • g-unit1111
    Huh, as an R4 owner I don't see the similarities between that and this case. It looks pretty nice for the price, the only thing that would make it better would be a clear side window. Not a fan of the orange color though.
    Reply
  • Crashman
    15635311 said:
    Pros: ..... Full-Height

    That's a feature not a 'pro'.
    I don't think you understand how illogical many buyers are, that's why it says "combine the look and price of a full tower with the component space of a mid-tower" :)
    Reply
  • Calculatron
    A Noctua cooler in a Be Quiet! case? For shame! ;)
    Reply
  • synphul
    I think the whole point of the silent base was the sound dampening and while some people prefer windows it would defeat the purpose of a padded side panel for noise dampening. Not a bad review but why so late? Everyone else reviewed this case back in nov/dec 2014. This review is nearly 5mo later than the ones from techspot, techpowerup, hexus. I know sometimes reviews get held up but surprised the silent base 900 or something hasn't released already. Five months is a long time in this industry.
    Reply