Phanteks Eclipse P300A Review: Less Is More

If you have a spare fan or two around to add, the P300A is a wonderful first chassis to build in.

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System Configuration

We are using the following system for our case test bed.

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

With the motherboard standoffs pre-installed, installation of the motherboard was simple. The central standoff anchored the board, letting us easily install the screws to fasten the Maximus XI Hero down.

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Phanteks Eclipse P300A
(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

Installing the power supply was less straightforward. The Corsair HX750i that we use in our standard test system did not fit with its modular cables attached, so we had to use a smaller power supply provided by Phanteks. This unit was the Phanteks AMP 650, which fit without issue. For a modular power supply, we wouldn’t choose a bigger unit than this one at 140 mm long, despite the case’s spec list allowing up to a 200 mm unit. So be sure to choose your power supply carefully.

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Phanteks Eclipse P300A
(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

Even though we’re not using it for the tests, two 3.5-inch drives installed easily into the HDD caddy with the toolless installation mechanism. At first, we had some trouble, but discovered quickly that the  drives need to be installed with the power and data connectors at the front of the chassis rather than at the PSU side. If you regularly swap drives, this system will make your life very easy.

Cable Management

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)

The cutouts in the PSU shroud at the bottom of the motherboard are adequate in depth, but there aren’t enough of them to line up all connections nicely with our Maximus XI Hero motherboard, resulting in more exposed cabling than I would like.

The rear of the motherboard only has 14 mm (slightly more than a half an inch) between itself and the side panel, not enough room to work with if it were the only space for wires. However, Phanteks’ design has a large cable-routing gutter to the left of the motherboard that is 35 mm (1.4 inches) deep, providing lots of room to stow extra cables and slack. We also appreciate the inclusion of Velcro straps for keeping things tidy.

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware)
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Niels Broekhuijsen
Niels Broekhuijsen

Niels Broekhuijsen is a Contributing Writer for Tom's Hardware US. He reviews cases, water cooling and pc builds.

2 Comments Comment from the forums
  • Soaptrail
    I recently built my relative a PC with this case and having no experience with Phanteks I came away thoroughly impressed. This case looks great and is very easy to install with although i did add a second fan.

    My only knock come from the PSU shroud not being removable but i am apparently in a small minority that does not mind seeing a PSU and cables.
    Reply
  • punkncat
    I own the older version of this case, before they went with the mesh front. It's a beautiful case that is well laid out, has ample room for expansion if you want...the "stock" configuration will allow for 4 drives readily. It's got great cable management options. In it's stock configuration the only air intake were two small strips on either end of the front panel, with dust filters. It was terrible for builds with any level of power, particularly GPU. My only complaint as far as design is (was) that the front LED wiring runs right by the mounting lug for the front panel. While taking that off to clean it eventually snagged and broke that wire. It's replaceable, but I don't use the case lighting function any more.
    I would point out that in my own experience the top fan mount location is only going to work with smaller radiators. The motherboard top edge and radiator or fan side are in conflict. The front mounting location is slightly oversized and big radiators will fit there.

    The case had severe air flow and thus heat issues. They came out with the model reviewed above and the front panel is available as a separate part. I ordered that and instantly solved the aforementioned problems. Superb upgrade option for a good looking case.
    Reply