Six Low-Noise, Performance-Oriented Cases, Tested

Features
By Thomas Soderstrom
published

We recently illustrated the features of our six low-noise cases, and today we get to find out how those features help them perform. We provide further detail on the hardware installation process before delving into heat and noise comparisons.

Building With The NZXT H2 Classic

NZXT adds a little style to its H2 Classic with an aluminum insert on its face panel. The finished PC doesn’t look expensive, but neither is its case at $100.

NZXT nicely separates the screws of its installation kit in re-sealable bags to prevent future loss, and even includes a #2 Phillips head socket for its hexagonal motherboard standoffs.

Optical drives are held in place by pins on a flexible retainer. Pulling the tab out from the left edge unlocks the drive, while sliding its latch to the left locks the tab.

NZXT offsets its 2.5” drive screws to the side of the drive tray to align the connector identically with 3.5” drives. That would make sense if the case had a backplane, but it doesn’t. The downside is that the 3.5” drive mounting pins must be removed in order to install a 2.5” drive on the tray.

Installing the 3.5” drive is accomplished simply by spreading the sides of the flexible tray to align its mounting pins with the 3.5” drive’s screw holes. Both drives then slide into position through a removable fan tray in the case's front panel.

Installation of the motherboard, graphics card, and power supply follows the standard practices outlined in How To Build A PC.

NZXT installs the H2 Classic’s USB 3.0 extension cable in an egress hole, requiring nothing more than the effort of plugging it into a motherboard’s I/O panel jack.

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.
56 Comments Comment from the forums
  • Tamz_msc
    i7 2600K at 34.5 GHz? o.O
    Reply
  • the rv03 is out at less $$$ you guys should do a rv02-E vs rv03 round in the cooling side and thats because the rv03 has more fans
    Reply
  • dragonsqrrl
    Using a SilverStone Fortress Series FT02B-W here. Basically identical interior design, except in my opinion the exterior is more aesthetically pleasing. Glad to confirm the excellent cooling characteristics.

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811163161&cm_re=ft02_b-_-11-163-161-_-Product
    Another big plus with the Fortress 2 is the inclusion of sound dampening foam on every panel, but to be entirely honest with you, due to the open nature of the case, I'm really not sure how much sound it's actually dampening.
    Reply
  • henryvalz
    34.5 Ghz...

    Hell, yes! About time, pushing those extreme overclocks!
    Reply
  • Gamer-girl
    I think there needs to be info on how much space there is for graphics cards.
    Reply
  • xmaswraith
    34.5 gigahertz? 34.5 gigahertz? Great Scott!

    Marty, I'm sorry. But the only power source capable of generating 34.5 gigahertz of electricity is a bolt of lightning... (begin back to the future theme song!)
    Reply
  • JOSHSKORN
    henryvalz34.5 Ghz...Hell, yes! About time, pushing those extreme overclocks!I bet they were overclocking from Pluto.
    Reply
  • killerclick
    JOSHSKORNI bet they were overclocking from Pluto.
    Didn't you watch the news? Astronomers sent a dwarf in a rocket to remove Pluto so it doesn't exist anymore.
    Reply
  • Luay
    RV-03 pushes more air and cools better than the 02, but it's also louder.
    Reply
  • madsbs
    Yet, as a gaming case, the Raven 2 Evolution may not fulfill the aesthetic or storage needs of some computing professionals
    Reply