Silverstone Precision PS15 Case Review: Compact and Inexpensive

Tom's Hardware Verdict

The Precision PS15 is a nice chassis for the money, delivering most things an enthusiast on a budget needs, including a tempered-glass side panel and a low $60 price. But you'll have to be willing to overlook some design and performance drawbacks.

Pros

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    Low price

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    Quiet

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    Tempered glass side panel

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    Good filtration system

Cons

  • -

    Only one fan

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    Poor thermal performance

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    Color match issues

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Features and Specifications

Bigger isn't always better when it comes to cases -- especially given that massive three- and four-card  GPU setups have fallen out of favor due to a dwindling game support and hardware limitations from Nvidia. The compact PC case market is booming and Silverstone is hoping to cash in on the craze with its Precision PS15. If nothing else, this case is appealing for its low $60 (£56) price, but can the PS15 beat the competition on more than just price? For those looking for a little more in the way of user-selectable lighting, the Precision PS15 is also available with RGB functionality (PS15B-RGB), but we could only find hat variant for sale on Amazon UK for £77, or about £21 more than the model we’re looking at here.

Specifications

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TypeMicro-ATX
Motherboard SupportMini-ITX, Micro-ATX
Dimensions (HxWxD)15 x 7.56 x 13.82 inches (381 x 192 x 351 mm)
Space Above Motherboard1 inch (25.4mm)
Card Length12.3 inches (314mm)
CPU Cooler Height6.06 inches (154mm)
Power Supply Format5.9 inches (150mm)
Weight7.76 lbs (3.52 kg)
External Bays
Internal Bays1x 3.5/2.5" / 3x 2.5”
Card Slots4
Ports/Jacks2x USB 3.0, audio/mic jacks
Other
Front Fans✗  (Up to 2x 120 / 140mm)
Rear Fans1 x 120mm
Top Fans✗ (Up to 2x 120 / 1x 140mm)
Bottom Fans
Side Fans
Damping
Warranty

Measuring 15 x 7.56 x 13.82 inches (381 x 192 x 351 mm) and weighing in at just 7.76 lbs (3.52 kg), the Silverstone Precision PS15 is constructed of black steel, plastic, and tempered-glass. As with many cases that mix building materials, the black plastic panels do not visually match the painted metal sections. The result is a glaringly obvious two-tone look.

A perforated metal panel with a large magnetic dust filter covers mounting locations for two 120mm fans or one 140mm spinner up top.

The leading edge of the top panel is home to two USB 3.0 ports, headphone and microphone jacks, a hard drive activity LED, and a power button. Directly behind the mesh front fascia you'll find mounts for two 120 / 140mm intake fans.

The removable front panel is made up primarily of dual-layered metal mesh material that also serves as a filter. A back-lit Silverstone logo sits at the bottom of the plastic front frame.

The full-coverage tempered-glass side panel is darkly tinted and held in place by rubber-coated locating pins and thumbscrews. The opposite side panel is stamped steel and attaches to the case via metal thumbscrews.

Around back, you'll find a standard motherboard I/O area and four expansion slots with punch-out style covers. There’s an opening for a bottom-mounted PSU, as well as an exhaust-fan mount outfitted with a 120mm fan. That location features slotted screw holes that lets you slide the fan up or down to fine-tune airflow or make room for system components.

The bottom of the case has a filtered hole for power-supply ventilation and four round plastic feet that elevate the bottom panel approximately half an inch. The Precision PS15 must be turned completely on its side to access the removable power-supply filter for maintenance and cleaning.

The fan filtration system does a good job preventing dirt and dust particles from entering your system. The filter on the top of the case is attached by magnetic seals around its edge. Dual-layer metal mesh built into the front panel acts as a filter for front fans. There, cleaning is best done with the panel removed.

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  • eklipz330
    i refuse to buy a case without a front usb-c port now.

    yes, i know there aren't many devices. yes, i know it's expensive to implement. but it's about time they started implementing it now so technology can move forward. it's sad when my SFF optiplex at work has a usb-c front port but not a custom built $1200 PC that is far more powerful.
    Reply
  • Patcher
    Hey, I'm intending to buy this case and I was wondering if the Deepcool Gammax 400 CPU cooler (height 154.5mm) and the Gigabyte P650B PSU (150mmx140mm) will fit in this case?

    Thanks.
    Reply