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For thermal and acoustic testing, we are using the following software and settings:
| CPU Clock | i9 9900k: 4.6 GHz (46x 100MHz) @ 1.1v | Row 0 - Cell 2 |
| GPU Clock | RTX 2070 Super: Stock | Row 1 - Cell 2 |
| GPU Driver | Nvidia GeForce 445.87 | Row 2 - Cell 2 |
| Case & CPU Fan Speeds | 100% | Row 3 - Cell 2 |
| GPU Fan Speeds | 75% | Row 4 - Cell 2 |
As noted earlierno fans are included with the Phanteks Enthoo Pro II, so you’ll have to bring your own spinners. Therefore, we have to skip the testing with the case’s own fans and jump straight to our standardized tests, where we use three Corsair ML140 fans. Because this case supports the large fans, it gets rewarded with the 140mm spinners, though at the 50% duty the 120 mm and 140 mm spinners produce identical noise levels.
Acoustic Results
For our acoustic tests, we run three scenarios: CPU full load, CPU and GPU full load, and an optimized idle. The CPU Full Load test runs the CPU and case fans at 50% duty. For the CPU and GPU full load acoustic test we add the Nvidia RTX 2070 Super FE at 75% fan speed, because in practice it never runs at 100 percent and is far too loud when it does.
For the optimized idle, we run the GPU fan speed at 40 percent (the 2070 Super FE GPU does not have a Zero-RPM mode), and run the CPU and case fans at the lowest speed they will spin at.
The Phanteks Enthoo Pro II is the quietest case we have tested yet. Quite how this came to be isn’t clear to us as it is, like most other cases, a mesh case with a huge open front that happily lets all the noise out, but it seems to do something right. The differences aren’t huge though, and you’ll still want to invest in a quieter graphics card than we’re using for your own system.
Thermal Results
For the thermal tests, the CPU fan is set to 100% and the Corsair case fans to 50%. The i9-9900K is pegged at a 4.6GHz clock at 1.1v on all cores to ensure consistent power consumption across test scenarios. Letting the GPU run at 75 percent fan speed enables it to maintain its power target while maintaining one set reasonable fan speed, so that the temperature is the only variable.
Thermally, the Phanteks Enthoo Pro II also puts down the best figures we have seen to date here. When Lian Li’s Lancool II Mesh landed, that case blew us away with its thermals and it’s an absolutely stellar case. The Enthoo Pro II earns an identical CPU temperature, but somehow drops the GPU temperature down by a whopping two degrees and has the RTX 2070 Super running at just 57 degrees Celsius. Perhaps this is just down to the extra space in the case making for less thermal bleeding between components.
Of course, temperatures will undoubtedly rise a little once you decide to slam the system full with a multi-GPU setup, second system, and a ton of hard drives. But with good fans, we trust that the Enthoo Pro II will be able to keep things cool.
Conclusion
Phanteks’ Enthoo Pro II is a very unique chassis. It offers the most seamless dual-system support we’ve ever seen, and its new fabric mesh front looks really great, especially when you get close to the case.
Thermally and acoustically the Enthoo Pro II also performs phenomenally well. Of course, the mesh does let more noise out than a closed-front case would, but if you’re careful in your component selection and only pick quiet parts, it should all remain very tolerable.
But this is a big case. Its price tag, $130 for the closed version, or $140 for the variant with tempered glass and RGB, is good for a case with its capabilities. But most people simply don’t need a case that’s as big as this, and the finish of the front facade also reveals the shortcuts Phanteks had to take to get the price down to this level.
So, this isn’t a case we’d recommend for everybody. Most of us would rather spend much less on our case, or spend this much on a case and have something with a proper quality finish – which this lacks.
Like a big, reliable truck, the Enthoo Pro II is an excellent, roomy place for your PC parts. It’s pure practical bliss, and if you buy it you can rest assured that you won’t be needing another chassis for eons to come. For the crowd that wants a chassis like this with dual-system support, it’s easy to recommend.
