Cases & PSUs

be quiet! Silent Base 800 Window Review

vortez
July 15, 2015 13 Min Read
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be quiet! add a new version of their popular Silent Base 800 which features a double-glazed side panel allowing a preview inside your computer case.



Product on Review: Silent Base 800 Window
Manufacturer & Sponsor: be quiet!
Street Price: £100 GBP / $150 USD

There has been a trend in recent years for companies to expand into other markets and broaden their portfolio of products. be quiet! are one such brand which are on a venture to diversify their collection of products by stepping into the computer chassis market. Making an impression in this already thriving market is key to having even the faintest glimmer of success and with the addition to Silent Base 800 at the end of 2014, be quiet! certainly raised the stakes.

Today, be quiet! unveil a new, albeit similar chassis to their initial release. Silent Base 800 Window, as its name suggests, adds a windowed version to an already popular mid-tower chassis. However, the window on this case isn’t just an ordinary sheet of Perspex, instead we have a double-glazed design which promises to reduce the problem which many side-windows encounter – noise.


be quiet! on their Silent Base 800 Window
be quiet! is justifiably famous for making some of the most technologically-advanced, and absolutely the quietest, PC equipment available. True to the motto “form follows function” the PC case Silent Base 800 Silver offers the perfect symbiosis of noise prevention and cooling performance, a good usability and an extensive capacity for high-end hardware.

With a targeted combination of unique airflow control and sound insulation features, Silent Base 800 is a truly superior case ideal for high-end gaming gear and for quiet systems.

Technical Specifications

General Data Case »
Form factor / Motherboard compatibility
ATX / ATX, Micro-ATX, Mini-ITX
Case size with stands / without stands
(L x W x H), (mm)
495 x 266 x 559 / 495 x 230 x 542
Color options
Orange, Black, Silver
Material
0.7mm steel, ABS plastic, Nylon, Fiber, Polycarbonate
Weight incl. package / without package (kg)
11.3 / 9.31
I/O Panel
2x USB 3.0, 2x USB 2.0, HD Audio
(mic + headphone jacks)
Expansion slots (pcs.)
7
Drive Bay Capacity »
5.25
3
3.5
7
2.5
4
Cooling System »
Pre-installed fans (mm / rpm)
2x 140 / 1,000 @ front
1x 120 / 1,500 @ rear
Optional fans (mm)
2x 140 / 120 @ top
1x 140 / 120 @ bottom
Optional liquid cooling system
(radiator in mm)
2x 120 / 140 @ front
120 @ rear
120 / 140 / 240 / 280 @ top
Special cooling feature
2x air channels (top and bottom)
Maximum Dimensions »
CPU cooler (mm)
170
PSU (without bottom fan)
290
Graphics card (standard)
290
Graphics card (w/o middle HDD cage)
400

Packaging & First Look



SB 800 Window arrives in a large, double reinforced cardboard box. be quiet! has styled the packaging in such a way to provide a depiction of the case on the front, with a brief list of the main features. On the sides and reverse there are more details for those who are interested.

Inside, the case is covered in a fabric sheet and held in place with dual polystyrene pillars.



Fundamental to SB 800 Window’s differential is the inclusion of a Perspex window. This window isn’t just a standard preview panel however, be quiet! has implemented a double-glazed technique to deliver better noise reduction – since usually having a window version means noise compromise. This window allows a nice overview of the internal components and covers a large portion of the panel.

Over on the reverse, there is a concave square with a plastic riser. This feature allows the components on the underside to receive some ventilation. The inside of this panel has noise reduction material to keep noise to a minimum.

Exterior



At the front of SB 800 Window we have an upper and lower region which are both closed off. Both panels although furnished with a brushed metal effect, are plastic in their construction. Running down the outer edge there are two perforated mesh strips to allow cool air to enter the front of the chassis.

Around the back, there is an opening at the bottom for mounting the PSU and then above this there are seven PCI expansion slot covers each with ventilation cut-outs. Three circular rubber grommets are found above these, and at the top there is a PureWings 120mm cooling fan for the rear exhaust.


Since the front is closed off, be quiet! has given the upper section a panel which is opens out to reveal the 5.25” drive bay covers. The inside of this panel has been layered with some noise reduction material and some rubber pads to provide soft closure. There are a total of four 5.25” drive bay covers, each are removable from the inside of the chassis.


Below this, we again have a removable panel – by pressing two points this panel drops down. On the inside we find some more noise reduction material and an easy to remove dust filter. be quiet! include two SilentWings 2 140mm cooling fans at the front here, they are both configured to be intakes and will bring cool air into the chassis.


Up at the top of the chassis, towards the front, we have two USB 3.0 ports, headphone and microphone jacks, two USB 2.0 ports, a large power button and activity LED.


Although there are no cooling fans included at the top of SB 800 Window, we have some ventilation strips to aid cooling. These strips will also come in handy should any cooling fans or radiators be installed.


On the underside of SB 800 Window there is a solid panel without any ventilation cut-outs. be quiet! provide two arms which do not come pre-attached – these must be clipped onto the case after taking it out of the packaging. Both arms are colour-coordinated with the version purchase (silver in our case). Both arms have two rubber strips to prevent the case from slipping around on smooth surfaces.

So far, we’ve been impressed by the styling and features included but now next we’ll be moving inside the chassis for a better look at what’s included.

Interior



Detaching the prominent side panel from the chassis, we can get a closer look at the double-glazed design to which be quiet! has implemented. This panel uses two pieces of material to enhance the sound insulation. Not only this, but the design lends itself to being scratch and impact resistant.



Detaching both panels we can get a nice overview of the internal layout and features. There is lots of space for installing hardware, plenty of tool-free mechanisms (including SSD mounts on the reverse side) and the inside has been powder coated black to add extra finesse. The only thing that puzzles us are the rubber grommets which aren’t black but rather a grey tone – which stand out and counters the purpose of keeping cables discreet and out of the way.


Looking at the power supply area there are rubber pads for cushioning the unit and there is ventilation for the cooling fan which will face the bottom of the case. Corresponding to this perforated mesh there is a detachable dust filter which can be easily removed without having to place the case on its side.


Further up inside the chassis there are seven PCI expansion slot covers, each with ventilation and a thumbscrew for easy removal.


Placed at the back of SB 800 window there is a SilentWings 2 120mm cooling fan and at the top there are mounting holes for installing two 120/140mm fans. Additionally we can also install radiators at the top too – this will be covered in the clearance section of the review.


Over on the other side there are three 5.25” drive bay covers, each having a tool-free mechanism to install a device. The drive is simply inserted and the latch system is moved over to the left to secure fitment.


Below this there are two HDD cages which can house up to seven 3.5” drives. To install a drive into the cage, two rubber strips are required (supplied with the case). Both cages can be detached after removing the thumbscrews – this will give better compatibility for components such as graphics cards and again, we’ll be covering the clearance for such devices later in the review.

Installation




Completing the installation of components inside SB 800 Window is relatively easy thanks to the space and tool-free design for installing kit. As you can see the hardware, once installed looks great inside the chassis. The only criticism we really have with this case is that there are very few hooks for cable management, especially the CPU power – usually there are hooks to tie back the cable, but there wasn’t any in this region so we had to leave the cable loose.


Installing a HDD as mentioned previously, requires rubber strips to be attached to the sides. The blocked edges need to be fitted to the opposite end of the ports (as shown above) in order to make use of correct alignment. These strips stop the drive from wobbling and are a great idea!

On the next page we’ll take a look at the clearance options inside SB 800 Window.

Clearance – CPU Cooler, Graphics Card, Cable Management


Identifying the clearance options inside a case is crucial because it helps the system builder establish what will fit, and what won’t.

CPU Cooler


be quiet! has given SB 800 Window up to 170mm for the maximum height for the CPU cooler and as you can see this certainly holds up. We have used the Noctua NH-U12P which is 158mm and you can see there is plenty of space for bigger coolers – such as flagships, Noctua NH-D15 (165mm tall).

Graphics Card


Inside SB 800 window we can obviously detach the upper (and lower) HDD cages to get better compatibility for long graphics cards but with the upper cage still attached we can install cards with a length of around 11” (280mm). Our card which is the XFX HD7970 is around 10.5” (265mm) in length and fits rather snug.

Cable Management


Behind the motherboard tray is the area where we can store redundant cables and in this area we have a generous 2cm of clearance to keep any unwanted cables tucked away.

Clearance – Water Cooling


In this section we’ll look at the radiator support inside SB 800 Window and discover which areas are available to install water cooling kit.

The rear of our case can only house 120mm fans so in that area we are limited to a 120mm radiator.

Top section



Measuring the distance between the top of the case and the top of the motherboard we have approximately 4.5cm – this is something to consider if you are going to add in a radiator/fan combo and have tall heatsinks on the motherboard.



At the top we can install 120, 140 or a 280mm radiator due to the mounting configuration. As you can see we’ve installed the Corsair H100i which fits inside the case perfectly.

Additionally, inside the cavity of the fascia we can fit the radiator from this ALC so that only the fans are installed inside the motherboard area. (if you have heatsink compatibility problems).

Front section


Unfortunately there isn’t any support for 240/280mm radiators at the front since the lower platform inside SB 800 Window is riveted to the chassis. Even smaller radiators such as the Corsair Hydro series units won’t move beyond this point, so instead we’re left with 120/140mm radiator support.

Thermal Performance Testing


Inside Silent Base 800 Window we have three cooling fans – one 120mm fan at the rear and two 140mm cooling fans at the front. This push/pull configuration usually presents good results, so we expected good results.

To discover the thermal performance of SB 800 Window we will record idle temperatures after 20 minutes from a cold boot. We will then stress the system and temperatures will again be monitored after 30 minutes have elapsed.

For the purpose of accurate analysis the idle and load temperatures for CPU and GPU will be recorded and the range between idle and load will be calculated to determine how efficient cooling is.

NOTE: Ambient temperature is 20C

System Components

CPU AMD Phenom II X6 1055T 2.8GHz
Motherboard ASUS M4A89TD PRO
Graphics NVIDIA GTX 480 (Different from card pictured)
Memory 4GB Kingston HyperX DDR3
HDD Samsung Spinpoint 500GB SATA-II
PSU DeepCool DQ750

Noise

True to be quiet!’s ethos and the nature of this case, the cooling fans emit very little noise at all. The double-glazed panel and noise reduction material all help to keep noise to a minimum.


Conclusion


The Silent Base 800 Window combines the characteristics of a silent computer chassis with the added bonus of the much sought after preview panel and yet still retains low-noise attributes thanks to a double-glazed design.

There isn’t much to differentiate between the standard Silent Base 800 and this new Window edition, except to note the inclusion of that panel which obviously features in the name. Inside, system builders will discover the same features and layout – so if you’ve already purchase the original case but fancy having a side window then it would be advisable to purchase the Window panel separately from be quiet! for £25 GBP / $30 USD.

SB 800 Window looks aesthetically very pleasing to the eye. The smooth and professional styling compliment a feature-packed chassis which boasts plenty of options for storage and high-end components. We found this case to be capable of housing big CPU coolers and large graphics cards, and thanks to the low-noise fans and noise damping material throughout, noise is kept to an absolute minimum.



There are however a few areas for improvement. SB 800 Window uses a lot of plastic, especially for its external design and the asking price of £100 GBP / $150 USD projects this case into territory with fierce competition from rival options which make use of higher quality material such as steel. Water cooling isn’t necessarily the objective with this case but even so, there are certain limits to the radiators we can fit at the top and front and this case isn’t exactly small on dimensions.

be quiet! has made a sensible move by adding a windowed version of Silent Base 800 to their portfolio. This new case utilises the same features that many love about this chassis but now system builders can enjoy an overview of their pride and joy.

Pros
+ Pleasing to the eye
+ Low-noise operation
+ Flexible storage options
+ Can house high-end kit
+ Well-implemented dust filters

Cons
– Expensive
– Lots of plastic
– Lacks flexibility for bigger radiators
– Needs more cable hooks

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