Compact in terms of both size and price, the Saber from BitFenix has a smorgasbord of features but comes in at less than £85.
Compact in terms of both size and price, the Saber from BitFenix has a smorgasbord of features but comes in at less than £85.
Originally unveiled at Computex 2019, the Saber by BitFenix was dreamed up as a compact midi-tower solution for systems with motherboards up to EATX form factors. Furthermore, it needed to incorporate the most important quality of life features for PC cases in its class. And last but not least, it needed to come in at an exceptionally attractive price. Today the Saber has launched in the UK and is available to pre-order from Overclockers UK, but how does it hold up to those aspirations?
Standing at just 45.4cm tall, the Saber is considerably more compact that BitFenix’s previous EATX chassis, earning its label as a midi-tower design. An all-black interior and exterior is broken up only by stylised ‘sword’ RGB lighting stripes in the fascia, giving it a sleek and somewhat elegant look that’s aided by a brushed metal effect fascia surface. A tempered glass side demands a clean and tidy internal build while the roof incorporates a noise-dampening magnetic cover as well as dust filter. Not a bad start.
The front fascia is easily removable thanks to a wire-free RGB connector to the main chassis, which should make installation of front-mounted fans and radiators far more straightforward than is typical for a case of this size and cost. Two strips down either side of the fascia act as dust-filtered air intakes, and these may be somewhat restrictive for a high air flow configuration. One 120mm fan is installed as standard in the front and as many as three 120mm or two 140mm fans can be comfortably accommodated (as well as 360/280mm radiators).
The Saber’s most noticeable interior feature is its oversized PSU shroud, which pulls triple-duty by also serving as a mounting point for storage drives and hidey-hole for excess cables. A cut-away exposes mounted PSUs, an aspect which could prove somewhat divisive and certainly will be a ‘Marmite’ feature for the case.
At the rear a 120mm BitFenix RGB Specter fan also comes pre-installed, but this space can alternately be used to mount a 120mm AIO. With magnetic cover removed the ceiling can accommodate two 120mm fans, but the compact nature of the chassis will mean that users should carefully vet any 240mm radiator/AIO assembly in case it fouls on motherboard components/RAM.
An ample 23mm gap behind the motherboard should make cable management relatively straightforward, and grommeted holes in the motherboard tray will aid in giving your system a tidy appearance that can be shown off rather than hidden away. Complementing that aspect of the case is compatibility with a wide variety of 3rd party RGB lighting control schemes including ASUS AURA SYNC, MSI Mystic Light, GIGABYTE RGB Fusion 2.0 and ASRock’s Polychrome RGB. Alternatively, the front I/O panel also incorporates a manual RGB controller.
Users with high-performance and enthusiast hardware will welcome support for motherboards up to EATX (7 PCI slot, 305mm x 272mm), graphics cards as long as 400mm, and CPU coolers as tall as 178mm. Bear in mind however that the Saber is a midi-tower case, and so will be slightly more cramped to work in than full-tower and super-tower enclosures.
The BitFenix Saber is now available to pre-order from OverclockersUK priced at £82.99 inc. V.A.T. If the case is up to BitFenix’s usual high standard in build quality then it could prove to be an excellent option for enthusiasts seeking wide motherboard compatibility and strong aesthetic choices, without breaching their budget. More information on the design can be found at https://www.bitfenix.com/products/chassis/eatx/saber/.
Technical Specifications
Form factor:- E-ATX (up to 272mm wide), ATX, Micro-ATX, Mini-ITX
Dimensions:- 220 x 454 x 465 mm (W x H x D)
Material:- Aluminium, Steel, plastic, tempered glass
Weight:- approx. 7 kg
Colour:- Black
Total possible fans:
– 3x 120 mm/ 2x 140 mm (Front)
– 1x 120 mm (rear)
– 2x 120 mm (roof)
Pre-installed:
– 1x 120 mm (front)
– 1x 120 mm (RGB-LEDs, rear)
Radiator Mountings:
– max. 1x 360 mm or 1x 280 mm (Front)
– max. 1x 240 mm (roof)
– 1x 120 mm (rear)
Dust filter:- Roof, front, bottom
Drive Bays:
– 2x 3.5/2.5″ (internal)
– 4x 2.5″ (internal)
PSU:- 1x Standard ATX, up to 185 mm (optional)
Expansion slots:- 7+2
I/O Panel:
– 2x USB 3.0 (internal connection)
– 1x Audio In/Out
– 1x RGB-control/reset
Max GPU length:- 400 mm
Max CPU cooler height-: 178 mm
RGB Controller Connections:
– 1x 4-Pin RGB
– 2x 3-Pin RGB
– 1x Front Button
– 1x SATA power cable
Dimensions:- 220 x 454 x 465 mm (W x H x D)
Material:- Aluminium, Steel, plastic, tempered glass
Weight:- approx. 7 kg
Colour:- Black
Total possible fans:
– 3x 120 mm/ 2x 140 mm (Front)
– 1x 120 mm (rear)
– 2x 120 mm (roof)
Pre-installed:
– 1x 120 mm (front)
– 1x 120 mm (RGB-LEDs, rear)
Radiator Mountings:
– max. 1x 360 mm or 1x 280 mm (Front)
– max. 1x 240 mm (roof)
– 1x 120 mm (rear)
Dust filter:- Roof, front, bottom
Drive Bays:
– 2x 3.5/2.5″ (internal)
– 4x 2.5″ (internal)
PSU:- 1x Standard ATX, up to 185 mm (optional)
Expansion slots:- 7+2
I/O Panel:
– 2x USB 3.0 (internal connection)
– 1x Audio In/Out
– 1x RGB-control/reset
Max GPU length:- 400 mm
Max CPU cooler height-: 178 mm
RGB Controller Connections:
– 1x 4-Pin RGB
– 2x 3-Pin RGB
– 1x Front Button
– 1x SATA power cable
