Overclocker Cafe - Sunbeam Silent Storm

Sunbeam Silent Storm

Installation

To put it kindly, installation was a pain in the butt. My recommendation for this case would be to remove the Core Fan mounting bar and install everything before putting it back. I tried both ways, and with the bar in place it was an exercise in patience just to get the power supply in place. routing all the wires and cables was not possible.

As you can see, with the bar in place it's a very tight fit and I haven't yet put the IDE cables in yet. Just be aware that when you are installing all the hardware that you will need to keep it out of the way in order to replace the mounting bar. The side mounted fan being and LED jobber is a nice touch. It's not too over the top, but still adds a bit of splash.

I do have to say that this is the quietest case that I've had. If it hadn't been for the LED fan being lit up, I wouldn't have been able to tell it was even on. For a case to have three 120mm fans and no noticeable noise is saying something.

Conclusion

Sunbeam's Silent Storm case delivers on its promise to be a quiet housing solution. With their patented Core Fan design and low decibel 120mm fans, this case is only audible if you're using a loud power supply. The tool free drive bays for this case are excellent. The design for the external drive bays is probably the simplest, yet most effective that I've seen. And while all you bling-bling boys and girls will be a bit disappointed in the looks, the Silent Storm has clean lines and classy looks to it. All this for a price tag of less than $70 (and those are the ones with included PSUs that I could find) makes it a bargain.

However, the case isn't without it's drawbacks. A minor issue will only affect the LAN goers in the crowd as the door uses magnets instead of a latch to keep it closed. It's not a big deal, but something to keep in mind when traveling. The thing that makes this case a hit is also it's biggest drawback, it's Core Fan design. Because of the design, space is at a premium for this case. The fan sits directly over the DIMM slots and almost touches the memory sticks. A second fan is only possible if using onboard video are a very short VGA card, which most aren't. So, while the mounting bar has room for a second fan to increase airflow, you will effectively cut off your AGP/PCI-Express slot. However, all things considered the Sunbeam's Silent Storm is a nice case with a lot of features for a low price.

Pros:

Very quiet
Core Fan design cools very well
Excellent tool free drive bay design
Price
Included 120mm low noise fans
Clean look

Cons:

Installation, lack of room
Steel construction

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