A Detailed Look – from the Outside
Right out of the box you know the Fortress FT01 is special. The overall build quality is excellent and the brushed aluminum, anodized finish is beautiful. The clean lines, sleek rounded edges and elegant styling are sure to appeal to a large enthusiast market. And the FT01 is noticeably light thanks to its aluminum construction.
Both side panels are removable and secured with three thumb screws and a locking lever. They also have foam linings to help minimize radiated noise. The left side panel is available with a large, clear acrylic window if you like showing off your internal hardware.
The front of the Fortress FT01 enclosure contains five external 5.25” drive bays on top and a large fan grille with the SilverStone logo on the bottom. Behind the grill is a 180mm intake fan with a pull-out dust filter. Located in the middle of the front panel is a rectangular On-Off button and Power-On light.
The top panel contains a second 180mm case fan towards the rear and a recessed I/O panel towards the front. The top fan blows down, which together with the front intake fan produces positive air pressure inside the case. The I/O panel contains all the standard connectors and the two USB ports are spaced apart to make more room for thumb drives, etc. Notably missing however, are any e-SATA connectors.
- (2) USB 2.0
- IEEE-1394 Firewire
- Microphone In
- Headphone Out
- Reset button (on front edge)
