Completed Build, Cooling and Noise, and Conclusion
Completed Build
The final build looks pretty clean, and the layout presents an obvious departure from most cases with the components in place. I found the FT05 to be slightly more challenging with cable routing than the RV05 due to the solid front panel (the Raven's protruding front panel contains a cavity which aids in hiding some cables), but there was sufficient room behind the motherboard tray allow the back panel to install pretty easily. Flat PSU cables would be preferred here, but my chunky cables worked without bowing out the back panel too much.
The final build is fairly clean, and back here we can see the SSD attached to one of the two mounts behind the motherboard tray. The large open spaces with this particular build are the result omitting the included HDD and optical drive brackets, but with the back panel in place the appearance of these gaps is mitigated – or at least would be if this was the black version (the silver shows off the cables I left visible). Still, I assume that most builders will be using the HDD bracket, though (as with the RV05) care must be taken in PSU selection. Up to 160mm depth is supported, and at that size non-modular units are a bit easier to install as the modular connectors add depth, though flat PSU cables would probably eliminate any potentional issues there.
Cooling and Noise
Testing was done in a room with an ambient temperature of 18° C and a noise floor of 34 dB.
| Test Platform | |
|---|---|
| Processor | AMD FX 8350 |
| Motherboard | Gigabyte 970A-DS3P |
| Memory | Samsung 4GB 1600MHz DDR3 (OEM) |
| Graphics Card | MSI AMD Radeon R9 290X Lightning |
| Storage | Plextor M6 Pro 128GB SSD |
| Cooling | Corsair Hydro Series H75 Liquid CPU Cooler | Stock AMD HSF |
| Power Supply | SilverStone Strider ST-1000P 1000W Modular PSU |
| OS | Windows 8.1 64-bit |
For the Raven review I tested cooling performance against my open-air test bench, but for this review I specifically wanted to know how much of a difference there would be between the Raven and this Fortress. The FT05 is after all identical internally to the RV05, but with the thicker walls and noise insulation I assumed that the Fortress would be a degree or two warmer.
It looks like I was partially correct, as we see marginally better results from the Raven with the same components at the "high" setting, but identical results with the fans at "low". I tested both enclosures multiple times to ensure accuracy, and the RV05 consistently outperformed the FT05 by a slight margin with "high" fans using a Prime95 torture test to create the temperatures you see here. Next we have the overclocked CPU results, and again the RV05 is able to cool slightly more effectively:
I tested a simulated GPU game load with my MSI Radeon R9 290X Lightning using the Unigine Valley benchmark to see how the FT05 stacked up with the Raven in this area:
The Raven may come out on top, but the Fortress is no slouch. As long as noise levels are lower with the FT05 this looks like a fair tradeoff.
Noise
The Fortress FT05 is noticeably quieter than the Raven enclosure, with improvements in both CPU and GPU noise. The highest fan setting is still louder than any component tested, but 47.2 dB is still an improvement on the 50 dB from the Raven, and that nearly 3 dB difference is much more than you might think. These results are especially impressive considering how well the FT05 did with thermal testing, as you can expect temps within a couple of degrees of the Raven even with the added noise-dampening foam.
Conclusion
The Fortress FT05 is an interesting option to consider. It provides a simple aesthetic that is very sharp, though perhaps a little dated. The build quality is top-notch, and the case is extremely sturdy and quite heavy. The addition of insulation has effectively reduced noise compared to the Raven enclosure with an identical layout, and the reduction in noise didn't come at the expense of too much thermal performance. If you like the design - which is particularly monolithic in the available black color - then the Fortress FT05 will take you into Raven territory for thermal performance with lower noise output.
As the newest Fortress enclosure mirrors the Raven RV05 internally, this means we have the same tradeoff to consider with the reduced capacity for storage. While I personally feel this is less of an issue with the gaming-oriented Raven, where support for 2 SSDs and a pair of 3.5" hard drives is probably an adequate setup for many, with the Fortress it might be more problematic. It completely depends on the user of course, but considering the increased cost of the FT05 at $185 as reviewed (compared to the RV05 at around $130) some may not be satisfied with the storage limitations.
Bottom Line
The Fortress FT05 presents something of a dilemma to the potential buyer due to cost, considering the Raven RV05 is priced $50 less. The Fortress provides superior noise levels and upgrades the material construction, but the reduced storage capacity of this layout simply becomes more difficult to rationalize with the increased cost. On the other hand the FT05 provide great thermal performance and a distinctive look for a smaller ATX build, and the quality is superb. Overall the new Fortress is an impressively solid enclosure that comes very close to being an ideal design, and it’s hard to fault SilverStone for offering a premium case with this thermal profile. The price tag is really the only thing keeping this from getting the same enthusiastic recommendation as the current Raven, but there is a tangible increase in quality to help justify the higher cost.
Why has Silverstone gone away
Why has Silverstone gone away from all aluminum cases? Pretty much only left with lian li if prefer all aluminum it seems. And now they are charging a premium for a steel bodied case. Once again, as with graphics cards and ssd’s (tlc), we are being lulled into paying out the nose for what are really mid to low level products.
Nicely done review, btw.
Cost, cost and… cost. I’ve
Cost, cost and… cost. I’ve just brought a Phantek Enthoo Primo;
and although I like it; I’m upset by the lack of Al and steel throughout. These days it seems you have to buy CaseLabs to get
that true high quality construction. Then of course your stuck
with the awful prices.
Thanks, glad to know I am not
Thanks, glad to know I am not alone. I have to check out CaseLabs as I am not familiar with them.
Great review, thank you for
Great review, thank you for doing it! I recently did a build for a client in the Silverstone Temjin TJ80B-E Micro ATX tower, and was impressed with the overall quality of the case. It was clearly well made, with the folks at Silverstone paying attention to detail. The documentation was the best I have probably ever seen for a computer case. They seemed to cover all installation scenarios. I did find the build process a bit of a pain, and future servicing in the case could be an issue. I didn’t care for the strange non standard screws they used either…..
nice case, good review,
nice case, good review, really like the top venting approach and sound dampening. Thanks for talking about the build quality, the metal and solid construction puts this high on my list.
Sebastian, you look so tense
Sebastian, you look so tense in the video man lol. As the one who wrote the review you should be able to talk to viewers about the product and not just answering Ryan’s questions. Jk, nice job bro. 😛
So true. It’ll be better next
So true. It’ll be better next time – and everyone will wish I’d stop talking 🙂
looks like my system: ft05
looks like my system: ft05 with corsair H75 and MSI Lightnight GPU.
Great case, and i have the ft02 too.
This is a fine case but I’d
This is a fine case but I’d never use it in place of my ft02. All they did was gimp the ft02 and cut a third off the case. I’m not hurting for space for my desktop. I prefer the ft02 unibody aluminum construction and larger space for E-ATX and more storage. 5.25″ bays come in handy to hold water reservoirs.
Love my FT02’s. My knees,
Love my FT02’s. My knees, back and neck love it every time I switch out a USB device or monitor even more!
An interesting design,
An interesting design, however it doesn’t seem to have much of a cooling advantage compared to standard designs.
An aspect which wasn’t noticed is dust control. From long term usage, I expect more dust will be collected as apposed to standard designs.
I have a couple FT02’s and I
I have a couple FT02’s and I overclock my 3.4GHZ Sandy Bridge i7 and my 4.0 GHz i7 Maxwell CPUs to 4.4GHZ and 4.5GHz respectively and air Cool them. They both run fine when I stress test it with Prime95, never getting over 70°C. I use Very large CPU coolers (Enermax ETS-T40-TB CPU Cooler with T.B.Silence PWM Twister Bearing Cooling Fan, Chrome on my last build) with fins oriented up down. I Also run a pair of overclocked Nvidia 970 Sli GPU’s with both overclocked with stock air coolers in the Sandy Bridge without heat problems.
Nice review. I have an FT02
Nice review. I have an FT02 and love it. To really benefit from this design though you are better off with a big air cooler and, most definitely, a different graphics card.
You ideally want a cooler that has fins which run vertically, allowing them to benefit properly from the stacked air flow and not cause as much turbulence (which I guess would cause noise). Heatpipe orientation can make a different too. The lightning’s fins are perpendicular to the airflow, so none of that huge gust is going through the card, just along the top of it and hitting the end.
I went from two 670s with aftermarket coolers with the fins in the “wrong” (horizontal) orientation, and vertical heatpipes, to standard blower coolers and noise + temps went down noticeably. I gather the non-lightning MSI coolers have vertically orientated fins, and the MSI heatpipes are good, so they should work even better.
Thanks – and you’re right on.
Thanks – and you’re right on. The orientation of heatsink fins makes a difference. This Lightning 290X was a worst-case scenario for heat as it didn’t benefit from the airflow as much and dumps a lot of heat into the case.
Humm…. do you think I could
Humm…. do you think I could fit my 2×180 Radiator on the bottom? Looks like there is a little gap on the bottom. also I could put rubber feet on it to allow airflow under the case.
I don’t think so only because
I don’t think so only because there’s so little extra horizontal room beyond the fans at the bottom. Unless your radiators are barely wider than a 180mm fan I don’t know if two of them would fit side by side. I’ll have to measure the actual space when I get a chance and I can get back to you
Having both my wife’s and my
Having both my wife’s and my desktops in FT02 Fortress cases, I will NEVER EVER go back to a non-rotated motherboard case. I don’t miss crawling around on the floor with a flashlight to add or replace a new USB device, monitor or network cable.
Also if you have to pull the case out to do a video card or MB transplant you simply take a velcro cable tie and rap it around all the cables where they all exit at the top back of the case while standing up, pup the top vent screen off disconnect the cables from the top and pull out the unit and work on it. When you go to re connect the computer slide it back into place and connect all the peripherals including the power cord from the bundle you velcrowed together. What a joy
What I don’t understand is why anyone who builds their own tower computer would ever use the old non-rotated case.