Silverstone Raven: A New Concept in Case Cooling
by Christoph Katzer on February 6, 2009 4:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
Installing the Components
We actually had quite a bit of fun installing the components into this case; certainly the novelty of the motherboard orientation contributed, but there's also plenty of room for everything you might want to include. There's not a lot of room to the left side of your motherboard (which would normally be at the bottom in a traditional case), which may prevent the use of certain graphics cards with extra-large aftermarket coolers, but that's about the only potential problem area. Remember also to make sure that your CPU cooler blows air upwards if it's a tower design. We are using the Zalman CNPS-7700 due to its low profile, since it can fit in just about any case, even if it's not the latest and greatest CPU cooler.
The hard drive cages could be a little easier to remove, but once you get them out of the chassis it simple to install hard drives and then reinsert the cage. It's possible to install the hard drives without using screws, since the sides of the cage pinch the drives in place pretty well, but we recommend securing them properly just to be safe. The drive cages do a good job at hiding the SATA cables, but now you have to route them over to the left side of the chassis since that's where the motherboard SATA connectors are located. That does present some potential cable clutter depending on the length of your cables and how many hard drives you install.
One area where cable clutter can be reduced is in your power supply harnesses. Because all of the graphics cards will now be right next to the power supply, they don't need long cable harnesses -- about 30 cm should be more than sufficient. Similarly, the hard drives and motherboard connectors are located right near the power supply and can use short harnesses. Only optical drives will need slightly longer cable harnesses. If you have a modular Silverstone power supply, you might want to purchase their HTPC cable harness set.
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Visual - Friday, February 6, 2009 - link
i really don't fancy the idea of intake fans on the bottom. there's going to be a huge amount of dust gathering down there.and expansion cards and cables at the top, really? maybe it can work if i hide the case under the desk, but what if it is on top?
weevil - Friday, February 6, 2009 - link
But you would never have to sweep the floor.HelToupee - Friday, February 6, 2009 - link
I really like the idea of the layout of this case. It's the perfect arrangement for an under-the-desk setup. You are right that the intakes on the bottom of the case are a terrible idea. They'll clog with dust, and need cleaning constantly, and are in the most inconvenient place they could possibly be. Maybe if they add some kind of ducting along the back to direct air underneath the case and raised the case off the ground a bit.What I really like is the cable management. Where the cables come out of the power supply is right next to where they plug into the motherboard. If you look at the pictures of the system assembly, there are no cables at all routed over the motherboard. All the cable mess tucks nicely away into the bottom front of the case where it's not visible, and not in the way of airflow. Perfect. Plus, when the case is sitting under your desk, all the ports are the closest they can be to where you want them -- rear top of the case. I love the idea of having access to the back panel (now on top) of the case by just rolling the case out a bit. Lighting will be better, cables will not be strained and crimped around corners. Very convenient.
I hope other (cheaper) options appear with this configuration. I may have to consider picking one up.
Dreamwalker - Friday, February 6, 2009 - link
A very interesting case, but I do wonder how you manages the cables that are coming at the top, the VGA cables and all the other stuff. A picture would be great here. Can't realy imagine how it looks like all the cables coming at the top rather than from the bac side.Anyone got the Lamborghini Reventon in his minde when looking at he pictures?
weevil - Friday, February 6, 2009 - link
Looks like an F-117 Stealth fighter to me, Love the interier but the outside is ugly. But at least it will evade radar, I could replace the fairing on my Harley with this and the CHP will never see me.strikeback03 - Friday, February 6, 2009 - link
Personally, I think the person in the previous look who compared it to a Jawa Sandcrawler was dead-on.Bigjee - Friday, February 6, 2009 - link
That's the first thing that came to my mind.The lamborghini Reventon.
This case perfectly portrays it. The lines make it look like its been designed by the same person who designed that car.
soydeedo - Friday, February 6, 2009 - link
With dreadlocks.maxnix - Thursday, April 28, 2011 - link
Had this case two years now and it has been rock solid except for a bad fan that would rattle when installed. Replaced with an even quieter one and all is well. Not overclocked yet, so acoustic signature could increase when it is. Access is great and easy. Case is heavy.Now the Raven 3 is out.
By the way the filters while rudimentary, are a lot better than nothing in most other cases.