X-bit labs

Roundup: Six System Cases from Thermaltake (page 36)

Category: Other

by Vasily Melnik

[ 09/12/2005 | 03:35 PM ]

Performance

Idle Mode

The Idle Mode results are comprehensible: the temperature of all the components is normal, except the hard drive. It is only the drive’s PCB that receives some air and this is not enough to compete with normal desktop system cases. On the other hand, the Tenor doesn’t mean to compete with them, so let’s get to the second test.

CPU Burn Mode

The system got noticeably hot in the CPU Burn mode, but the temperatures are still within acceptable ranges. It’s nice that the hard drive temperature remains almost the same, thanks to the nearby fan.

Next, I’m going to see if this system can be a gaming computer.

VGA Burn Mode

Well, it can, but you should use a less advanced graphics card – 89°C is an undesirable temperature. The temperatures of the other components are normal.

I tried to cover the vent holes on the top panel as a kind of experiment and found that napkins or anything like that were strictly prohibited: the temperature of the graphics card remained almost the same, but the CPU temperature grew up by 6-7°C when the vent hole above its cooler was closed!

The HDD temperature was 42°C in the HDD Burn Mode . This is quite high, so I don’t recommend you to put a drive into the main basket which is not cooled at all.

I don’t mention what room conditions this system case can work under just because people who buy expensive hi-fi equipment should have already thought about proper air conditioning and other such factors. But if you want to buy this system case for an ordinary, not top-end system, you won’t have cooling-related problems even in an ordinary living room.

So, the Thermaltake Tenor is a unique solution. It would look well placed between home audio/video devices. It has good acoustic characteristics and allows assembling rather advanced gaming configurations. Moreover, it costs much cheaper than its alternatives from other manufacturers, as far as I know. The excellent characteristics and universality will surely make this model popular among people who are building a PC-based multimedia center or just a “different” home computer.

Our Verdict: Thermaltake Tenor

Highs: Restrained exterior design in the Hi-Fi style; good internal design; good quality of manufacture; permits to use ordinary power supplies

Lows: The thermal conditions for the hard drives are not quite good; only one optical drive can be normally installed

Conclusion: An excellent system case for building a home multimedia center or just an original home PC for reasonable money

Average retail price - $105 , without a power supply