SilverStone Temjin TJ08-E: Fat Case in a Little Coat
by Dustin Sklavos on August 4, 2011 1:50 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- Mini ITX
- SilverStone
- MicroATX
- Mini-Tower
Testing Methodology
For testing Micro-ATX and Mini-ITX cases, we use the following standardized testbed in its stock configuration and a Zotac GeForce GTX 580 in cases that support it to get a feel for how the case handles heat and noise. Due to the power supply clearance constraints of the TJ08-E, SilverStone provided us with a slightly different PSU for testing.
| Mini-ITX/Micro-ATX Test Configuration | |
| CPU | Intel Core i3-530 (73W TDP) |
| Motherboard | Zotac H55ITX-WiFi |
| Graphics Card | Intel HD Graphics (IGP) |
| Memory | 2x2GB Crucial Ballistix Smart Tracer DDR3-1600 |
| Drives |
Samsung 5.25" BD-ROM/DVDRW Drive Kingston SSDNow V+ 100 64GB SSD Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB SATA 6Gbps |
| CPU Cooler | Zalman CNPS8000A with Cooler Master ThermalFusion 400 |
| Power Supply | SilverStone Strider Plus 750W 80 Plus Silver |
A refresher on how we test:
Acoustic testing is standardized on a foot from the front of the case, using the Extech SL10 with an ambient noise floor of ~32dB. For reference, that's what my silent apartment measures with nothing running, testing acoustics in the dead of night (usually between 1am and 3am). A lot of us sit about a foot away from our computers, so this should be a fairly accurate representation of the kind of noise the case generates, and it's close enough to get noise levels that should register above ambient.
Thermal testing is run with the computer having idled at the desktop for fifteen minutes, and again with the computer running both Furmark (where applicable) and Prime95 (less one thread when a GPU is being used) for fifteen minutes. I've found that leaving one thread open in Prime95 allows the processor to heat up enough while making sure Furmark isn't CPU-limited. We're using the thermal diodes included with the hardware to keep everything standardized, and ambient testing temperature is always between 71F and 74F. Processor temperatures reported are the average of the CPU cores.
For more details on how we arrived at this testbed, you can check out our introductory passage in the review for the SilverStone FT03.
Last but not least, we'd also like to thank the vendors who made our testbed possible:
Thank You!
We have some thanks in order before we press on:
- Thank you to Crucial for providing us with the Ballistix Smart Tracer memory we used to add memory thermals to our testing.
- Thank you to Zalman for providing us with the CNPS8000A heatsink and fan unit we used.
- Thank you to Kingston for providing us with the SSDNow V+ 100 SSD.
- Thank you to CyberPower for providing us with the Western Digital Caviar Black hard drive and the optical drive.
- Thank you to SilverStone for providing us with the SilverStone Strider Plus 750W power supply.
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Veroxious - Friday, August 5, 2011 - link
Def not my cup of tea. While the dynamics makes sense for their EATX cases it does not work here. Way too cramped for my liking. Also in this case it is just plain fugly - it a freakin block. Definitely not comparable to the likes of Lian Li.burntham77 - Friday, August 5, 2011 - link
With a case like this, I think my build will be a mini ATX setup. I game, but I don't require the highest of high end, so with some careful part selections, focusing on a balance of energy efficiency and performance, I can see putting a mid-range AMD setup in this case.ericore - Friday, August 5, 2011 - link
I'd much modding an aluminum server 1U rack than using this case. How do you do it?Well, you use a PCI-Express Riser, and mount the graphics card on the outside along with a powerful SFX power supply also on the outside, so not using 1U power supply. Now that is a winner. Easy assembly and extremely portable. You could also mount two of these on top of each other, with graphics card and power supplies all the way on top for two systems in compact space.
This case fails on so many counts; the most obvious being that not only is it rather big but it is also a pain in the ass to setup. And apparently, you need modular. Ya let's spend 200$ on enclosure and power supply to have a hard time assembling, and having it all disorganised. Makes no sense. Sticking to my plan.
MODist - Thursday, September 15, 2011 - link
I liked it so much I went out and grabbed on the same day. I have been building Micro ATX gaming rigs for a couple years now. This is very close to what I have been looking for. Small and light yet has enough space for drives and dual video cards. I was looking at the Silverstone FT03 but it lacked hard drive space and the airflow was a concern for a high end gaming setup.I7 2600K @4.9Ghz Megahalems Rev.B
Asus P8P67-m pro
16GB DDR3 1600
160GB Intel SSD (boot)
3 x 1TB Seagate HD raid 5(file storage)
2 x GTX 285 SLI
DVD/CD drive
3 1/2" card reader
650W powersupply (need to replace)
dcburr - Sunday, December 18, 2011 - link
I don't get it I have this case and have had no trouble putting it together; in fact the ability to run cables underneath the mothe board is fantastic. If you understand how the case works its very easy to assemble. I have a quad core processor and a discrete Radeon card; the box is very small, runs very cool and very quiet. I have been a professional CTO for over 15 years and this is one of the best desktop cases I have ever seen.argion13 - Wednesday, June 27, 2012 - link
I found this review very helpfull when I first read it. The case was definitly on my short list of cases for my new build (whenever that was to occur). That time finally came and the TJ08-E was the choice. I was surprised by the room available. I was able to fit my two 275GTXs in there without a problem. I thought the manual was more than ok. The whole setup is quiet in comparison to my old build which sounded like a fridge. HDD cage not being used since I only have an SSD and one 500GB HDD. I assume this will help with the airflow in the case. Paired with a i5-3570k, Asus P8Z77-M Pro motherboard and a Xigmatek Gaia cooler. The cooler cleared all the components very easilymartyrant - Wednesday, February 19, 2014 - link
That's one nice looking and great performing build...wouldn't mind if I won it! ;)