BitFenix Shinobi XL Case Review: Something is Lost in the Process
by Dustin Sklavos on June 26, 2012 2:40 AM EST- Posted in
- bitfenix
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
Noise and Thermal Testing, Overclocked
At stock, cooling for the graphics card proved to be a bit underwhelming, but CPU thermals in the BitFenix Shinobi XL are generally excellent and the case looks like it has some room to grow and breathe. Our overclocked testbed should give us an idea of just how much headroom we're really working with.
The Shinobi XL isn't in the same league as Antec's Eleven Hundred, but it's definitely competitive. Graphics card thermals improve over the Corsair Obsidian 550D, too, as that enclosure is running at close to its thermal ceiling while the Shinobi XL still has room to spare.
Fan speeds aren't terrible, but the overclocked testbed does punish cases pretty well. The Shinobi XL's performance around the graphics card continues to underwhelm, while the CPU fan speed is basically competitive.
Unfortunately for BitFenix, the Shinobi XL, while putting in a decent performance, is also the loudest case we've tested under load. This is particularly disappointing as the original Shinobi was actually a fairly modest case when it came to acoustics--not stellar, but certainly good for an $80 enclosure. Given the size and size of the Shinobi XL, we would expect better performance than this, but again water-cooling seems to be more of the target audience.
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Dustin Sklavos - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
I've thought about it a few times. It's just a matter of one of the case manufacturers being crazy enough to let me come up with something. ;)romany8806 - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
Hey Dustin, I enjoy your reviews more and read them more thoroughly than any others on Anandtech, despite not currently being in the market for anything you've covered.I don't suppose you have a CM690-II in your review backlog do you? I'd love to know how my case compares with those that have gone through your new test suite. If you have any anecdotal experience to share I'd be happy with that.
Dustin Sklavos - Tuesday, June 26, 2012 - link
I wish I did, but for some odd reason CoolerMaster stuff can be a bit hard to come by around here and I don't have any business requesting new kit until I've cleared out my (massive) backlog.So unfortunately no anecdotal experience, but just from looking at it I'd expect it to perform comparably to Antec's 1100, albeit probably a bit louder.
I sincerely appreciate the kind words, though. The internet breeds negativity, so it's always nice when someone chooses to put something positive out there. :)
Darkhynde - Wednesday, June 27, 2012 - link
I have to agree with his high opinion of your reviews. It saddens me to hear that the Cooler Master stuff is hard to come by as I am in the early stages of researching parts fro a new build I want to by myself for my birthday in about two months and had my eyes on the Cooler Master HAF XM. My current case is an OLD OLD OLD Thermaltake Kandalf circa 2003 that has served me well through my last two or three builds since then.Out of curiosity, just what do you consider massive when you mention this massive backlog of yours? Can We get a ballpark figure of how many cases are in your backlog?
One other question. What do you do with the cases once they are reviewed and the data recorded for future use. Do you have a room stock piled with cases or do you ship them back to the vendor that supplied them?
Dustin Sklavos - Wednesday, June 27, 2012 - link
Right now my backlog is about six cases deep, so basically about two months worth of reviews. Also keep in mind that as new cases are released, they get moved to the front of the line, so unfortunately when something is sitting at the back...it tends to sit at the back for a long time, potentially indefinitely. I do my best to keep up on my workload, though, and maintain contact with the vendors.And also keep in mind that, as you've seen, cases aren't the only thing I handle around here. They keep me busy. :)
JarredWalton - Wednesday, June 27, 2012 - link
Silence, slave! Back to work! [Cracks whip]Dustin Sklavos - Wednesday, June 27, 2012 - link
Yes sir! Right away sir!xaviergzz - Thursday, June 28, 2012 - link
"as the case is capable of supporting a cumulative 1080x120mm of radiators"what does that mean???
1080x120mm...1080mm X 120mm ...3 three foot long rad???
Galcobar - Thursday, June 28, 2012 - link
The key phrase is "cumulative."Dustin's not explicit about the location of the radiators -- as far as I can read -- but if fan mounts = radiator mounts, then three 120 mm x 120 mm across the top, three across the front, two on the bottom and one at the back.
120 x 9 = 1080 mm. So nine radiators, 120 mm wide, lined up would produce a 3.5-foot-long radiator.