BitFenix Ghost Case Review: Begging for the Premium Treatment
by Dustin Sklavos on November 10, 2012 12:01 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- bitfenix
- quiet
- ATX
Conclusion: Needs an Upgrade
Reviewing the BitFenix Ghost, I'm left with strangely mixed feelings. Every so often a case comes through that I very much want to see succeed, and the Ghost is one of those. If you've been keeping up with my reviews you've seen that I've championed BitFenix pretty hard in the past, and the Ghost was another design that I felt was encroaching on a kind of sweet spot between price, performance, aesthetic, features, and ease of use.
As far as assembly goes, the Ghost is all but bulletproof. The side panel alignment mechanisms need to be thrown out and replaced, but while the interior isn't the best or most progressive in the world for airflow, it is among the easiest to build in. BitFenix's engineers hit a lot of the right notes when it came to assembly: the Ghost is incredibly simple to build in, and would be an ideal case for a newer builder interested in a quiet system to try out.
The aesthetic I'm a little bit shakier on. While I really like the way everything is laid out and I'm a fan of the overall look, I feel like there's real room for improvement here in terms of the materials used. I can't help but feel like the Ghost's plastics are on the cheap side and I think they really do the overall design a disservice.
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I'm in an unusual position where I feel like the Ghost is okay and certainly reasonable for the price, but I also feel like it practically begs to be even a slightly more premium product. In a weird way it's like a cheap knockoff of an amazing case that doesn't actually exist, if that makes any sense. Just in terms of looks and build quality, I'd like to see this chassis redone in a combination of aluminum, plastic, and steel similar to what Corsair did with the Obsidian 550D. I'd also like to see the front intake replaced with either two 140mm fan mounts and/or one huge 200mm/230mm fan. The curved venting design in the sides of the front door is cute, but could probably stand to be widened to increase airflow without substantially impacting noise.
With these suggestions in mind I have to wonder if the Ghost's lackluster thermal performance wouldn't also be improved somewhat. Adding fans made it at least competitive and even a little impressive since you'd have to spend another $50 to get a Corsair 550D that performs on par with, if not a little worse than, what the Ghost can achieve. But those fans do cost money.
Ultimately, do I recommend the Ghost? I think so. If you like the way it looks and you're either not looking to push the cooling or you're willing to play with it a little bit, I think you might walk away from the purchase satisfied. I have a harder time determining if it's superior to the NZXT H2, which hangs out in the same price range and has seen a minor revision that's improved its thermals, but I'd personally probably still go with the Ghost. This isn't the homerun I was hoping for, but it should be good enough for the closed-loop cooler testing.
Now if BitFenix can just go about putting together a slightly bigger, more premium model. That's the case I really want to see.
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Dustin Sklavos - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
Nanoxia actually contacted me; I initially declined because their cases aren't available stateside.However, BitFenix wasn't exactly easy to come by when I started reviewing their stuff either. Between your request and the potential for press to help them get a foothold out here, I went ahead and contacted them again to see if they're willing to shoot me one of the Deep Silence enclosures.
Grok42 - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
This is REALLY great! I had never heard of this case and while it isn't a case I'm personally interested in purchasing because of its size, it looks like a very interesting case that I can't wait to read about. This case looks like it has the potential to be the best in class case for it's category.roberta - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
@DustinGreat news!
I am looking forward to the review of the Nanoxia Deep Silence 1
Thank You Very Much for All the Superb reviews,
Roberta
LarryDan - Sunday, November 11, 2012 - link
According to the review in LegitReviews.com:"Nanoxia will begin selling cases on Newegg at the end of November or early December, so they will be available in North America very soon! Right now they are shipping the cases and they have to clear customs, so that is what is issue at hand!"
I'm really glad you're going to review the Nanoxia DS1. So far, it's received quite a few excellent reviews and competes favorably with the FD Define R4 and Antec P280; however, I'm waiting for your analysis for the final word. Based on the other reviews, it appears to be the class winner and it may be the one you've been looking for.
jabber - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
...most people over the age of 18 could handle having in their home.JohnMD1022 - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
Put a door on the front and you lose me.Grok42 - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
My current workstation has a door. I obviously used to really like cases with a door design. They allowed me to close the door and achieve a clean look, reduce noise and still have external drives. Now that there is no reason to have external bays doors are noting but negative for me. The reason this case has a door is that it has 4 external bays. Either they put a door on it or they are not going to achieve a low noise case.JohnMD1022 - Sunday, November 11, 2012 - link
I do a lot of work for seniors.Since we can't hear as well as younger people perhaps noise is less of a factor.
I advise older people to place their computer on a table next to their work area to make access easier. We don't like getting down on our hands and knees and groping around behind things to disconnect cables.
And here is the problem with doors.
They get in the way and they are a hazard. Walk by an open door enough times, and sooner or later you get a broken door or a computer knocked on the floor.
Olaf van der Spek - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
> The addition of the BitFenix fansDidn't you add BQ fans?
Dustin Sklavos - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
Agh, yes.