Nanoxia Deep Silence 2 Case Review: Trimming the Fat
by Dustin Sklavos on February 14, 2013 12:01 AM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- quiet
- ATX
- Nanoxia
In and Around the Nanoxia Deep Silence 2
As I mentioned before, apart from the top of the enclosure and the now blocked off fan fascia in the front of the case, the Nanoxia Deep Silence 2 is very much a dead ringer for the Deep Silence 1. Interestingly, Nanoxia opted to send me the white model of the DS2. As with the DS1, the DS2 comes in four color combinations: black panels on a black shell, silver panels on a black shell, gunmetal (they call it anthracite) panels on a black shell, and white panels on a white shell. My favorite continues to be the gunmetal finish, but the white isn't bad looking at all.
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Losing the fan door in the front of the DS2 means losing the filters for the intake fans, which is an unfortunate loss. The front filters on my DS1 tend to get gunked up in a hurry (the joys of being a cat owner), so take note. That said, the door to the optical drive bays is basically the same in terms of build quality and acoustic padding, and it also hides the sliders for the fan controller as well as the reset button.
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The top of the DS2 is where the differences are most noticeable, as the chimney is gone in favor of just a pair of fan mounts and a cluster of I/O surrounding the green LED-ringed power button. Once again I'm perplexed as to why an odd number of USB ports are included, though: you get two USB 3.0 ports, but why only one USB 2.0? It's a fairly minor grievance but enough of one; with how smart and quality-oriented the rest of the DS2's design is, why would they cheap out here?
Unfortunately my largest complaint with the DS1 remains unaddressed with the DS2. The side panels are held in place by thumbscrews, but they again use the notches and rails instead of a hinged design to secure themselves. The hooks on the side panels are very easy to bend inward if you try to force them back on. This is in fact the single biggest usability issue the DS2 has, but it's a frustrating one, requiring you to turn the case on its side and use your body to apply enough pressure to evenly replace the panel.
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The interior of the DS2 is fairly by the book, but the biggest loss is the set of removable drive cages. In its place we have a pair of internal 120mm fan mounts that Nanoxia even recommends using for a 240mm radiator, and Nanoxia continues to include a smart set of cable routing holes in the motherboard tray as well as toolless clamps on both sides of the 5.25" drive cage. In fact, in the DS2 Nanoxia actually does one better than the DS1, as there's a proper rubber-lined routing hole above the motherboard tray for the AUX 12V line.
I remain fairly optimistic about the design of the DS2, but I do feel like the pair of internal fan mounts are of questionable value compared to being able to outright remove drive cages that aren't needed. Removing those cages is a good way to improve air flow in systems that don't need that much storage. I'm still pretty bitter about the notched side panels as well, but despite these minor grievances, I'm left with a very strong feeling of quality from the DS2. This is a heavy, robust case.
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saf227 - Thursday, February 14, 2013 - link
.... and still no US availability?Dustin Sklavos - Friday, February 15, 2013 - link
They're working on it. That's actually part of why I elected to review Nanoxia's stuff. You guys were interested, the products are actually really good, and the review helps them make a case (no pun intended) with American distributors.Zak - Thursday, February 14, 2013 - link
Boring. Looks like a small refrigerator...nassaux - Thursday, February 21, 2013 - link
One good reason to choose DS2 could be if you cannot squeeze a 230mm case in your computer hold. I know it might sound silly to some of you, but that is a real problem for me now and that "wide" case I've got. I was lookig for a nice quiet and thin case for about 6 months now. I think I've found it.JNo - Monday, February 25, 2013 - link
"The DS2 is likely going to be the standard bearer for quiet cases under $100. That assumes Nanoxia hits the price point in the States that they're targeting, much as some of the DS1's success rides on that same factor. Yet the DS2 sells for 89 Euros (and the DS1 for 119) .... At the same time, though, the Deep Silence 2 doesn't really feel different enough from the Deep Silence 1 to really merit a purchase. Yes, you'll be able to save $20"Firstly, that'll be closer to a $30+ cheaper using your implied exchange rate. It may not sound much but when you're trimming $30 here and the case, $50 on a cheaper soundcard, $50 on an i5 instead of an i7, $20 off a cheaper PSU etc etc it all adds up. $30 isn't nothing.
"It's like the used games at Gamestop that go for a whole $5 less than new. What's the point?"
Er... because all the 1s and 0s are the same anyway? All those $5s add up and can soon be spent on another game. Or, you know, food and bills and stuff.
You've got to remember just because you're a tech enthusiast who won't skimp, there are plenty who are still enthusiasts but trying to cut costs where they can...
Affectionate-Bed-980 - Monday, February 25, 2013 - link
The 820? 620? You spend time reviewing those, giving gold and bronze awards, and then you don't include them in the benchmarks? You also mention NZXT in this review too. It's like talking about the Nexus 4 right after the iPhone 5 release and not comparing two flagship phones...Affectionate-Bed-980 - Monday, February 25, 2013 - link
Sorry. Better analogy might be HTC One and SGS4. I'd imagine two flagship Android phones would get heavy comparisons, but if you were to do a review without accounting for the other, that would be an epic fail.pudl - Tuesday, March 26, 2013 - link
I recently got this case and am not happy with it. It has thin cover plates which tend to vibrate defeating its Deep Silence acronym. There are also some tiny rust spots bulging through the white paint while a cage on the inside has a more significant amount of rust. :SI think it's a cheap copy of Fractal Design's cases.
tahelia - Monday, April 8, 2013 - link
I haven't read all of the comments, so I don't know wether it's mentioned, but where the review states, that the front intake has no filter, that's not true. There still is one to the front, though that's not as easy accessible as at the DS1, and there is one at the bottom, of course.