The SilverStone Fortress FT05 Case Review

Conclusion

It will not be very easy to reach a verdict for the Fortress FT05. It is a peculiar existence, a case mixing the rotated motherboard design of the Raven series with the classy solidness of the Fortress series. The first SilverStone cases that had a rotated motherboard layout were peculiarly shaped and very long designs. SilverStone remedied that by compacting the internal dimension of their latest cases significantly, making them no larger than a typical Midi-ATX case. This design however remains a double-edged sword, as the reduction of the internal dimensions has a dramatic impact on the expandability and flexibility of the case.

On the positive side, the company claims that the rotated motherboard design offers significantly better performance. True enough, convective heat transfer suggests that higher temperature air will naturally flow upwards, so the design does make sense. The case does act as a convective heater, forcefully injecting low temperature air from below and releasing higher temperature air from the top. With the massive airflow of the Penetrator fans and the compact internal dimensions of the Fortress FT05, this process gives it exceptional thermal performance, rivaling that of much larger cases.

Even though this design offers such excellent thermal performance, the negative side of this design can be overwhelming when it comes time to build a system with it. Expandability and flexibility suffers, significantly limiting the number and type of hardware that can be used. Generally, the addition, upgrade or even the removal of components can be a tedious process. There is very little room for proper cable management and almost every change requires the use of tools and the removal of several parts. There is virtually no way to work around the Fortress FT05 without at least two Philips screwdrivers (PH1 and PH2) at hand. For example, upgrading the GPU at the very least requires the removal of the side panel, the manual removal of the metallic cover shielding the expansion slots and then the removal of the card itself, even by assuming that both graphics cards are using the same number and type of power cables.

The two 3.5" and two 2.5" drive bays should be sufficient for the majority of users but their positioning can be problematic. The 3.5" drive cage may need to be temporarily removed in order to install a PSU, permanently even if the PSU is longer than 170 mm. Installing 2.5" drives at the back of the motherboard tray is an easy process but the cable job can be very messy, especially if a drive is being replaced or added afterwards.

The disappearance of the 5.25" bays is not an absurd design move, as users are constantly moving farther and farther away from optical media. A very large percentage of PC users would nowadays have no use for an optical drive at all. However, for those that do want/need an optical drive, the solution of the internal slot-loading slim drive is an overly expensive option. Casual users would likely be better off with a USB optical drive, which offers the flexibility of use with any system as well. Those that need an optical drive on a daily basis however will be forced to pay the premium price of a slim slot-loading device.

For a typical system with a single GPU and a mainstream motherboard/CPU combination, the Fortress FT05 presents no real issues. However, if the user wants to install high performance cooling solutions or multiple high performance components, installation becomes greatly problematic. Too large CPU air coolers will not fit and the installation of liquid cooling radiators requires the removal of the 180mm Penetrator fans that are greatly responsible for the good thermal performance of the case. It is rather difficult to offer great cooling to the CPU without a significantly negative impact on the cooling of every other component. One solution could be the installation of two 120 mm liquid cooling radiators, one for the CPU and one for the GPU, but the small dimension of the Fortress FT05 will make this a rather tedious endeavor.

The greatest advantages of the SilverStone Fortress FT05 are likely to be its external design and build quality. It is a very elegant case, with the fully metallic body offering both a classy appearance and exceptional mechanical strength. While it may be far too simple for some, it is very sophisticated for those that appreciate minimalism and the feel of quality. The rubber strip that covers the optical drive slot is a small visual dissonance but it can be removed if there are no children around that could be inserting things into the empty slot.

On the other hand, the greatest disadvantage of the Fortress FT05 is not the peculiar, cramped internal design or lack of flexibility. It is the high retail price. At this point of time, the Fortress FT05 retails for $180 including shipping. It obviously is not cheap to manufacture and sell a case with almost every panel made out of aluminum, especially aluminum this thick, but this price pits the Fortress FT05 against myriads of other designs, both large and small. With the lack of versatility and very compact internal dimensions, the audience that would be best served by the Fortress FT05 is largely limited to users that will install a typical mainstream system, do not plan on frequently upgrading or fiddling with it, and favor the Fortress FT05 just for its elegant and sturdy fully metallic design. If however other aspects become selection variables, such as the versatility or the value for money, the Fortress FT05 is at a disadvantage against the competition.