Silverstone GD04 HTPC case from the Grandia Series

Author: Jouni 'Jipa' Vasama Published: 30.10.2009 Manufacturer: Silverstone Product Group: System enclosures In English Suomeksi

Temperatures

During the temperature testing all the case fans, as well as the fan on the CPU cooler were set to run at maximum speed. The load temperatures were achieved using Furmark and Intel Burntest.

• Processor: Intel C2Q Q9450 (2,66 GHz, 1,26 V, boxed cooler)
• Motherboard: Asus P5Q-VM
• Memory: Team Group 2*2 GB Dark Xtreem
• GFX Card: Gainward 8800GT 1 GB Golden Sample
• Hard drive: Samsung Spinpoint F1 1TB
• Power supply: SilverStone ST40NF
• Enclosure: Being tested...

Overall the temperature results are good. The idle temperature on the CPU is very low, which isn't really a surprise seeing there are two 120 mm fans pushing air over the CPU-area. When comparing to the GD03 we can see a 11 C drop on the hard drive temperature.

Noise

The fans that come with the case are from Silverstone's own product range and specified at 12 V 0,26 A (3,12 W). The blades have the funky golf-ball surface to reduce the turbulence. In use these fans turn at around 900 RPM and are very quiet.

Conclusion PROS  Very short/shallow Cooling Easy installation Quiet fans CONS  Limited space for CPU cooler Editor's Choice Award! Overall then, the GD04 manages to check most the boxes required for a HTPC case to be good. The main ingredients being nice outlooks, good design and quiet operation. Beside these features the GD04 also manages to avoid the potholes of being too large for being practical, can house long graphic cards despite the small size and has a good airflow. Needless to say, then, that I really like the GD04. Really the only downside that I can think of is the limitations for the size of the CPU cooler. Then again, this is more a rule than an exception when talking of small cases, so this isn't a huge problem either.

Additional Information

Past related articles in Metku.net Xigmatek Midgard NZXT PANZERBOX SilverStone Grandia Series GD03

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