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
Testing Methodology
For testing Micro-ATX and full ATX cases, we use the following standardized testbed in stock and overclocked configurations to get a feel for how well the case handles heat and noise.
| ATX Test Configuration | |
| CPU |
Intel Core i7-2700K (95W TDP, tested at stock speed and overclocked to 4.3GHz @ 1.38V) |
| Motherboard | Gigabyte GA-Z68MX-UD2H-B3 |
| Graphics Card |
ASUS GeForce GTX 560 Ti DCII TOP (tested at stock speed and overclocked to 1GHz/overvolted to 1.13V) |
| Memory | 2x2GB Crucial Ballistix Smart Tracer DDR3-1600 |
| Drives |
Kingston SSDNow V+ 100 64GB SSD Samsung 5.25" BD-ROM/DVDRW Drive |
| Accessories | Corsair Link |
| CPU Cooler | Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo with Cooler Master ThermalFusion 400 |
| Power Supply | SilverStone Strider Plus 750W 80 Plus Silver |
Each case is tested in a stock configuration and an overclocked configuration that generates substantially more heat (and thus may produce more noise). The system is powered on and left idle for fifteen minutes, the thermal and acoustic results recorded, and then stressed by running seven threads in Prime95 (in-place large FFTs) on the CPU and OC Scanner (maximum load) on the GPU. At the end of fiteen minutes, thermal and acoustic results are recorded. This is done for the stock settings and for the overclock, and if the enclosure has a fan controller, these tests are repeated for each setting. Ambient temperature is also measured after the fifteen idle minutes but before the stress test and used to calculate the final reported results.
Thank You!
Before moving on, we'd like to thank the following vendors for providing us with the hardware used in our testbed.
- Thank you to Puget Systems for providing us with the Intel Core i7-2700K.
- Thank you to Gigabyte for providing us with the GA-Z68MX-UD2H-B3 motherboard.
- Thank you to Crucial for providing us with the Ballistix Smart Tracer memory.
- Thank you to Corsair for providing us with the Corsair Link kit.
- Thank you to Cooler Master for providing us with the Hyper 212 Evo heatsink and fan unit.
- Thank you to Kingston for providing us with the SSDNow V+ 100 SSD.
- Thank you to CyberPower for providing us with the Samsung BD-ROM/DVD+/-RW drive.
- And thank you to SilverStone for providing us with the power supply.
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darkling - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
I sincerely wish that the dimensions were 8.7" x 11.6" x 13.9".Alexvrb - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
That's the second thing I look for in a case. First is motherboard form factor. So when I read ATX, and then saw the claimed dimensions in inches, I was a little peeved. Thankfully it seems the dimensions given in mm are much more believable.Dustin Sklavos - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
Argh, I knew I forgot to fix something. Fixed.Kepe - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
Thanks for all these great case reviews, Dustin!Might I suggest a look into slim HTPC cases? You know, cases one can put right next to their home theater amp in the TV stand, such as the Silverstone Milo ML03. Perhaps an article with many cases being compared to each other. I don't remember ever seeing a review about those cases on Anandtech. Anyways, thanks for all your great articles =)
sunflowerfly - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
If you know of one, please let me know! If you look at what companies are buying from Dell and HP, they are mostly small or slim computers that don't take up much desk space. But I can't seem to find quality cases to build my own. How are the mainstream markets and the builder markets that much out of step?Death666Angel - Sunday, November 11, 2012 - link
I can recommend the JCP-MI-102, that is a great, small mITX case with a PSU supplied. They have more very slim, small cases as well. :)sunflowerfly - Tuesday, November 13, 2012 - link
Looks like a nice case, but if asking for help should have added what i'm looking for. I really want a slim MicroATX case that can stand vertical on my desk behind my monitor. Nice enough to handle an i5 and mid range, low-profile graphics card. USB3 and optical drive on the front, internally an SSD, hard drive, and quality power supply. Quite and efficient cooling is a must. Seems simple, yet I can't find one.Howard - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
"As far as assembly goes, the Ghost is all but bulletproof"should be rewritten as
"As far as assembly goes, the Ghost is anything but bulletproof"
cjb110 - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
Don't think so, Dustin seems to be overall positive about the assembly. So its not quite bulletproof.Reading it your way, suggests the assembly was pretty bad, with lots of areas for bullets to get in :)
geforce912 - Saturday, November 10, 2012 - link
Dustin, i think you should review the Nanoxia Deep Silence 1, it is an amazing case and you would love it.