Computer Shopper - UK (2019-08)

32 AUGUST 2019|COMPUTER SHOPPER|ISSUE 378

£40ISINARGUABLYarock-bottom price

foraPC chassis with features like afull-size

tempered glass side panel, largely metal

construction (rather than plastic), an included

fanand multiple USB3 ports. There are lots of

cheap microATX cases, but the PS15 looks like

one that could deliver arare degree of value.

At the same time,this is ultimately asmall

case,and SilverStone has been pretty ruthless

in cutting things down. Forinstance,there’s

only room forasingle 3.5in hard disk in the

entire thing. This comes in the form of a

tool-less tray, which is nice,but that limits the

ability to maximise storage on the cheap or

set up RAID arrays with mechanical drives.

In addition, despitedecent CPU cooler

height and graphics card length clearances of

154mm and 314mm respectively,the PS15’s

maximum PSU size is 150mm. This isn’t a

deal-breaker as it still leaves you with plenty

of options, but some PSUs –including more

budget-inclined units that might have been a

good pairing with an affordable chassis such

as this –are 160mm long, so you’ll have to

check before you buy.

GANG OF FOUR

Even with these limitations, however,the PS15

is generallywelcomingtosimple and advanced

PC builds alike.The shortage of 3.5in trays, for

one,iscounterbalanced by aclutch of three

2.5in mounts, all of which use aconvenient

VERDICT

Itssmallstaturemightaffectyourcomponentchoices,but

otherwisethePS15isanappealingandaffordablemicroATXcase

MINI-TOWER CASE

slotting system

that allows forany

screwdriver work to

be performed outside

the case.Ifyou wish,

you can also have yet

another 2.5in drive in

place of the 3.5in drive,as

the latter’s dual-purpose traycan fit either.

Cooling support is good, too. The front can

hold two 120mm fans or two 140mm fans, the

topcan hold two 120mm fans or asingle

140mm fan, and the rear 120mm slot already

has an exhaust fanpre-installed. The gold

standard is, of course,pre-installed fans at

both the front and rear,but one at the back

will suffice forbudget builds. The all-mesh

front panel is also better forventilation than

asolid sheet would be.

COOLER SHAKER

Radiator support is where things get tricky,

and, as with PSUs, you’ll need to be

cautious about installing awatercooler.

The rear 120mm slot can have a120mm

radiator installed without issue,and

although the topmounts don’t have room

forboth fans and aradiator –there’s not

enough clearance between the roofand

the topofthe motherboard –that’s fair

enough, as long as it’s simple.

The front slots, on the other hand,

complicatethings. Although two

140mm fans will just about fit, a

280mm radiator won’t –the added

length of where the coolant tubes

run in and out means that the

radiator as awhole is toobig, and

bumps intothe front I/O panel’s

cables. A240mm radiator can

squeeze in, but again it’s atight fit.

Either way, it’s ashame that

SilverStone couldn’t or wouldn’t

find an extra fewcentimetres; we

can’t recall seeing many other

cases that can have dual fanslots

but can’t accommodatethe

equivalent radiator size due to

the length, rather than width.

The PS15 still meets relatively high

standards formini-tower cooling

by supporting 140mm fans in the

first place,but if you’re planning

on aliquid-cooled build, 240mm

will be your largest option.

Cable management

is mixed as well.

There are plenty of

routing holes and a

particularly large

abundance of small

metal loops, through which

you can thread the included zip

ties to bunch wires together.However,there

are no reusable straps or dedicated routing

channels, no rubber grommets and only avery

narrow area behind the motherboard tray, so

thicker PSU cables need to be spread out

rather than tied intotidy bundles. Unlike in

the Thermaltake Versa H18 (Shopper369),

there’s no PSU shroud either,soyou can’t

just hide loose cables by stashing them

underneath aconvenient metal shelf.

Clearly there are drawbacks to buying so

cheap,but then forevery constraint, the PS15

pulls out agreat piece of design. The most

visibly obvious is that glass side panel, abona

fide premium touch, which helps both the

chassis and the finished build look smart and

modern. We also like how the SilverStone

logo at the front glows blue when the power

is on: it adds adash of flair without crossing

the line intofull RGB madness.

Having two USB3 ports at the front is

good forthe price,aseven much more

expensive cases can settle forslower USB2

sockets. Youalso get easily removable dust

filters at the front, topand bottom of the

PS15, making it easier to clean.

LITTLE FRIEND

With these qualities in mind, not to mention

the Versa H18 becoming harder to find in

stores, the PS15 just scrapes aRecommended

award. There are some genuine flaws here,

but none that would totally put the brakes

on agood PC build –and none that, if you’re

trying to save moneyonthe chassis to go

towards abetter CPU or graphics card, you

should be unwilling to put up with for£40.

JamesArcher

SILVERSTONE

PrecisionSeriesPS15

★★★★★

£40•From http://www.scan.co.uk

SPECIFICATIONS

CASETYPEMini-tower•MOTHERBOARDCOMPATIBILITY

MicroATX,mini-ITX•SUPPLIEDFANS1x120mm•

MAXIMUM3.5inDRIVEBAYS (^1) • MAXIMUM5.25in
DRIVEBAYS (^0) • DIMENSIONS381x192x351mm•
WEIGHT3.5kg•WARRANTYOneyearRTB•DETAILS
http://www.silverstonetek.com•PARTCODESST-PS15B-G