BITFENIX’S OFFICIAL description of the
new Dawn TG case is a little... peculiar. It
might be slam poetry. There’s something
in there about a “breeze of sunlight,”
whatever that is. It also mentions a “new
e r a o f r e n a i s s a n c e” w h e n i t c o m e s t o c a s e
design aesthetics, and it actually might
be right. The Dawn TG is surprisingly
innovative, with some good ideas, and an
appealing visual design that brings a lot
of lighting without looking obnoxious.
Of course, the lighting is the main
selling point. We’re frequently skeptical
of cases with integrated lighting beyond
RGB fans, but BitFenix has come up with
a solution that looks great without being
complicated; a concealed lightstrip runs
up the front corner of the case, shining
through the diagonal patterns on the
front and right-hand glass panels. It’s
understated and stylish.
There’s a lot of cables in this case,
which makes pairing the RGB lighting
with your mobo for software control a
hassle. Three fans means more cables,
too, with two plain black fans at the front
of the case and an RGB fan at the rear.
Fortunately, cable management in this
chassis is nice and easy. The rear of the
motherboard has plenty of anchor points
for cable ties, and the cavity as a whole is
quite deep, leaving enough room for thick
PSU cables. There’s also an inelegant
but undeniably effective solution here:
a large, solid metal plate that routes
cables vertically, with open space either
side. It’s a little ugly, but invisible once
the side panel is back in place, and it does
a good job of keeping the I/O cables tidy
(or at least hidden).
The motherboard mounts with plenty
of space for a radiator and fans in the
roof of the case, although it leaves little
room at the bottom. With a power supply
in place, two of the holes in the top of the
PSU shroud are effectively blocked from
use, which is frustrating. The shroud also
conceals a drive cage, which is mounted
a little too far back in our opinion; using
a modular power supply with HDDs fitted
will leave you precious little space to
work with.
Speaking of the drive cage, it’s
a strange one. Rather than easilyLight it up
BitFenix
Dawn TG
7
VERDICT BitFenix Dawn TGSUNRISE Excellent lighting;
three tempered glass panels;
good cable management.
SUNSET Buttons are cheap; metal frame
feels flimsy; overpriced.
$130, http://bitfenix.comSPECIFICATIONSForm Factor Mid tower
Motherboard Support ATX, E-ATX, mATX, ITX
Colors Available Black
Window Available Ye s
3.5-Inch Support 2+2
2.5-Inch Support: 4+2
Radiator Support 360mm front, 280mm
roof, 120mm rear
Fan Support
3x 120mm front,
2x 120mm roof,
1x 120mm rear
Dimensions 8.7 x 19.1 x 17.7 inches
Graphics Card
Clearance
15 inchesremovable plastic brackets that slot
into the cage, the whole cage must be
removed, allowing for two hard drives to
be screwed in; one inside the cage, and
one on top. Elsewhere, there are two flat
mounts—one behind the motherboard,
and one on top of the PSU shroud.
These clip into place and are held down
with a single thumbscrew, allowing for
either two SATA SSDs or one 3.5-inch
HDD per mount. Unfortunately, they do
rattle around somewhat, regardless of
how firmly they are screwed down; we
wouldn’t really want to mount a full-size
HDD on them.
In fairness to BitFenix, the Dawn TG
does use thumbscrews where possible,
making building in this case a pretty
straightforward process. Cleaning the
dust filters is also an easy undertaking—
large filters on the front and base of the
case slide out smoothly on rails, while
the top of the case has a magnetic filter,
which can be swapped out for a solid
cover if you would prefer to have more
directional airflow.
The front I/O supports USB-C as well
as packing two USB-A ports and audio
jacks. The buttons are somewhat tacky,
made of cheap plastic; in fact, the whole
steel frame feels flimsy in some areas,
particularly the perforated roof and rear
of the case. It’s not ruinous, but given the
$130 price tag, we do wish the case felt a
little more robust.
There are a few innovative design
choices on show here, such as the funky
lighting patterns and a rear bracket for
vertical GPU mounting, but on the whole,the Dawn TG feels relatively expensive for
what you get, especially when BitFenix
is already offering the Enso Mesh and
Saber cases, which get you RGB case
lighting but for under 100 bucks. In the
end, this is a choice of aesthetics over
value. If you like the Dawn’s look, go for it;
otherwise, you could spend your money
better elsewhere. –CHRISTIAN GUYTONin the lab
76 MAXIMUMPC MAY 2020 maximumpc.com