BitFenix Shinobi owners please chime in (or suggest me a cheap case)

dkm777

Senior member
Nov 21, 2010
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Hi guys,

I'm sick and tired of my Lian-Li PC-A05FN - it's hard to work on, it's noisy (resonant) and in the end I didn't need the size or weight savings. So I've decided to replace it with something roomier and relegate it to HTPC duties. I have my sights set on BitFenix Shinobi, because it looks understated, it is big, has cable management, lots of placements for fans and also not expensive. Now I want feedback from users who built systems in this case. My biggest concern is material and build quality, since coming from a Lian Li I have rather high expectations.
 
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crazymonkeyzero

Senior member
Feb 25, 2012
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I have the shinobi xl (which is very similar to the shinobi but except size). I can tell you right off the bat, build quality is certainly subpar compare to lian-li; The case cable grommet can't support routing of my cables (and I even have a modular psu[FONT=&quot])[/FONT], as they pop out (they are no secured to the case),making your cable management look worse than it actually is. Also, the intake fan is is a bad location where you have to remove hdd cages and front panel just to get to it, which you do because there are no removable dust filters.Lastly, the case acoustics suck. forget about sound damping, this case projects the sound. The only reason you should pick the shinobi is if you want a case to run a custom loop,which can be done nicely (at least in the xl). If you want quality, check out the Fractal design R4.
 

dkm777

Senior member
Nov 21, 2010
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Yikes! Then it looks like I'll have to go with Fractal Core 3000 instead (costs the same). I'm familiar with Fractal's quality and although it is not spectacular it is decent. All I need is a cheap-ish case that doesn't look like some kindergartener's idea of a "l33t r1g".
 

dkm777

Senior member
Nov 21, 2010
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OK, found another candidate - Cooler Master Silencio 450. Even cheaper than the Fractal Design Core 3000. What do you guys think?

Edit: the Silencio 550 looks even better. I'm totally confused now:hmm:.
 
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bononos

Diamond Member
Aug 21, 2011
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OK, found another candidate - Cooler Master Silencio 450. Even cheaper than the Fractal Design Core 3000. What do you guys think?

Edit: the Silencio 550 looks even better. I'm totally confused now:hmm:.

The 450 is smaller than the 550. The Silencios 450/550 don't have a side cutouts for fans. Another case you might want to consider is the Corsair Carbide300.
 

dkm777

Senior member
Nov 21, 2010
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The 300R sure looks nice. It is a little more than I can justify at the moment, but it has very flexible cooling options. I'll think about it.
 

alachua

Member
Dec 9, 2010
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I have a Shinobi myself and am pretty happy with it. I transitioned from an Antec P180 and don't have many complaints aside from the lack of filters on the fans, though that can be easily resolved by spending a few dollars on amazon/newegg.

Here is a picture of my previous system in the case:

MB_shot.jpg


I don't really have any complaints about the cable management either:
wires.jpg


I went with the windowless model, which also uses thumb screws for the drives versus the window version with the quick release drive bays.

One word of caution I will give: while the top of the case supports 140mm fans, I had to trim the outside edge of my Thermalright TY140 housing to get the top back on. It wasn't hard (made easier if you mount the fan then trim from the hole on the top), but it may be an annoyance.

I just sold the system that was in the case and moved another into it and had no issues installing the system.
 

dkm777

Senior member
Nov 21, 2010
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I have decided to go with Corsair 300R. It came down in price today and is within spitting distance of the Shinobi. I really like the cooling options and Corsair just seems more reputable. Monday can't come soon enough.
 

alachua

Member
Dec 9, 2010
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I have decided to go with Corsair 300R. It came down in price today and is within spitting distance of the Shinobi. I really like the cooling options and Corsair just seems more reputable. Monday can't come soon enough.

I like the Corsair line of cases, but after the awful service I received from them during the Force 3 SSD fiasco I won't spend another dollar on their products. After they ignored me and the official forum support response was a shoulder shrug they lost my business for the future. Luckily Amex refunded me the cost of the SSD so I could buy a Crucial M4. The kicker is since then I would have probably bought a PSU (went with Seasonic), Case (bitfenix), AIO water cooler (none yet, but leaning thermaltake) and possibly memory (went crucial) from them.
 

dkm777

Senior member
Nov 21, 2010
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Thanks for the tip, but in my country the Arc is significantly more expensive than the 300R.