Phanteks Enthoo EVOLV Micro-Tower PC Chassis Review
Here is the Enthoo in all its naked glory. One of the coolest features of this case that is the top, front and side panels come off in a matter of seconds. The interior of this small case is very large. A lot of components can be crammed inside. The motherboard tray features a massive cutout to facilitate swapping CPU coolers without removing the motherboard from the case. This case is built around the SFF components which include mATX and mITX motherboards. Full size ATX motherboards will not fit in this case. However, full size graphics cards will fit without an issue.
Behind the motherboard tray is where all the beauty of cable management happens. Phanteks has three velcro straps mounted to the rear of the tray for that purpose.
The PWM Fan Hub is designed to hide those unsightly fan wires behind the motherboard tray. Only one connection is needed to the motherboard. Phanteks recommends using the CPU fan header as the signal source for PWM modulation and connect the CPU cooler fan to the Fan 1 location. There is a SATA power connection that needs to be used if the PWM hub is connected to the CPU header on the motherboard. If using another header on the motherboard that may not use PWM modulation and uses voltage modulation the SATA power connection should not be used. Only the RPM from Fan 1 on the PWM hub can be used to feed the RPM signal back to the motherboard.
The power and reset buttons are located on a small PCB at the top of the case. A ribbon cable connects the PCB to the corresponding motherboard headers.
Another small PCB contains the audio and USB 3,0 ports. Each of the PCBs are out of the way during installation and can be easily removed with just a couple of screws and set aside for later.
Just below the CPU cooler cutout there are mounts for two 2.5″ drives. The removal and installation of the drive trays are tool-less. Place the drive tray on the four rubber mounts and slide down. The kit includes one drive tray but there are mounts for two drives.
Standard hard drives are handled by a plastic drive tray. Two squeeze clamps keep them in place.
In various places throughout the motherboard tray are openings in which cables pass through. Each opening is covered by a rubber grommet. These grommets protect the wires and cables from chafing which, can lead to the wires shorting out and damage to your components.
The front filter easily pops off for easy cleaning.
Tucked in behind the front dust filter is the 200mm front fan. This fan is the Phantecks PH-200SP fan. The blades are the MVB (Maelstrom Vortex Booster) which allows the fan to push more air through the fan while keeping the noise levels down. The fan pushes 110.1 CFM at 800 RPM with 25 dBA.
The doors for the Enthoo Evolv are held on by pin hinges. The doors easily lift off once opened.
A spring style latch keeps the doors and panels in place. Here is one of the latches for the top panel.
On the panels and doors are the pin fasteners that fit into the spring latches. The latch/pin combination makes the panels secure but not so secure that they are difficult to remove.
The replaceable LED is held by a very simple bracket. Slide the LED out of the bracket and slide a new one in.
Just below the where the power supply would mount is another filter. This filter is designed to keep the dust bunnies from amassing inside your power supply. Give the filter a little tug and it comes right out.
I want to wrap up the exterior view by talking a little bit about the panels that cover the frame. The panels for the Enthoo Evolv are made of aluminum and are thick. The frame of the Enthoo Evolv is steel. When it is all put together this case has a very solid feel.
