be quiet! Dark Base 700 Mid-Tower ATX PC Case Review

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AgentLozen

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May 2, 2011
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I really like the aesthetic to this case. I would never use it's size or features, but it's pleasing to look at.

It also seems to perform well in acoustics and temperatures.
 
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I really appreciates being able to access all of the filters from the front. I currently have a filter on the power supply intake, but sadly, it's only accessible from the back/bottom. Makes it a bit more difficult to remove & clean. Having it all accessible from the front really makes it easy.

Also, would love to see this same design in mini-ITX!
 
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Wingback18

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don't you guys think that all the cases look the same, don't you get the same feeling

wonder how long will it take for a motherboard in a horizontal stand rather than vertical.
the 5'25" bay is long gone lol

this is the first case I see with USB type c, it took long enough.
 
Bigger = better airflow for those who are on air cooling for their CPUs and have GPU(s) that have fans blowing the hot air inside the case instead of blower type coolers. I also like the fact that the drive bays can be moved around/removed instead of an unremovable drive cage sitting there blocking the front intake fan airflow. It's one reason I am not happy with the thermal performance of my Zalman Z9 case for my old transplanted Sandy Bridge build from an Antec Nine Hundred - which houses my Devil's Canyon build. But since I no longer overclock it, it's not a big deal.

With that said, I'd like a little more "flair" in design at this price range as I keep my PCs on top of a desk instead of under it and out of sight. This just looks too plain vanilla for me. And most certainly at $180 they need to provide TWO 140mm fans up front in addition to one on top. Seriously? We're talking a $3 part here wholesale.
 
You'll be hard-pressed to find a more versatile, high-performance enclosure.
Unless you want external drive bays. Being such a large case, it really seems like they could have found room for a couple of them. If they wanted to maximize room for radiators or optimize airflow in general, why not make them removable, or place them at the bottom, under the PSU shroud? Plenty of people still use optical drives, and external bays also allow for things like card readers, fan controllers, and other additional ports to be added. Not having the ability to add those kind of things makes this case less versatile than many others. As someone already pointed out, be quiet!'s own Pure Base 600 features a pair of removable 5.25" bays, so I would have liked to have seen something like that here as well.

I do like the case's design overall, but I don't really get why they feel the need to remove front drive bays on a case that could easily fit them.

Also, I'm not entirely fond of having all the front panel connections at the very top. That might be convenient if you keep your computer on the floor, but it's undoubtedly a bit awkward on a desk. Want to plug in headphones, or a game controller, or an external drive, or maybe charge a portable device? You'll have cords hanging down from a couple feet above the surface of your desk, looking weird and potentially getting snagged on things. It would be nice if the case were designed so that the front panel connections could be reconfigured to the bottom edge, although they would need to redesign that sloped surface they are currently located on.
 

rmarjerison

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I like your website. I'm interested in the topics. But I don't like predator invasive business practices. I don't recall signing up for daily notices, I don't like them. And I really get pissed off when there's no way to "unsubscribe". Sorry guys. You suck.
 

ddferrari

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5.25" bays are "long gone"? Hmm, then where would my LCD fan controller for my five case fans go, exactly? Or my Blu Ray player?

I think what you meant to say is "I'm young, therefore anything that I don't want or came along before 2017 is sooo not cool".

Oh, I forgot: lol
 
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ddferrari

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Mark them as spam. They'll stop appearing. First World problem solved.
 
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LOL. So true. Most people seem to enjoy complaining more than they do just spending the same amount of time and energy resolving their complaint themselves with easy fixes (unsubscribe, spam block, use Adblock, disable Flash for a certain website, etc.).
 
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