NZXT Phantom 630 Case Review: The Relentless Pursuit of Perfection
by Dustin Sklavos on January 20, 2013 12:01 AM ESTNoise and Thermal Testing, Stock
It's a cold winter here in northern California, and the NZXT Phantom 630's efficient cooling design doesn't really help much. Keeping with current testing methodology, I tested the 630's fans at each of their three settings. I also removed any drive cages that weren't needed (as I have with other cases with removable cages), and I mounted the system SSD to the rear of the motherboard tray instead of using a standard drive sled. Any SSD in front of the intake fan is going to be particularly frosty; we need to see just how bad the thermals might get behind a loaded motherboard.
I'm keen to point out that this configuration isn't particularly far from what a modern high end system should be able to achieve. Most people will probably need around two drive trays, only slightly obscuring the front intake more than our single drive tray does.
Ambient temperature during testing hovered around 21C.
Stock testing starts off with a bang. Even at the lowest fan setting, the Phantom 630 runs the CPU cooler than the other cases tested, and even the GPU thermals are competitive. The SSD runs hotter than the other systems, but keep in mind we're still well south of 40C; the hottest I ever saw the SSD hit during any testing was 34C. Take note how the less expensive Phantom 630 at worst ties the 820; this is going to be a repeating pattern. The 820 is using its lowest fan setting, but the highest one only improves temperatures by about 4C; in other words, not enough to beat the 630.
Fan speeds continue to show a healthy amount of headroom. The stock testbed doesn't stress the 630 at all.
You can see the medium fan setting produces a nice balance between thermals and acoustics. Noise remains relatively low, while temperatures are at least competitive if not outright victories. At the high fan setting, performance is tremendous, but not really worth the noise.
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mepenete - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
Too bad I can't get the aesthetic design of this case.. it just looks ugly to me.EzioAs - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
Right? Right? I just don't see why most people like NZXT designs anyway, I know aesthetic is a subjective thing but yeah, NZXT cases really doesn't do it for me.3ogdy - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
The Antec GX700 looks so much better, right?Yeah....right
EzioAs - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
That's because I compared the GX700 to the Vengeance C70. Both have quite good looks (if you're into the military-looking case sort of theme) but I prefer the GX700. If I were to compare both of them to the Tt Level 10GT or the Cougar Challenger however, both GX700 and Vengeance C70 would came out on top.Havor - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
No but the Silverstone Raven line dose look a hell of a lot better, and also cools real good.http://www.silverstonetek.com/raven
Robert in Calgary - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
Yes, another ugly case. Bad "artists"....and big! 7 inches taller than a Solo, 6 inches higher than a R4.
This won't fit on my computer shelf.
JPForums - Monday, January 21, 2013 - link
I can respect that. I'm actually one of the rare few that neither love or hate the aesthetics. It is certainly better looking (In my opinion) than some of their previous attempts, but there are just as certainly better looking cases on the market.
The R4 is 6.5" taller than a Sugo SG09B OMGWTFBBQ.
Or Instead of comparing Full towers to Mid towers( to Mini towers), we could compare it to other cases in its class. This case does ring in a full inch taller than a Cooler Master HAF-X (without the wheels) and almost 2 inches deeper. However, it is 3 inches shorter and 2 inches less deep than a Cooler Master Cosmos II. It is on the larger side of Full towers. However, it's not really that much larger than common Full towers like the HAF-X, smaller than the likes of a Silverstone TJ11B-W or Thermaltake VG4000BNS(Xaser VI), and roughly the same size as a Corsair Obsidian 800D.
The point is, the size of the Phantom 630 really isn't outrageous to anyone looking for a Full tower. It may be unworkable for some, but anyone who looks at its size and thinks ZOMG shouldn't be looking for a full tower in the first place. They would be better served by a Mid tower or smaller.
Subyman - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
I totally agree. The functionality looks great, but the design is not pleasing to me. I bought a Corsair 550D and love its understated looks (I also own a 800D.)JPForums - Monday, January 21, 2013 - link
I don't particularly hate the Phantom 630's aesthetics, but they aren't appealing to me either. Like you I am a fan of the 550D and 800D. Unfortunately I don't own the 800D (yet). The 550D will have to do for now (at least until I can sell of another case).frogger4 - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
I get the feeling this aesthetic is very subjective [I happen to really really like it!]. I have a previous generation Phantom, and very much like the look, but I think I fit the exact target audience they are going for.On that same note, I also very much like the side panel with fan and window. It may not be the fanciest look, but I design the inside to be something worth looking at, so I like being able to see it. Perhaps an option for either a closed side panel or a window side panel would be cool.