| Article Index |
|---|
| Antec VSK-2000 New Solution Series Case Review |
| The Exterior |
| The Interior |
| Installation |
| The Tests |
| Conclusion |
| All Pages |
The Tests
The Airflow Test
The VSK-2000 is a TAC2.0 advanced chassis air guide which you can read about here. We’re putting on our visual air flow test of the case to see air movement using a special smoke, there are more technical and precise ways, but I thought this would be more interesting because smoke was involved.
I’ve done this for both front and side of the case air inlets as well as what would be different if the front two optional fans were installed. These fans were 1500rpm, similar to the Tri-cool at medium setting. We also rigged some plexiglass from a difference case to watch air flow from front to back of the case (I realise this removed the use of the side inlet but at least we had a greater visual). Watch the video here (will be embedded shortly)
Air flow in this case without the additional fans was great already. The one Tri-cool fan pulled air from both side and front over HDDs and motherboard. If anything, airflow was not as high where the 5.25” drive bays were.
Installing the additional fans (which we found were 120mm not 90mm as Antec listed) added a huge pull of air through the front of the case and definitely contributed to give a fresh breathe to this case. It was hard to see exhaust from the rear because the fans chewed the smoke to bits. Its my guess that if all HDD bays were installed, then the additional fans would be needed. TAC2.0 has to be earned and this case does earn it.
The Temperature Test
This is not my favourite test for a case because of the huge variety of heat sinks and modified cooling systems designed to keep temperature low which will vary with your own system and workload, but regardless these are the temperature results I recorded using a laser pointed temperature reader and BIOS. All temperatures initially started at 21.5 ?C
|
Device |
Idle |
Processing |
| CPU | 37-38?C | 40-41?C |
| Graphics | 33-34?C | 33-36?C |
| Motherboard | 30-33?C | 30-33?C |
| HDD | 24-26?C | 25-26?C |
The Sound Test
Again test will depend upon your hardware because some devices are noisier than others, but I think I can safely say this case is not the best for being quiet. I had it sitting top the test and as it was loading an operating system, it rattled the table slightly.
When doing nothing the case recorded as low as 40 Decibels but averaged around 44 which is equivalent to a quiet conversation. As it was installing the OS it managed to reach as high as 52 Decibels and began the rattle. The sound was almost similar to a refrigerator.
Since it has virtually no sound proofing, It’s best to keep this thing on the ground, under the desk to minimise noise.
The "Bulge" didn’t bother me, and I thought it lent an edgy look, along with the Sarge pattern. The front 3.5" trap door is awkward, and I can’t think of a real use for it, but fun to flip when you're bored - lol. Did you note the front indent that looks like an "Eject" button to the left of the trap door? Has no use, just a 'shape' on the face... could confuse lame End Users (aka customers).
I miss the silicon drive mount option to reduce vibration, but it's a budget case.
I used a full size Gigabyte ATX MoBo so the standoffs were not an issue. I had an extra Antec 500W PSU lying around from another build, and used it here... fit perfectly.
Finally, my only let down, was th...