NZXT Phantom 820 Case Review

1. Introduction2. NZXT Phantom 820: Packaging & Bundle3. NZXT Phantom 820: Exterior4. NZXT Phantom 820: Interior5. System Installation6. Testing Methodology and Thermal Performance7. Acoustic Performance8. Closing Thoughts9. View All Pages

To put this case through its cooling paces we will be using a test system consisting of an Intel Core i5 3570K, Radeon HD 6870 and multiple storage drives. This system allows us to produce a substantial amount of heat and effectively test the NZXT Phantom 820‘s cooling capabilities.

For stress testing we use a mixture of Prime95 and MSI Kombustor to create the maximum heat output. Prime95′s ‘Small FFTs’ setting allows us to stress our CPU. MSI Kombustor’s ‘GPU Burn-in’ mode creates the maximum amount of load our GPU is ever likely to see.

Test System:

• Processor: Intel Core i5 3570k.
• Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V.
• CPU cooler: Phanteks PH-TC12DX (100% fan speed).
• Memory: 8GB (2x 4GB) DDR3 1333MHz.
• Graphics card: Radeon HD 6870 1GB (‘auto' fan setting).
• Power supply: Seasonic Platinum-1000.
• Storage drives: 128GB Kingston V100 (OS), 1TB Samsung F3, 300GB Western Digital Caviar.
• OS: Windows 7 Professional 64-bit.

Thermal Performance Test Procedures:

• The case’s default fan configuration is used to give an accurate interpretation of the out-of-the-box performance.
• The NZXT Phantom 820‘s default fan configuration is: 1x 200mm front intake, 1x 200mm side intake, 1x 200mm top exhaust, and 1x 140mm rear exhaust fans.
• The fans are operating at full speed.
• We allow the system to idle for 15 minutes and record the stable temperatures.
• We allow the system to operate under extreme stress for 15 minutes and record the stable temperatures.

The NZXT Phantom 820′s default cooling configuration of 1x 200mm front intake, 1x 200mm side intake, 1x 200mm top exhaust, and 1x 140mm rear exhaust fans was used. Room temperature was maintained at 22.5°C.

The Phantom 820 has good component cooling potential, thanks to NZXT's generous inclusion of four fans. An adequate supply of cool air allowed CPU temperatures to remain low, and GPU temperatures to remain acceptable (due to ‘auto' fan speed settings).

It is clear that, due to the case's design, the upper HDD cage receives the majority of the front 200mm intake fan's airflow; by comparison, the lower bay receives a small amount of cooling air. This is definitely something that NZXT needs to take note of as intense HDD loads will cause temperatures to increase to an undesirable level.

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