Thermaltake Level 10 GT Battle Edition Chassis Review

Rating: 8.0.

We first looked at the Level 10 GT back in April 2011 and it would seem that Thermaltake are still taking advantage of this incredible design. We have seen many incarnations of the level 10 GT released in the last year, including the Level 10 GT LCS, Snow Edition and even a limited nVidia edition.

Today, the Level 10 GT has been transformed and camouflaged into the Level 10 GT Battle Edition. This case is clearly designed for lovers of first person shooter games, featuring a military green army oriented colour scheme.

The Level 10 GT Battle Edition highlights are – 5 x EasySwap HDD bays, 3 x 200mm fans (+1 x 140mm fan), Triple Colorshift fans and a Smart Security system.

Have Thermaltake created the perfect ‘battle machine' or is this yet another version of the year old design?

Specifications

The Level 10 GT Battle Edition ships in a large black box. The product is shown on both sides, ideal for a retail store environment.

As this case is heavy, Thermaltake aren't taking any chances and have included two very large Styrofoam blocks – much thicker than other chassis manufacturers.

In keeping with Thermaltake's tradition, the Level 10 GT is also protected inside a fabric cover.

The Level 10 GT ships with a decent ‘accessory package box' which is stored inside the chassis. They also ship a User Guide and ‘2011 catalog'.

Inside are several cable ties, as well as 4 packs of screws, a PSU extension cable, a speaker and a ‘Headset Hanger'.

This case is unlike anything else we have seen in recent years. With the extra detailing it wouldn't look out of place on the back of an army truck heading into combat!

We like the appearance from all angles, and this colour scheme really does suit the modular styling of the original case design.

The front features 4 x 5.25″ drives and 1 x 3.5″ external bay. Also featured is an On/Off switch and reset switch, as well as 4 x USB 2.0 ports, a microphone port and a headphone port.

The top of the case incorporates a very strong handle, which is certainly needed if you want to be able to lift it – as well as a few sessions in the gym.

Also on top are an eSata port, and two Super Speed (USB 3.0) ports. There are also two fan speed buttons, and a fan LED button, which changes between 3 colour options for the main fans.

When we first noticed the ‘first aid cooling kit' text listed beside the large side panel fan, we smiled. It really is an inspired idea to implement army style descriptions into the various panels and sections of the case.

In keeping with the army descriptors, Thermaltake have added ‘Rocket Launcher' text next to the drive bays at the front of the case.

The other side of the case is extremely flat, but does feature a large T inset into the side of the case, as well as some more styling on the right.

The back of the case incorporates 3 watercooling holes, as well as 8 PCI slots.

The keys for the security locks can be seen at the top of the chassis. The PCI slots can be secured in place without any tools, although they were locked very tight and required a screwdriver the first time.

The bottom of the case features 4 very large plastic feet, and these can be swiveled 90 degrees for extra stability.

The Level 10 GT also features removable dust filters, one for the power supply and bottom-mounted fan, as well as one for the side fan. The front intake also features a removable dust filter, but this on the inside of the front panel.

We can see the front panel has its own lock, as well as a lever to adjust the angle of the airflow from the side fan.

The Headset Hanger is designed to be mounted on the side and is a simple but very effective addition to a gaming chassis.

Inside is the 200mm intake fan, which has an interesting shutter design in front to adjust the direction of airflow from the fan.

On the left we have the shutters in their ‘normal position' blowing air to the bottom of the chassis. On the right the shutters have been lifted to the horizontal position, allowing the air to flow straight at the motherboard.

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Looking inside the case itself we can see it is supplied with a 140mm fan at the rear.

The power supply is mounted in the bottom of the chassis, but there is also space for an extra 120mm fan.

The door can be taken off its hinges quite easily, by opening to 90 degrees and then pulling up vertically. Cleverly there are no cable connections to the side fan from the case, instead there are 3 pins next to the hinge which only make a connection when the door is shut.

The 3.5″ bays can be released by pressing a button on the front and then sliding out.

The trays have a very straightforward design and can accommodate both 3.5″ and 2.5″ drives. They also have a flap at the front allowing hot-swapping of drives.

The other side of the case features very good cable routing options. The initial set-up is also extremely tidy and Thermaltake have really thought about how to get cables from one end of the case to the other.

One of the other simple but brilliant features is the inclusion of a 5-way power splitter for SATA drives, which means you only need 1 SATA power cable to provide power to all of your hard drives. This certainly reduces the number of cables quite significantly.

The top of the chassis holds the 5.25″ bays, and these have one of the simplest tool-less locking mechanism's that I have seen.

Removing the front of the chassis we can see another large 200mm fan, as well as the I/O ports on the side. It's a shame these large fans are all out of sight as they look good in their own right.

Firstly we installed the Akasa Venom Power 750W PSU followed by our motherboard and CPU cooler. Everything was easy as we had plenty of space to play with.

3.5″ and 2.5″ drives can easily be installed onto the trays.

The system was straightforward to build and we didn't run into any problems. There is plenty of accommodation for cable routing which helps improve the overall appearance.

The flip side of the case has plenty of space for routing and storing the cables.

For the testing today we decided to use an AMD Bulldozer based system, overclocking the 8150 processor to 4.2ghz. This is different to the test system pictured on the previous page.

Processor: AMD Bulldozer FX 8-core 8150 CPU @ 4.2 GHz
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3
Cooler: Antec Kuhler H20 920 CPU Cooler
Memory: 8GB Corsair Dominator DDR3 1800+ MHz
Graphics Cards: AMD Radeon 6450 HD (GPU @ 850 MHZ, Memory Clock @ 1000 MHz)
Power Supply: Akasa Venom Power 750W
Boot Drive: OCZ Vertex II 60GB SSD (OS only)

OS: Windows 7 Home Edition 64bit
Pyle Digital Sound Level Meter PSPL03

The airflow through this case is impressive. We had to remove the 140mm fan at the rear of the case to install an Antec 920 cooler, comprising two 120mm fans. Other than that we are using the stock configuration with the fans set to their highest setting.

In terms of thermal performance this case is very impressive, maintaining good internal temperatures and ensuring the components have plenty of cool airflow. When we tested the same components in an Antec Solo II chassis, the processor temperature hit 61 degrees under the same conditions.

Today to test the acoustical performance of this chassis we have set our Pyle Digital Sound Level Meter PSPL03 one meter away from the case.

We then removed the discrete graphics card, and temporarily turned the two Antec Kuhler 920 fans off. This leaves us with only the included case fans and very little noise from the power supply fan.

As this can be a little confusing for people, here are various dBa ratings with real world situations to help describe the various levels.

KitGuru noise guide

10dBA – Normal Breathing/Rustling Leaves
20-25dBA – Whisper
30dBA – High Quality Computer fan
40dBA – A Bubbling Brook, or a Refrigerator
50dBA – Normal Conversation
60dBA – Laughter
70dBA – Vacuum Cleaner or Hairdryer
80dBA – City Traffic or a Garbage Disposal
90dBA – Motorcycle or Lawnmower
100dBA – MP3 player at maximum output
110dBA – Orchestra
120dBA – Front row rock concert/Jet Engine
130dBA – Threshold of Pain
140dBA – Military Jet takeoff/Gunshot (close range)
160dBA – Instant Perforation of eardrum

As there are two fan settings; High and Low – we have taken readings at both settings.

The low setting fan emissions will blend into most ambient background environments. The high fan settings produce much more airflow and subsequent noise – however this is ideal for an intensive, overclocked gaming session.

The Thermaltake Level 10 GT is a remarkable case that has been re-released in various reincarnations throughout the last year – the latest Battle Edition really does look fantastic.

The basic design of this case is stunning, and we certainly approve of the Battle Edition camouflage, especially with the extra detailing the company have added. That said, the Battle Edition is the same as the Level 10 GT and doesn't add any new or revolutionary features, even though they have had a year to improve on the original design.

In terms of thermal performance, the Battle Edition doesn't disappoint thanks to the use of multiple intake and exhaust fans. The high airflow system ensures that even hot running components have plenty of cool air to maintain system stability. The use of 3 x 200mm fans ensures that noise levels are kept to a minimum when they are spinning slowly.

The acoustical performance is excellent, at the ‘low' setting the fans are barely audible and will most certainly be quieter than a CPU cooler. For people who are overclocking to the limit, the option to spin the fans higher may be welcomed, although the noise levels increase considerably.

The Battle Edition is compatible with water cooling radiators with plenty of space inside to ensure the installation is painfree. I am just a little disappointed that Thermaltake didn't attempt to update the case by adding some new features into the mix.

It can be purchased for £220 which is similar to the current prices of the Level 10 GT Chassis and the Snow Edition. While the Battle Edition is very dramatically styled and looks fantastic, it is undoubtedly expensive. At the end of the day only you can decide if it is worth the high asking price.

Pros:

• Battle Edition colour scheme is top notch.
  
• Very well designed and built.
• Many brilliant features inc. two security locks and hot swappable drive bays.
• Can support many watercooling configurations.
  
• Easy to work with.

Cons:

• Price is high.
• Effectively the same as standard edition.

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