be quiet! Pure Base 500 Case Review

Rating: 8.0.

be quiet! has been well known for their premium, low noise cooling solutions for many years. Products such as the Dark Rock Pro 3 and 4 have made be quiet! highly regarded by enthusiasts and system builders alike. They also have a great line up of power supplies and cases.

Today, we have a new case from their budget line up, the Pure Base 500, which is available in three colours; black, white and a metallic grey, which is the one we are examining. be quiet! say the Pure Base 500 offers outstanding price-performance ratio.

Together with the three colour options, the case has other features such as an interchangeable top cover, which can be swapped between a noise reducing or mesh filter panel, depending on the focus of the system build.

The Pure Base 500 is be quiet!’s first approach to a compact ATX case. It stands just 57mm taller, 20mm wider and 25mm deeper than the mATX Cooler Master Silencio S400 which we recently reviewed. Despite its smaller size, the Pure Base 500 packs an abundance of interesting features.

What’s more impressive is the Pure Base 500 is said to be capable of housing up to a 360mm radiator in the front, a 240mm radiator in the top and a 120mm in the rear. It will be interesting to see how be quiet! have made this possible in such a small unit.

Other features of the be quiet! Pure Base 500 include a tempered glass side window panel, front mesh vented slots on either side, removable front and lower dust filters, five SSD mounting points and an adjustable and removable 3.5” HDD cage.

With all be quiet! products, there is a focus on low noise output. This theme continues with the Pure Base 500, where you will find sound deadening material lining on the front panel, right hand side panel and on the interchangeable low noise top panel.

Pure Base 500 is the second chassis in the Pure Base product range. As indicated by the number “500”, it is smaller than the Pure Base 600. The case is positioned in a competitive price range, but with unique design choices such as a changeable top cover, an SSD mounting panel, and two preinstalled 140mm fans – be quiet! hopes this will set it apart from the competition.

Available from September 17^th for around £80, it comes with a choice of side panels available in either a tempered glass or solid panel lined with sound deadening material, so should appeal to many.

Pure Base 500 features include:

• Versatile design with an alternative air-permeable top cover panel for water-cooled builds
• Support for water cooling radiators up to 360mm in length
• Two pre-installed Pure Wings 2 140mm fans
• Insulation mats in the front, side and regular top cover
• Prominently placed SSD installation bracket with integrated cable management
• Clean looking PSU shroud provides hidden double HDD cage
• Space for high-end components and cooling
• Removable dust filters at the front and bottom
• Available with or without tempered glass side window
• Black, metallic grey or white models available

Technical Specifications

• Dimensions (L x W x H in mm) – 450 x 231 x 463
• Weight (kg) – 6.95 (net) / 7.92 (gross) 7.53 (net) / 8.49 (gross)
• Case Type – Midi Tower
• Material – steel (SGCC), ABS plastic, tempered glass
• Motherboard support – ATX, M-ATX, Mini-ITX
• Front I/O – 2x USB 3.0, HD Audio (microphone + audio)
• Max. cooler height (mm) – 190
• Max. graphics card length (mm) – 369
• Max. PSU length (mm) – 258 / 225 (depending on position of the HDD cage)
• PCI slots – 7
• 3.5” bays – Up to 2 (2 included)
• 2.5” bays – Up to 5 (5 included)
• Preinstalled cooling fans (mm) / (rpm) – Front: 1x Pure Wings 2 140mm / 900 Rear: 1x Pure Wings 2 140mm / 900
• Optional, additional cooling fans (mm) – Front: 1x 140 / 3x 120 Top: 2x 140/120
• Radiator support (mm) – Front: 120, 140, 240, 280, 360 Top: 120, 240 Rear: 120, 140

Additional features – Sound insulation mats (front and regular top cover), sides

Become a Patron!