Silverstone LC10 Review

27 Apr Review No comment

Review for Silverstone LC10

Introducing Silverstone LC10 Home Theater PC Case.

Home theater systems have interested me years before DVD became available. And for getting a cutting edge home theater technology it would be prudent to get a home theater PC(HTPC).

Well many years before HDTV became available to the average consumer HTPC was the only way to get a progressive scan,scaled and line-doubled digital video. Now HDPC sets are available to the public but before they became affordable HTPC was an easy way to do the recording and editing high definition TV. so even today HTPC is used for that purpose because of cost or as there isn't a product to do the same. As of now HTPC is available with HDTV sets and have become affordable.

An appliance like HTPC would be a crowning glory to have, if it gives best image quality and is also endowed with beautiful looking features. And for a HTPC to be in the cutting edge it should have features like, remote control and configurations which can be done with keyboard and mouse which are to be plugged in as and when necessary. Well I had no luck in the past several years in finding a good HTPC product. And recently there had been good products available and Silverstone Technology has been producing quality home theater PC cases for some years. They have products ranging from slim low-profile cases to hefty amplifier-like enclosures. And now we would review the Silverstone LC10 home theater PC case.

Features of the HTPC

They come with custom-moulded foam for protection during shipping, packed in a thick corrugated cardboard box. Thick plastic wrapping of the case is also been done for protection. And within the case there is a small white box containing the installation manual, drive by cover and various screws. And the details of the product are given below:

material:aluminum front panel, 1.0mm SECC body
color:black, silver
motherboard:ATX, Micro ATX
drive bays:5.25" x 2,3.5" x 4
cooling system:80mm intake, 2000rpm, 21dBA,2 x 60mm exhaust, 3600rpm, 25dBA
expansion slots:7
front i/o:USB 2.0 x 4,firewire x 1,headphone x 1,microphone x 1
power supply:optional standard ATX
weight:18 pounds
dimensions:430 x 429 x 163 mm

The case has the front panel in aluminium and rest in steel which is painted silver which gives a pretty look for the case. As for the weight it is 18 pounds. And to make sure there is no interference of the radio frequencies generated by the PC with the rest of your audio equipment the steel is 1.0mm thick than the standard CE used in many PC cases. And Silverstone also includes a ferrite ring for the front connector cables to avoid the wires from acting like RF antennas. So they have pretty well made the equipment to
be reliable.

The front bezel is absolutely beautiful with a clean brushed aluminum finish. The design is simplistically elegant with oblong power and reset buttons, blue LEDs, four USB ports and a single 5.25â€ external drive bay. The front panel consists of two thick pieces of aluminum, one of which can be unscrewed and slid out of the way for easy drive installation. There is a decorative strip carved horizontally down the bezel for a simple professional look. The front USB ports have a similar recessed oval carved around them. These front USB ports adds to the appliance-like factor of the unit, as a USB keyboard and mouse can be hot-plugged here when configuration is necessary. Firewire and front audio ports are cleverly hidden away on the left side of the front bezel. Rounded rectangular air intake holes also appear here (as well as on the bottom) to assist the 80mm intake fan on the inside.

The bottom of the case is fitted with four rubber feet, each surrounded by an aluminum ring. Three of the feet are firmly attached with screws (which extend into the caseâ€™s interior, but the fourth is attached with a plastic pin to avoid interfering with power supply installation and spins freely. Both sides of the case have an array of hexagon holes stamped out of the sides, and they are strategically placed to assist with airflow. The left sideâ€™s venting is near the back with add-in cards, and the right sideâ€™s venting is stamped near the front, avoiding the power supply and helping to cool the drive bays. The lid of the case is a shallow â€œUâ€ shape that covers the top, left and right sides of the case.

Opening this lid reveals a standard desktop layout. Two 5.25â€ bays are flushed against the left side of the case, a removable 3.5â€ drive cage adorns the center, and an 80mm intake fan is attached to the right. Below the 5.25â€ bays is an additional 3.5â€ bay that can be unscrewed and slid out. The main bed can accept any size ATX motherboard, and there is enough room for a standard ATX power supply. Above the IO panel are two 60mm fans, made by Silverstone. They both have standard 3-pin fan headers. The 80mm front intake fan is a generic brand, and requires a 4-pin molex connector from the power supply.

The case is of wondrous quality and it has been tested for reliability. As for the components in the case one would marvel at their excellent positioning and their connections. The testing is done as per standard procedure and it is reliable,and the case could be trusted to give optimal performance.

So for all the enthusiasts who want to view,edit and record high definition videos like in a TV with a remote, plus would like to have advanced configuration options with a keyboard and mouse this Silverstone LC10 home theater PC case is an excellent device to make your viewing experience a pleasure. It wouldn't be far fetched to say this Home theater PC case will fulfill your wish to bring the theater into your home. And moreover you would have all options to make your viewing most exquisite.

Silverstone LC10 images: