I agree on the styling but I think the Silverstone is aimed at video cards with active cooling hence the poor show from Bit-tech ** In fact Bit-tech reusesd the magazine review from CustomPC - See post 55 from Bindi -
http://forums.bit-tech.net/showthread.php?t=178277&page=3 **
All the other reviews have shown the lower 3x180mm fans cool everything including the gpu's and I have seen at least 1 review putting it ahead of the HAF in gpu cooling. I have a HAF 922 myself with the optional side fan which makes a difference of 5 or 6 degrees allright to gpu temps, but I reckon that is only due to a lot of airflow from the front fan being block by the reverse HDD cage. If the HAF had no restrictions in the front and had proper front to back airflow, I reckon the sidefan would impede things rather then help. So I don't agree with Bit-Tech on that end either about sidefans always needed to cool todays GPU's.
Seriously considering trying the RV02 all the same. I think it will cool the gpu's ok. Only problem is I would be relying on 2 akasa apache fans in push/pull to cool the H50 rad and get rid of hot air out of the case. Might not be an option then for me. Not sure really. I want something quieter than the HAF (regardless of fans it's open mesh design isn't ideal), with no door, and good cooling.
Anyone out there have an RV02 ?
Here are quotes from some glowing reviews it got :
"Well, as you can see, the The Raven RV02 handles my system without any issues and provides exceptional cooling in all three areas. The temperature differences noted here are outstanding, particularly for the graphics card, and clearly the radical design of the RV02 is helping to keep temperatures low a great deal" - Pure OC
"The SilverStone Raven RV02 is a phenomenal enclosure that is very likely the best computer enclosure we have encountered" - Phoronix
"Everything about the Raven RV-02 chassis is simply awesome. SilverStone has come up with a winner of a chassis, that shows their continuation of thinking outside the box." - Bjorn 3D
"Finally, and probably most importantly, airflow is possibly the single most important factor in choosing a chassis. All the bling in the world will not help preventing your expensive hardware from melting down. Adding lots of fans also does not guarantee the ability to move the cold air in and the hot air out. The RV02 not only gets the job done, it gets the job done extremely well. Heat naturally rises so taking advantage of this was a very smart move. You just will not be disappointed in this area.
"I give the Raven RV02 the Editor's Choice 9 out or 10 rating. This case does its job so well that there was simply no way I could give it a lower score. If not for the annoying screws in the front panel, I could have seen myself almost giving it that magical elusive 10 out of 10. SilverStone deserves two thumbs up here and you simply must give this chassis a strong hard look if you are in the market for a new chassis." - Techgage
"The Silverstone Raven 2 excelled throughout our testing and has proven to be the most exceptional chassis we have reviewed at DriverHeaven. The quality of construction is second to none and although many people may balk at the mention of plastic and steel, the case is expertly put together and feels both strong to work with and substantial in all key areas. The internal finish is also exceptional with the finest attention to detail and no sharp edges on any of the surfaces.
On a design level, it is clear that Silverstone are onto something which is not only a talking point, but in practical terms actually delivers better cooling than the 'traditional' design. The changes to the power supply placement in the RV-02 also mean than another 180mm fan can be included for greater airflow and much improved thermal dynamics throughout the chassis. We recorded lower temperatures with the Raven 2 than we did with a high end aluminium chassis from another leading manufacturer." - DriverHeaven.net
