BitFenix Outlaw: When Inexpensive Doesn't Mean Cheap
by Dustin Sklavos on December 23, 2011 5:00 PM EST- Posted in
- Cases/Cooling/PSUs
- mid-tower
- bitfenix
Noise and Thermal Testing, Stock
I was intensely curious to see how the BitFenix Outlaw's inverted design would perform. A similar style worked like gangbusters in the more expensive Micro-ATX SilverStone Temjin TJ08-E, but there are some key differences here. BitFenix has opted for a negative pressure design instead of a positive pressure one, with the exhaust fan pulling air out of the back of the case instead of placing a fan in the front and letting the fan in the heatsink do the rest of the work.
Thermals in the Outlaw aren't great, but it's also the second least expensive case in our lineup (behind BitFenix's own Merc Alpha). That said, they're at worst middle-of-the-road, and that's just fine. The major temperatures (the CPU and GPU) are both quite good, and there's still room for real improvement when it comes to adding fans.
As far as I'm concerned, this is the Outlaw's big win. Normally getting something with good thermals and good acoustics requires spending a lot more money, but the level and character of the Outlaw's noise was surprisingly low and mellow. The major offender is actually the GeForce GTX 580's cooler, which has to be fed entirely through the case ventilation and is audible out of the top of the case. The kind of less expensive, quieter video card more apt to appear in this type of case (like a Radeon HD 6850 or GeForce GTX 560) will probably excel.
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Sgt. Stinger - Friday, December 23, 2011 - link
BitFenix is definitley an interesting company. They seem to be a very small operation, and thats probably why they get to these amazing price points.BTW, what happened to this review earlier today? Saw it at work, but when i tried to continue to the next page, the review was down... Puzzled me a bit :)
JarredWalton - Friday, December 23, 2011 - link
Someone changed the post time to later in the day, probably to give another article time at the top.Andrew Rockefeller - Friday, December 23, 2011 - link
I'm a fan of the left-handed mount arrangement. TBH, I've thought that everyone has been doing it wrong all these years. The next step is to abandon multiple 5.25" bays in mid-towers.know of fence - Saturday, December 24, 2011 - link
Current case designs may very well be outdated in a year or two.Abandon the ugly, stupid drive bays (in favor of external drives), ditch ALL front interfaces and move USB, audio and the power switch to the top of the desk (like a docking bay). It's a no-brainer.
Andrew Rockefeller - Saturday, December 24, 2011 - link
For my own needs, I couldn't agree more. I do however accept that would make it just a little too niche right now. 2 years, absolutely.Strangely, I actually sketched up an external front panel remote a few years back. Glad to hear that there are others out there thinking along the same lines.
...which makes me think. What if someone designed a case with an external slimline optical enclosure which included the standard front panel functions?? We might finally get rid of gaudy plastic fascias altogether. The external enclosure could even be a standalone product connecting back to a PCI bracket.
StevePeters - Friday, December 23, 2011 - link
Am I seeing the photos correctly - it looks like there is no space at all between the tray and side cover (and none is needed)? I am starting to think that the guys at BitFenix must actually use they cases themselves - they sure look like they know what works!JonnyDough - Friday, December 23, 2011 - link
"BitFenix has opted for a negative pressure design instead of a positive pressure one, with the exhaust fan pulling air out of the back of the case instead of placing a fan in the front and letting the fan in the heatsink do the rest of the work."Preferable. Reason? Noise.
jwcalla - Friday, December 23, 2011 - link
Do people still buy cases this big?colmiak - Saturday, December 24, 2011 - link
this is kind of an unimportant detail but i'll ask anyway.. ;pis the logo seen on the bottom of the case on microcenter's site removable?
i dont see it on your review case and it looks much nicer like that!
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results....
Dustin Sklavos - Saturday, December 24, 2011 - link
It's not removable; it's not affixed to begin with. ;)