Can We Skip the Gold Trim Next Year?

Silverstone’s latest Raven is the third in the series best known for its rotated- motherboard configuration, which puts the I/O backplane at the top of the chassis. The PSU mounts at the bottom-front of the case, and the entire mobo setup is cooled from below, using two upward-blowing 18cm fans.

The Raven tallies some impressive numbers: There’s room for eight PCI slots, four 3.5-inch hard drive mounts, two 2.5-inch bays behind the motherboard tray, and eight 5.25-inch bays. The spacious interior can fit a 12.2-inch GPU with ease. Thanks to four cable-routing cutouts, a cleanly wired build is easy. And the two 18cm filtered intake fans gave the RV03 the best air-cooling temperatures of any case in our roundup, including the premium ones.

We’re not sure how we feel about the RV03’s exterior, though. Last year’s Raven RV02 had a similar superhero-themed look, but was all black. This Raven has two gold stripes running up the front of the chassis, which strikes us as a bit tacky.

Overall, the Silverstone Raven RV03 is a solid case, and gets points for ingenuity. It may look a little garish and feel a little plasticky, but it’s roomy, features a stunning amount of ports and slots, and offers a crazy-organized build and great cooling.

$140, www.silverstonetek.com