Phanteks has always offered high value with the Eclipse P-series or, in other words, real "bang for your buck." For those who do not care about lighting in their systems, the basic P500A version clocks in at a very enticing sub-$100 price point, which means the joy of ARGB goes for a reasonable $30 more. In other words, the Eclipse P500A is right on the dot when it comes to cost and offering a healthy, unique feature set for your money.

From a build quality perspective, there is really nothing negative to say. The chassis feels sturdy, the ultra-fine metal mesh front is rigid, and the glass panel is clean and framed in black nicely. The only somewhat weird, but certainly not bothersome aspect is the slightly different color tone between interior steel elements and the exterior. Luckily, as both are clearly separated, you won't even notice unless you open the glass panel for a direct comparison.

Phanteks has also done an excellent job with the refined feature set of the Eclipse P500A. Cable management is excellent, HDD brackets are solid steel and can be assembled outside of the chassis, and there is plenty of room for big components; the additions of the ARGB power LED in the front and thin but beautiful strip in the shroud just add to that overall attention to detail. There are also plenty of unique elements to talk about in terms of functionality, as you may install the 3.5" trays in any of the available spots and they are stackable in pairs, and there are the sliding covers to hide openings. Naturally, the ultra-fine mesh front does not only allow for the RGB lighting of the fans to shine through as it improves airflow while eliminating the need for a dust filter by acting as one because of its 1 mm gaps. The ability to install a secondary ITX system within the chassis is also a unique element of many Phanteks cases, and the Eclipse P500A is no different. I am happy to see that the RGB controller allows for universal 3-pin devices, which means you are free to pick whatever you want in terms of additional lighting.

There are a few small cons, though, with one being their GPU anti-sag bracket that doesn't work as well as classic approaches, though it is still better than nothing. On top of that, having an HDD activity LED tends to be more important these days with SSDs being mainstream. Then, there is the issue of the fans being quite loud, which naturally has the benefit of great cooling potential. Luckily, as they are PWM, you have quite the flexibility in freely adjusting the fan curve in your motherboard BIOS to balance noise vs. airflow. None of these cons are deal breakers, so do by all means grab yourself an Eclipse P500A—it is a beautiful case inside and out.