SilverStone FARA B1 Pro Review 2

SilverStone FARA B1 Pro Review

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Value and Conclusion

  • The SilverStone FARA B1 Pro has an MSRP of US$90 excl. taxes.
  • Four ARGB fans included
  • Retail-grade ARGB controller included
  • Very nicely engineered HDD cage
  • Can officially hold up to four 2.5" drives
  • Shorter ATX body can be attractive for limited desk depth
  • Removable, fine mesh dust filters in front
  • Clean, black USB ports
  • Combo audio port
  • Clear, framed glass side panel
  • Available as a simpler non-PRO variant lacking ARGB
  • On the expensive side for the frame
  • Acrylic front doesn't reflect the price of the case
  • Window side panel held in place by basic thumb screws
  • Cage for two 3.5" drives more useful than additional 2.5" support
  • Simple ARGB controller trumped by cases with fully fledged fan/ARGB hubs out there
  • USB 2.0 not necessary
  • Limited radiator support due to compact dimensions
  • Breakout covers for expansion slots
  • ARGB fans should have really been retail-grade
On paper, the SilverStone FARA B1 PRO checks all the boxes of a $90 to $100 case. It is ATX, comes with four ARGB fans alongside a controller, has a glass side panel, and can hold radiators in the top and front of the chassis. All those we expect to see. Unfortunately, SilverStone has gone for an entry-level frame, and on one hand included those price-increasing ARGB components while, on the other, not picking the best options to soften the shortcomings of the frame, or going the extra mile for some tooling or material changes.

Looking at the frame, one of its selling points is that it is a more compact ATX chassis, which certainly holds true. This also means you simply will have less space for extravagant AIOs or liquid cooling, but still get all the necessary room for a potent gaming rig. Thus, there are no real negative surprises here.

But the acrylic front and unsightly thumb screws holding the glass side panel in place are not what you want to see in a chassis of this price point. While acrylic offers some design possibilities other materials don't, most brands these days stay clear and opt for looks that can be realized with solid plastic or even pure steel. As for the glass side panel, there are lots of options out there to make it look completely clean, with the cheapest being gluing metal components onto it to hold the panel in place.

The interior of the case comes with its own issues simply due to the frame, like limited radiator-size support because of its shorter nature, but other issues SilverStone could have avoided by simply offering a complete set of re-usable covers with thumb screws or including a fully fledged fan hub and ARGB controller combination, or, as a bare minimum, a 3-way fan splitter cable.
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Aug 29th, 2024 01:12 EDT change timezone

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