The Streacom DA6 is clearly not your usual chassis. As with most open frame offerings out there, it is about making a statement and having a unique build first and foremost. However with the confines of ITX, this type of enclosure also means that you have far better accessibility to the components for the build and as a statement piece, as you are not required to keep your parts compact enough to stay within the general dimensions of the case body.

In fact, Streacom actually suggests that you should go with air cooling with the DA6, as the open air frame gives you unobstructed access to cool air as well as the possibility to employ any size cooler. While anything above 105 mm will stick out the side, such a configuration would by no means look weird or out of place in the Streacom DA6 either. Even with that in mind, the chassis is designed to be able to accommodate up to two 280 mm radiators with the fans placed to the exterior of the DA6's unique universal mounting brackets.

Those brackets are both a unique design element as well as the functional focal point of the case. The engineering that has gone into these is quite unhinged with the level of detail, which is both great as well as a bit of a downside. The placement and way these are built means that you have essentially four sides that can be configured any way you want without limitations for cooling, storage or power. But it also means that you will have to deal with a larger number of individual, small parts that make up each bracket during the assembly process. With that in mind the Streacom DA6 deserves a proper manual and Streacom has gone a unique way to educate its users on what the enclosure is capable of. This is a nice touch but doesn't end up feeling quite as helpful as a detailed manual.

From a functional perspective, the Streacom DA6 manages to check off all the right boxes: flexible IO placement, ability to place it standing up or on its side, long and thick GPU support, limitless air cooling, flexible PSU spacing, as well as dual-radiator support means that you can build a massive system here without issue. Especially the liquid cooling aspect should mean that you can build a really crazy custom look with a thin, GPU block mounted to your graphics card for example.

At $140 with the PCIe 4.0 cable, it is a bit more expensive than classic SFF enclosures, but you are paying for the boutique material mix, design and engineering. As such the Streacom DA6 is absolutely deservant of the innovation award. And even if this uniqueness is secondary, but you are looking for an open frame chassis, the DA6 is easily recommendable as well.