Thermaltake Element G – a great case for gamers!

The Thermaltake Element G (VL10001W2Z) is an interesting case in their professional series that appears to be built for gamers – it is apparently what the “G” stands for. It is as though it has a dual-personality:  mild-mannered, professional and quite conservative appearing by day, Element G transforms into a variable LED light show at the touch of a button.  It has all of the features of high-end cases, including dust filters, and the interior is nicely painted black. It has superb airflow partly thanks to 3 huge 200-230 mm fans and a fourth 120 mm fan.

This Thermaltake Element G case is an oversized mid-tower that will fit the largest graphics cards to 10.5 inches. Although it comes with four fans, the Element G gives the consumer many options to customize it for themselves.  It is not considered budget at $149.99 and it does not compete with any case that this editor has reviewed, so far.   If you consider buying a budget case by adding four fans at $20 each and customizing it yourself, you will pay about the same price and will not have the variable LED lights nor the superb airflow promised by the Element G’s rather large and stylish LED-equipped fans.

We have been living with this case for over six weeks and we want to share our experiences building a system inside the Element G with you.  Naturally, we really wanted to put this Element G case and our hardware through its paces with HD 5870 CrossFire and FurMark’s most intense stability test to stress the Thermaltake Element G’s ability to cool.  Well,  CrossFired HD 5870s turned out to be relatively cool so we also used our hot-running GTX 480 plus GTX 280 (as a PhysX card) which is an excellent test of any case’s ability to cool the hardware inside – a test that has made other cases cry.  Of course, we will report our results as we attempted to turn our Element G into a toaster oven.

The aim of Thermaltake is to give their Element G value and functionality to their consumers with an oversized “everything included” mid tower. It has has a classic look and a large mesh side panel with a 230 mm side case fan that shows off its all-black interior. It has larger dimensions than most mid tower cases including the Gladiator 600 and Elite 430.  It is a handsome all-purpose case that would fit nicely in a conservative office – or at a LAN party with its light show.  Here is the Thermaltake Element G as imaged professionally.

From the above image from Thermaltake’s site, we see that the Element G case is handsome indeed. Yet even a professionally captured picture does it little justice compared to “in person” and our own images will simply attempt to capture the excitement and experiences that we had when building a new PC with a quality case. We notice the three three-color LEDs are part of the included 200/230 mm fans.  The 200 mm intake fan in the front is right behind the exterior’s black metal mesh and it is also protected by a finer plastic mesh that also acts as a secondary dust filter.   The side panel’s 230 mm fan is positioned behind the black metal mesh which traps dust but it does not have an additional secondary plastic dust filter as the front fan sports.

It adds a nice touch to be able to shut these three Touchcolor fan’s LEDs off or switch easily from mode to mode.  The knob also acts a adjustment for these three large fan’s RPMs – from 600 to 800 RPMs which also increases their noise slightly as they reach their maximum performance mode; something you are not likely to hear over any but the quietest video cards.   The Element G looks really nice especially at night where the following image is captured in low light conditions as part of our forthcoming thermal test.

Of course, still pictures can do the Element G no justice as the lights change and have distinctly variable patterns.  Here is a very short video of the Element G’s variable LED light show that will give you a brief taste of what it can do.

Why Thermaltake?

Thermaltake considers themselves to be a relatively “new” company that formed in 1999 – twenty one years ago – and they have been at the forefront of creating new and exciting products since the time where most computer users were provided with little to no choices for components that may seem irrelevant, but in reality are crucial to the performance of a PC.  Their Element G case is part of their philosophy of what they call Key 3 Spirit Initiative of Case, Cooler and Power Supply which is based on quality, performance and reliability.

Key 3 Spirit initiative is based on the strength and know-how that Thermaltake has mastered through innovation and continuous research & development that encompasses crucial components of a personal computer responsible for thermal management.

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then the following image conveys Thermaltake’s dedication to their customers.

Now that we know about Thermaltake’s philosophy, let’s see how it is expressed in their Element G case.

Thermaltake Element G

One of the most beautiful things about a case is when it is filled with hot-running hardware and it is still cool inside. Here we see one 10.5″ oversized reference Diamond HD 5870 and one shorter PCB PowerColor HD 5870 PCS+ installed into a Gigabyte EX58-UD3R motherboard for CrossFire.   We believe it is absolutely mandatory to have a side case fan if you are running performance graphics and especially with an overclocked CPU and Thermaltake has delivered with a very quiet but powerful adjustable-speed 230 mm fan.  

The “Look”

The first thing we note about Thermaltake Element G is its classic look. This is not a kid’s PC, nor is it cheap in any way. It has a four USB ports and sound outputs and the metal grilles do double duty as aesthetics and dust filters, which is especially important as the front and side fans are intake fans. You can put in a total of 3 optical drives into the bays as well as seven hard drives into the cage. The Thermaltake Element G complements any décor and the variable colored LEDs of the 3 large fans looks very good, day or night.

Thermaltake did a good job of saving money in the right places – without compromising style or quality while still leaving you options to improve cooling over the four big included fans.  As you look closely, you will also be impressed with the Thermaltake Element G’s ability to provide a good value in a superb enthusiast oversized mid-tower case. The chassis sports a plastic front with a metal mesh and has a very basic front I/O panel with four USB ports. There is only one irritation with the entire case –  the power switch is way too easy to accidentally push and you may inadvertently shut down your PC a few times until you always learn to look exactly where you are pressing.

The paint job of the Element G chassis is very good – inside and out – and there are no imperfections that we could find. The paint is not easy to scratch. Even greasy handprints wipe off easily and we give very high marks to its exterior.

The Features:

Features of the case Thermaltake Element G include:

• Excellent airflow with 4 large, variable-speed fans with dust filters over the intakes
• A conservative looking case with a superb variable LED lightshow
• Well-finished black interior and exterior
• Superior cooling performance including retaining holes for watercooling
• Well-managed interior space for extra long video cards
• Excellent cable management system
• Easy customization for adding additional cooling fans
• Tool-free design
• User friendly
• Three year warranty

Cases and Cooling

The PC case has evolved over the years from from its original passively-cooled closed white or beige box. All of the hardware has become hotter and hotter over the years as evidenced by the growing capacity of power supply units – especially for gamers. As PC cooling has developed over the years, so have cases to meet their growing cooling needs.

The hardware outputs all of its heat into the case and there must be a good way to transfer and remove this heat or else the inside case temperature rises. In turn, a hot case increases the temperature of the hardware inside, leading to their possibly shortened lifespan or instability if overclocked.

Cooling thus becomes critical to an overclocker. If we lower the case temperature, we lower the hardware temperature and generally we can overclock better with cooler components. The latest PC cases come equipped with fans that intake and exhaust a large volume of air, thereby lowering the temperature of the hardware inside. Many modern cases come standard with an intake fan and an exhaust fan. Even more extreme cases such as Thermaltake’s Element G will have these fans as well as adding fans to the top, bottom and sides.

The Thermaltake Element G big top 200 mm fan exhausts hot air from your case which otherwise tends to pool at the top of a case. This top fan can move a lot of air.  It will blow a sheet of 8-1/2″x11.5″ paper right off the top of the case.

The Thermaltake Element G comes with four fans included – one 120 mm exhaust fan at the back of the case; the others are 3 large 200-230 mm fans in the side case, on top, and in the front. You can easily add more (optional) fans for extreme airflow and cooling – 2 small 60 mm fans at the rear and two 120 mm fans in the front to replace the single 200 mm fan.

You might notice that the top section has no dust filters.  Smart.  There is no need as the fans are exhaust.  The second thing that a PC builder will appreciate – besides the Thermaltake Element G’s reasonable price and good looks – is its attention to detail. The very worst thing for a builder to encounter is sharp edges inside a case and there were none that we found in building this one. The other thing that is important to consider when building a PC is to never grab the cheapest budget case that you can find. Technically, you don’t even need a case; you can set everything up on a workbench.

It is important to consider that a well-designed case properly holds the components in exact relationship to each other; there is no mismatch or straining anything anywhere to add or remove hardware. And we give high marks to the Thermaltake Element G for being a solidly constructed and sturdy case.  It feels solid and it is quite heavy at nearly 17 and one-half pounds.

In addition – if designed properly – a good case will help to keep cooler air circulating around your expensive components and help to prolong their life by keeping them as cool as possible. Heat is an enemy of your hardware and Thermaltake understands this. All of this became critical to our projects where we must overclock our budget CPUs to perhaps attain the performance of those many times their price.

Thermaltake Element G continues their tradition of quality enthusiast cases. We have been using our Element G for almost two months – switching hardware in and out many times – and we like it.   Now that it has been properly introduced, let’s explore the Element G and unpack it.

The Packing Box and the Presentation of the Element G

The Thermaltake Element G comes well-packed in a tough cardboard box that also advertises its features in retail stores. Although it looked like the delivery company might have rented the box out for target practice, its contents were perfectly preserved. We give our ‘thumbs up’ for minimal but effective packing – and much less to recycle and/or reuse.

Here is the tough outside box that also advertises the Thermaltake Element G’s features:

Here are the two side panels:

If you can’t read the specifications, they are listed later, after the following image.

It all comes packaged with thick foam and a cloth covering to protect the case.  Minimal but effective use of packing and less to recycle.

Yes, it is cloth that is covering Element G.  Nice touch of class!

Here are the specifications from the box and also below the image:

Specifications:

Element G

Gaming

• Colorshift Fan with 6 color changing pattern for optimal gaming experience

Glittering

• Three enlarged color shifting fans creates most eye catching appearance

Gradational

• Adjustable fan speed control for performance mode or silent mode

Gigantic

• Massive storage capability with 7 x 3.5” and 2 x 2.5” HDD or SSD bay

Glaciated

• Excellent thermal performance with glacial airflow

Case Type: Mid Tower
Material: SECC
Front Bezel Material: Plastic
Color : Black
Side Panel: solid w/230 mm side fan
Motherboard Support: Mini ATX / Full ATX
Motherboard Tray: No
5.25 Drive Bay: 3
Ext. 3.5 Drive Bay: 0
Int. 3.5 Drive Bay: 7
Additional 2 x 2.5 HDD/SSD bay
Expansion Slots: 7
Front I/O Ports: USB 2.0 x 4, HD Audio ports

Cooling System

• Front (intake) :
  • 200 x 200 x 20 mm Touchcolor (600~800 RPM, 12~14 dBA,49.735/65.30 CFM)
  • 2 x 120 x 120 x 25 mm (optional)
• Rear (exhaust) :
  • 140 x 140 x 25 mm TurboFan (1000 rpm, 16 dBA, 50.0 CFM)
• Top(exhaust) :
  • 200 x 200 x 20 mm Touchcolor (600~800 RPM, 12~14 dBA, 49.735/65.30 CFM)
  • Side(intake) :
• 230x 230 x 20 mm Touchcolor (600~800 RPM, 12~14 dBA, 57.0/76.0 CFM)
• VGA (exhaust) :
• Two 60 x 60 mm fan (optional)
• Liquid cooling hold, support 1/2″, 3/8″, 1/4″ water tube

Dimension (HxWxD):
480 (H) x 230(W) x 521(L) mm
18.9(H) x 9.1(W) x 20.5(L) in.

MSRP: US Dollars : $149.99

Here is the idealized airflow for this case:

Now that we have unpacked the Thermaltake Element G, let’s give it a thorough examination.

Exploring the Element G

Here we see the Thermaltake Element G with the left side panel off. The inside of the case is very nicely painted black. Not painting the case’s interior is a major cost-saving feature for the manufacturer and it often differentiates a midrange case from a high-end one. Inside the Thermaltake Element G is sufficient room for two over-sized video cards like ten and one-half inch reference HD 5870 and large CPU coolers.  Here we see the case as we unpack it for our build and we notice the parts inside. 

Generally, one mid-tower case is generally not more “roomy” than another; it depends on how well everything is arranged that makes a build easy – or not.  In this specific instance, the Element G is larger than the average mid-tower, 20.9 (L) x 9.1 (W) x 18.9 (H). The Element G is one of the easiest and most trouble-free builds that this editor has ever put together.

The front has dust filters over the optical drive bays and over the intake fan. At the top of the case and at the back, there are no dust filters as the 200 mm top fan and 120 mm back fan are for exhaust.  Here we see the metal mesh of the drive bay and the plastic foam behind it which does a superb job of trapping dust.  Even the metal mesh by itself, helps to keep your case interior dust-free.

We also see the Thermaltake Element G comes with the standard internal connectors which are USB, headphone/microphone inputs, and LED and switch connectors. The instructions come inside the box and the accessories are also packaged in a plastic bag. You will also get the necessary screws and zip ties. It is mostly a “tool free” build although a Philips screw driver is always useful.  Here is the bag of goodies including two fan protectors for easily adding two additional (optional, not included) 120 mm fans for the front of the case to replace the single included 200 mm fan, especially if you have to cool a lot of hard drives:

You will also get an instruction manual which is quite generic and also printed in several languages.

Here is the Thermaltake Element G from the right. The motherboard tray is not removable – a cost saving feature – but the clever cutout makes it completely unnecessary for many situations. You can easily remove and replace a CPU in just a few minutes – without the irritating need to remove the motherboard, just to remove a heatsink or to replace a CPU. There are also several cutouts for cable management.

The back panel is visible from this shot:

The Thermaltake Element G case is usually air-cooled but also has cutouts for water cooling tubes to pass through at the bottom next to the PSU grill. We also see spaces for two optional 60 mm fans for more extreme cooling needs. To the left of the 120 mm fan is where the standard motherboard I/O shield plate is installed.

Below that are the standard six expansion slots. Both left and right side panels are secured with three black thumb screws each. They are installed into both of the panels in the above image.

The front is constructed of plastic and metal mesh. With the hard drive cage removed, one can see through the front drive bays all the way to the back of the chassis. The metal mesh covers even act somewhat as dust filters and the drive bay grills are further covered inside with soft plastic mesh similar to that found in air conditioners.

Here is the front of the Thermaltake Element G:

We see the front I/O panel with 4 USB ports along with the headphone and microphone jacks. Also on this panel, you will find the on/off button for the system’s power and reset button. There is also a power LED and a hard disk drive activity LED. The bottom mesh mostly acts as a dust filter and allows for cool air to be pulled in through it using the 200 mm fan.

Here is the front panel removed from the chassis.  There are a couple of clips you press and it will pop off easily.

Here is the other side of the front panel.  Note the double protection from dust.

The front 200 mm fan is easily replaced with two tool less fan protectors that hold 120 mm fans.  This would be useful if your hard drive cage is filled with hard drives and you need more cooling than a single fan can provide.

Here is the close-up of the I/O panel.  You get a multi-purpose knob that adjusts the four built-in fans’ speed and is also used to adjust the LEDs.  One press gives you blue, the second is green, another brings red, the fourth and fifth press bring a variable LED light show and the sixth, turns it off.    This is well thought-out but the next feature is not and it is the only nit-pick of an otherwise nearly perfect oversized mid-tower.  The power button is much too easy to depress and you may find yourself shutting down your PC inadvertently while you are perhaps reaching to adjust the fan’s RPMs or the LEDs.  You also get four USB ports, and two LEDs for HD activity and power on, all of which are very useful and the front panel is even angled a bit so that USB cables do not get in the way of the optical drives opening and closing!

Here is the Thermaltake Element G with the left side panel installed. The huge 230 mm fan will bring in a rush of fresh cool air while still remaining quiet!  The fan’s speed can also be adjusted for “performance” when you are gaming and will never notice the extra noise (over your video card, anyway).  The right side panel is completely plain with no opening whatsoever.

Here is a feature that this editor is absolutely in love with.  The side panel’s fan connects to the PSU through a junction in the door – no more plugging in and unplugging a cable when you remove  your side panel!

Above is a closeup of the connector that handles the power to the fan and the LEDs; the socket is in the case proper and you never have to pay attention to it – just put on your side panel and it automatically connects perfectly.

Installing the PSU

Let’s look at the options for installing our power supply into the Element G.

Here we see there is a metal mesh dust filter that is supplied for use with the power supply and built into the bottom of the case. Of course, if you use your PSU with the fan facing up, there is no need for a dust filter.  If you install your PSU with the fan facing downward as in this case, the best place for a dust filter is naturally under the power supply, to protect it from clogging with dust as the fan will pull cool air (and dust) in from beneath the case.

We are using Thermaltake’s ToughPowerXT 775 watt PSU to illustrate positioning. Here the power supply unit is installed with the fan facing downward. The cool air is drawn in by the power supply’s fan from beneath the PC and exhausted out the PSU’s grille. In this position, the PSU’s fan does not affect case air flow at all.

The alternative is to install the power supply unit “upside down” with the fan facing upward. The warm air from inside the case is now exhausted out the PSU’s grille. One of the disadvantages with the fan facing up is that now you have to take extra care so as not to drop a screw or other tiny object into the now open PSU. As a tip, cover your open PSU with a cloth when you are adding a video card, for example. Unfortunately, if you try to operate the PSU with the fan facing up, there is very little space between it and the shelf that can also hold your SSDs.

Here is the bottom of the case.  You can see the power supply unit’s fan gets cool air from beneath the case as well as from inside the bottom of the case.

The Thermaltake Element G sits on 4 rubber feet which serves the dual purpose of isolating vibration and keeping it solidly on any surface that you set it on without scratching or damage. Well, we got our power supply in. Now let’s put it all together.

Putting it all together

The first thing we usually do is to install the motherboard. Installing the mainboard is done by using the included spacers and screws. It should become apparent at this point, that mid-tower cases are very compact and that you do not have much room to work with. If you are going to completely fill your case with hardware, make sure you plan your assembly process very carefully.

It is wise to install the CPU and CPU cooler first along with the RAM on the motherboard and then install it into the case. Oh what a tangle of cables we see!  We are very glad for the Element G’s thoughtfully placed cable management cutouts.

You can also see from the above image that in the front of the Thermaltake Element G, the bottom half is taken up by a removable hard drive cage which can accommodate seven hard drives by using the Thermaltake supplied HD guides.  Screw the guides into your hard drive and then just slide the drives in and lock them down with screws. The top area allows for 3 optical drives which are also secured with screws (supplied).

Installing your drives is almost too easy with Thermaltake Element G’s design.

The hard drive cage is easily secured and removed from the case with thumbscrews.  Only one is in use on the right in the above image.  The hard drive cage will accommodate seven hard drives.  If you do that, you might consider installing two optional 120 mm fans in place of the one 200 mm fans to keep those hard drives cool.

We are not just going to use HD 5870 CrossFire to test our Thermaltake Element G’s ability to cool the hardware inside. For that test, we are also going to use GTX 480 which is one of the hottest running video cards available today plus an another hot-running GTX 280 as a PhysX card. Let’s test the Element G’s ability to cool the hardware inside and then we will wrap our review up.

The Final Build and the Cooling Test

For our case cooling test, we used Intel’s Core i7-920 which has a stock core speed of 2.66 GHz and which we overclocked to 3.80 GHz. We actually conducted two separate tests. The first was conducted with HD 5870 CrossFire which is two high-end video cards working together in tandem. For the second case temperature test, we used our GTX 480 plus a second card – GTX 280 in NVIDIA’s PhysX configuration. Either video card will heat your case and together they are a real test of a case’s ability to move cooling air past your hardware. To make matters far more difficult, we used up to twenty minutes of FurMarks “Hot-as-Hell” burning test at 2560×1600 with 2xAA and every detail maxed to get our GPUs cooking and we saw 110 degrees Centigrade on the GTX 480 temperatures when it finally throttled!

Test Configuration – Hardware

• Intel Core i7-920 (reference 2.66 GHz; overclocked to 3.8 GHz, turbo off)
  
• Gigabyte EX58-UD3R (latest BIOS, PCIe 2.0 specification; CrossFire 16x+16x; onboard audio).
• Kingston HyperX 6 GB DDR3-PC1800 RAM (3×2 GB, tri-channel)
• Nvidia GeForce GTX 280 (1 GB, reference clocks); used for PhysX
  
• Nvidia GeForce GTX 480 (1.5 GB, reference clocks)
  
• Noctua NH-U12P SE2 CPU cooler
  
• 250 GB Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 hard drive
• Philips DVD rewriter
  
• 775 watt Thermaltake ToughPowerXT power supply unit (supplied by Thermaltake)
• Thermaltake Element G Black (Supplied by Thermaltake)
• Radio Shack dual digital thermometer
• Kill-A-Watt meter
  

As you can see the temperature sensor is placed below the DVD rewriter in a relatively cool portion of the case. It will read the inside temperature of our closed case while we compare it with the ambient (room) temperature. First we started with HD 5870 CrossFire and for the second part of the test, we used GTX 480 and added the GTX 280 as a PhysX card as shown below.

First, we started off CrossFired HD 5870 inside our Element G and with the hardware ‘cold’ and compared the ambient temperatures in front of the case with the sensor’s reported temperatures from inside the open case. A little variation is to be expected in the reported temperatures, and we kept our room at 78-79 F for the entire duration of our test.  It is rather warm as it is Summer. On the digital thermometer, “outdoor” is the sensor inside the case and “indoor” is our ambient room temperature just outside the case and near our HP 3065 LCD.  Here is the start of our HD 5870 CrossFire test.  Ambient and inside temps are each 77 degrees Fahrenheit at the beginning of the test, a warm room.

Now it is time to run FurMark’s “hot-as-hell” multi-GPU test with HD 5870 CrossFire. Here you will load your GPUs like no real world game can and it will register absolutely worst case temperatures.

If you look closely at the time you can see it has been running for quite a few minutes and yet the temperatures inside the case are only 1.4 degrees warmer than the starting ambient temperatures.  In fact, the thermometer outside the case has heated up even more simply by being in close proximity to the 30 inch monitor.  So clearly HD 5870 CrossFire will not raise our Element G’s temperature even paired together with a hot overclocked Core i7-920.  So let’s try a hotter GPU, GTX 480 plus GTX 280 instead of HD 5870 CrossFire..

Since we could not raise the inside temperatures over ambient temperatures using Furmark and CrossFire, we next try with GTX 480 and GTX 280 as a PhysX card to see how high we can raise inside temperatures (and this time we also used Centigrade).

Then, with our overclocked CPU and two hot video cards pumping heat into our closed Thermaltake Element G case, we registered the maximum temperatures on each sensors – inside vs. outside. Please note that this test is run with only the Thermaltake Element G’s included four cooling fan on “performance” (highest RPMs) mode;  the 120 MM intake fan in back, the 200 mm fans in front and on top and the 230 mm fan in the case’s side panel. We had a warm Summer night in our desert testing location and the ambient temperature hovered steadily around 77 F – 79F, plus or minus a couple of tenths. Here is what we saw after running FurMark continuously and just before the GTX 480 throttled around 110C:

Amazing!  The inside case temperatures in all cases is basically the same as the ambient temperatures.  The Element G passes our two thermal tests with flying colors (yes, pun intended).  You can be confident that the Element G case will keep the hottest hardware running cool.  And if you are completely “extreme” with a full case of hardware, you can customize your Element G to suit whatever you need.  We also noted that our overclocked Core i7-920 at 3.80 GHz stayed cool during this and other tests.

Now you must also realize that as your ambient temperatures climb, your inside case temperatures will also tend to climb a bit faster as in our rather warm room but unlike with other cases we have tested, the Thermaltake Element G is completely up to the task of cooling our hottest hardware components. Our additional case fan recommendation, should you wish them, would be to buy Thermaltake case fans as they are not only inexpensive but very quiet and efficient.

Final verdict

What can we say? After nearly two months of living with the Thermaltake Element G, we like it for its good looks, we appreciate it for its incredible ability to keep our components cool and we love the light show when we are in the mood.

Let’s sum up the many positives verses our single nit-picky negative:

Positive:

• Good looks. Very pleasing and conservative
• Awesome light show that is variable and can be switched on/off to suit your mood
• Superior cooling performance
• Well-managed interior space
• Excellent cable management system with intelligent cutouts for easy CPU removal and installation
• Easy customization for adding additional cooling fans or watercooling
• Tool-free design and user friendly
• Dust filters are included for the intake fans and the case is designed to keep dust out
• Three year warranty!

Negatives:

• The off-on switch is too easy to press (that’s it – we’re dead serious – this is a wonderful case!)

This is a great enthusiast case that allows you the flexibility to cool as you choose.   One would expect that a pair of GTX 480s in SLI would be fine with the four fans included in this case.  Thermaltake Element G is the case for users who want great looks, style and excellent air-cooling (and even water cooling) without breaking their bank.  Gamers will particularly like this case.  You need not buy any extra fans or do any customization. Best of all, Thermaltake has designed the Element G to accommodate the longer video cards like the 10.5″ reference HD 5870 with plenty of room to spare.  This was a fun build and a pleasure to move hardware into and out of the Element G.

The Thermaltake Element G deserves our “Innovation” and “Editor’s Choice” awards.

— Very nice!

Our very special thanks also go out to Thermaltake for working with us and supplying us with their Thermaltake Element G case.  We have plans to also review Thermaltake’s ToughPowerXT 775 power supply unit.

Stay tuned, we have  more video card reviews and lots more head to head competition between PowerColor’s over clocked HD 5870 versus GTX 480. In addition, we will also bring you a CrossFire review that attempts to explore the limits of the HD 5870 architecture as well as a series devoted to CPU scaling.

Mark Poppin

ABT Senior Editor

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«1. Introduction2. The look and the specs3. Cases and cooling4. Packing and presentation5. The case in and out6. Installing the PSU7. Putting it all together8. The cooling test9. Our verdict10. View All»