Test System

Assembly

Installing the motherboard is done by traditional means, with the use of "bumps" on the motherboard tray and screws. If you want to make sure that there is absolutely no chance of shorting your board out on these bumps, tape them up before putting it into place. Luckily, there is plenty of space for a large cooler, but you have to watch its height as be quiet! mentions a healthy 170 mm limit.


be quiet! designed their own way to install hard drives into the chassis. While the Silent Base 600 uses the same rail-and-lock method as some other cases by other manufacturers, be quiet! replaced the plastic rail with a silicone strip two thumbscrews hold in place, which makes sliding the drive into place once two of those have been attached possible. Once done, move the lock down to hold the contraption in place. As you can see, the silicone strips are rather soft, but everything, once locked, holds in place surprisingly well.


To install an SSD, put it into its individual tray. Each drive is held in place by screws, so you need tools at this point. The single thumbscrew holds the tray in place flawlessly, but is quite close to the actual drive itself, making it a bit difficult to tighten without a screwdriver once the tray has been filled.


Inserting an optical drive is quite quick since taking out the cover of your choice to free a bay up is a breeze. Now, simply slide the drive in and lock it down. be quiet!'s locking mechanism actually works quite well, but you may also want to sink additional screws into the drive if need be.


Installing the PSU is done by traditional means as it only takes screws and a screwdriver. be quiet!'s well-placed grommet-covered opening allows you to route all the cables out of sight quite nicely.


With everything installed, the Silent Base 600's main side makes an excellent, clean impression. With the exception of the fan's cable at the front, the entire cable mess is hidden away nicely behind the motherboard tray. You could hide the fan's cable behind the hard-drive tray as well as it is long enough, but its black sleeving makes it blend in nicely anyways.

Finished Looks

With everything installed and the system turned on, you can clearly see the KLEVV memory glow through the large window. be quiet! went with an orange power LED it embedded into the main button, which goes nicely with the company's brand and - in this case - the enclosure's colored elements.


The door hides the optical drive in front well, and the rear gives you readily available access to every connector. As the fan has been recessed into the rear, finding the plugs is even easier, although it somewhat cuts down on how much room there is inside.