Assembly

The motherboard area is probably the most compact aspect of the FT03, you will have to make sure that you can cram as much power into a small cubic footprint. I will be using an H61 based, Intel Core i7-2700K equipped board for this review. Coupled with the real low-profile Samsung Green and Noctua NH-L12 cooler, I have everything needed in a very small package. The 120 mm fan that usually sits on top of the cooler has been moved to the underside for maximum performance.


Silverstone advertises that the FT03 Mini can take graphics cards with up to 10 inches length, which means that a GeForce 680 will fit. Wanting to install the Gigabyte Windforce 3X GTX 670 - also based on a GeForce GTX 680 PCB, the cooler shroud in the very back gets in the way, as it extends beyond the PCB of the graphic card. This means that any reference Geforce GTX 680 will easily fit, making a potent gaming rig a possibility with the FT03 Mini. In my case, I ended up shortening the shroud, without touching the fan. With this little, purely esthetic mod, and the fact that I had to disassemble the entire card to stuff it into the system and then re-assemble it, the GPU fit just right. Before you cry foul: you will not have to take apart your reference design card.


Installing an SSD below the motherboard tray is quite easy. Simply remove the tray and fill it with the drive and then place it back within the case. As this tray is held in place by two thumb screws, you may even put it into the chassis when it is filled with hardware.


You will also need to do the same with the ODD or additional hard drive bays. Simply pull the entire construction out and fill it with the drives of your choice. Due to the exterior construction of the slimline drive, you will be forced to use a slot-loading drive.


With everything in place, the compact PSU is easily fitted in the appropriate spot above the CPU cooler. Silverstone also manufacturers one of the best SFX units with 450W and single rail design. They were kind enough to supply one for this review as well.


With all the parts installed, the FT03 Mini makes an extremely good impression. Sure, due to the compact size, you need to plan your build a bit in advance and acquire proper parts to make the best of it, but in the end, this system will perform just as well as any normal mid-tower out there. My little mod of the graphics card fits perfectly, with about 2 mm separating the bottom fan of the GPU from the chassis.

Finished Looks

Before turning the system on, let us take a quick peek at the top area. All the connectors which are usually found in the rear of a PC, are accessible in this part of the chassis. Once connected and turned on, a blue power LED turns on in the center. Another blue one lights up on HDD activity.


Thanks to the solid design, the operating noise itself is the only other factor letting a user know that the PC is up and running. While the Air Penetrator fan does push quite a bit of air, it is not really quiet though.