Getting a nice case for your computer can sometimes be one of the most difficult decisions a user could make. After all, the case gives the first impression of your system. Most manufacturers have been marketing bright and flashy LED cases with clear windows and big doors to hide all the drives in the system. Although Enermax offers cases with all those features, today we're taking a look at something very different.Introduction
Enermax was founded in 1990 and is a leading manufacturer of high-end computer components. Focusing on value and performance, their outstanding attention to detail and quality control ensures the end user will have the best possible product, and their technical support is amazing. If you're unsure of an Enermax product, their product support will help you make an informed decision to ensure you get the best product possible.
Today we're taking a look at the Enermax Phoenix. This chassis is a simple no frills design, highly functional and very stylish. It was built with great attention to detail and unheard-of features such as a reversible 250mm side panel fan, a diamond cut front panel with removable dust filter, and hidden power switches and USB ports at the top of the case. It ensures that people will say "nice computer" regardless of your system specs. Let's check it out.
Contents
- Enermax ECA3092 Chassis.
- User's manual.
- Motherboard standoffs
- Hard drive rails.
- Case feet.
- Fan filter for the front intake slot.
- 3.0mm diamond-cut and hair-brushed aluminum.
- First micro dust filter removable at front.
- 2 aluminum CD-ROM flip covers integrated.
- 2 x USB, audio I/O on top for the easiest access.
- Tool-free drive bays and removable HDD cage.
- 12cm fan slots in front and rear for silent cooling.
- Next generation external SATA port on top (optional).
- Intel CAG v1.1 Air Duct(ECA3090, ECA3091).
- 12cm blue LED fan in front included (ECA3090, ECA3091).
- See-through side panel (ECA3091).
- 25cm monster fan with airflow direction change for supreme cooling (ECA3092).
| Type | Mid Tower ATX |
| Dimensions | D490xW200XH455mm |
| Material | SECC |
| Drive Bays | 5.25" 5 Exposed
3.5" 5 (1 exposed/4 hidden) |
| Motherboard | Standard P4 ATX (12" x 9.6") |
| Micro ATX | (9.6" x 9.6") |
| Power Supply | PS2 |
| Front I/O | 1x e-SATA, 2x USB 2.0, Audio I/O |
| Cooling Fan | Front 120/90/80 mm (optional)
Rear 120/90/80 mm (optional)
Side 250mm monster fan with reversible switch |
| Expansion slots | 7 |
Details of the Phoenix
Taking a closer look at the Phoenix, a blind man will be able to recognize the attention to detail. First we're taking a look at the front bezel. Constructed from aluminum, it is actually a three piece design. One piece is the bezel itself; additional pieces are the hair brushed, diamond cut aluminum blades. Oddly enough the entire bezel is not aluminum -- it's actually firmly secured to a plastic bezel underneath. You would never know it though.
Enermax has designed a fan duct in the front of the chassis. The edges of the bezel have been diamond cut and show a silver ring around the front of the chassis. One of the other features I noticed was the integrated stealth optical drive covers, very different from some chassis I've had that did not have an adjustable piece to hit the button on the drive. This is another small detail that is easily overlooked.
Of course I have to mention the fan. If you don't know what fan I'm talking about you must be blind. It's huge. Enermax installed a massive 250mm fan on the side panel. The fan has a custom grill and control switch which can make the fan ventilate, exhaust, or turn it off. It also has a very long power connector to get to hidden Molex connectors. The attention to detail just continues throughout the chassis. Installing components in the Phoenix is easy. The first thing to install in the chassis is the power supply. Installation is almost effortless. I had no problems installing my power supply into the chassis; I even test fit my Enermax Galaxy -- of course, since it is so long, it makes it difficult to access the modular connectors. Next I installed the motherboard. Enermax provides stand offs for securing motherboards with additional mounting locations to ensure the board remains firmly in place and doesn't flex when components are installed.
Installing hard drives in the Phoenix is very simple: attach the slider rails to the hard drive, and slide it into position. It's nice and easy. If you plan to cool your hard drives with an intake fan on the front of the chassis, however, it is easier to install when no drives are in place. You can remove the cage itself from the rest of the chassis with a few screws... but if you don't mind a bit of a fight you should be able to squeeze a 120mm fan into position without having to remove everything.
To secure a front fan or to install optical drives you will need to remove the front panel from the chassis. This is done by pushing in the tabs on the front of the case and pulling the panel away. Now you can secure the fan in position if necessary. With the front panel removed, now is a great time to install your optical drives in position. Enermax provides stealth CD drive covers which are really metal clipped onto plastic, giving the appearance of an all metal design. This is just another sign of quality Enermax provides.
The optical drives are not tool-less though, and the provided hardware will be necessary for installing the drives. Slide the drives into the bays and loosely secure them to the chassis. Install any other components that need to be installed with the front panel off. Then re-install the front panel. The optical drives need to be adjusted in order to work with the stealth front panels. Gently push the eject button back so there is just a little bit of play before it makes contact; that will prevent any accidental drive openings. Tighten the screws and you should be good to go.
Once all the components are installed in the system, you can connect all of the front I/O components to the motherboard. Enermax offers very long cables since they have to reach the top of the chassis. Good cable management may be needed to hide extra wire. Front audio may or may not be long enough to route out of the way, depending on the location of the headers on your motherboard.
I've had my hands on quite a few cases in the past few years. Needless to say, this is one of my favorites so far, and its sheer simplicity is something to marvel at. It is just an excellent design for the most part. The first thing I noticed is the location of the power switches, as well as the front USB 2.0 ports. These are actually on top of the chassis. The only disadvantage to this is if you're trying to remove a stubborn USB cord from the port, you can easily hit the power and reset buttons, so a little bit more care is needed when dealing with these ports.
The side fan is one monstrosity on which Enermax certainly did their homework. It's quiet, it moves a lot of air, and it's in a perfect location for providing fresh air to passive coolers on a motherboard and your high end graphics card. It's also reversible with the flick of a switch, so if the inside of your case gets very warm you could pull all that warm air out of the case, decreasing temperatures and increasing cooling effectiveness buy reducing the amount of exhausted air circulating through the system.
Conclusion
I think my fondness of the Phoenix goes without saying. Its simple design is almost perfection, without all the flashy lights and huge window (which is an option). It offers everything the standard user could use, and its design offers both simplicity and functionality.
Pros
- Excellent design.
- Sturdy construction.
- Large side panel fan, great for passive heat sinks.
- Tool-less hard drive sliders work great, and are positioned to catch the most airflow.
- Decent price tag at around $70.
Cons
- Power and reset can easily be pressed while removing a USB device.
- Only 3 hard drives can be held in the sliders; what about RAID 2 setups?
- Side panel fan may cause compatibility issues with large heat sinks.
- Top two optical drives are not tool-less, while the bottom three drives have the tool-less design.
Anyone looking at getting a simple and effective case should definitely check out the Phoenix from Enermax, It offers simple looks and excellent functionality and is a great base for any computer system. It can fool others into believing you have a good computer. I installed my Pentium 3 system in the Phoenix and gave it to my roommate; as he thought he was getting a new computer, I was dying of laughter. Looks can be deceiving; this case is a prime example of that.
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