NZXT Phantom 630 Case Review: The Relentless Pursuit of Perfection
by Dustin Sklavos on January 20, 2013 12:01 AM ESTConclusion: The Enthusiast Chassis of Choice?
I think it's important to note that NZXT's flagship Phantom 820 was only released about three months ago. I'm not quite sure how NZXT was able to hit the kind of turnaround time they did with the Phantom 630, but this new release effectively obsoletes the older, more expensive model. That's no mean feat when you're talking about the successor of a case that won our Bronze Editor's Choice award, but what makes the Phantom 630 so impressive is the fact that it's able to meet or surprass the 820 in every meaningful way while costing $70 less.
The Phantom 630 is in this editor's opinion a better looking, better designed enclosure capable of providing top shelf thermal performance with very reasonable acoustics. This is the kind of case I'm talking about when I talk about the stratification of the enclosure market: below $100 you're going to see a balancing act of noise and thermals that tends to favor thermals, between $100 and $150 you're going to see better noise performance but the same balancing act, and when you go north of $150 you can and should expect a case that's both quiet and efficient. At $179, the 630 offers superior cooling performance with better-than-average acoustics. If noise is your utmost concern you're never going to really beat the Nanoxia Deep Silence 1, but the Phantom 630 is incredibly compelling otherwise.
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So why isn't the 630 Silver or Gold Editor's Choice material if it's directly better than a Bronze winner while costing less? For starters, $179 still isn't exactly a "value" price tag, even if you really do get what you pay for. Editor's Choice is about getting more than what you paid for; for example, an MSRP of $149 on the Phantom 630 might be unrealistic, but it would also be bulletproof (so keep your eye out for a good sale). The price is a nitpick; where the 630 loses points is in its continued use of those awful drive trays, and the strangely too-small routing hole for the AUX 12V line. The windowed side panel looks better than its predecessor and obviously contributes to the case's killer performance, but it's still a little ostentatious.
I pick nits with the 630 because it's my job and because NZXT has built tremendous momentum as of late. My ideal refinement of this enclosure would be a reduction in the number of 5.25" bays from four to three or even two, allowing for increased and even more direct front intake, along with completely closed side panels. A little acoustic padding wouldn't be out of place, either. Add a mounting post to the motherboard tray, fix the AUX 12V routing hole, get sturdier drive trays, and find some way to make picking up the case without accidentally popping out the bottom fan filter easier.
If you like or at least don't mind the way the it looks, and you're in the market for an enthusiast class case with substantial liquid cooling potential, I'm really not sure you're going to be able to beat the NZXT Phantom 630. SilverStone's FT02 might still be better for air cooling (at least for air cooling the CPU), and the Thermaltake Level 10 GT and CoolerMaster Cosmos II might both be bigger and fancier, but the Phantom 630 is more feature rich, easier to move and assemble, and ultimately more forward thinking. Other companies should be keeping a close eye on what NZXT is doing. Absolutely recommended.
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mepenete - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
Too bad I can't get the aesthetic design of this case.. it just looks ugly to me.EzioAs - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
Right? Right? I just don't see why most people like NZXT designs anyway, I know aesthetic is a subjective thing but yeah, NZXT cases really doesn't do it for me.3ogdy - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
The Antec GX700 looks so much better, right?Yeah....right
EzioAs - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
That's because I compared the GX700 to the Vengeance C70. Both have quite good looks (if you're into the military-looking case sort of theme) but I prefer the GX700. If I were to compare both of them to the Tt Level 10GT or the Cougar Challenger however, both GX700 and Vengeance C70 would came out on top.Havor - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
No but the Silverstone Raven line dose look a hell of a lot better, and also cools real good.http://www.silverstonetek.com/raven
Robert in Calgary - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
Yes, another ugly case. Bad "artists"....and big! 7 inches taller than a Solo, 6 inches higher than a R4.
This won't fit on my computer shelf.
JPForums - Monday, January 21, 2013 - link
I can respect that. I'm actually one of the rare few that neither love or hate the aesthetics. It is certainly better looking (In my opinion) than some of their previous attempts, but there are just as certainly better looking cases on the market.
The R4 is 6.5" taller than a Sugo SG09B OMGWTFBBQ.
Or Instead of comparing Full towers to Mid towers( to Mini towers), we could compare it to other cases in its class. This case does ring in a full inch taller than a Cooler Master HAF-X (without the wheels) and almost 2 inches deeper. However, it is 3 inches shorter and 2 inches less deep than a Cooler Master Cosmos II. It is on the larger side of Full towers. However, it's not really that much larger than common Full towers like the HAF-X, smaller than the likes of a Silverstone TJ11B-W or Thermaltake VG4000BNS(Xaser VI), and roughly the same size as a Corsair Obsidian 800D.
The point is, the size of the Phantom 630 really isn't outrageous to anyone looking for a Full tower. It may be unworkable for some, but anyone who looks at its size and thinks ZOMG shouldn't be looking for a full tower in the first place. They would be better served by a Mid tower or smaller.
Subyman - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
I totally agree. The functionality looks great, but the design is not pleasing to me. I bought a Corsair 550D and love its understated looks (I also own a 800D.)JPForums - Monday, January 21, 2013 - link
I don't particularly hate the Phantom 630's aesthetics, but they aren't appealing to me either. Like you I am a fan of the 550D and 800D. Unfortunately I don't own the 800D (yet). The 550D will have to do for now (at least until I can sell of another case).frogger4 - Sunday, January 20, 2013 - link
I get the feeling this aesthetic is very subjective [I happen to really really like it!]. I have a previous generation Phantom, and very much like the look, but I think I fit the exact target audience they are going for.On that same note, I also very much like the side panel with fan and window. It may not be the fanciest look, but I design the inside to be something worth looking at, so I like being able to see it. Perhaps an option for either a closed side panel or a window side panel would be cool.